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The Sword vs. The Pen on Thu Sep 03, 2009 6:11 pm
الماس
طالبـــة ابـــن منظـــور
السلام عليكم
This is taken from an Arabic Poetry/Literature article that I found very interesting:
Written by: Abul-Fadl
The Sword Vs. The Pen
One of the literary forms of expression used by Arabic scholars is the debate. Its a form of art, where the author personifies two contrary things and has them debate over which is greater than the other. Examples: There has been debates between the moon and the sun, the land and the sky, the day and the night, etc.
Usually, from all the debates I've read, the author doesn't have one party win or clearly win. One debate of particular interest for us is the debate between the sword and pen by Zaynd ad-Deen 'Umar Bin al-Wardee who died 740 AH. He made a debate in which the sword and pen argued over which is more honorable and better.
The first time I read this debate was when the Mujaahid scholar Aboo Jandal al-Azdee (Fakk Allaahu Asrah) released it online with a few comments of his own at the end.
In the debate the sword mentions some of its values, such as it is the key to Paradise, Paradise is in its shade, the Prophet (Sall Allaahu 'Alayhi wa Sallam) never used a pen but used the sword, so his hand held a sword but not a pen. Etc.
The pen mentions things such as Allaah making an oath by the pen, teaching by the pen, it was the first thing created from this world then it was ordered to write all that would come to be, etc.
In the end, the author says that the debate ended with no conclusion and that Allaah would judge between them in the Hereafter. Aboo Jandal followed up by saying: "After this amazing emotional debate, I pondered over Islaamic history and realized that he who raises the pen without the sword is humiliated, and he who raises the sword without the pen is deviated. As for the one who raises them together, then he will be guided to his goal and reach it. Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah (Rahimahullaah) said, 'The religion is not established except by a book (the Revelation) to guide and sword to support.'"
You can read the debate in Arabic at this link:
http://www.almaqdese.com/r?i=1815
Now here are the opinions of two poets on this issue (although they were not intended to be part of the debate).
Aboo Tammaam at-Taa'ee, is a famous poet, considered a reviver by some, and heavily criticized for his emphasis on the beautification of poetry by filling it with imagery and figurative speech (but not like that of the anarchic poetry found in modern English). He is considered one of the best three poets, al-Mutanabbee being the best of the three. Anyway, he said, in one line of poetry:
السَّيْفُ أَصْدَقُ إنْبَاءً مِنَ الكُتُبِ * فِي حَدهِ الحَدُّ بَيْنَ الجِد واللَّعِبِ
This translates as:
"The sword is more truthful than books in conveying its message, by its blade, it sets the lines between seriousness and play."
Of course, in Arabic it sounds much more beautiful. Alot of scholars have quoted this line of poetry, including Hamood Bin 'Uqlaa' ash-Shu'aybee in one of his lectures.
Here's a set of lines of poetry by al-Mutanabbee on the same subject:
حَتَّى رَجَعتُ وأقلامي قَوائلُ لي * المَجْدُ لِلسيفِ لَيسَ المَجْدُ لِلقَلَمِ
أُكتُبْ بِنا أبَداً بَعدَ الكِتابِ بهِ * فإنَّما نَحنُ لِلأسيافِ كالخَدَم
They translate as:
"I returned, and my pens said to me: 'Honor is for the sword, not for the pen.
Write with us eternally after (writing with) the sword, for indeed we are to swords like servants.'"
He means by "write with the sword", make history with the sword then write it down with us after its been made. I recall reading some other lines by him where he said the pen was loftier and was capable of attaining honor that the sword can't. I can't remember now where I read them.
Another set of lines indicate the opposite attitude, that the pen is loftier. These are by my current favorite poet, Ibn ar-Roomee, who has absolutely no relationship with the heretic Soofee named ar-Roomee (Rumi). They both have ancestors from Rome, so they got that nickname, but they are unrelated. One is Ibn ar-Roomee, the other just plain Roomee.
Ibn ar-Roomee said:
إن يخدمُ القلمَ السيفُ الذي خضعت * له الرقابُ ودانت خوفه الأممُ
فالموتُ والموتُ لا شيء يغالبه * ما زال يتبعُ ما يجري به القلمُ
كذا قضى الله للأقلام مذ ْ بريت * أن السيوف لها مذ أرْهفت خدمُ
It translates as:
"If the pen serves the sword as is claimed,
For which nations' throats submitted out of fear.
Then death - death is not defeated by a thing,
It continues to follow what the Pen has written.
Thus Allaah decreed for pens, since they were sharpened,
That the swords be their servants since their sharpening."
"To follow what the Pen has written" he is referring to the pen that Allaah created ordering it to write all that would occur, including the deaths of each and every individual. So he believes the pen is loftier than the sword, since the sword can bring death about only due to it being written by the Pen in the Preserved Tablet.
The first time he uses the word sharpen, it is referring to fining the pens' tips. The second time, he is referring to sharpening the swords' blades. The two words are different in Arabic.
Abul-Fadl (me): I pondered over this issue after reading the debate and these lines of poetry. I have my personal conclusion that the pen is greater than the sword, or loftier. These are some reasons:
The sword said that the Prophet held it, but Allaah wrote the tablets that were revealed to Moosaa with His own hand, as mentioned in a Hadeeth. Thats one point. Also, every single Prophet ever sent to mankind was sent with a pen (I mean knowledge in the form of revelation or a book) but no Prophet was sent with a sword independent of the pen. Lastly, a Muslim can be a Muslim with the knowledge preserved by the pen even if he is never given a sword, but without the pen he will likely deviate to the religion of Jaahiliyyah or be extremely misguided by the devils. Of course, this does not mean that the pen is complete without the sword or needless of it. Rather it needs the sword to perfect its ability to propagate and preserve its message. This is my opinion, and Allaah knows best.
In our time, the sword has been abandoned by the scholars and the masses, so a return to it is definitely needed.
Side story: During the weakening of the Umayyid Khilaafah, and the revolution of the 'Abbasids, one of the famous eloquent writers and representatives of the Umayyids sent a letter to the Abbasids. His name was 'Abdul-Hameed Bin Yahyaa. The letter was so eloquent, it was meant to cause chaos amongst the Abbasids. It was so long, that it was carried on a camel's back to them. When the letter reached one of their authorities, Aboo Muslim al-Khurasaanee, he ordered it burnt, without even reading it. He then wrote a line of poetry on a paper and sent it back to Marwaan, the head of the Umayyids. It said:
محا السّيف أسطارَ البلاغةِ وانتحى * عليك ليوثُ الغاب من كلّ جانب
Which translates as:
"The sword erased the lines of eloquence and, the lions of the jungle have surrounded you from all sides."
مع السلامة
This is taken from an Arabic Poetry/Literature article that I found very interesting:
Written by: Abul-Fadl
The Sword Vs. The Pen
One of the literary forms of expression used by Arabic scholars is the debate. Its a form of art, where the author personifies two contrary things and has them debate over which is greater than the other. Examples: There has been debates between the moon and the sun, the land and the sky, the day and the night, etc.
Usually, from all the debates I've read, the author doesn't have one party win or clearly win. One debate of particular interest for us is the debate between the sword and pen by Zaynd ad-Deen 'Umar Bin al-Wardee who died 740 AH. He made a debate in which the sword and pen argued over which is more honorable and better.
The first time I read this debate was when the Mujaahid scholar Aboo Jandal al-Azdee (Fakk Allaahu Asrah) released it online with a few comments of his own at the end.
In the debate the sword mentions some of its values, such as it is the key to Paradise, Paradise is in its shade, the Prophet (Sall Allaahu 'Alayhi wa Sallam) never used a pen but used the sword, so his hand held a sword but not a pen. Etc.
The pen mentions things such as Allaah making an oath by the pen, teaching by the pen, it was the first thing created from this world then it was ordered to write all that would come to be, etc.
In the end, the author says that the debate ended with no conclusion and that Allaah would judge between them in the Hereafter. Aboo Jandal followed up by saying: "After this amazing emotional debate, I pondered over Islaamic history and realized that he who raises the pen without the sword is humiliated, and he who raises the sword without the pen is deviated. As for the one who raises them together, then he will be guided to his goal and reach it. Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah (Rahimahullaah) said, 'The religion is not established except by a book (the Revelation) to guide and sword to support.'"
You can read the debate in Arabic at this link:
http://www.almaqdese.com/r?i=1815
Now here are the opinions of two poets on this issue (although they were not intended to be part of the debate).
Aboo Tammaam at-Taa'ee, is a famous poet, considered a reviver by some, and heavily criticized for his emphasis on the beautification of poetry by filling it with imagery and figurative speech (but not like that of the anarchic poetry found in modern English). He is considered one of the best three poets, al-Mutanabbee being the best of the three. Anyway, he said, in one line of poetry:
السَّيْفُ أَصْدَقُ إنْبَاءً مِنَ الكُتُبِ * فِي حَدهِ الحَدُّ بَيْنَ الجِد واللَّعِبِ
This translates as:
"The sword is more truthful than books in conveying its message, by its blade, it sets the lines between seriousness and play."
Of course, in Arabic it sounds much more beautiful. Alot of scholars have quoted this line of poetry, including Hamood Bin 'Uqlaa' ash-Shu'aybee in one of his lectures.
Here's a set of lines of poetry by al-Mutanabbee on the same subject:
حَتَّى رَجَعتُ وأقلامي قَوائلُ لي * المَجْدُ لِلسيفِ لَيسَ المَجْدُ لِلقَلَمِ
أُكتُبْ بِنا أبَداً بَعدَ الكِتابِ بهِ * فإنَّما نَحنُ لِلأسيافِ كالخَدَم
They translate as:
"I returned, and my pens said to me: 'Honor is for the sword, not for the pen.
Write with us eternally after (writing with) the sword, for indeed we are to swords like servants.'"
He means by "write with the sword", make history with the sword then write it down with us after its been made. I recall reading some other lines by him where he said the pen was loftier and was capable of attaining honor that the sword can't. I can't remember now where I read them.
Another set of lines indicate the opposite attitude, that the pen is loftier. These are by my current favorite poet, Ibn ar-Roomee, who has absolutely no relationship with the heretic Soofee named ar-Roomee (Rumi). They both have ancestors from Rome, so they got that nickname, but they are unrelated. One is Ibn ar-Roomee, the other just plain Roomee.
Ibn ar-Roomee said:
إن يخدمُ القلمَ السيفُ الذي خضعت * له الرقابُ ودانت خوفه الأممُ
فالموتُ والموتُ لا شيء يغالبه * ما زال يتبعُ ما يجري به القلمُ
كذا قضى الله للأقلام مذ ْ بريت * أن السيوف لها مذ أرْهفت خدمُ
It translates as:
"If the pen serves the sword as is claimed,
For which nations' throats submitted out of fear.
Then death - death is not defeated by a thing,
It continues to follow what the Pen has written.
Thus Allaah decreed for pens, since they were sharpened,
That the swords be their servants since their sharpening."
"To follow what the Pen has written" he is referring to the pen that Allaah created ordering it to write all that would occur, including the deaths of each and every individual. So he believes the pen is loftier than the sword, since the sword can bring death about only due to it being written by the Pen in the Preserved Tablet.
The first time he uses the word sharpen, it is referring to fining the pens' tips. The second time, he is referring to sharpening the swords' blades. The two words are different in Arabic.
Abul-Fadl (me): I pondered over this issue after reading the debate and these lines of poetry. I have my personal conclusion that the pen is greater than the sword, or loftier. These are some reasons:
The sword said that the Prophet held it, but Allaah wrote the tablets that were revealed to Moosaa with His own hand, as mentioned in a Hadeeth. Thats one point. Also, every single Prophet ever sent to mankind was sent with a pen (I mean knowledge in the form of revelation or a book) but no Prophet was sent with a sword independent of the pen. Lastly, a Muslim can be a Muslim with the knowledge preserved by the pen even if he is never given a sword, but without the pen he will likely deviate to the religion of Jaahiliyyah or be extremely misguided by the devils. Of course, this does not mean that the pen is complete without the sword or needless of it. Rather it needs the sword to perfect its ability to propagate and preserve its message. This is my opinion, and Allaah knows best.
In our time, the sword has been abandoned by the scholars and the masses, so a return to it is definitely needed.
Side story: During the weakening of the Umayyid Khilaafah, and the revolution of the 'Abbasids, one of the famous eloquent writers and representatives of the Umayyids sent a letter to the Abbasids. His name was 'Abdul-Hameed Bin Yahyaa. The letter was so eloquent, it was meant to cause chaos amongst the Abbasids. It was so long, that it was carried on a camel's back to them. When the letter reached one of their authorities, Aboo Muslim al-Khurasaanee, he ordered it burnt, without even reading it. He then wrote a line of poetry on a paper and sent it back to Marwaan, the head of the Umayyids. It said:
محا السّيف أسطارَ البلاغةِ وانتحى * عليك ليوثُ الغاب من كلّ جانب
Which translates as:
"The sword erased the lines of eloquence and, the lions of the jungle have surrounded you from all sides."
مع السلامة
