Daily Archive: July 27, 2005

The role of the professionally trained poet was to defend the tribe’s honor, articulate its identity, and hold verbal duels with other tribes. The poet, or sha’ir, able to craft and perform verbal legerdemains...

The qasidah describes a rite of passage in which the poet leaves his familiar surroundings, encounters a host of dangers, and returns to his tribe, celebrating his membership in the community. The poem contains...