Context: Where, When, Why?

The work itself was written by a Muslim poet who died around 649 CE, Abu Dhu’ayb al-Hudhali (G.E. von Grunebaum), n.d.). He was originally from the Hejaz region of the Arabian peninsula, but migrated to Egypt along with many other Muslims after the land was conquered in 641 CE by the Muslim caliphate (Hussein 2021). In other words, evidence suggests that al-Hudhali lived contemporary to the Prophet Muhammad, eventually accepting Islam with his tribe in 630 CE, moving to Medina in the summer of 632 CE, and later emigrating to Egypt where his all five of his sons died of plague in 641 CE (Hussein 2021). Then, in 647 CE, he himself participated in a military campaign deeper into Northern Africa, which succeeded; however, he passed away while on his way back to Medina to deliver the news of victory.

During his expedition further into North Africa, he had engaged with many prominent companions of the Prophet Muhammad. Among these prominent companions was Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr who was renowned for his prowess on the battlefield and would later form a counter-caliphate in protest against what he perceived as an unjust transfer of power to the Ummayads (Lucas 2013). Abu Dhu’ayb was personally dispatched by the Caliph Uthman ibn Affan, one of the closest companions of the Prophet: he was the third of the righteous caliphs, had married two of the Prophet’s daughters during his lifetime, and was later assassinated by renegades, which would ultimately spark a devastating civil war (Lucas 2013). All this to say, Abu Dhu’ayb lived during a crucial point in Islamic history: the revered companions, who solidified Islamic understanding based on the Qur’an and the narrations of the Prophet, were yet alive. Furthermore, he lived during a time in which Islamic territory was expanding rapidly into North Africa and Central Asia. As life-changing messages and teachings spread, so did diseases and epidemic illnesses.  

Although the plague implicitly referred to in the poem cannot entirely be identified using historical sources, it is likely referring to the Plague of Amwas – which appears to be a bubonic plague that reoccurred in Amwas, Palestine, after the Plague of Justinian. This plague serves the crucial role of providing the inspiration for the poet to compose this elegy (Hussein 2021). The death of his five sons because of the plague is a terribly emotional and defeating event. It is in this affectional context – for the purpose of commemorating his sons while expressing his grief and perseverance – that this elegy was composed.

As a Mukhadram poet – a poet in the transition period from Jahili poetry to Islamic poetry – Abu Dhu’ayb provides insight into the Mu’allaqat. The mu’allaqat, meaning “the hanged,” refers to seven canonical Arabic qasidas (odes) that are understood to be the epitome of pure Arabic eloquence. The seven poets–only one of which lived during the time of the Prophet and converted to Islam–include Imruʾ al-Qays, Ṭarafah ibn al-ʿAbd, Zuhair ibn Abi Sulma, Labīd ibn Rabīʿah, ʿAmr ibn Kulthūm, ʿAntarah ibn Shaddād, and Ḥārith ibn Ḥillizah al-Yashkuri (Imruʾ al-Qays et al. 1820). These poems have lived on, and continue to be sung today; yet, during the time of Abu Dhu’ayb, any Arab would have known these by heart or at least had some general knowledge of them. Several features of the mu’allaqat are in fact visible in Abu Dhu’ayb’s ayniyyah, such as beginning the poem with a mention of a woman who was likely a lover of the poet (“qalat umaymah” or “Umaymah said”).

I will use additional items and objects to weave together a more cohesive context.