The Abodes of the Caliphate and the Caliph of the Abodes: ʻAbd Allāh ibn al-Muʻtazz’s Political Vision Through His Poetry

Alajmi, Hamad; Alazemi, Faleh Ali

doi:10.21608/jssa.2021.53586.1224

The Abodes of the Caliphate and the Caliph of the Abodes: ʻAbd Allāh ibn al-Muʻtazz’s Political Vision Through His Poetry

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Hamad Alajmi ¹
Faleh Ali Alazemi ²

¹ Arabic Language and Literature, college of Art, Kuwait University.

² A member of the Kuwaiti Writers Association, Kuwait

10.21608/jssa.2021.53586.1224

Abstract

This paper discusses the symbolic connotations of the abandoned abodes, Aṭlāl, in ʻAbd Allāh ibn al-Muʻtazz’s poetry. Throughout his Dīwān (i.e., collection of poetry), the motif of Aṭlāl is strikingly apparent in its recurrence and distinctiveness. Therefore, by decoding the symbolic connotation that the motif of Aṭlāl carries, we can understand Ibn al-Muʻtazz’s political vision. We believe that the motif of Aṭlāl shows Ibn al-Muʻtazz’s larger concern, namely mending the vulnerable Abbasid caliphate. Moreover, this paper attempts to track the connections between the motif of Aṭlāl and the motifs following the Aṭlāl. For a better understanding, we focus mainly on one poem and use other, related poems from Ibn al-Muʻtazz’s Dīwān to provide a poetical context. We conclude that almost every poem in Ibn al-Muʻtazz’s Dīwān starts with the motif of Aṭlāl contains three basic elements: the Aṭlāl, which symbolizes the Abbasid caliphate; the motif of fakhr (i.e., the poet boasting about himself and his Abbasid ancestors), which reflects the poet’s desire to regain the lost caliphate; and his enemies, which reflect his desire to take revenge on the enemies of the Abbasid dynasty.
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