The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night Volume X Part 15

the trochaic counterpart of the preceding metre

= - U - - | - U - - | - U - - |

D. Dairat al-Mushtabih, circle of "the intricate" metre, so called from its intricate nature, primary mingling with secondary feet, and one foot of the same verse containing a Watad majmu', another a Watad mafruk, i.e. the iambic rhythm alternating with the trochaic and vice versa. Its Buhur are:

1. Al-Sari', twice

Mustaf.'ilun Mustaf.'ilun Maf'u.latu (ii. 6 and 9) = - - U - | - - U - | - - - U |

2. Al-Munsarih, twice

Mustaf.'ilun Mafu.latu Mustaf.'ilun (ii. 6. 9. 6) = - - U - | - - - U | - - U - |

3. Al-Khafif, twice

Fa.'ilatun Mustaf'i.lun Fa.'ilatun (ii. 7.10.7) = - U - - | - - U - | - U - - |

4. Al-Muzari', twice

Mafa.'ilun Fa'i.latun Mafa.'ilun (ii. 2.4.2) = U - - - | - U - - | U - - - |

5. Al-Muktazib, twice

Maf'u.latu Mustaf.'ilun Maf'u.latu (ii. 9.6.9) = - - - U | - - U - | - - - U |

6. Al-Mujta.s.s, twice

Mustaf'i.lun Fa.'ilatun Mustaf' i.lun (ii. 10.7.10) = - - U - | - U - - | - - U - |

E. Dairat al-Muttafik, circle of "the concordant" metre, so called for the same reason why circle B is called "the agreeing,"

i.e. because the feet all harmonise in length, being here, however, quinqueliteral, not seven-lettered as in the Matalif.

Al-Khalil the inventor of the ''Ilm al-'Aruz, a.s.signs to it only one metre:

1. Al-Mutakarib, twice

Fa'ulun Fa'ulun Fa'ulun Fa'ulun (ii. 1) = U - - | U - - | U - - |

Later Prosodists added:

2. Al-Mutadarak, twice

Fa'ilun Fa'ilun Fa'ilun Fa'ilun (ii. 5) = - U - | - U - | - U - |

The feet and metres as given above are, however, to a certain extent merely theoretical; in practice the former admit of numerous licenses and the latter of variations brought about by modification or partial suppression of the feet final in a verse.

An Arabic poem (Kasidah, or if numbering less than ten couplets, Kat'ah) consists of Bayts or couplets, bound together by a continuous rhyme, which connects the first two lines and is repeated at the end of every second line throughout the poem. The last foot of every odd line is called 'Aruz (fem. in contradistinction of Aruz in the sense of Prosody which is masc.), pl. A'airiz, that of every even line is called Zarb, pl.

Azrub, and the remaining feet may be termed Hashw (stuffing), although in stricter parlance a further distinction is made between the first foot of every odd and even line as well.

Now with regard to the Hashw on the one hand, and the 'Aruz and Zarb on the other, the changes which the normal feet undergo are of two kinds: Zuhaf (deviation) and 'Illah (defect). Zuhaf applies, as a rule, occasionally and optionally to the second letter of a Sabab in those feet which compose the Hashw or body- part of a verse, making a long syllable short by suppressing its quiescent final, or contracting two short quant.i.ties in a long one, by rendering quiescent a moved letter which stands second in a Sabab sakil. In Mustaf'ilun (ii. 6. = - - U -), for instance, the s of the first syllable, or the f of the second, or both may be dropped and it will become accordingly Mutaf'ilun, by subst.i.tution Mafa'ilun (U - U -), or Musta'ilun, by subst.i.tution, Mufta'ilun (- U U -), or Muta'ilun, by subst.i.tution Fa'ilatun (U U U -).[FN#454] This means that wherever the foot Mustaf.'ilun occurs in the Hashw of a poem, we can represent it by the scheme U U U - i.e. the Epitritus tertius can, by poetical licence, change into Diiambus, Choriambus or Paeon quartus. In Mufa'alatun (ii. 3. = U - U U -) and Mutafa'ilun (ii. 8. = U U - U -), again, the Sabab 'ala and mute may become khafif by suppression of their final Harakah and thus turn into Mufa'altun, by subst.i.tution Mafa'ilun (ii. 2. = U - - -), and Mutfa'ilun, by subst.i.tution Mustaf'ilun (ii 6.= - - U U as above). In other words the two feet correspond to the schemes U_U-U_ and U-U-U-, where a Spondee can take the place of the Anapaest after or before the Iambus respectively.

'Illah, the second way of modifying the primitive or normal feet, applies to both Sabab and Watad, but only in the 'Aruz and Zarb of a couplet, being at the same time constant and obligatory.

Besides the changes already mentioned, it consists in adding one or two letters to a Sabab or Watad, or curtailing them more or less, even to cutting them off altogether. We cannot here exhaust this matter any more than those touched upon until now, but must be satisfied with an example or two, to show the proceeding in general and indicate its object.

We have seen that the metre Basit consists of the two lines:

Mustaf.'ilun Fa.'ilun Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun.

This complete form, however, is not in use amongst Arab poets. If by the Zuhaf Khabn, here acting as 'Illah, the Alif in the final Fa'ilun is suppressed, changing it into Fa'ilun (U U -), it becomes the first 'Aruz, called makhbunah, of the Basit, the first Zarb of which is obtained by submitting the final Fa'ilun of the second line to the same process. A second Zarb results, if in Fa'ilun the final n of the 'Watad 'ilun is cut off and the preceding l made quiescent by the 'Illah Kat' thus giving Fa'il and by subst.i.tution Fa'lun (- -). Thus the formula becomes:--

Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun Mustaf'ilun{Fa'ilun {Fa'lun

As in the Hashw, i.e. the first three feet of each line, the Khabn can likewise be applied to the medial Fa'ilun, and for Mustaf'ilun the poetical licences, explained above, may be introduced, this first 'Aruz or Cla.s.s of the Basit with its two Zarb or subdivisions will be represented by the scheme

U U | U | U U | - - U - | - U - | - - U U | U U -

U U | U { U U - - - U - | - U - { - -

that is to say in the first subdivision of this form of the Basit both lines of each couplet end with an Anapaest and every second line of the other subdivision terminates in a Spondee.

The Basit has four more A'ariz, three called majzuah, because each line is shortened by a Juz or foot, one called mashturah (halved), because the number of feet is reduced from four to two, and we may here notice that the former kind of lessening the number of feet is frequent with the hexametrical circles (B. C.

D.), while the latter kind can naturally only occur in those circles whose couplet forms an octameter (A. E.). Besides being majzuah, the second 'Aruz is sahihah (perfect) consisting of the normal foot Mustaf'ilun. It has three Azrub: 1. Mustaf'ilan (- - U -?, with an overlong final syllable, see supra p. 238), produced by the 'Illah Tazyil, i.e. addition of a quiescent letter at the end (Mustaf'ilunn, by subst.i.tution Mustaf'ilan); 2.

Mustaf'ilun, like the 'Aruz; 3. Maf'ulun (- - -), produced by the 'Illah Kat' (see the preceding page; Mustaf'ilun, by dropping the final n and making the l quiescent becomes Mustaf'il and by subst.i.tution Maf'ulun). Hence the formula is:

Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun Mustaf'ilun { Mustaf'il n Mustaf'ilun Fa'ilun{ Mustaf'ilun { Maf'uulun,

which, with its allowable licenses, may be represented by the scheme:

U U | U | - - U - | - U - | - - U -

{ U U U U | U { - - U - - - U - | - U - { - - U - { U { - - -

The above will suffice to ill.u.s.trate the general method of the Prosodists, and we must refer the reader for the remaining cla.s.ses and subdivisions of the Basit as well as the other metres to more special treatises on the subject, to which this Essay is intended merely as an introduction, with a view to facilitate the first steps of the student in an important, but I fear somewhat neglected, field of Arabic learning.

If we now turn to the poetical pieces contained in The Nights, we find that out of the fifteen metres, known to al-Khalil, or the sixteen of later Prosodists, instances of thirteen occur in the Mac. N. edition, but in vastly different proportions. The total number amounts to 1,385 pieces (some, however, repeated several times), out of which 1,128 belong to the first two circles, leaving only 257 for the remaining three. The same disproportionality obtains with regard to the metres of each circle. The Mukhtalif is represented by 331 instances of Tawil and 330 of Basit against 3 of Madid; the Mutalif by 321 instances of Kamil against 143 of Wafir; the Mujtalab by 32 instances of Ramal and 30 of Rajaz against 1 of Hazaj; the Mushtabih by 72 instances of Khafif and 52 of Sari' against 18 of Munsarih and 15 of Mujta.s.s; and lastly the Muttafik by 37 instances of Mutakarib.

Neither the Mutadarak (E. 2), nor the Muzari' and Muktazib (D.

4.5) are met with.

Finally it remains for me to quote a couplet of each metre, showing how to scan them, and what relation they bear to the theoretical formulas exhibited on p. 242 to p. 247.

It is characteristic for the preponderance of the Tawil over all the other metres, that the first four lines, with which my alphabetical list begins, are written in it. One of these belongs to a poem which has for its author Baha al-Din Zuhayr (born A.D.

1186 at Mekkah or in its vicinity, ob. 1249 at Cairo), and is to be found in full in Professor Palmer's edition of his works, p.

164. Sir Richard Burton translates the first Bayt (vol. i. 290):

An I quit Cairo and her pleasances * Where can I hope to find so gladsome ways?

Professor Palmer renders it:

Must I leave Egypt where such joys abound?