ʿUrwa ibn al-Ward عروة بن الورد
poet · Arabia · 6th century
A poet of Arabia before Islam. He is said to have gathered poor men cast out by their tribes, fed them and looked after them, and so was called “ʿUrwa of the vagabonds”.
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6th century · Said to be his answer to a well-fed man who mocked him. “Dividing my body” means sharing his own food among many people.
I am a man whose bowl is shared by many; you are a man whose bowl is for one. Do you mock me because you have grown fat, and see on my face the pallor of duty? Duty wears a man down. I divide my body among many bodies, and sip plain water, though the water is cold.
إني امرؤ عافي إنائي شركة
وأنت امرؤ عافي إنائك واحد
اتهزأ مني أن سمنت وأن ترى
بوجهي شحوب الحق، والحق جاهد
أقسم جسمي في جسوم كثيرة
وأحسو قراح الماء والماء باردA poem of ʿUrwa ibn al-Ward, known by its first line
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