Mudahat Amthal Kalila wa Dimna
- Author died
- 400 AH
- Editions
- Mudahat Amthal Kalila wa Dimna
Mudahat Amthal Kalila wa Dimna (Arabic: مضاهاة أمثال كليلة ودمنة, lit. 'The Matching of the Proverbs of Kalila wa Dimna') is a work of literary comparison by the grammarian and man of letters Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-Yamani (d. 400 AH / 1009 CE) that aligns the proverbs and wisdom literature of Kalila wa Dimna with parallels from Arabic poetry.
Scope and Subject Matter
The book's full title is Kitāb Muḍāhāt amthāl Kitāb Kalīla wa-Dimna bi-mā ashbahahā min ashʻār al-ʻArab ("The Matching of the Proverbs of the Book of Kalila wa Dimna with Resembling Verses of Arabic Poetry"). It is also cited under the abridged title Muḍāhāt amthāl Kalīla wa-Dimna min ashʻār al-ʻArab.
The work examines the aphorisms, maxims, and moral lessons embedded across the animal fables of Kalila wa Dimna and pairs each concept with analogous poetic citations from the classical Arabic corpus, demonstrating how themes found in the translated prose fables correspond to the established motifs and wisdom of Arabic verse.
Author and Context
The author, Abu 'Abd Allah Muhammad ibn al-Husayn ibn 'Umar al-Yamani al-Tanukhi, was a grammarian and literary scholar. He journeyed through the Levant (al-Sham) before settling in Egypt, where he took up an official post at Dar al-Ilm in Cairo. According to the Egyptian tradition transmitted by Abu Ishaq al-Habbal, he died in Egypt in 400 AH (specifically on Friday, 19 Rabi' al-Akhir 400 AH / 1009 CE). In addition to Mudahat Amthal Kalila wa Dimna, al-Yamani composed a biographical history of grammarians (Akhbār al-nuḥāh wa-ṭabaqātuhum) and a treatise on superlative proverbs titled al-Ghāyāt.
Editions
Mudahat Amthal Kalila wa Dimna was edited by Muhammad Yusuf Najm and published in Beirut by Dar al-Thaqafa in 1961.
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