Nadrat al-Igrid fi Nusrat al-Qarid
- Author died
- 656 AH
- Editions
- Nadrat al-Igrid fi Nusrat al-Qarid
Nadrat al-Igrid fi Nusrat al-Qarid (The Freshness of the Spathe in Defense of Metrical Poetry) is a 7th-century AH treatise on the craft and merits of Arabic poetry by the Iraqi literary scholar and poet Abu Ali al-Muzaffar ibn al-Fadl al-Alawi (584–656 AH / 1188–1258 CE) .
Composition and Purpose
The work was composed for the Abbasid vizier Mu'ayyad al-Din Muhammad ibn al-Alqami . The impetus for its composition arose during a gathering in Ibn al-Alqami's salon where a debate took place regarding the standing and nature of poetry; differing opinions emerged, prompting the vizier to commission al-Alawi to write a dedicated work clarifying the definitions, boundaries, and merits of the poetic craft . Al-Alawi completed the text at the end of Jumada al-Akhira 642 AH (November 1244 CE) .
The book begins with an elaborate rhymed prose sermon praising God and offering blessings upon the Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions, followed by a formal dedication and encomium to Ibn al-Alqami .
Structure and Content
As indicated by its title, the treatise is primarily an apologetic work and guide designed to defend and celebrate Arabic poetry . The author organized the text into five main chapters (fusul) :
- The description of poetry and poets: detailing its definitions, classifications, rulings, and states .
- Poetic license and constraints: examining what is permissible for the poet to employ in verse and what is prohibited .
- The virtues and benefits of poetry: addressing its psychological impact on listeners and the contexts in which it is effective .
- Praise and censure of verse: assessing the arguments advanced for and against composing poetry, and weighing whether practicing it is preferable to setting it aside .
- Guidelines for the practicing poet: outlining what a composer must seek out, adhere to, avoid, and cast aside in stylistic execution .
In its treatment of poetic craft and theory, the work has been compared to earlier foundational manuals such as Kitab al-Umda by Ibn Rashiq al-Qayrawani .
Sources
Al-Alawi incorporated transmissions and literary critiques from earlier scholars. Among his sources was the grammarian Hibat Allah ibn al-Shajari, from whom he relayed statements via al-Ghaznawi regarding Abu al-Ala al-Ma'arri's assessments of poetic quality, alongside multiple unnamed borrowings corresponding directly to Ibn al-Shajari's dictations (Amali) .
Manuscripts and Publication
Manuscript copies of the work are preserved in several international collections, including the National Library of Austria in Vienna, the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris, the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, the Egyptian National Library (Dar al-Kutub) in Cairo, the Ahmadiyya Library at the Zitouna Mosque in Tunis, and the General Library in Rabat .
The work was edited by Nuha Arif al-Hasan and published in Damascus by the Arab Academy of Damascus in 1396 AH / 1976 CE .
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