Tawq al-Hamama li al-Suyuti
- Author died
- 911 AH
- Editions
- Tawq al-Hamama li al-Suyuti
Tawq al-Hamama (The Dove’s Neck-Ring) is a specialized treatise by the Egyptian scholar Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (849–911 AH / 1445–1505 CE) that examines pigeons and doves from the perspectives of Arabic lexicography, Islamic jurisprudence, Prophetic hadith, history, and adab literature.
Scope and Contents
The work brings together juridical rulings, hadith transmissions, natural observations, and literary selections concerning pigeons and doves (al-hamam):
- Linguistic Definition and Natural Characteristics: The book opens with an introduction defining the term hamam in Arabic lexicography, the distinction between it and yamam (wild versus domestic collared birds), and the proverbs associated with it, citing philologists such as al-Jawhari, al-Asma'i, al-Azhari (quoting al-Shafi'i), Abu Hatim al-Sijistani, and Ibn Qutayba. It also notes their mating habits, homing instincts, and nesting traits, drawing on al-Damiri and Ibn Qutayba's 'Uyun al-Akhbar.
- Hadith on Keeping Pigeons: In the first issue (al-mas'ala al-ula), al-Suyuti investigates the hadith in which a man complained of loneliness and the Prophet ﷺ reportedly told him: اتخذ زوجا من حمام ("Keep a pair of pigeons"), surveying its various transmission chains in al-Tabarani's al-Mu'jam al-Kabir, Ibn al-Sunni's 'Amal al-Yawm wa-l-Layla, and al-Khatib al-Baghdadi's Tarikh Baghdad, along with related corroborating narrations.
- Caging and Keeping in Captivity: The second issue examines the legal ruling on keeping birds in cages (fi habsihi fi al-aqfas), citing the views of Shafi'i jurists such as Abu al-Abbas ibn al-Qass, al-Qaffal, and al-Zarkashi who permitted it provided the bird is fed and cared for, contrasting it with the prohibition voiced by the Hanbali scholar Ibn Aqil.
- Flying Pigeons for Sport: The third issue discusses playing with and chasing pigeons (al-la'ib bihi). While some permitted it because of the bird's utility in transmitting dispatches in wartime, the author cites the majority view that it is disliked (makruh), citing the hadith where the Prophet ﷺ saw a man pursuing a dove and stated: شيطان يتبع شيطانة ("A devil following a female devil"), as well as narrations involving caliphs such as Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, al-Mahdi, and Harun al-Rashid.
- The Doves of the Cave and Bird Praises: The fourth issue details the traditional account of the two wild doves that nested at the entrance of the Cave of Thawr during the Prophet's emigration (Hijra) to protect him from the Quraysh, as recorded by Ibn Sa'd, Abu Nu'aym, and al-Bayhaqi, as well as traditions describing the glorification (tasbih) of various birds.
Carrier Pigeons and Literary Selections
The latter portion of the treatise is devoted to the history and literary depictions of carrier pigeons (al-hamam al-rasa'ili / hamam al-bitaqa). al-Suyuti cites Ibn Kathir's historical account of how Sultan Nur al-Din Zangi established a postal pigeon network across his realm in 567 AH, the Abbasid caliph al-Nasir li-Din Allah's meticulous registry of carrier pigeon lineages in 591 AH, and excerpts from Muhyi al-Din Ibn Abd al-Zahir's specialized treatise Tama'im al-Hamam outlining the designated release points around Cairo (such as Munyat 'Uqba for Alexandria, Masjid al-Tin for al-Sharqiyya, and Bassus for Damietta).
The text concludes with ornate rhymed prose and poetic selections celebrating pigeons and their varied plumage (red, yellow, white, and piebald), quoting prose stylists such as al-Qadi al-Fadil, Ibn al-Wardi, and Abu al-Ala al-Ma'arri, alongside verses by poets including al-Farazdaq, al-Mutanabbi, Ibn Harma, and al-Sharif al-Musawi.
Transmission and Publication
The surviving manuscript copy of the treatise was transcribed by the calligrapher Muhammad Abu al-Inayn 'Atiyya at the expense of the Egyptian scholar and bibliophile Ahmad Taymur Pasha. It has been published in a modern edition edited by Mustafa Abd al-Qadir 'Ata, bound alongside another of al-Suyuti's epistles, Wusul al-Amani bi-Usul al-Tahani.
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