A Prayer for a Favor Recitation
1 2017-10-10T20:51:19+00:00 Stanford University Press af84c3e11fe030c51c61bbd190fa82a3a1a12824 1 1 Recitation by Yaḥyā al-Ḍāwī Belḥāf plain 2017-10-10T20:51:19+00:00 Stanford University Press af84c3e11fe030c51c61bbd190fa82a3a1a12824This page is referenced by:
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2017-10-10T20:51:19+00:00
A Prayer for a Favor
10
poem
plain
2020-03-23T22:33:52+00:00
Composed and recited by Yaḥyā al-Ḍāwī Belḥāf, recorded by Sam Liebhaber in Damḳawt, March 2004. Translated with help of Thābit Musallim Bakhīt Hashm Āmr Ǧīd in Ṣalālah, February 2012. Lines 8 and 9 were problematic.
This poem is apparently addressed to Sultan Qābūs of Oman and is an application for the sultan’s favor and generosity. Literally, the poem is addressed to a female camel (Ar. nāqa, Omani Ar. bōsh), which is often a metaphorical stand-in for the ṣāḥib al-jalāla (“His Excellency,” i.e., the sultan) in poetry due to the munificence of both. Note that this poem is indifferent to the constraint of monorhyme.
Poem Translation 1) sen heṣbaḥ ḫaṭf // w-hōfel ṣlīb They have become emaciated // with tight bellies 2) we-ḳlatsen medd // we-ǧhēm līrīḳ Their lips drooped // when they set forth to eat in the morning 3) we-mġōren flēš // nḥawleb enfīź And afterwards when it [the she-camel] disappeared // we milked a mirage 4) ʾēnāʾ ār ṭafṭayf // w-beh ṯeḳṯīḳ The rainclouds held back // though they were full of goodness 5) w-bād eḥyēl // lōbōd māṯīḳ Even though after many years // they had been trustworthy 6) yešzaḥyem lā // wet ber ḏe-nhīr They [the camels] never stray [though they are hungry] // even for a day 7) baḫta ḏ-lābōr // ṭar ḏ-mendəhīl Lucky is he who has crossed to the other side // atop a place full of blessings [good pasturage] 8) lābēris nṭift // ḏerḳāt ḏe-ṭwīb Her [the camel’s?] speech is clean // my(?) hope is that you are comfortable 9) w-kermərōm ḏyeh ṭlīb // w-ṯārōna ḏ-yertəyīḳ The noble ones [whose favor] is sought after // [even?] a pack of predators would be satisfied [by them] 10) w-bālī yerḥamh // we-fdōh men eźeyḳ My God have mercy on him // and keep discomfort far away 11) w-bād wēlēf // lādād swīḳ After everything that has happened // no one will reveal it. Poem Features
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