Ibn Sahl of Seville

Ibn Sahl of Seville

Ibn Sahl (Arabic: أبو إسحاق إبرهيم بن سهل الإسرائيلي الإشبيلي Abu Ishaq Ibrahim Ibn Sahl al-Isra'ili al-Ishbili) of Seville (1212-1251) is considered one of the greatest Moorish poets of Andalusia of the 13th century.

Ibn Sahl was born in 1212-3 in a Jewish family in Seville. Already in 1127 he drew some attention to himself by suggesting of adding a sentence to a poem made by renowned poet. Despite his Jewish family background Ibn Sahl was a devout Muslim. His diwan (collected works) are a testimony to his deep felt religious feelings. Some have criticized Ibn Sahl because he drank wine. The sincerity of his conversion (probably very early in his life), however, was never questioned.

When Seville came into the hands of Ferdinand III of Castile in 1248, Ibn Sahl left for Ceuta, where he became the secretary of the Almoravid governor Abu Ali Ibn Khallas. When Ibn Khallas sent his son to al-Mustanir I, the caliph of the Hafsids of Ifriqiya, he decided to send Ibn Sahl with him. The galley with which they travelled was shipwrecked and all the passengers perished.The governor is to have said about Ibn: "The pearl is returned to the sea."

The diwan of Ibn Sahl contains the most refined examples of Andalusian poetry, almost exclusively love poetry and muwashsahat.

The Moroccan author Mohammed al-Ifrani (1670-1747) wrote a biography of Ibn Sahl.

An example of a love poem by Ibn Sahl

O full moons that arose on the day of departure,

bright, going forth on peril’s path:

My heart bears no sin in loving; instead

from you comes beauty; from my eye, the glance.

I rejoice though wounded by passion;

mutuality with my beloved is only imaginary.

Whenever I complain of my passion to him, he smiles

like the hills at the pouring cloud,

When it brings rain to them, like a funeral,

while they, in their joy, are a wedding celebration.

Does the protected fawn know he inflamed

the heart of a lover in which he dwelt,

So that it burns and throbs just like

the firebrand teased by the east wind?

References

*Arie Schippers "Humorous approach of the divine in the poetry of Al-Andalous, the case of Ibn Sahl" In: Gert Borg, Ed de Moor (ed.) "Representations of the Divine in Arabic Poetry", Amsterdam, Atlanta 2001 ISBN 9042015748


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ibn Sahl de Seville — Ibn Sahl de Séville (en arabe: أبو إسحاق إبرهيم بن سهل الإسرائيلي الإشبيلي Abu Ishaq Ibrahim Ibn Sahl al Isra ili al Ishbili)(1212 1251) est considéré comme l un des plus grands poètes de l Andalousie mauresque du XIIIe siècle. Il était un… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • IBN SAHL, ABU ISḤĀQ IBRĀHĪM — (d. c. 1259/60), poet. He converted to islam during the almohad persecution, but reconverted to Judaism after the Christian conquest of Seville in 1248. Part of his biography is to be found in al Maqqarī (tr. by P. de Gayangos, 1 (1840), 158ff.) …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • IBRAHIM IBN SAHL AL-ANDALUSĪ AL-ISRA — IBRAHIM IBN SAHL AL ANDALUSĪ AL ISRAʾILI (Abū Isḥāq; 1208–1260?), poet and author of Judeo Spanish origin. Born in Seville, Spain, Ibrahim ibn Sahl won recognition in his youth for his outstanding poetic talent. He traveled to North Africa, where …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Sahl ibn Bishr — al Israili, often known as Zahel or Zael (c. 786 845 ?) was a Jewish astrologer, astronomer and mathematician from Tabaristan. He was the father of Ali ibn Sahl the famous scientist and physician, who became a convert to Islam. His works Sahl… …   Wikipedia

  • Ibn Zuhr — Abū Merwān ’Abdal Malik ibn Zuhr ( ar. أبو مروان عبد الملك بن زهر) (also known as Ibn Zuhr, Avenzoar, Abumeron or Ibn Zohr) (1091 ndash;1161) was an Arab Muslim physician, pharmacist, surgeon, parasitologist, Islamic scholar, and teacher.… …   Wikipedia

  • Ibn Nagrella — Samuel ibn Nagrela …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Qusta ibn Luqa — (820–912) (Costa ben Luca, Constabulus)[1] was a Melkite physician, scientist and translator, of Byzantine Greek extraction. He was born in Baalbek. Travelling to parts of the Byzantine Empire, he brought back Greek texts and translated them into …   Wikipedia

  • Masha'allah ibn Atharî — Masha allah ibn Atharī ou Mâshâ allâh, Mashallah (vers 740 815) fut un juif persan astrologue et astronome de la ville de Basra, qui fut le principal astrologue du VIII° siècle[1]. Son nom en latin est Messala, Messalah, Messahalla. Sur la Lune,… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Samuel Ibn Nagdela — Samuel ibn Nagrela …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Samuel ibn Nagdela — Samuel ibn Nagrela …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”