As-salamu `alaykum wa rahmatullah,
Some selections from the Diwan of Imam al-Shafi’i:
إذا حارَ أمرُكَ في مَعْنَيَيْن *** ولم تدرِ فيما الخطا و الصواب
فخَالِفْ هَوَاكَ فإنَّ الهوَى *** يقودُ النفوسَ إلى ما يعاب
If you are caught in confusion between two matters,
And you don’t know what is right and what is wrong.
At that point, disobey your desires; for indeed desires,
Only lead the soul to what is blameworthy and wrong.
§-§
ما حك جلدك مثل ظفرك *** فتول أنت جميع أمـرك
وإذا قصـدت لـحاجـةٍ *** فاقصد لمعترفٍ بفضلك
Nothing can scratch your skin quite like your own nails,
So take care of all your affairs by yourself.
And if you must seek help for some of your needs,
Then seek out a person who knows well your virtue.
§-§
يريد المرء أن يعطى منـاه *** ويأبـى الله إلا مــا أرادا
يقول المرء فائدتي ومالـي *** وتقوى الله أفضل ما استفادا
A person wants to be given their lot of fate,
But Allah refuses it to be except what He wishes.
A person will say ‘My profits! My wealth!’
But the fear of Allah is the best of all profits.
§-§
كل العداوات قد ترجى مودتها *** إلا عداوة من عاداك من حسدِ
Every type of enmity can be turned into love,
Except the enmity of he who hates you out of envy.
§-§
ولا تعطين الرأي من لا يريده *** فلا أنت محمود ولا الرأي نافعه
Do not give your opinion to one who does not want it,
For neither are you praiseworthy, nor will the opinion benefit him.
§-§
لقد أصبحت نفسي تتوق إلى مصر *** ومن دونها أرض المهامه والقفر
فوالله لا أدري أللفوز والغنى *** أساق إليها أم أساق إلى القبر
My soul has come to yearn for Egypt,
And all other lands are lands of toil and emptiness.
By Allah I do not know; is it towards success and riches,
That I am being driven to, or is it my grave?
[Incredible lines of poetry, since Imam al-Shafi’i actually died in Egypt]
– Diwan al-Shafi’i
لقد أصبحت نفسي تتوق إلى مصر subhannAllah… as much as my soul is getting attached to Ardh al Shinqit… the yearning for Egypt can never be replaced.. may Allah protect missran wa ahlaah Missr.. jzk sis xxx
Interesting.
اخي لن تنال العلم الّا بستة ساُنبيك عن تفصيلها ببيان ذكاءوحرص و اجتهاد و بلغة و صحبة استاذ و طول زمان (للاِمام الشافعي)
assalam o alikum,,
beautiful collection fajr!
this is one that i read in my course book,, i dont know im allowed to add one here or not fajr 🙁
Salaam alaykum
Jazakillah sis
Does anyone know where imam shafi was buried?
what i have found ,, his qabr is said to be in Cairo.,,
correct me if anyone finds me wrong., bt iv read this in my book.
wasslam
BarakAllah feek ya Ukti for sharing it. So many amazing people have lived here in masr and made history in this beautiful country. Musa alhyhi salaam, Yusuf alhyi salaam , Ibn Taymiyah Rahimullah . Keep masr in your Dua’s insha’Allah. x
Assalamu Alaikum – I was wondering, why did he yearn for Egypt and say that other lands are filled with toil and emptiness? It’d be useful to know.
If you have more time, I’d also love to know if you know how we should view attachments (or lack of attachment, or even “love” and “hate” towards any nation, country or piece of land. Islamically we know places like Ash-shaam and Al Quds are blessed and important for Muslims, but aside from these, is it a problem or a good thing to love, hate or have any attachment or non attachment to a country of birth, or country of residence?
Wa `alaykumusalam wa rahmatullah,
Imam al-Shafi’i spent quite some time in Egypt, learning as well as teaching others as a scholar so it would’ve held a special place with him. Just like for many scholars, Baghdad was also a hot-spot for learning and teaching in those days so numerous scholars have passed through it even if they originally hailed from another land.
I don’t think there’s a clear-cut answer to your question on attachments, but of course, it’s absolutely natural for a person to have an attachment to the land they’ve grown up in, or lived in, or benefited from, etc. It’s not wrong for a person to ‘miss’ a certain land either and actually the scholars have said one of the greatest tests a person can endure in life is being exiled from their homeland due to the sorrow, grief and hardship that can bring (which is why it’s such a huge sin to drive someone out of their homeland).
There are of course guidelines and we have to use our common sense and caution when it comes to loving/hating anything. So the moment our emotions move towards patriotism, nationalism and other extreme expressions of one’s love for their background/country etc, it’s perhaps time to step back because this will take us back to the days of Jahiliyyah and arrogance.
T, al-Shafi’i is buried in Egypt.
JazakiAllahu khayran for your reply 🙂 Yes masha’Allah. I also wonder about many second-generation British or America Muslims (for example), who would not want to go back to their parents country of origin, and almost have a fear or huge dislike of doing so, due to the culture shock experienced when going there, and have a lack of attachment to that place. My apologies, I know the topic is slighty different to your post 🙂 I just have been curious about it. Totally can understand anyone’s love for a place if that place has given them religious knowledge which strengthens their eeman alhamdulillah, that makes perfect sense 🙂
jazakumallahu khair sis,shjr n fajr.
Barak Allah feeke, wa jazaki alf kheer
Asalam Alaikum,
Quick question. How long did you study arabic in Egypt and in general to be able to understand and comprehend poetry like this?
Wa `alaykumusalam,
I don’t know to be honest! Still have a lot to learn in terms of rich literature. But I’d say a few years is enough to put a person on the track and thereafter it’s just a lot of reading and practise, practise, practise.