Poetic Verses Encouraging the Pursuit of Knowledge
As beautifully expressed by the poet Jamil Sidqi al-Zahawi:
Urge the pursuit of knowledge, O people, for it is an obligation.
Can a nation truly thrive
While neglecting the significance of knowledge?
Similarly, poet Ahmad Shawqi emphasized:
Read the literature of those before you,
Perhaps it will enlighten a soul from the past.
Seize the knowledge God has bestowed upon you,
Finding beauty in meanings and images.
Seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge itself,
Not for degrees or other accolades.
How many an overlooked student
Has become a master in the realm of knowledge?
In his own words, Ibn al-Wardi remarked:
Pursue knowledge without laziness, for
Goodness is distant from the lazy.
Verses on the Importance of Knowledge
Hamad bin Khalifa Abu Shihab noted:
How valuable is knowledge, for it has elevated
The minds of those who once were ignorant.
It nourished them with its enlightening flow,
Illuminating their faces crowned with beauty.
Ibn al-Wardi again states:
In the increase of knowledge lies the defeat of adversaries,
And the beauty of knowledge is the reform of deeds.
Ma’ruf al-Rusafi adds:
If knowledge is coupled with good character,
It brings great good to its holders.
Most of us may attain various sciences,
But it is the morally sound who truly succeed.
Wealth lies not in material riches but in knowledge,
For it illuminates the youth, dispelling the darkness of poverty.
Do not think that knowledge can save the ignorant,
If their morals stray far from its light.
Knowledge is but a beacon that dispels ignorance,
However, the blind eye does not see it in the darkness.
No corrupt soul can succeed through knowledge,
Even if it possesses vast oceans of it.
The poet Abu Al-Ala Al-Ma’arri expressed:
Knowledge is like a lock; if you find it hard,
Leave it for a while and return, and it will open.
Hope can betray after it has served you,
Just as time leaves power unfulfilled.
As Jamil Sidqi al-Zahawi observed:
When knowledge raises the standard of a nation,
No one can lower it until the Day of Judgment.
A nation that sleeps in safety,
Is guarded by knowledge, even if swords do not watch over it.
Ahmad Shawqi’s Poem on Knowledge and the Teacher
The poet Ahmad Shawqi composed this poignant poem regarding the significance of knowledge and the role of the teacher:
Stand for the teacher and bestow upon him great respect,
For the teacher is almost a messenger.
Do you know anyone more noble or exalted
Than he who nurtures minds and souls?
Praise be to You, O God, the best of teachers,
You have taught through the pen throughout the ages.
You brought forth the intellect from darkness,
And guided it along the path of clear light.
You shaped it by the hand of the teacher, sometimes
From rusty iron and at other times polished.
You sent Moses with the Torah as a guide,
And the son of the Virgin taught the Gospel.
You burst forth the fountain of eloquence through Muhammad,
Who quenched the thirst for narration and divine revelation.
You taught Greece and Egypt until they stumbled,
Unable to find the sun without knowing its setting.
Today we have become like children,
In knowledge, we are still searching for the light.
From the East, the suns have aligned,
Why does its West linger in ignorance?
O land, since the teacher lost himself,
Between the suns and your East lies a distance.
Those who protected the truth of knowledge,
Humbled by its hardships, declined.
In a world where life is confined,
By individualism, it becomes bridled and chained.
The tyranny of life has struck down,
As the sun’s blow leaves heads spinning.
Socrates offered the cup, knowing it would deliver death,
Yet a lover’s lips longed for a kiss.
They offered him life, yet he refused,
Preferring to die nobly.
Indeed, courage fills many hearts,
But courageous intellects are few.
He who created the bitter truth,
Did not spare the honest seekers of truth.
Perhaps love has slain its defenders,
Love has been murdered, how many have faced defeat.
Did every advocate of justice find in darkness
Resentments and secrets to bear?
If I were to believe in the Cross and its speeches,
I would build evidence from the sacrifice of Christ.
O teacher of the valley and architect of its youth,
And those raising it, their intentions clear and noble.
The bearers who, when called, teach,
Must account for the weight of great trust.
Let the path of education succeed after Muhammad,
And tread gently after Ismail.
A light step was ours as we approached,
And cast away what seemed burdensome.
Until we witnessed Egypt stepping forward,
In knowledge, if kingdoms walk a mile.
The population was ungrateful and ignorant,
Since the time of Khufu, not a candle was seen.
Look for those who built the obelisk; their ancestry,
Cannot even shape a needle.
They lead others when they want to guide,
Like sheep they find comfort in yielding.
Men recite to them their desires,
While the successful taste the sweetness of hierarchy.
Ignorance does not allow life to flourish,
How can life breathe with ignorance?
By God, if not for tongues and intellects,
That forge the awareness of youth.
They nurture their spirits,
Bringing forth hope and projecting recovery.
Recognizing the places of their drought, they flourish,
Like eyes overflowing and clouds racing.
They do good to their land and shy away,
From being rewarded with praise.
No pride nor education,
Can save them in times of hardship.
Raise the fair youth of the protectorate,
To make them pillars of justice.
For he who builds just characters,
Also builds balanced souls.
He establishes logic for every crooked speech,
And clarifies views in matters of significance.
Should the teacher not be just,
The spirit of justice will be weak among the youth.
And if the teacher’s insight is lacking,
It will bring forth vanity to the ignorant.
When guidance arises from desires,
And from conceit, consider it misleading.
And if the people suffer in their morals,
Hold a vigil of mourning for them.
Indeed, I empathize with you and consider your burdens,
Among the pressures of men, they are indeed heavy.
Many have assisted you, yet you were denied,
In Egypt, the mothers need great aid.
When women grow up in ignorance,
Mankind suckles on ignorance and idleness.
Being an orphan is not defined by the loss of parents,
From life’s struggles that abandon you.
For with wisdom, one encounters their mother,
And the goodness of upbringing is replaced.
Indeed, the orphan is he who meets
A mother who has deserted or a father lost in his work.
Egypt, when it reflects on its days,
Cannot find a match for the great Sabbath.
The parliament will extend its very roof,
Offering a shade over the happy valley.
We hope that when education stirs its sorrows,
It does not respond with denial.
Tell the youth today, blessed is your cultivation,
The harvests are ripe, and the fruits have lowered.
Salute all the martyrs who have been absent,
And place crowns upon their stones.
So that the living may benefit from your gratitude,
And the deceased may receive great rewards.
Let not the constitution overlook its essence,
Until it witnesses its hidden soldiers.
I plead with you, those pure bloods,
Do not summon to parliament the ignorant.
For someone will question about dignity,
Has it brought virtue or solely loss?
If you reveal a representative who is lacking,
You shall not find the full representation.
Call forth the trustworthy for her, and allow,
Those of vision to attain preference.
Indeed, the negligent may change, but you shall not see,
The ignorant nature might remain unanswered.
For perhaps there’s a saying regarding men you have heard,
Then it passed as if it were never said.
And how often have you supported the noble and passionate,
Those who found themselves compromised among you.
Generosity and forgiveness in youth are abundant,
For youth has noble traits and amiable behaviors.
Gather the branches of fatherhood and raise,
The voice of youth, beloved and accepted.
Pay your greetings to the throne and make,
For the Creator, declarations of glorification and praise.
How distant the objectives can be unless I
Find steadfastness through all of them.
Entrust success to God and persist,
For God is the best supporter and protector.
Abu Ishaq Al-Albiri’s Poem on Knowledge
Abu Ishaq Al-Albiri penned a poem titled (Days Will Tear Your Heart), with some of its verses stating:
If knowledge fails to bring you benefit,
It’s better to remain in ignorance.
And if your understanding lands you into trouble,
How I wish you had not comprehended at all.
You will reap the fruits of helplessness and ignorance,
And your stature will diminish in the eyes as you rise.
What you do not know will be lost, yet knowledge persists,
If you are aware, then it is found.
Recall my words after a while,
Regretting it when you are distracted.
You shall weep from remorse for what you lost,
Yet regret will offer no solace.
When you see your companions in the skies,
Elevated above you, while you have sunk.
Review it and abandon trivial pursuits,
For in sloth, you cannot reach your target.
Do not concern yourself with wealth you hold,
For money is merely what you comprehend.
There is no meaning for the ignorant among people,
Even if he possessed dominion over Iraq.
Your knowledge will speak of you in time,
And it will be recorded of you one day, if you write.
And building grand structures will not benefit,
If you have destroyed yourself through ignorance.
You have placed money above knowledge, here lies your folly,
Indeed, in this matter, you never balanced it.
For between them lies a significant divide,
You will learn it when you read the divine texts.
If the rich raise a banner for wealth,
Do you not raise a banner for your knowledge too?