Poems about Life
Many poets have expressed their reflections on life through their verses, and among the most prominent of these poets are:
Abu Nuwas
Abu Nuwas states:
If the wise are tested by life, it unveils
Its facade like a foe garbed as a friend.
Abu Al-Ataahiyya
Abu Al-Ataahiyya writes:
Detach yourself from this world, perhaps you’ll find salvation,
For in righteousness and piety lies your true path.
I have seen the ruins of a house echoing its pleasures,
When the flute, lute, and cymbals unite.
O deluded one, do you have a justification,
For on the day of judgement, you will need one.
Furthermore, he says:
O my life, this world is not a sanctuary of permanence,
Let the abode of death be enough for you as a realm of demise.
So do not fall in love with this world, dear brother,
For the lover of the world is burdened with trials.
Its sweetness is mingled with bitterness,
And its pleasures are accompanied by toil.
Do not wear the clothes of illusion for a day,
For you were created from clay and water.
Rarely do you meet someone grateful for God’s bounties,
And seldom will you find one content with divine decrees.
Indeed, blessings from God are bountiful,
And with Him lie goodness and generosity.
Time has never been uniform in its changes,
And the days of a person are never equal.
It is but a day of hardship and distress,
And a day of joy, fleeting and brief.
Not all that is unanticipated shall be denied its benefit,
And not everything we desire shall be fulfilled.
O how strange time is, or rather its uncertainties,
Time’s doubts tear apart every bond upheld.
The turmoil of time rends every unity asunder,
And sorrow taints each solace we find.
When a companion settles into the realm of decay,
Let me be content with this distance and prolonged separation.
I visit the graves of the privileged and see nothing,
But vanity that was once the hallmark of their kind.
Each is targeted, yet all suffer a remorseless end;
And every one is met with disregard from loving companions.
I sought out remedies for death but found none,
And every cure turns out to be in vain against mortality.
The spirit of a young man is joyous with his prosperity,
Yet every flaw is nurtured in abundance.
How many gifted individuals have perished without their kin,
While none cared enough to redeem them from ruin?
Before you, O waif of happiness, lies eternal bliss,
Where prosperity lingers and anguish has no grounds.
You were created for one of two fates, so do not sleep,
And dwell instead between fear of both and hope.
There exists a malevolence amidst mankind,
Though God has clothed him in a garb of disguise.
Al-Sharif Al-Radhi
Al-Sharif Al-Radhi expresses:
The world has courted me, and I replied, “Return,
For I perceive your midst is filled with many suitors.”
Usama bin Munqidh
Usama bin Munqidh remarks:
Observe the chess player as he gathers the pieces,
Only to scatter them once more after the game ends.
So is man, laboring for the world, amassing its wealth,
Until upon his death, he departs, leaving it all behind.
Badi’ Al-Zaman Al-Hamadhani
Badi’ Al-Zaman Al-Hamadhani muses:
Contemplate carefully the nature of this world,
It reveals itself as a mere passage.
While you bask under the shade of desires,
You find yourself stripped of everything while in your prime.
A time characterized by relentless harshness,
And a cycle that refuses to relent.
Are you content with its decrees, or do you resist?
If so, then clasp your hands in despair and observe where it leads.
Ibrahim Abu Al-Yaqzan
Ibrahim Abu Al-Yaqzan declares:
Life is a bewitching spouse,
And her dowry lies in your soul and wealth.
Ibrahim Al-Barouni
Ibrahim Al-Barouni reflects:
The essence of life is but a fleeting dream,
A pursuit that tugs at trailing aspirations.
Existing in this world is a constant struggle,
Like a gazelle wrestling in the face of a lion.
Hussain ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib
Hussain ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib proclaims:
If life bestows blessings upon you, spread your generosity,
To others before it escapes from your grasp.
Neither generosity enhances it when it is offered,
Nor does meanness preserve it when it eludes.
Abu Al-Ala Al-Ma’arri
Abu Al-Ala Al-Ma’arri mentions:
In stillness, I thought I advanced beyond motion,
Yet how can we declare that stillness has occurred?
And there is no one more ignorant than a fool,
Who becomes more steeped in complacency with life’s comforts.
Our abodes, if the birds come to hunt,
Are not worth mourning for their stay.
And how could the willows bear lament,
If, after days, they fray away?
Ahamd Shawqi
Ahamd Shawqi states:
The gains of desires cannot be claimed by mere wishing,
Rather, life is seized by audacity.
There is no ambition unattainable by a determined group,
If they carry forward on steadfast steeds.
Al-Mutanabbi
Al-Mutanabbi laments:
We mourn for the world, where no collective survived,
That bound them in unity, yet they drifted apart.
Where are the emperors and the tyrants,
Who amassed fortunes yet left nothing behind?
All who once filled space with their armies,
Now rest beneath a humble grave.
Silenced, when called upon as if they never knew,
That speaking was the very air they claimed was theirs.
Death comes, and the souls are rare treasures;
The fool gluts himself on what slips through his fingers.
A person hopes while life is tantalizing,
Yet gray hair weighs heavy and youth flees too fast.
And I have wept for youth, the time of blooming,
With my face darkened while my beauty tans.
Guarding it closely before the day of parting,
Until I almost brightened with tears once spilled.
Ilia Abu Madi
Ilia Abu Madi reflects:
Take as much of this world as you can, enjoying its delights,
But learn to give in return, for life’s reciprocity.
Be like the rose that offers its perfume even to the thief,
Not like the stagnant water that offers only bitterness.
Was there a light in this universe to guide you,
If the skies concealed their stars from our sight?
Or were there blooming flowers with fragrance,
If the earth had not revealed its blossoms?
Indeed, the singing birds are quite the same,
Their songs mute if you repress them.
If the soul does not reveal its attributes,
In abundance, it amounts to mere misfortune.
O seeker of wealth, tell me, have you found within it,
A spirit that comforts you, or one that you can solace?
So whatever you conceal and bury deep within,
It is as if your secrets are mere vulnerabilities.
And the soul is denied its inherent joys,
Having never learned that it was made to enjoy.
Look to the water; generosity is its character,
It quenches fields, bringing life and vitality.
Yet it would be disturbed only if it was confined;
Just as the soul is disturbed when it feels restricted.
Look to the fire; it possesses the nature of a predator,
And that predatory nature can doom its host.
It extinguishes valleys and songs, mocking them,
For its ignorance leads it to devour itself.
I sent forth my words as reflections and allegories,
Perhaps in speech lies a reminder for many.
Nothing is attained in this world without toil;
For whoever desires wine must plant the vines first.
Abu Al-Qasim Al-Shabi
Abu Al-Qasim Al-Shabi confides:
Oh, that I could live in this world,
Content in my solitude and individuality.
I wish to spend my days amidst mountains and forests,
Among the scattering pines swaying in bliss.
For I have no burdens to deter me from the echoes,
Of my heart’s whispers and soulful responses.
I await death and life, lending my ear,
To the tales of eternity and time’s incessant beat.
And I shall sing with the nightingales in the woods,
And listen to the murmurs of the river.
I would converse with stars, dawn, and birds,
Alongside rivers and the gentle guiding light.
This is the life I yearn for, filled with beauty and art,
Far from my nation and homeland’s burdens.
I shan’t weigh myself down with the sorrows of my people,
For they are alive, yet dwell in a living grave.
And all I carry from aches rests within my heart,
Gainful and refreshing like the novel and the bygone.
Far from the city and its crowds,
Distance me from the clamor of those gatherings.
For they consist of folly and deceit,
Mixed with the ordinary amidst the daily charades.
Where does it compare to the murmur of a river’s flow,
And the gentle echo of a chant resounding?
The rustling of branches adorned with dew,
And the gentle whisper of the breeze for children.
This life sanctifies the soul deeply,
And for its glory, I raise my voice.
Abu Muslim Al-Bahlani Al-Omani
Abu Muslim Al-Bahlani Al-Omani articulates:
What do you covet from the world’s seduction?
Do you not see how it withers under its trials?
Betrayal is its nature; though it promises,
It deceives, for when safety embraces, war ignites.
Nothing genuine emerges from its proffering touch,
And no longing subsists with earnest clarity.
Beware of its charm, which often hides treachery,
And retreat, for it is truly a trial.
Should it lure you in with its allure,
Know that beneath its beauty lies destruction.
O flame of desire, do you not see its flaws?
We approach it in ignorance of its design.
It entertains yet drives us to ruin,
For its essence is poison disguised as nourishment.
Do not overlook its tricks, for it bears a guise;
Enticing as it may seem, it is ruinous.
We pursue it while fully aware of its flaws,
Yet we persist, even while aware of its ill fate.
Does it bring forth rank poison from beneath?
A meal that is fatal and laced with its venom.
What is the end for those who heed it with glee?
The shadows of night do not shield its leaps.
Even young children could fall prey to its traps,
As grief and lament shred veils, revealing regrets.
Nor have the graves ceased their lamentations,
As the echoes of despair reverberate across the land.
We tread paths as orphans fill the streets,
No thoughts for the souls who once housed us.
We part ways while remaining locked within ourselves,
Abandoned dwellings and time ravages what remains.
Where are the ones who reveled in this stage?
I fear they are just dust beneath this barren earth.
Where are those we knew, where do they dwell?
Do ages hold the secrets of their revelries?
Where is the warm company we once shared laughter with?
Where are the loved ones we endlessly mourn?
Where are the kings who once roamed this terrain?
Or those who sought shelter or comfort from stars?
What has become of friends, the loved ones, where did they retreat?
In time’s grip, faces obscured by the haze of years.
Had the spirits the power to speak, they’d lament,
For the whims of fate have taken us all captives.
Even their bones lie like soil in the winds,
I beseech you to tread gently where they rest.
We build palaces from clay carved from our existence,
Yet let ruin’s grip fortify their façade.
The youth are often drained, never to find rest,
From the burdens they carry, nor shall their mourners cease.
Between dawn and dusk, life remains in strife,
Harvesting souls while extending their agonies.
In following their paths, we find our destinies align,
While the call of the grave draws us ever nearer.
Mahmoud Sami Al-Baroudi
Mahmoud Sami Al-Baroudi remarks:
The distractions of this world have led you away from the Hereafter,
And in ignorance, it mocks your plight.
It has entangled you, while you remain beholden to it,
Hungry for its pleasures, sailing in its abyss.
Men strut confidently, cloaked in garments,
Which hides the decay they carry within them.
As if, in their arrogance, they glide along like a ship,
Lost in the turbulent depths of existence.
How many souls exalted by their prowess,
Are now humbled by time’s relentless grip?
And those gathered in wealth hear no mourning,
Instead celebrating opulence that soon fades away.
O people, fear your Lord,
And beware the punishment of God and the Hereafter.
You sit idle while ruin looms above,
Ready to consume you with its bitter cup.
Awaken from the trance of temptation,
And reflect upon the disintegrated bones of the past.