Gabriel, Seal of Prophethood
The poet Hassan ibn Thabit writes:
Gabriel, upon him rests the seal of prophethood,
It is evident from Allah, shining and testified to.
And the Divine joined the Prophet’s name to His,
When the caller of the prayers proclaimed during the five: “I bear witness”.
And Allah split from His name to exalt him,
For the Lord of the Throne is Mahmoud, and this is Muhammad.
A Prophet who came to us after despair and a period,
While idols were worshiped upon the land.
He became a radiant lamp and a guide,
Shining as the polished sword that gleams.
He warned us of fire and heralded a paradise,
And taught us Islam, and for that we praise Allah.
And You are the God of all creation, my Lord and my Creator,
With this declaration I bear witness, O man.
You are exalted, Lord of mankind, above those who invoke
Anyone else as God; You are the highest and the most glorious.
Yours is creation and blessings, and all command,
To You alone we seek guidance, and You alone do we worship.
He Was Born, and Creation Glowed
The poet Ahmad Shawqi eloquently expresses:
He was born, and all creation illuminated,
And the face of time smiled with praise.
The soul and the assembly of angels surround him,
With tidings for the faith and the worldly affairs.
The Throne blooms, and the meadow flourishes,
And the utmost boundary and the sublime Sidra exult.
And the garden of discernment is gleaming with lushness,
Translators bloom with fragrance and life.
Revelation drips like honey from a string,
And the tablet and the exquisite pen are soothing.
The names of the messengers are compiled, forming a record,
In the tablet, and the name of Muhammad shines.
The name of majesty in its exquisite forms,
The letter ‘a’ is there, and ‘ta’ is the letter ‘b’.
Your being is the best of whom existence greets,
And through you the messengers came to guidance.
The house of the prophets, which meets not,
Except with the pure and the righteous.
The best lineage was owned by Adam for you,
Among mankind, and Hawwa’ preserved it.
They achieved the honor of prophethood, and it concluded,
In her, honor was bestowed upon you.
Created for your house, while it was created for her;
Indeed, great things befit the sublime.
Through you, Allah heralded heaven, which adorned,
And the dust was perfumed with your existence.
And your visage became apparent; its characteristics were
Truth, and its beauty was guidance and modesty.
And upon him is the radiance of prophethood,
And from the beloved and his guidance emerges beauty.
The Messiah praised him in the heavenly realm,
And the Virgin Mary was filled with joy.
On a day when time has pride in its dawn,
And its evenings are illuminated with Muhammad’s light.
The truth is exalted in its structure, victorious,
In the kingdom, there is no banner that surpasses it.
The thrones of the oppressors were frightened; they trembled,
And echoes rose above their crowns.
The fire was left empty, its sides around them,
The flames receded, and the water subsided.
And miracles cascaded, and wonders were plentiful,
Gabriel reveals them at dawn.
Blessed is the orphan; the marks of his virtue appeared,
The orphan is sustenance, partly of intelligence.
In the cradle, life is sought through his hope,
And with his intention, calamities are averted.
In addition to honesty in childhood, and truth; he never
Was known except by truth and trustworthiness.
O you who have the qualities desired by the heights,
From it, and what the great personalities desire.
If you had not established a religion, it would stand alone,
A religion that illuminates evenings with its light.
You are adorned with the noble morals.
They entice the generous and attract them.
As for beauty, you are its sun,
And the grace of the truthful shines from you.
And goodness stemmed from the generosity of faces,
What leaders and rulers have been honored with.
So, if you gave generously, you reached the farthest limits,
And you did what cannot be done by the whims of fate.
And if you pardoned, you were capable and determined,
No one despises your pardon, even the ignorant.
And if you showed mercy, you are a mother or a father;
These are the two who are merciful in this world.
And if you became angry, it is just an anger,
In truth, there is no malice or hatred.
And if you were pleased, that is in His satisfaction,
And the satisfaction of many is pretense and show.
And if you addressed the audience, the platforms tremble,
They awaken the dew, and hearts cry out.
And if you issued a judgment, there is no doubt that it is as if
The adversaries received a decree from the heavens.
And if you guarded water, it would not be invited, even if
The emperors and kings were thirsty.
And when you granted refuge, the sanctuary of God did not
Let the one seeking it entering with hostility.
And if you took control of your soul, you acted with its goodness,
If indeed what your hands possess are sheep.
And if you built, the best companion is trusted,
And if you built, you are superior to the fathers.
And if you associated with others, loyalty is manifested,
In your warmth, the companions and friends are alive.
And if you made a covenant or offered it,
Then every covenant you made is a promise and a bond.
And if you marched against adversaries, you were ferocious,
And if you ran, indeed you are the quick.
May Allah’s Blessings Be Upon You
Poet Nizar Qabbani expresses:
The nobility is long-lasting in you,
And I have spent restless nights while the world sleeps.
Everyone adorned themselves from your beauty,
They were expelled from the fountain of radiance.
Even my attempts to approach were denied; I almost did not,
And my soul burned for you, struggling in turmoil.
They sought you out, praised you, while I closed
The doors of your praise, the letters were barren.
I come close, remembering what I have neglected, and I step back,
Embarrassed, struggling under the weight of shame.
From the lowly depths, I seek a touch at the peaks,
The station is high; it cannot be attained.
My shortcomings bind me, and sorrow silences,
Causing words to perish upon the tip of the tongue.
I turned to you, O beloved of God, in longing,
A yearning that disrupts my rest with sins.
I hope for arrival, but my long night is a forest,
Where its thorns are hardships and pains.
O you who were born and illuminated our lands,
Your radiance banished the darkness.
Should I return thirsty while others are quenched?
Will water flow from the fountain of the Prophet for me?
How can I enter the presence of the chosen,
When my soul is lost and sins are heavy?
Or whenever I tried to embrace him,
The bitterness came, making the embrace difficult.
What can I say, when a thousand and a thousand verses
Praise you, even before me have penned them?
They praised you, yet did not reach your glory,
For the gates of your majesty are well-guarded.
And I approached, astonished and captive, unable to see,
In confusion, my poetry tempering in reticence.
And my very being was torn, like a lost child,
Who was obstructed from his beloved by the crowd.
Until I stood before your grave, weeping,
As emotions flowed like a flood of inspiration.
Visions appeared, bright like dreams,
And my heart was enveloped in tranquility and peace.
O you who fills my spirit with the flame of your love,
A light illuminating my innermost secrets and reins.
You are the beloved, and you are the one who quenched our thirst,
Until Islam illuminated our hearts.
You were fought, yet you did not succumb or fear your enemies,
Whoever is protected by the Merciful cannot be harmed.
Your light fills this universe, dispelling
The silhouettes of darkness and shattering idols.
Sorrow fills, O beloved, my very being,
As Muslims have become blinded from the path.
And shame prevails; thus the souls are gloomy,
While dwarfs rise over the giants.
This One Whom the Valley Knows His Footsteps
The poet Al-Farazdaq extols the Prophet and his family:
This is the one whom the valley knows his footsteps,
And the house recognizes him, as do the precincts and the sacred.
This is the son of the best of the servants of Allah,
This pure, clean, and holy flag.
This is the son of Fatimah, if you are ignorant of him,
By his lineage, the prophets have been completed.
And your saying: “Who is this?” is of no concern;
The Arabs know him, and the non-Arabs know him too.
Both hands are bounteous, their benefit extends widely,
They are generously shared, and they never decline.
A gentle and easy-going person; there are no threats,
Two beauties adorn him: good character and ethics.
He bears the burdens of peoples, if they are beset,
With delightful morals, where everything turns sweet.
He never said “No” except in his testimony;
Were it not for the testimony, his “No” would be “Yes”.
He enveloped the people with kindness; then
The clouds of despair lifted, along with poverty and need.
When Quraysh beheld him, one of them proclaimed,
To this end, generosity reaches its pinnacle.
He refrains out of shyness and is silent in awe;
He speaks only when he smiles.
In his hand is a green branch whose fragrance is exquisite,
From the hand of the most elegant, its scent is divine.
He almost supports it on the scent of his hand,
By the corner of the sacred sanctuary, when he arrives, he greets.
Allah honored him from long ago and exalted him;
This is evident, for it was written in His tablet.
Which great beings do not owe him today,
For the excellence of this lineage has reached everyone.
Whoever thanks Allah praises the excellence of this line;
For through this house, religions have gained strength.
It ascends to the pinnacle of faith, which the hands fell short of,
And mere feet could not grasp it.
Whoever’s grandfather is the head of the prophets,
Then the virtues of his nation will lend respect to him.
From the Messenger of Allah, springs of goodness flow;
Its groves and tents are honorable and noble.
Weaving through the night, its darkness is unwrapped by the light
Like the sun dispelling the darkness of eve.
From a group whose love is religion, and hatred for them is disbelief;
And their proximity is both a refuge and stronghold.
Mentioning them follows the mention of Allah;
In every beginning, and ends with their name.
If the people of piety were to be counted, they would be their leaders;
Or if one were to say: “Who are the best of the earth?” they would be named.
After their generosity, no noble can stand beside them,
Nor can a people match their kindness, even if they are dignified.
They are the clouds; if a calamity occurs,
And the lions of valor, ferocity ignited.
Through their compassion, hardship does not reduce their generosity;
It matters not whether they are wealthy or without.
Evil is pushed away and tribulations averted through their love,
And goodness is sought through their generosity and blessings.