QASEEDAH BURDAH, ITS ATTRIBUTES & IMPORTANCE Elegies in praise of Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم: Most of the praise/elegies uttered in the praise of Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم were composed after his demise from this world. Technically, what is said in praise after the demise is called رثاء and what is composed during someone’s life time is called مدحاً . This is evident from Hassan bin Thabit’s verses which were reflective of virtues and high qualities of the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم and his lofty praise (مدح) but the poet’s verses after the demise of the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم contained grief and agony (lament- رثاء). According to Dr. Zaki Mubarak, Al-Burdah occupies a place as the highest literary epic ever composed in the praise of Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم. What is Burdah? According to dictionary المعجم الوسيط , Burdah is a striped dress or garment which is wrapped around (as a covering or coat). It is a long piece of thick woollen cloth used for covering body during the daytime and also as a wrapping at night. Burdah was widely used by Bedouins and the most famous was that which came from Yemen. This type of dress was well in vogue in Andalusia and it seems that Egyptian farmers also used to wear it. According to Anas Bin Maalik, the most liked cloth in dress by Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم was Al-Hibrah الحِبَرة . It is a type of Yemeni cotton cloth with designs and patterns on it. (التحبير means beautification and decoration). A woman came across Sahl bin Sa’d and asked: Do you know what is Burdah? Sahl replied: “yes, it is الشملة - a cloak woven around borders.” Then she said: O Prophet of Allah! I have woven this cloth with handwork so (please) wear it.” And Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم accepted it. الشملة is also a Burdah except that it has knitting or works on its borders. According to Anas Bin Malik رحمةالله عليه, once Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم was in grief, he came out and rested on Osama bin Zaid and (at that hour) he was wearing a Burdah. Bouseri رحمةالله عليه ’s Burdah: As regards Qaseedah Al-Burdah – the most famous of Bouseri رحمةالله عليه ’s odes, the first one who talked about it was Ibne Shakir Al-Kutbi in 764 A.H.. It was he who while giving a background of the Elegy, inter alia, mentioned the incident of hemiplegia suffered by the poet and his subsequent recovery by the blessings of verses. Then came the incident of healing of blindness of Saduddin Al-Fariqi. Later, Maqreezi (d. 845 A.H.) and Ibne Tigharri (d. 874 A.H.) repeated Ibne Shakir’s version of poet’s healing. Deewan Bouseri’s compiler rejects hemiplegia incident on the grounds that how could then poet produce so many children (being a medical doctor myself, I do not agree with Deewan’s compiler). Ibne Hajar Haithami talks of an eye-sore to Bouseri رحمةالله عليه and during the vision of Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم, he was healed by the application of blessed saliva on his eyes by the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم . It seems that M. Sayad Keelani, author Deewan Bouseri is adamant to utter almost anything that is derogatory about the poet in his 47-page preface of the Deewan. Refuting the hemiplegia healing incident in the dream, he is of the view that those were the times of superstitions and fancies. He mentions that when Bouseri رحمةالله عليه while reciting Qaseedah, in his dream, before the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم reached the verse فمبلغ العلم فيه انه بشر , he stopped. Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم said: “go ahead.” Bouseri رحمةالله عليه expressed his inability to compose a second line, so Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم asked him to utter: وأنه خير خلق الله كلهم . Thus, Bouseri رحمةالله عليه inserted this in his Qaseedah as dictated by the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم. Of course, this is a fiction. How can a poet who accomplished such a great Qaseedah in its entirety should be at loss for the here-mentioned text of second line. Especially; if these wordings have earlier been used in one of Qaseedahs by Al-Sarsari (d. 656 A.H.) who had said; محمد خير خلق الله كلهم – وهوالذي لفخارالمجد ينتَسِبُ . As regards naming of this Qaseedah as البردة , the poet had been used to name all his Qaseedahs on a certain pattern. For example, ذخرالمعاد , على وزن بانت سعاد , or his تقديس الحرم, من تدنيس الضرم (known as أم نارين), a third one titled ام القرى , فى مدح خيرالورى and a fourth one bearing title المخرج والمردود على النصارى واليهود . Likewise, he named this Qaseedah الكواكب الدُّرِّيَّة فى مدح خيرالبَرِيَّة . Some people even put conditions that the Qaseedah should be recited only when in ablution (التوضؤ), reciter should face Ka’aba direction, attention to its proper pronunciation, the reader to have comprehension of its meaning etc. Some Sufis even adopted its reading at hours of happy ceremonies and at funerals, things not liked by Keelani of Deewan. He feels disgusted by its usage in ailments and hardships etc. However, Qaseedah kept disbursing to every nook and corner of the world, its translation done in eastern and western languages, its teaching made part of syllabus in seminaries. In particular, it became popular among Shazlis of Maghrib. Despite Ibne Taimiyyah’s criticism of Qaseedah (especially verse Nos. 43 to 46), it kept spreading in popularity until Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab of Najd and his students started condemning it as a شرك . My Foreign Office colleague Muhammad Ayaz Khan who served in Cairo and also translated a non-rhyme version of Qaseedah in English has confirmed that this Qaseedah is recited with utter devotion after every Friday prayer at the poet’s resting place in Alexandria. Not only that, it is sung in different intonations by a large number of people. Although, Bouseri رحمةالله عليه had described the themes of Hijrah or the importance of the great miracle- Quran itself in his ذخرالمعاد or قصيده الهمزية واللامية respectively, the word power used in البردة surpasses the other two in its comprehensive and befitting approach. That is why all the subsequent poets who composed their verses in praise of Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم were greatly under the impression of what appeared in قصيده الهمزية or in البردة . No other Qaseedah has ever been able to take place of Bouseri رحمةالله عليه ’s Burdah. Among contemporary poets who tried Bouseri رحمةالله عليه ’s style was Egypt’s Amir Al-Shuara Ahmad Shauqi who composed نهج البردة . Qaseedah also became a theme for intellectual, literary and scholarly discussions and studies everywhere. Why called Qaseedah Al-Burdah? : Bouseri رحمةالله عليه himself titled the elegy as الكواكب الدُّرِّيَّة فى مدح خيرالبَرِيَّة (Twinkling stars in praise of the best created among mankind). Somehow, it became famous by the name Al-Burdah. There are various explanations in this regard: i) It was called Burdah as a nickname for its inclusion of virtues of the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم, this being the apparent intention. Bouseri رحمةالله عليه himself equated the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم’s praise with this word بردة as he says; حاك من صنعةالقريض بروداً – لك لم تحك و شيها صنعاء ii) Bouseri رحمةالله عليه akined himself to Zohair Bin Ka’ab whose Qaseedah Al-Burdah had been rewarded by the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم with a gift of his streaky garment بردة . Bouseri wished his own Qaseedah to get the same nomenclature as a sign of blessed acceptance; iii) Some say that Burdah has another name which is البرأة (deliverance or salvation). There are those who consider Bouseri رحمةالله عليه‘s healing from hemiplegia as a reason to this nomenclature. He himself says; I was afflicted with hemiplegia or half-side paralysis. Then, I thought of this Qaseedah and composed it. Then I implored Allah to heal me by its blessings. So I repeated its reciting and prayed and sought recovery of my ailment through it. Then I slept and in dream I saw Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم who spread his blessed hand on my face and put his blessed streaky sheet on me. Then I woke up and found reanimation in my affected leg so I got up and left my house. I told this incident to no one. Then, I was encountered by a saintly figure Sheikh Abu Raja’a Siddique رحمةالله عليه who demanded: “I want you to give me the elegy that you said in Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم ’s praise.” So I asked; “which one?” He said: “The one which you composed during your ailment.” And he then recited its first verse. He added that he had himself heard it last night when it was being recited by the poet before the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم: and whose reciter got the gift of a garment بردة from the Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم. So I gave it to him who remembered the same. And thus, spread (the story of the vision and gift) the news about the dream. iv) This Qaseedah is also called قصيدةالشدائد for it is also read in the hour of hardships, to ease out difficulties. However, Deewan Bouseri’s compiler has tried to refute this incident of hemiplegia. Importance of Al-Burdah: Qaseedah became very popular, appeared many a times, with different manuscripts and explanations and became widespread in many countries and cities namely; Vienna, Al-Astana, Makkah, Bombay. In Cairo alone, it appeared more than fifty times- mostly with beautiful calligraphy so much that a gold-threaded handwritten script is found even today in the National Library of Egypt, like the one of Quran. Many a scholars, at various times, have expressed commentaries on Qaseedah such as Ibne Saigh 776 A.H., Shahabuddin Binil Imad 808 A.H., Jalaluddin Al-Mahli 864 A.H., Alauddin Al-Bustami 875 A.H., Al-Qistalani (exegesis of Sahih Bukhari) 923 A.H., Muhammad Ahmad Al-Marzooki 881 A.H., Ali bin Muhammad Al-Qalsawi 891 A.H., Sheikh Khalid Al-Azhari 905 A.H., Zakaria Ansari 926 A.H., Yusuf bin Abullutf Al-Qudsi 1000 A.H., Mulla Ali 1014 A.H., Sheikhzadah Mohyuddin and Muhammad Al-Misri 11th A.H., Abdul Haq bin Abdul Fattah of 12th A.H., Muhammad bin Mustafa Al-Madrani 12th A.H., Umar Al-Kharpoti 13 AH.., Muhammad Usman Mir Ghani 13th A.H., Bajori 1276 A.H., Sheikh Hassan Al-Adwi Al-Hamzawi 1303 A.H. In Egypt’s National Library are found numerous other scripts of Qaseedah whose composers are unknown, these carry explanations in the context of literature, language, history and Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم ’s biography. Among orientalists, Nicholson is its ardent admirer. Exact Number of verses contained Qaseedah Burdah: Total number of verses carried in various versions is 165. But some of these verses are later additions. For example; ثم الرضا عن أبى بكر و عن عمر – وعن على وعن عثمان ذى الكرم والآل والصحب ثم التابعين فيهم – أهل التقى والنقى والحلم والكرم فاغفر لناشدها واغفر لقارئها – سألتُك الخير يا ذالجود والكرم Besides, following two verses (Verse Nos. 54 and 86) are also not found in older versions; حتى إذا طلعت فى الكون عم هدا – هالعالمين واحيت سائرالأمم آياته الغر لايخفى على احد – بدونهاالعدل بين الناس لم يقم Accordingly, Qaseedah is composed of 160 verses. This is also corroborated by an extra verse from various commentators such as Bajori; أبياتها قد اتت ستين مع مأة – فرج بها كربنا يا واسع الكرم In addition, some additional verses have been appended to main Qaseedah such as; يا رب المصطفى بلغ مقاصدنا – واغفر لنا ما مضى يا واسع الكرم واغفر إلاهى لكل المسلمين بما – يتلوه فى المسجدالأقصى وفىالحرم بجاه من بيته فى طيبة حرم – واسمه قسم من أعظم القسم وهذه بردةالمختار قد ختمت – والحمد لله فى بدء وفى ختم Likewise, another two verses are popularly recited at the beginning of Qaseedah; الحمد لله منشىءالخلق من عدم – ثم الصلواة على المختار فى القدم مولاى صلّ وسلِّم دائمًا أبداً – على حبيبِكَ خيرالخلق كلّهمِ If all these verses are included in the main Qaseedah, the total number of verses comes to 172. But the fact remains that the exact number of verses in original Qaseedah stands at 160. Additional 12 verses are an appendage whose attribution to Bouseri رحمةالله عليه would tantamount being unfair to him. Translations of Qaseedah Burdah: While many a commentators have explained Qaseedah through centuries in the entire Islamic world, number of such commentators which includes very high-ranking Islamic scholars runs into many hundreds. A few of these have been mentioned above. Qaseedah has been translated as well commentaries made on it in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Urdu and many other important languages in the Islamic world and beyond. Some of these are as follows: LATIN: This translation appeared from Leiden in 1761 A.D. GERMAN: First German translation appeared from Vienna in 1824, then in 1847 and third from Vienna in 1860. FRENCH: From Jerusalem in 1872, from Paris in 1894, followed by another French translation later. ENGLISH: From Mumbai in 1893 by Sheikh Faizullah Bhai Luqmanjee and also by Clouston. PERSIAN: Number runs in dozens. One by Lutfullah Mohandis appeared from Lucknow. Also translated by Khan Bahadur M. Hussain Khan and Maulana Azizuddin Bahawalpuri. TURKISH: Again the number runs in many dozens including one from Vienna alongwith Persian and German translation in 1860. TATAR: Tatari language, second edition appeared in 1300 A.H. URDU: Khan Bahdur M. Hussain Khan, Maulana Azizuddin Bahawalpuri, Majeedi Press Kanpur, Taj Company Lahore, Ashal Mutabi Karachi. A versified translation in Urdu also appeared from Karachi by Abdullah Hilal Siddiqui. There are translations in regional languages of Pakistan such as Sindhi, Seraiki and Punjabi. Also a versified translation in Pashtu came from Abdul Qadir Khattak. Two other Pashtu translations were accomplished by Mulla Sharfuddin and Mulla Muhibuddin from Peshawar. JAVA (Indonesia). Translation and commentary appeared in 1313 A.H. Attributes of Qaseedah Burdah: Qaseedah Burdah of Imam Bouseri رحمةالله عليه occupies an important place before a large number of Muslim scholars and saints. It has been a regular piece of recitation and repetition by masses in the entire Islamic world throughout centuries. Its recitation in times of trouble has been time-tested and proven. Qaseedah has been read to express immense love for the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم, it has been used as a supplication (last chapter bearing specific prayers and imploration content). Each of its 160 verses has individually been used as a remedy for some specific hardship or difficulty. A general elaboration of Qaseedah’s attributes as well as its verse-specific usages are detailed in two Urdu publications that I came across in Pakistan namely; بردةالمديح by Professor Ali Muhsin Siddiqui of Islamic History Department at Karachi University. His revised edition appeared from Karachi (Qadeemi Kutubkhana) in 1987. The other source has been referred in Translator’s Note earlier. I acknowledge with great thanks their works which helped me in better understanding and doing this translation in versified form in English. Expansion/ornamentation of Qaseedah Burdah: Many poets have even practiced their own methods and meters by adding two, three, four, five or even upto ten lines of verse to each individual stanza of the Qaseedah, showing their keen interest in the original Qaseedah. Qaseedah Burdah has a distinction that it is the most celebrated ode or elegy and remains unsurpassed in terms of commentaries and exegesis thereupon as well as poetic enrichment through additional lines. This itself requires a book of voluminous size to do justice on this aspect of Qaseedah. The more common expansions have been added on the following pattern: تخميس : Each verse of Qaseedah carries three additional verses in the same rhyme before the actual Qaseedah verse, total lines in a stanza becoming five. The number of such poets runs in many dozens through 7th to 12th Hijrah calendar centuries. تسبيع : Five more lines in the same rhyme are added before the start of each Bouseri verse in this pattern. تشطير : Insertion of two verses between the two lines of each verse is called Tashteer. Some famous Tashteers are Barul Saqeem (Suyuti), Al-Durratul Zahra (Sheikh Qazi), Tasdeerul Burdah (Ahmad Al-Hifzi) and many others. تذئيل : ذيل means skirt or baseline. Adding extra verses at the end of each verse is called Taz’eel. The famous Taz’eel practisers were Ahmad bin Abdullah Al-Jazairi and Umar (Mafraju-al Shiddat). Besides these translations, commentaries and variants, two more elegies are also titled as Qaseedah Burdah. One belongs to the early days of Islam, composed by one of Prophet صلى الله عليه و آله وسلّم ’s companions Ka’ab bin Zohair (بردة كعب بن زهير more famously known as سعاد ). It contains 60 verses. The second one is by the famous Egyptian poet اميرالشعرآء Ahmad Shauqi (d. 1932 A.D.) who titled his 190-verse elegy as نهج البردة (On the pattern of Burdah). They merit detailed comments and are discussed in the next few pages.
Posted on: Tue, 06 Aug 2013 21:31:43 +0000
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