A literary history of Persia

THE PAGAN ARABS 193And if Hudhayl broke his sword-blade, many a sword-blade ofHudhayl did he break !And many a time did he make them kneel down in a jaggedkneeling-place, whereon the feet were torn IA nd many a time did he surprise them at morning in their shelter,whereby there was plundering and looting when the killingwas done/Hudhayl hath been roasted by me, a gallant warrior who weariethnot of evil till they weary,Who gireth his spear its first drink, so that, when it hath drunk itsfirst draught, it hath thereafter its second draught.Wine hath become lawful to me when it was unlawful; and bywhat labour did it scarce become lawful !Give me to drink, then, O Sawdd son of 'Amr, for verily my bodyhath waxed lean since my uncle's death IThe hyaena laughs over the slain of Hudhayl, and thou may'st seeHie wolf baring his gleaming teeth upon them,And the birds of prey awake gorged in the morning, tramplingupon them, unable to "fly !" Honour and revenge," in short, as Muir well says,werethe keynotes of the pagan Arab's ideal muruwwa (" manliness" or " virtue") ;to be free, brave, generous; to returngood for good and evil for evil with liberal measure ;to holdequally dear wine, women, and war ;to love life and not feardeath ;to be independent, self-reliant, boastful, and predatory ;above all, to stand by one's kinsmen, right or wrong, and tohold the blood-tie above all other obligations, such were theideals of the old pagan Arabs, as they are still of the Bedouin,who are Muslims in little else than the name. Alike typicaland touching was the attitude of Muhammad's uncle AbuTalib towards his nephew." "O my nephew," he said, inreply to the Prophet's earnest attemptsto convert him toIslam, " I cannot forsake the faith of my fathers and what theyheld, but, by Allah naught shall be suffered to befall thee!whereby thou may'st be vexed so long as I remain alive ! " *1Ibn Hisham (ed. Wiistenfeld), p. 160,