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19: Our plowmen labored in the fields -- 20: The urge to speak in verse burst forth -- 21: Wealth elevates the children of the vulgar herd -- 22: No use praying for the return of the days -- 23: If a dumb ox comes asking for your daughter's hand -- 24: Prosperity sparkles like a heady wine -- 25: Yesterday at the well Khalīfah accosted me -- 26: Listen carefully, my boy, to this wise old man -- 27: I swear by God and by all that is holy -- 28: Time is pregnant, events are its midwife -- 29: Ibn Nḥēṭ, listen carefully to these polished verses -- 30: These are the words of an old graybeard 31: Smart fellows, heed this piece of advice -- 32: This is the faith that is as clear -- 33: If you head for al-Qaṣab you'll find me to its south -- 34: Things are simple and easy at the start -- Notes -- Glossary -- Bibliography -- Further Reading -- Index -- About the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute -- About the Translator -- The Library of Arabic Literature 8: Māniʿ, say this prayer for my guest -- 9: I spend the evening working at the well -- 10: Even wise men achieve at best half of their goals -- 11: A sudden shock upset me, deprived me -- 12: Listen to my verses of wise counsel, in such high demand -- 13: One man enjoys a life of ease and comfort -- 14: These are the words of a learned and discerning poet -- 15: Once, I came down from the stony heights -- 16: These are the words of an old man who watched the years roll by -- 17: Māniʿ sits on his rooftop and plays horseman -- 18: These are the words of Ḥmēdān the poet Cover -- Letter from the General Editor -- About this Paperback -- Title Page -- Copyright -- Contents -- Foreword -- Introduction -- Map: Northeastern Arabia -- Map: Central Najd around Sudayr and al-Washm -- Note on the Text -- Notes to the Introduction -- Arabian Satire -- 1: My temples flecked with gray -- 2: Mjalli, listen to me, this eloquent graybeard -- 3: I saw two rutting camels in al-ʿĀriḍ -- 4: When man comes to be judged by his Lord -- 5: I swear to God, it was Mnīf who said to me -- 6: Water from the pools of war is brackish -- 7: To look for kind favors from misers "A master of satire known for his ribald humor, self-deprecation, and invective verse (hijāʼ), the poet Ḥmēdān al-Shwē'ir was an acerbic critic of his society and its morals. Living in the Najd region of the Arabian Peninsula, Ḥmēdān wrote in an idiom widely referred to as "Nabaṭī," here a mix of Najdīvernacular and archaic vocabulary and images dating to the origins of Arabic poetry. In Arabian Satire, Ḥmēdān is mostly concerned with worldly matters and addresses these in different guises: as the patriarch at the helm of the family boat and its unruly crew; as a picaresque anti-hero who revels in taking potshots at the established order, its hypocrisy, and its failings; as a peasant who labors over his palm trees, often to no avail and with no guarantee of success; and as a poet recording in verse how he thinks things ought to be. The poems in Arabian Satire reveal a plucky, headstrong, yet intensely socially committed figure-representative of the traditional Najdīethos-who infuses his verse with proverbs, maxims, and words of wisdom expressed plainly and conversationally. Ḥmēdān is widely quoted by historians of the Gulf region and in anthologies of popular sayings. This is the first full translation of this remarkable poet"--
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