New Release! 📚 The Genius of Invective:.Ibn Zaydūn's Letter Explained, translated by Peter Webb, is an encyclopedic guide to one of the most widely read works of Arabic literature: an erudite and searing rejection letter by Ibn Zaydūn. Now available from LAL!

"You change so often—what’s to be done? your heart isn’t mine to rule."

"Train your soul to be generous."

"Does the rabbit enter a forest full of lions?"

"I have hidden the name of my love from the crowd: for my passion my heart is the only safe space. How I long for an empty and desolate place in order to call my love’s name out aloud."

"A rabbit lies down and does not fight, yet you donʼt see people leave it alone; Ferocious lions do not crouch and hide; no one ventures into their domain.". Ḥmēdān al-Shwēʿir, Arabian Satire, Translated by Marcel Kurpershoek

"Nothing can stand up to these fighters, and nothing less than death itself will cause one of them to desert his post."

"He’d walk on the water at the very edge of the beach, and the fish would come up out of the sea and kiss his feet.". Jamāl al-Dīn ʿAbd al-Raḥīm al-Jawbarī, The Book of Charlatans, Translated by Humphrey Davies

"Leave your lands and seek high station! Journey—for five good things come from travel: Escape from care, a way to earn your living, knowledge, savoir faire, and the friendship of the noble."

"The earth spreads leaves on the earth’s cheek as carpets are spread on the edge of the soil.". Muḥammad al-Muwayliḥī, What ʿĪsā ibn Hishām Told Us, translated by Roger Allen

"When rulers become immoral, their viziers and counselors fraudulent, their Qurʾan readers debauched."

"Many an ardent lover’s grown haughty from overweening pride and self-esteem, But your “shame” inspires me to worship and to passion insane,"

"My heart endured passion’s torment long before you; in such trials as these, you’re no match for my grit."

"If they incite hatred, be virtuous, show kindness. If they refuse to speak, don’t ask. It is what you hear that hurts you, what they say behind your back was never said."

"I am Death. I’ve felled many a foe, their chests dyed in rivers of red jiryāl, their bodies unburied on the open plain,". ʿAntarah ibn Shaddād, War Songs, translated by James E. Montgomery with Richard Sieburth

"Swept across the seven seas, Fully drunk on youthful folly; Hoping for a life of ease, Washing up in distant Mali;"

"Man is nothing but the son of today. This is apparent from his state—he is not the son of yesterday. What pride is there in rotting bones? The truth is that one who merits pride takes pride in himself."

"My resolve weakens, my torment grows; you are distant, though you live nearby. Should I complain of you, or complain to you? This wretched lover cannot decide."