8vo. 174 pp., / 226 pp., Arabic text within borders, contemporary maroon quarter sheep with marbled boards, faded and rubbed, browning, few annotations in red ink on 4 or 5 pages, small tear to inner margin of title page in volume 2 without any loss to text, small red stamp at top margin of page 2 of the second volume, otherwise copy in overall good condition, Al-Matba'ah al-'Ilmiyah, Cairo, first edition, 1313 AH [1895/6].

Synopsis

The collected poetry of Jarir, a leading figure in early Arabic poetry. His poems like many of his contemporaries, are largely satire and eulogy. He was born in the reign of the caliph Othman, and was a member of the tribe Kulaib, a part of the Banu Tamim. He was a native of al-Yamamah, but also spent time in Damascus at the court of the Umayyad caliphs.
Little is known of his early life, but he succeeded in winning the favor of Al-Hajjaj bin Yousef, the governor of Iraq. Already famous for his verse, he became more widely known by his feud with rival poets Farazdaq and Akhtal. Later he went to Damascus and visited the court of the caliph Abd al-Malik and that of his successor, Al-Walid I. From neither of these did he receive a warm welcome. He was, however, more successful with Umar II, and was the only poet received by the pious caliph.