Afterlife In Jahiliyah Poetry

Another revolutionary change which the Qur’an brought to pre-Islamic society was the outlook on the afterlife. The Jahiliyah view on the afterlife was tragic: Everyone regardless of status, wealth, or character would descend into a dark and miserable world full of shades for eternity while subsisting on dust. This outlook severely impacted their culture and lifestyle, which is evident by the insistence on immortalizing one’s self through poetry. Jahiliyah poetry provides a good look into how the people during that time viewed the afterlife, and how is shaped their decisions. There are a few different views on how to deal with the belief that the afterlife was a hellish place: Iyaas ibn al-Aratt was a poet during the Jahiliyah, and in one of

/ Enjoy any bright hour that lifts your soul to a bit of peace, / For in the path ahead, lying in wait for you, are shadows and grief and pain” (Iyaas ibn al-Arrat). This perspective suggests that one should live their life to enjoy themselves, since the journey after death is none too pleasant. Living in the moment, and living a long life are what this particular poet suggest, although others during that period would disagree. Another Jahiliyah poet Qatari ibn al-Fuja’ah approaches the same issue from the perspective that since the personified spectre Doom will arrive on a pre-ordained day, and thus one should seek to be courageous and not show weakness in the face of death, “So be still then, and face the onset of Death high-hearted, / for none upon earth are allowed to live forever. / No garment of praise is the cloak of old age and feebleness: / no praise for the cautious who bows like a reed in the storm. / The pathway of Death is set for all men to travel” (Qatari ibn al-Fuja’ah). Qatari argues that regardless how terrible the afterlife may be, shrinking in fear is not the way to live one’s

Labid is best known for his poem “The Mu’allaqa” which was one of the greatest poems of his age, which is part of a genre of poems called the Qasida. Shanfara was a poet who looked at Jahiliyah from an outsider’s perspective, and provided accounts of solitary life without a tribe. There is a significant difference between the two poets in that Labid’s poetry was more mainstream and provided somewhat of an example to follow. When faced with his beloved Nawaar disappearing, after contemplating while watching the animals in the desert decides that, “Hey, doesn’t Nawaar realize I can start a love-affair, but when I’m tired of it, / I can cut the cord, just like that? / I’m the kind of guy who leaves when I get bored / with hanging around a dull place” (Labid Ibn Rabi’a al-’Amiri). He is able to restore his peace of mind despite the loss, and later joins back up with his tribe which he endlessly praises along with its sunnah. This is similar to Abraham in the Qur’an, as he is someone who leads an exemplary life, “For Allah sees well all that ye do. There is for you an excellent example (to follow) in Abraham and those with him” (Q, 6:3-4). Abraham in the Qur’an is well respected, and the lifestyle he led as recorded in the Qur’an is there for those after him to