Part 31

How can your eyes have their fill of sleep when there are events which are awakening every sleeper? When your brothers in Syria cannot even nap Except on the backs of horses or in the bellies of vultures? The Byzantines are humiliating them whilst you Live a life of luxury like a man averse to combat. Here the poet is addressing those who have stayed away from fighting alongside their Muslim brothers in Syria. He begins this portion of his poem with a heated call to the Muslims, 'O sons of Islam, wake up from your sleep, for this invasion is coming to you and it will bring low your elite.' Then he wonders about them and their sleep: how can they sleep peacefully, enjoy a life of luxury and feel safe, when not far away terrible things are befalling their 'brothers in Syria' and they cannot find even a few moments in which to take a nap in their houses; most of the time they are on horseback, fighting, or the decree of martyrdom has overtaken them and they are snatched by the vultures, as they have no one to bury their bodies, or they may fall into the hands of their Frankish enemies and be humiliated. 'But it seems that you are enjoying a life of ease and are either surrendering or allying yourself with your enemy.' How much blood was shed and how many young Muslim girls were killed whilst trying to cover their beauty with their hands out of shyness. Silver swords turned red and spearheads dripped with blood In the midst of stabbing and striking which made the heads of young boys turn grey. These are such battles that those who keep away to remain safe and sound will regret it bitterly. The hands of the polytheists have unsheathed the swords, but they will be sheathed again-in their own chests and skulls. And you can almost hear him who is buried in Taybah (Madinah)y calling out in the loudest voice, O Family of Hishdm! In these lines, the poet depicts the ferocity of the battles which took place between the Muslims and their Frankish enemies, in which the blood of many Muslims was spilled and women's seclusion was transgressed upon, but they could not find anything with which to protect their chaste bodies except their arms, which they held up out of shyness and fear. These battles grew intense, with a great deal of killing, until the edges of the swords and spears appeared to glow red hot, and children's hair would turn grey because of the horrific scenes of stabbing and striking that they saw. Then he again alerts those who stay behind, and warns them that they will regret not participating in these battles, warning again of their dangers and mocking the enemy by saying that the sharp swords that they have unsheathed will come back to them, buried in their own chests and skulls. In the final lines, he reaffirms how terrifying these wars are by saying that the (Messenger (SAAW), from his tomb in Madinah, is summoning the Arabs and Muslims, not only the clan of Hisham, to help in the fight against the enemy.157 Seljuk leaders of Jihad prior to 'Imad ad-Deen Zangi It is a well known fact in the history of the Crusades that the Islamic Jihad against the Crusaders in the Muslim East first emerged in Mesopotamia, which is the region between the Tigris and the Euphrates, close to Syria, including Diyar Mudar and Diyarbakr (in Turkish, Diyarbakr). It is called al-Jazeerah 158 in Arabic because it is located between the two rivers of the Tigris and the Euphrates. The Mesopotamian region is noted for its fresh air, suitability for agriculture and abundant crops. In it there are many great cities, strong fortresses and citadels.159 Among the reasons why the resistance movement first emerged in the Mesopotamian region are the following: a) Mesopotamia was the first region in the Muslim East to be touched by the fire of the Crusader menace, when the Crusaders seized Edessa and established the first of the Crusader kingdoms there in 490 AH/1097 CE. The inhabitants realized the danger posed by the Crusader penetration into their country, which led the Muslims to think seriously about attacking the Crusaders. b) The character of the Mesopotamian region had been shaped in the early days of Islam, because it was located on the edges of the Byzantine state, which posed a great danger to the Muslims during the days of the Umayyad and Abbasid periods. Hence it became the first line of defence on the Muslim borders against the Byzantines. After the Crusader invasion, Mesopotamia faced the Crusader Kingdom of Edessa, which posed the greatest danger to the Abbasid caliphate in Baghdad. c) In the second half of the fifth century AH (eleventh century CE), Mesopotamia witnessed the appearance of the Seljuk Turks who were famous for their love of raising horses and their adventurous spirit, as well as their great zeal for Islam; they were new converts to the faith, and adhered to the Sunni school of thought.