هَذا الّذي تَعرِفُ البَطْحاءُ وَطْأتَهُ
This is the one whose footstep the valley of Mecca knows.
Al-Farazdaq, at the Kaaba in 732, naming to Caliph Hisham the man the caliph pretended not to know. He was imprisoned for it.
#Farazdaq #Arabicpoetry #LisanAlGhayb #dune #fremen #babylon #islam

كَأَنَّهُ عَلَمٌ فِي رَأْسِهِ نَارُ
Like a banner with a fire at its head.
Al-Khansa on her brother Sakhr, 7th century: the dead man as the landmark the guides steer by.
#alKhansa #elegy #Arabicpoetry #LisanAlGhayb #dune #fremen #babylon #islam

وَفي اللَيلَةِ الظَلماءِ يُفتَقَدُ البَدرُ
The full moon is missed on the darkest night.
Abu Firas al-Hamdani, a prisoner of Byzantium, to Sayf al-Dawla, 960s. A qasida written from captivity.
#AbuFiras #Arabicpoetry #LisanAlGhayb #dune #fremen #babylon #islam