2/3🌟: Conversations with Labīd Ibn Rabīah In Heaven

Ibn Qarih's inquiry about the meaning of one of Labid's most perplexing verses.

Mar 11, 2025

“ Are you left in places you come to hate ?
or are some souls tied to their fate ? ”

Tell me, “What do you mean by this verse?”, asked Ibn Al Qarih. For the people of the world pondered long, bewildered by this verse of yours. The Whole conversation, is at the end of the post after we understand the Verse more completely.1

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🔵 Technical Analysis of The Verse:

This verse consists of two hemistichs ( شطران ), following a structured classical poetic format.

Eloquence ( بلاغة ): We find a contrast in that, the poet juxtaposes human agency ( رضا – satisfaction ) with predestined fate ( حِمَام – death/destiny ).

Ambiguity & Open Interpretation:

“Are you left in places you come to hate?" → A question of free will.

"Or are some souls tied to their fate?" → A reflection on predestination.

So this begs the question, What Makes the Couplet Technically Profound?

Well, The first hemistich ( تُرَاكَ أَمْكِنَةً إِذَا لَمْ أَرْضِهَا ) can be both a rhetorical question or exclamatory statement on account of the fact that,

‘ تُرَاكَ ’ is in the passive form, implying an external force determining fate.
‘ أَمْكِنَةً ’ is in of itself an accusative case (مفعول به ثانٍ) because ‘ تُرَاكَ ’ is usually a transitive verb requiring two objects.
But because ‘ إِذَا لَمْ أَرْضِهَا ’ functions as a conditional phrase, ‘ أَمْكِنَةً ’ is modified opening room for dual interpretations.

& the second hemistich ( أَوْ يَرْتَبِطْ بَعْضُ النُّفُوسِ حِمَامُهَا ) presents us an alternative possibility too! on account of the fact that,

‘ يَرْتَبِطْ ’ (verb) is in jussive form (3rd Person Suggestive/Commandive) due to ‘ أَوْ ’, which can be interpreted as either uncertainty or Choice.
‘ بَعْضُ النُّفُوسِ ’ is the subject, and ‘ حِمَامُهَا ’ is its predicate (خبر), signifying fate binding certain souls.

Confused? All of This will Make Sense As We Now Look At The Individual Words & What They Mean;

🟢 Exact Meanings of Words in Context of The Verse:

First Hemistich:

- تُرَاكَ :

"Do you find yourself left in..." or "Are you left behind in...?" Derived from و-ر-ك, meaning "to remain, be left." The كَ (ka) refers to the addressee (which can be taken to be either the poet himself or a general figure).

- أَمْكِنَةً :

Plural of “مَكَان” (place, station, position). Contextually, it suggests not just physical places but metaphorical situations in life.

- إِذَا :

Conditional particle meaning "if" or "when."

- لَمْ أَرْضِهَا :

لَمْ (negation) + أَرْضِ (verb from ر-ض-ي, meaning "to be pleased"). هَا (hā) refers to the places.

So Alternatively, beyond the original as well, "If [I] do not approve of them (the places)."

Second Hemistich:

- أَوْ :

Conjunction meaning "or," presenting an alternative interpretation.

- يَرْتَبِطْ :

From ر-ب-ط, meaning "to be bound, tied, or attached." Here, it suggests souls being tied to their fate.

- بَعْضُ النُّفُوسِ :

بَعْضُ (“Some” – implying not all). النُّفُوسِ (plural of نَفْس, meaning "souls").

- حِمَامُهَا :

حِمَام2 (destined death, fate, or unavoidable doom). هَا (hā) here would be referring back to the aforementioned souls.

Final Meaning:
"Are you left to remain in places you do not approve of, or is it that some souls are tied to their destined fate?"

🔘 Intricacies of the Verse:

This I hope makes the Philosophical Reflection More clear i.e: Free will vs. predestination.

This should also allude to the underlying Metaphorical Depth ever-present in the verse itself => "Places" ( أمكنة ) = Situations in life & => "Fate binding souls" (يرتبط بعض النفوس حمامها ) = Death is inevitable.

There is also the Double Meaning of "Tied" (يرتبط): Literal: Being physically restrained, & Figurative: The soul's inescapable destiny.

🟡 Root Word Evolution Analysis:

As previously, here’s an analysis of the roots as used throughout the Evolution of Arabic Language.

[References included3. Table is a bit different in design this time. Would love feedback on preference].

🔴 Identifying the Meter (البحر الشعري):

The verse is inBahr al-Ṭawīl (الطويل), one of the most famous Arabic poetic meters. The default pattern of بحر الطويل is:

فَعُولُنْ مَفَاعِيلُنْ فَعُولُنْ مَفَاعِلُنْ

If we map it onto our couplet, recite it for yourself :D. (3rd Rule of Stephen Fry from The Ode Less Travelled, Always Read it Out Aloud & Slow)

Scansion of the First Hemistich:

تُرَاكَ أَمْكِنَةً إِذَا لَمْ أَرْضِهَا
فعولن مفاعيلن فعولن مفاعلن

Scansion of the Second Hemistich:

أَوْ يَرْتَبِطْ بَعْضُ النُّفُوسِ حِمَامُهَا
فعولن مفاعيلن فعولن مفاعلن

The final foot (مفاعلن) is a common variation of مفاعيلن due to iḍmār (إضمار) in ṭawīl which actually gives the couplet its sort of a Musical Quality. The repetition of “فعولن مفاعيلن ” adds to it all giving the whole thing a flowing and contemplative rhythm.

Well What does it all Amount to ?

Ibn Qarih Asks Labīd, “By ‘some’ souls, do you mean all souls?”.

“Not at All”, answers Labīd. “I meant only myself — just as if you might say to a man, ‘If your money departs, someone will give it to you’ : when in reality, you mean, ‘you yourself will give him’ and the expression clearly applies to ‘every one’ for ‘some’ people are included in ‘all’ people.”

Ibn Qarih Asks Further, “What do you mean by ‘souls seized by the destined fate’? That, I will leave the dwelling [place] I hate if my soul is not seized by death?
or
do you mean, Either I leave the place or else death shall seize my soul? In which case ‘death seizes’ would be depending on your expression : ‘I leave the place I hate’.”

“I mean the First Case.” Replied Labīd.