Read Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World, 1500-1800 Online
Authors: Khaled El-Rouayheb
Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World, 1500-1800 (79 page)
63
Alf laylah wa laylah,
1 : 598—602 (Nights 419—23).
Alf laylah wa laylah,
1 : 598—602 (Nights 419—23).
64
Ibn al-Ḥanbalī,
Durr al-ḥabab,
1 : 983—84; Ghazzī,
al-Kawākib al-sā
irah,
1 : 266.
Ibn al-Ḥanbalī,
Durr al-ḥabab,
1 : 983—84; Ghazzī,
al-Kawākib al-sā
irah,1 : 266.
65
Muḥibbī,
Khulāsāt al-athar,
3 : 257. The quotation is a saying attributed to the Prophet.
Muḥibbī,
Khulāsāt al-athar,
3 : 257. The quotation is a saying attributed to the Prophet.
66
Barbir,
al-Sharb al-jalī,
219.
Barbir,
al-Sharb al-jalī,
219.
67
Quoted in Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
3 : 244.
Quoted in Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
3 : 244.
68
Khafājī,
Rayḥānat al-alibbā
, 1 : 350.
Khafājī,
Rayḥānat al-alibbā
, 1 : 350.
69
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar,
4 : 84.
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar,
4 : 84.
70
Ghulāmī,
Shammāmat al-ʿanbar
, 276—77.
Ghulāmī,
Shammāmat al-ʿanbar
, 276—77.
71
I use the adjective “heterosexual” in such contexts merely to avoid more cumbersome locutions, and not because the couples involved can appropriately be described as “heterosexual.”
I use the adjective “heterosexual” in such contexts merely to avoid more cumbersome locutions, and not because the couples involved can appropriately be described as “heterosexual.”
72
Ibn al-Wakīl al-Mallawī,
Bughyat al-musāmir,
fol. 140b.
Ibn al-Wakīl al-Mallawī,
Bughyat al-musāmir,
fol. 140b.
73
On dark-skinned Ethiopians versus the fair-skinned, see Antākī,
Tazyīnal-aswā,
2 : 137—38; Ghazzī,
al-Kawākib al-sā
irah,
3 : 106—7; Ibn Maʿṣūm,
Sulāfat al-ʿasr
, 80.
On dark-skinned Ethiopians versus the fair-skinned, see Antākī,
Tazyīnal-aswā,
2 : 137—38; Ghazzī,
al-Kawākib al-sā
irah,3 : 106—7; Ibn Maʿṣūm,
Sulāfat al-ʿasr
, 80.
74
Nābulusī,
Ghāyat al-maṭlūb,
163.
Nābulusī,
Ghāyat al-maṭlūb,
163.
75
For similar remarks on “disputations” in classical antiquity, see Halperin, “Historicizing the Subject of Desires” (revised and reprinted as ch. 3 of
How to Do the History of Sexuality),
and Williams,
Roman Honwsexuality,
171—72.
For similar remarks on “disputations” in classical antiquity, see Halperin, “Historicizing the Subject of Desires” (revised and reprinted as ch. 3 of
How to Do the History of Sexuality),
and Williams,
Roman Honwsexuality,
171—72.
76
Khafājī,
Rayhānat al-alibbā,
1 : 100—102.
Khafājī,
Rayhānat al-alibbā,
1 : 100—102.
77
Murādī, Silk
al-durar,
4 : 182.
Murādī, Silk
al-durar,
4 : 182.
78
Usamah ibn Munqidh composed a much-cited couplet endorsing the creed of the Mosulites. See al-ʿUmarī, Muhammad Amīn,
Manhal al-awliyā
,
1 : 228; al-ʿUmarī, ʿUthman,
al-Rawd al-naḍir
, 1 : 456.
Usamah ibn Munqidh composed a much-cited couplet endorsing the creed of the Mosulites. See al-ʿUmarī, Muhammad Amīn,
Manhal al-awliyā
,1 : 228; al-ʿUmarī, ʿUthman,
al-Rawd al-naḍir
, 1 : 456.
79
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar,
3 : 114; Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
2 : 206.
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar,
3 : 114; Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
2 : 206.
80
Ibn al-Sammān, [
Tārīkh
]
,
fol. 145b—149a.
Ibn al-Sammān, [
Tārīkh
]
,
fol. 145b—149a.
81
Ibn al-Samman, [
Tārīkh
]
,
fol. 151a.
Ibn al-Samman, [
Tārīkh
]
,
fol. 151a.
82
Ibn al-Samman, [
Tārīkh
], fol. 159b—160a.
Ibn al-Samman, [
Tārīkh
], fol. 159b—160a.
83
Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
3 : 234—45. Anouti mentions this tract in passing, describing its subject matter as “strange”; see
al-Harakah al-adabiyyah,
93.
Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
3 : 234—45. Anouti mentions this tract in passing, describing its subject matter as “strange”; see
al-Harakah al-adabiyyah,
93.
84
Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
4 : 208.
Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
4 : 208.
85
Muḥibbī,
Nafḥat al-rayḥānah,
2 : 447.
Muḥibbī,
Nafḥat al-rayḥānah,
2 : 447.
86
For example, Muḥibbī,
Nafḥat al-rayḥānah,
2 : 148; Ibn Maʿtūq al-Ḥuwayzī,
Diwān,
225.
For example, Muḥibbī,
Nafḥat al-rayḥānah,
2 : 148; Ibn Maʿtūq al-Ḥuwayzī,
Diwān,
225.
87
ʿUṭayfī,
Riḥlah
, 18—19.
ʿUṭayfī,
Riḥlah
, 18—19.
88
al-‘Umarī, ‘Uthmān,
al-Rawḍ al-naḍir,
1:549—58.
al-‘Umarī, ‘Uthmān,
al-Rawḍ al-naḍir,
1:549—58.
89
T. Bauer has convincingly argued that already by the ninth and tenth centuries, love poetry of boys was at least as common as love poetry of women in Arabic literature (
Liebe und Liebesdichtung,
150—63).
T. Bauer has convincingly argued that already by the ninth and tenth centuries, love poetry of boys was at least as common as love poetry of women in Arabic literature (
Liebe und Liebesdichtung,
150—63).
90
This seems to be true of elite poetry produced in the major cities of the Arabic-speaking parts of the Ottoman Empire, as evinced by the literary anthologies and the poetic excerpts in the biographical dictionaries of the period. It may not be true of folk poetry or the poetry of, say, Oman.
This seems to be true of elite poetry produced in the major cities of the Arabic-speaking parts of the Ottoman Empire, as evinced by the literary anthologies and the poetic excerpts in the biographical dictionaries of the period. It may not be true of folk poetry or the poetry of, say, Oman.
91
This is close to the position ofT. Bauer in “Raffinement und Frömmigkeit.” Bauer, however, seems not to take seriously the dimension of chastity in such poetry, and thus makes the contrast between the secular-hedonist ideal expressed in amatory belles-lettres more at odds with the religious condemnation of fornication and sodomy than I think it was.
This is close to the position ofT. Bauer in “Raffinement und Frömmigkeit.” Bauer, however, seems not to take seriously the dimension of chastity in such poetry, and thus makes the contrast between the secular-hedonist ideal expressed in amatory belles-lettres more at odds with the religious condemnation of fornication and sodomy than I think it was.
92
Bray,
Homosexuality in Renaissance England,
60—61. For a critical discussion of similar claims about Judeo-Arabic poetry in medieval Spain, see Schirmann, “The Ephebe in Medieval Hebrew Poetry,” 67.
Bray,
Homosexuality in Renaissance England,
60—61. For a critical discussion of similar claims about Judeo-Arabic poetry in medieval Spain, see Schirmann, “The Ephebe in Medieval Hebrew Poetry,” 67.
93
Bürgel, “Literatur und Wirklichkeit,” 254.
Bürgel, “Literatur und Wirklichkeit,” 254.
94
Rosenthal, “Male and Female: Described and Compared,” p. 43.
Rosenthal, “Male and Female: Described and Compared,” p. 43.
95
Enderwitz,
Liebe als Beruf,
7 and 224.
Enderwitz,
Liebe als Beruf,
7 and 224.
96
Ibn Hajar,
Kaff al-ra ʿāʿ,
274. The same point is made by Ghazālī in his
Iḥyāʾ
ʿulūm al-dīn;
see Zabīdī,
Itḥāf al-sādah al-muttaqīn,
I : 249 (margin), 6:496 (margin).
Ibn Hajar,
Kaff al-ra ʿāʿ,
274. The same point is made by Ghazālī in his
Iḥyāʾ
ʿulūm al-dīn;
see Zabīdī,
Itḥāf al-sādah al-muttaqīn,
I : 249 (margin), 6:496 (margin).
97
Shawkānī,
al-Badr al-ṭāli‘,
1:281.
Shawkānī,
al-Badr al-ṭāli‘,
1:281.
98
Barbir,
al-Sharḥ al-jalī,
219. It is generally agreed that pederastic themes first appear in Arabic literature in the second half of the eighth century.
Barbir,
al-Sharḥ al-jalī,
219. It is generally agreed that pederastic themes first appear in Arabic literature in the second half of the eighth century.
99
Karmī,
Munyat al-muḥibbīn,
fol. 34b.
Karmī,
Munyat al-muḥibbīn,
fol. 34b.
100
Karmī,
Munyat al-muḥibbīn,
fol. 41a.
Karmī,
Munyat al-muḥibbīn,
fol. 41a.
101
See Barbir,
al-Sharḥ al-jalī,
219; Karmī,
Munyat al-muḥibbīn,
fol. 41b.
See Barbir,
al-Sharḥ al-jalī,
219; Karmī,
Munyat al-muḥibbīn,
fol. 41b.
102
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar
, 1:333—34.
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar
, 1:333—34.
103
Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
4:208.
Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
4:208.
104
Ibn Ma‘tūq al-Ḥuwayzī,
Dīwān
, 225.
Ibn Ma‘tūq al-Ḥuwayzī,
Dīwān
, 225.
105
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar,
1:10; Muḥibbī,
Nafhat al-rayḥānah,
2:653—54.
Muḥibbī,
Khulāṣat al-athar,
1:10; Muḥibbī,
Nafhat al-rayḥānah,
2:653—54.
106
Jabartī,
‘Ajā’ib al-āthar,
4:239—40.
Jabartī,
‘Ajā’ib al-āthar,
4:239—40.
107
Muḥibbī,
Khulāsat al-athar,
4:98-99; Muḥibbī,
Nafhat al-rayḥānah,
2:393-94.
Muḥibbī,
Khulāsat al-athar,
4:98-99; Muḥibbī,
Nafhat al-rayḥānah,
2:393-94.
108
Bürgel, “Love, Lust, and Longing,” 83, and Bürgel, “Literatur und Wirklichkeit,” 248.
Bürgel, “Love, Lust, and Longing,” 83, and Bürgel, “Literatur und Wirklichkeit,” 248.
109
This is clearly the underlying motivation behind Bürgel’s attempt to stress the possible fictionality of love poetry; see “Literatur und Wirklichkeit,” 254, and “Die beste Dichtung ist die lügenreichste,” 35. Modern scholars who regard medieval courtly love in the West as a literary
topos
with no social basis have supported their position by pointing to the severity with which adultery was regarded at the time (see Benton, “Clio and Venus,” and the critical discussion of Benton’s position in Boas,
The Origin and Meaning of Courtly Love,
111-14). For recent attempts to vindicate the social reality of medieval courtly love, see Keen, “Chivalry and Courtly Love,” and Jaeger,
Ennobling Love.
This is clearly the underlying motivation behind Bürgel’s attempt to stress the possible fictionality of love poetry; see “Literatur und Wirklichkeit,” 254, and “Die beste Dichtung ist die lügenreichste,” 35. Modern scholars who regard medieval courtly love in the West as a literary
topos
with no social basis have supported their position by pointing to the severity with which adultery was regarded at the time (see Benton, “Clio and Venus,” and the critical discussion of Benton’s position in Boas,
The Origin and Meaning of Courtly Love,
111-14). For recent attempts to vindicate the social reality of medieval courtly love, see Keen, “Chivalry and Courtly Love,” and Jaeger,
Ennobling Love.
110
Karmī,
Munyat al-muhibbīn
, fol. 39a-b.
Karmī,
Munyat al-muhibbīn
, fol. 39a-b.
111
Khafājī,
Rayhānat al-alibbā,
I : 335, 338.
Khafājī,
Rayhānat al-alibbā,
I : 335, 338.
112
Muhibbi,
Nafhat al-rayhānah,
I : 31,1 : 127.
Muhibbi,
Nafhat al-rayhānah,
I : 31,1 : 127.
113
Muhibbī,
Nafhat al-rayhānah,
1: 411-13. The poet is making a pun based on the similarity of the name of the youth to the term for “dividends” or “profits”
(arbāh
, plural of
ribh).
The friendship between Muhibbi and Safadī is also apparent from the entry on the latter in Muhibbi,
Khulāsat al-athar,
1: 356-59.
Muhibbī,
Nafhat al-rayhānah,
1: 411-13. The poet is making a pun based on the similarity of the name of the youth to the term for “dividends” or “profits”
(arbāh
, plural of
ribh).
The friendship between Muhibbi and Safadī is also apparent from the entry on the latter in Muhibbi,
Khulāsat al-athar,
1: 356-59.
114
Nābulusī,
Khamrat bābil,
223. The term Ḉelebī in this context probably denotes a “gentlemanly” status in general, not any specific rank. Nābulusī cites another poem composed by Safadī which features the name Rabah in the final line in
Khamrat bāsil,
142.
Nābulusī,
Khamrat bābil,
223. The term Ḉelebī in this context probably denotes a “gentlemanly” status in general, not any specific rank. Nābulusī cites another poem composed by Safadī which features the name Rabah in the final line in
Khamrat bāsil,
142.
115
Ghulāmī,
Shammāmat al-‘anbar
, 381—82. Suwaydī confirmed that Muhammad al-Ghulāmī was a close friend of his, in
al-Nafhah al-miskiyyah
(see fol. 3a-b).
Ghulāmī,
Shammāmat al-‘anbar
, 381—82. Suwaydī confirmed that Muhammad al-Ghulāmī was a close friend of his, in
al-Nafhah al-miskiyyah
(see fol. 3a-b).
116
al-Suwaydī, ‘Abdallah,
al-Nafhah al-miskiyyah,
MS fol. 142b-147b.
al-Suwaydī, ‘Abdallah,
al-Nafhah al-miskiyyah,
MS fol. 142b-147b.
117
Murādī,
Silk al-durar
, 2:275. Murādī quotes the second passage from an anthology of poets by Muhammad Sa‘īd ibn al-Samman (d. 1759); see Ibn al-Samman, [
Tārīkh
], fol. 217a.
Murādī,
Silk al-durar
, 2:275. Murādī quotes the second passage from an anthology of poets by Muhammad Sa‘īd ibn al-Samman (d. 1759); see Ibn al-Samman, [
Tārīkh
], fol. 217a.
118
Muhibbi,
Khulāsat al-athar,
2:175. The dates of death may suggest otherwise, but Zakariyya al-Būsnawī was eighteen years younger than Manjak.
Muhibbi,
Khulāsat al-athar,
2:175. The dates of death may suggest otherwise, but Zakariyya al-Būsnawī was eighteen years younger than Manjak.
119
Tālawī,
Sānihāt dumā al-qasr,
1:177; Ibn al-Hanbalī,
Durr al- habab ,
2:145; Ghazzī,
al-Kawākib al-sā’irah,
3:23.
Tālawī,
Sānihāt dumā al-qasr,
1:177; Ibn al-Hanbalī,
Durr al- habab ,
2:145; Ghazzī,
al-Kawākib al-sā’irah,
3:23.
120
Dover,
Greek Homosexuality,
66.
Dover,
Greek Homosexuality,
66.
121
Kanjī,
Bulūgh al-munā
, 73, 90. The editor of this work assumes that it was written in the nineteenth century. Internal evidence (in particular the formulaic expressions after mentioning a person which reveal whether he was dead or alive at the time of writing) shows that the work was written between 1107/1695-96 and 1117/1705-6. The author is almost certainly the Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Kanjī who is mentioned by Muhibbī (d. 1699) in
Dhayl Nafhat al-rayhānah
, 55-74. The same person is mentioned in the entry on his father Ahmad (d. 1695/6) in Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
1:196-99. His date of death is given in Ibn Kannān al-Sālihī,
al-Hawādith al-yawmiyyah,
518.
Kanjī,
Bulūgh al-munā
, 73, 90. The editor of this work assumes that it was written in the nineteenth century. Internal evidence (in particular the formulaic expressions after mentioning a person which reveal whether he was dead or alive at the time of writing) shows that the work was written between 1107/1695-96 and 1117/1705-6. The author is almost certainly the Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Kanjī who is mentioned by Muhibbī (d. 1699) in
Dhayl Nafhat al-rayhānah
, 55-74. The same person is mentioned in the entry on his father Ahmad (d. 1695/6) in Murādī,
Silk al-durar,
1:196-99. His date of death is given in Ibn Kannān al-Sālihī,
al-Hawādith al-yawmiyyah,
518.
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