Back to search
The question

How authentic is the attribution to the Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib of the poems in the book "Diwan of the Commander of the Faithful Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him and honor his face"?

Share this answer

Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Oct 24, 20261 min readAlso available in العربية
The answer

The Divan of the Rightly Guided Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib contains no evidence proving its attribution to him, and most of what it contains is either interpolated or forged. Many of the poems attributed to him are found in other divans, and the variation in style within it indicates that it was not compiled by a single author. Although Ali possessed poetic talent and recited poetry on occasions, he did not make it a profession. Scholars are in agreement that only two verses are authentically attributed to him:

"Those Quraysh wish to kill me... But by your Lord, they neither prevailed nor succeeded. And if I perish, then my pledge to them is a possessor of two horns, whose trace never fades."

In addition to the urjuzah verses he recited during the Battle of Khaybar to Marhab:

"I am the one my mother named Haydarah (lion)... Like a lion of the forests, fearsome in appearance. I shall pay them back with the full measure of the sandarah."

Scholars emphasize that what is proven of his poetry is very rare, and anything else is an embellishment by narrators.

Summary from Ftawy's records · added here

Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.

Read the full answer on Ftawy
Where this answer came from
Source platform
Ftawy
Original fatwa ID
28240
Added here
. This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
Text
Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full ruling
Read the full answer on Ftawy