Lost Islamic History
Mawlid
Poetry from the Morisco
Period
of al-Andalus
The
following are three devotional poems commemorating the birth (mawlid) of the Prophet Muhammad(s) from
al-Andalus during the Morisco period (1500-1614).
Since
adherence to Islam was punishable by burning at the stake during this period of
Spanish history, these poems are as much an example of resistance to the
Inquistion and an assertion of Andalusi Muslim identity as they are indicative
of the love of the Spanish Muslims for the Prophet Muhammad(s).
The strange
Spanish is a result of the direct transliteration from Aljamiado (a form of
Spanish written in Arabic characters).
Poem
1:
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Debuwes de la loor a min senor ensalsado After praising my exalted
Lord
Farre alssala sobre alnnabi onrrado I shall bestow my
blessings upon the honorable Prophet
Alssala siyenbere seya alturado May prayers and blessings always be raised
Sobre nuwestoro alnnabi Muhammad Upon our Prophet Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Alssala ke seya esbandesido May prayers and blessings be widespread
Ensiyelos i-yen tiyerras seya oyido And heard in the heavens
and the earth
Porque a nosotros seya meresido So that we may deserve it
E ayamos el-amor de Muhammad And find the love of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved O Muhammad
Wa-alssaltu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Alssalaes ke no se puwedan kontar Prayers that cannot be enumerated
Mas son ke la pulubiya i las arenas de la mar For they are more
than the rain and the sands of the sea
Porque bodamos biyen entarar So that we may enter well
En la roghariya de Muhammad In supplication of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
No podiriyan todos los korasones All hearts cannot
Lonparar todas las bendisiyones Name all the benedictions
Ni kontar las donasiyones Nor count the gifts
Ke fuweron dadas a Muhammad That were bestowed upon Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Diso el senyor de la gharandiya The Lord of Greatness said
No kiriyariya a noche ni diya That He would not create night or day
Ni eskuredad ni luz no abriya Nor darkness or light
Sino por el gharande amor de Muhammad Had it not been for the
great love of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Ni aljanna ni jahannam no terniya There would be neither Paradise nor Hell
Ni al-‘arshi ni alkursi no fariya Nor Divine Throne
Ni siyels ni tieyrras no abriya Nor Heaven nor Earth
Sino por la onnor de Muhammad Had it not been for the honor of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved O Muhammad
Wa al-ssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Poem
2:
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my Beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Senor fazed alssala sobrel O Lord, send your blessings upon him
I fejinos amor kon-el And make us love him
Sakanos en su torobel Make us join his suite
Jus la senya de Muhammad At the sign of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my Beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Pazed alssala de konosensiya Make prayer with knowledge
Sobre la luz de la kereyensiya Of the light of belief
I selado kon rreberensiya Seal it with reverence
El-allsalaam sobre Muhammmad And peace upon Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Tu palabra pelaghara luwegho Your word will then come forth
I sera rresebido tu rruwegho And your supplication will be heard
I far el-alssalam enteregho And you will have full peace
Asi son los fechos de Muhammad Thus are Muhammad’s deeds.
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Kiyen kiyera puwena bentura Whoever wishes good fortune
I y-alkansar gharado de altura And to attain great heights
Pospongha la torpeza en la noche oskura Stop impurity in the dark
night
I fagha alssala sobre Muhammad And utter blessings upon Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Poem
3:
Allah ya rabi O God, my Lord
Ya Muhammad darabi O
Muhammad, my guide
Ya verdadero annabi O True Prophet
De arabi de arabi Of the Arab and from the Arab
Es Allah solo i senero God is Alone and One
De sin ninghun aparsero None resembling Him
Y Muhammad su mensajero And Muhammad is His messenger
Que todo fuwe verdadero That all is true.
I el-alislam mi adin And Islam is my religion
Allah ya rabi O God my Lord
Ya Muhammad darabi O Muhammad, my guide
Ya verdadero annabi O true Prophet
De arabi de arabi Of the Arab and from the Arab
(Poems
and translations are taken from: Anwar Chejne, Islam and the West: The
Moriscos, a Cultural and Social History [Albany: State University of New York
Press, 1983], pp. 150-166) Source
--
A
famous Andalusi-Morisco Mawlid poem written in Aljamiado.
This copy dates from 1567 [Esc. MS 1880]
--
The
Muslims of Spain: Moors, Moriscos, and Muladies
The
case of al-Andalus and its Andalusi Muslims is a classical example of the clash
of civilizations and history being re-written by the winners. Al-Andalus was
the name given to the Iberian peninsula (modern Spain & Portugal) by the
Arabs who conquered it beginning in 711 AD and who would control parts of it
until 1492. Read more Here
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Andalusia
When It Was...
Al-Andalus,
which means, "to become green at the end of the summer" is referred
to the territory occupied by the Muslim empire in Southern Spain, which refer
to the cities of Almeria, Malaga, Cadiz, Huelva, Seville, Cordoba, Jaen and
Granada.1 This civilization spanned the eighth to the fifteenth century.
In
711, Arabs crossed the Straight of Gibraltar (derived from 'Gabal Al-Tariq':
'Mountain of Tariq') and established control over much of the Iberian
Peninsula.2 Of the Arab conquest, Muslims called the area of the Iberian
Peninsula they occupied, "Al-Andalus." This land called Al-Andalus,
hence often called "Andalusia" had at one point included Portugal,
Southern France, and the Balearic Islands.
Within 3 years, in 714, Muslims had
occupied almost all the peninsula. Muslims crossed to Sicily and established
control there for 130 years, until Muslim rule fell in 1091 to the Normans.
Muslims also established rule in parts of France, but they were soon defeated
by Charles Martel in 756, in which remains today one of the greatest victories
for Christian Europe for bringing a halt to Islam's expansion. The Muslims who
arrived and settled in Andalus were called "Moors," ('dark') a
corrupt and negative term referring to the people who came from Morocco. They
themselves, however, did not use the term to refer to themselves. Read more Here
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(Edited by ADHM)
