LessonsʿAmr ibn Kulthūm: Uncertain Time, the Beloved and Grief (Verses 12–22)Quiz

ذِرَاعَيْ عَيْطَلٍ أَدْمَاءَ بِكْرٍ هَجَانِ اللَّوْنِ لَمْ تَقْرَأْ جَنِينَا
She shows arms likened to those of a tall-necked, reddish-white young she-camel that has not yet given birth.

ʿAyṭal describes a long-necked she-camel, admāʾ a reddish hue, bikr a female not yet having borne offspring, and hajān al-lawn a clear or pale colour. Lam taqraʾ janīnan indicates that she has not carried a foetus.

The image relies on proportions familiar to desert audiences; it is a conventional literary comparison, not a universal claim about beauty.

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Verse 14: Comparing arms with a young she-camel

ʿAmr ibn Kulthūm: Uncertain Time, the Beloved and Grief (Verses 12–22)

ذِرَاعَيْ عَيْطَلٍ أَدْمَاءَ بِكْرٍ هَجَانِ اللَّوْنِ لَمْ تَقْرَأْ جَنِينَا
She shows arms likened to those of a tall-necked, reddish-white young she-camel that has not yet given birth.

ʿAyṭal describes a long-necked she-camel, admāʾ a reddish hue, bikr a female not yet having borne offspring, and hajān al-lawn a clear or pale colour. Lam taqraʾ janīnan indicates that she has not carried a foetus.

The image relies on proportions familiar to desert audiences; it is a conventional literary comparison, not a universal claim about beauty.