طَوْرًا يُجَرَّدُ لِلطِّعَانِ وَتَارَةً يَأْوِي إِلَى حَصِدِ الْقِسِيِّ عَرَمْرَمِ
At one moment it is brought forth for spear-fighting; at another it returns to a dense, immense body of bowmen.
The pairing ṭawran ... wa-tāratan alternates between attack and regrouping. Ṭiʿān is spear-fighting; the description of strong bows and the adjective ʿaramram evoke a large, tightly massed fighting force.
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ʿAntarah ibn Shaddād: Cavalry Witnesses, Courage, Restraint and Duels (verses 43–56)
طَوْرًا يُجَرَّدُ لِلطِّعَانِ وَتَارَةً يَأْوِي إِلَى حَصِدِ الْقِسِيِّ عَرَمْرَمِ
At one moment it is brought forth for spear-fighting; at another it returns to a dense, immense body of bowmen.
The pairing ṭawran ... wa-tāratan alternates between attack and regrouping. Ṭiʿān is spear-fighting; the description of strong bows and the adjective ʿaramram evoke a large, tightly massed fighting force.