LessonsImruʾ al-Qays: The Horse’s Speed, Agility, and Similes (Verses 52–58)Quiz

مِكَرٍّ مِفَرٍّ مُقْبِلٍ مُدْبِرٍ مَعًا
كَجُلْمُودِ صَخْرٍ حَطَّهُ السَّيْلُ مِنْ عَلِ
“Quick to wheel and retreat, advancing and withdrawing together—like a huge mass of rock driven down from a height by a torrent.”

Mikarr, mifarr, muqbil, mudbir, maʿan crowds four changes of motion into a single line. It is not a literal claim that the horse occupies contradictory directions simultaneously; the compression expresses how quickly it can reverse its movement.

Ka-julmūdi ṣakhr invokes a massive rock; ḥaṭṭahu al-saylu min ʿal adds a torrent's powerful downward force. The combination expresses both agility and momentum, qualities of a capable riding and hunting horse.

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Verse 53: four movements at once

Imruʾ al-Qays: The Horse’s Speed, Agility, and Similes (Verses 52–58)

مِكَرٍّ مِفَرٍّ مُقْبِلٍ مُدْبِرٍ مَعًا
كَجُلْمُودِ صَخْرٍ حَطَّهُ السَّيْلُ مِنْ عَلِ
“Quick to wheel and retreat, advancing and withdrawing together—like a huge mass of rock driven down from a height by a torrent.”

Mikarr, mifarr, muqbil, mudbir, maʿan crowds four changes of motion into a single line. It is not a literal claim that the horse occupies contradictory directions simultaneously; the compression expresses how quickly it can reverse its movement.

Ka-julmūdi ṣakhr invokes a massive rock; ḥaṭṭahu al-saylu min ʿal adds a torrent's powerful downward force. The combination expresses both agility and momentum, qualities of a capable riding and hunting horse.