كُلُّ نَدِيِّ الرَّاحَةِ عَذْبُ الْمَوْرِدِ وَكُلُّ جَعْدِ الْكَفِّ مَغْلُولُ الْيَدِ
Every generous, open-handed person is like a sweet source of water; every tight-fisted person is as though bound by the hands.
Nadī al-rāḥah evokes a moist or open palm as a sign of generosity; jaʿd al-kaff depicts a tight, withholding hand. Bodily images stand for moral dispositions.
ʿAdhb al-mawrid likens the generous person to sweet water, while maghlūl al-yad suggests a hand bound against giving. The poem builds a coherent network of metaphors for access and refusal.
Semantic distinction exercise
Which disposition does jaʿd al-kaff suggest?