«أَغُوصُ فِي لُجَّةِ الْبَيَانِ»
I dive into the deep sea of expression.
«فَأَخْتَارُ اللَّآلِيَ مِنْهَا وَأَنْتَخِبُ»
And select its finest pearls.
*Lujjah* denotes deep water; *laʾālī* are pearls. The sea stands for the breadth of language, and the pearls for carefully chosen expressions. Neither is literal in the poem.
The first-person present verbs—“I dive,” “I choose,” “I select”—present skilled composition as sustained work, not accidental cleverness.
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The Alexandrian Maqāmah — The Husband’s Poetic Defence and the Craft of Eloquence
«أَغُوصُ فِي لُجَّةِ الْبَيَانِ»
I dive into the deep sea of expression.
«فَأَخْتَارُ اللَّآلِيَ مِنْهَا وَأَنْتَخِبُ»
And select its finest pearls.
*Lujjah* denotes deep water; *laʾālī* are pearls. The sea stands for the breadth of language, and the pearls for carefully chosen expressions. Neither is literal in the poem.
The first-person present verbs—“I dive,” “I choose,” “I select”—present skilled composition as sustained work, not accidental cleverness.