«فَقُلْتُ لِصَحْبِي: لِيَهْنَئْكُمُ الضَّيْفُ الْوَارِدُ بَلِ الْمَغْنَمُ الْبَارِدُ»
I told my companions: May you delight in the arriving guest—indeed, in this prize gained without effort!
Al-wārid means the one who arrives; maghnam is a gain; al-bārid figuratively suggests a benefit obtained with ease. Bal upgrades the praise from “guest” to “fortunate gain.”
For al-Ḥārith, the literary presence of Abū Zayd is itself a gift, not merely someone to feed.
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The Kūfan Maqāmah: The Guest’s Condition and Abū Zayd Revealed
«فَقُلْتُ لِصَحْبِي: لِيَهْنَئْكُمُ الضَّيْفُ الْوَارِدُ بَلِ الْمَغْنَمُ الْبَارِدُ»
I told my companions: May you delight in the arriving guest—indeed, in this prize gained without effort!
Al-wārid means the one who arrives; maghnam is a gain; al-bārid figuratively suggests a benefit obtained with ease. Bal upgrades the praise from “guest” to “fortunate gain.”
For al-Ḥārith, the literary presence of Abū Zayd is itself a gift, not merely someone to feed.