and loftiness itself has tongues whose praises celebrate
both praiseworthy realms—deeds accomplished and noble qualities.

Among his verses:
“If only the stars would draw nearer to me, that I might thread them
into necklaces of praise; for my words can never satisfy you.”⦗1⦘

He later settled in Egypt.

Ibn Khallikān⦗2⦘ said: “He was fiercely devoted to the Sunnah, a consummate man of letters, and highly regarded at court. When Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn seized power, he composed panegyrics for him. Later, however, he entered into an agreement with certain leaders to reinstate the Fatimid dynasty. The matter reached Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn, and ʿUmārah was hanged along with eight others in Ramadan 569 AH.

A single line of poetry was attributed to ʿUmārah—perhaps it was forged against him—so a legal opinion was issued for his execution. The line reads:
“The beginning of this affair was a man
who strove until they called him the master of nations.”⦗3⦘

He came from a house of leadership and pre-eminence, from the Tihāmah lowlands of Yemen, in the valley of Wasāʿ, which lies eleven days’ journey from Mecca.

ʿUmārah said: “The judge Muḥammad ibn Abī ʿAqāmah⦗4⦘ al-Ḥafāʾilī was the head of the people …”