He succeeded his father at the age of twenty, and his reign lasted twelve years.
He was a valiant, courageous warrior—generous yet profligate, exceedingly lavish upon himself.
ʿAlī ibn Muḥammad al-Madharaʾī narrated, on the authority of his paternal uncle (1):
“Khumārawayh once went for an outing at ʿUdhrāʾ (2). A singer (3) entertained him, and he was so captivated that he ordered the man to receive one hundred thousand dinars. When his treasurer voiced concern, he said, ‘How can I retract what I have proclaimed? Instead, give him one hundred thousand dirhams immediately, distribute the remainder, and spread it out before him.’ (4)
Al-Madharaʾī also related, from his father, who said:
‘We were with Abū’l-Jayš Khumārawayh on the Thawrā River when a Bedouin (5) came up to him, seized his bridle, and said, “Hear me.”
“Speak,” he replied.
The man recited:
If the spear-tip and the sword’s edge could find a tongue,
They would recount of you among the people wondrous tales.
You squander your wealth—giving it away and casting it about,
O blight upon bright silver and on gold! (6)
= 11/72-73; al-Nujum al-zahira, 3/49, and the account of his governorship up to p. 87; Shadharat al-dhahab, 2/178-179; Tahdhib Badran, 5/179-181.
(1) Tarikh Ibn Asakir reads: “from the uncle of Abu, known as Abu Zanbur.”
(2) Tarikh Ibn Asakir states: “at Marj Adhra near Damascus. Abu Muhammad said: Abu Zanbur was the fiscal agent of Abu al-Jaysh; he related…”.
(3) Ibn Asakir records the tune he sang:
“I said, when longing stirred my heart,
And the Pleiades rose in mid-sky;
She looked like a ruby in her setting—
How delightful is the night in Surra man ra’a.”
He notes that the singer replaced “Marj Adhra” with “Surra man ra’a” (Samarra).
(4) The report appears in Tarikh Ibn Asakir, MS Kh: 5/342b, with additional material. The phrase “wa-bsut-hu lahu” means: spread the remaining one hundred thousand dinars over several years so that he receives the whole sum, thereby fulfilling the promise.
(5) Ibn Asakir adds: “He was wearing a cloak. He came up, seized the nose-band of the king’s bridle while the king was riding alone with a falcon on his wrist. The falcon panicked and the pages shouted at the man, but the king said, ‘Leave him.’ The man said, ‘O king, stop and listen.’ The king responded, ‘Speak.’ The man said: …”.
(6) In Tarikh Ibn Asakir, MS Kh: 5/342b, the wording is “afnayta” (you have exhausted) instead of …