Then al-Mutawakkil came and sat down beside him (1).
Al-Khatib (2) al-Baghdadi relates that ʿAli ibn al-Jahm entered upon al-Mutawakkil while the caliph was turning over two pearls in his hand. Ibn al-Jahm recited to him the poem in which he says:
“If you pass by the well of ʿUrwah, draw water from it” (3).
So the caliph gave him the pearl in his right hand, and it was worth one hundred thousand. He then went on to recite (4):
“In Surra Man Raʾā a just commander reigns—
From his ocean all other seas are filled.
He is both hoped for and feared in every crisis,
As though he were at once Garden and Fire.
Kingship abides in him and in his sons
So long as night and day keep alternating.
His two hands in generosity are co-wives,
Each one of them jealous of the other.
Nothing issues from the right hand of the man
But that the left produces something equal.”
He (the narrator) said: So the caliph gave him the pearl in his left hand as well.
Al-Khatib (5) adds: These verses have also been transmitted (6) as belonging to al-Buhturi in praise of al-Mutawakkil.
Ibn ʿAsakir (7) relates, on the authority of ʿAli ibn al-Jahm, who said: “Qabīḥa, the favorite concubine of al-Mutawakkil, stood before him and …”
As for the sunnah, omitting that does not entail any blame, and the standing mentioned in the Prophet’s ﷺ saying, “Whoever wishes that people would stand up for him, let him secure his seat in the Fire,” refers to their standing up for him while he is seated—not to their standing up to him when he arrives. Hence the distinction between saying “qomt lahu” (I stood for him) and “qomt ilayh” (I stood up to him), since one who stands for someone coming is equated in the act of standing, unlike one who stands for someone seated. End of note.
(1) See Mukhtasar Ibn ‘Asakir, vol. 6, p. 88.
(2) Tarikh Baghdad, vol. 7, p. 167; Mukhtasar Ibn ‘Asakir, vol. 6, p. 89; Siyar A‘lam al-Nubala’, vol. 12, p. 32; Tarikh al-Khulafa’ by al-Suyuti, p. 356.
(3) Diwan ‘Ali ibn al-Jahm, p. 37; and the well of ‘Urwa in Medina, whose water is among the best; it was carried in jars to Harun al-Rashid.
(4) Tarikh Baghdad, vol. 7, p. 167.
(5) Ibid.
(6) In al-Usul: these verses were attributed to ‘Ali ibn Harun al-Buhturi during al-Mutawakkil’s reign; the correction appears in Tarikh Baghdad (vol. 7, p. 167). ‘Ali ibn Harun was a transmitter of poetry and one of the caliphs’ confidants; he died in 352 AH. Al-Khatib later reported that he recited the verses to al-Buhturi, citing a chain of transmission: ‘Ali ibn Ayyub al-Qummi → Muhammad ibn Imran al-Marzubani → ‘Ali ibn Harun, and recorded the verses.
(7) Mukhtasar Ibn ‘Asakir, vol. 6, p. 90. The first three verses are attributed to the poetess Fadl in al-Aghani (vol. 19, p. 311), while the first two appear in Siyar A‘lam al-Nubala’ (vol. 12, p. 33) and Tarikh al-Khulafa’ of al-Suyuti (p. 356).