This poem was written by an Englishman in the early Victorian era, and I still have fond recollections of memorizing it in class with our English teacher Dr. Montgomery. It's actually a poetic elaboration of a story from the 12th century Sufi poet Farid Ud-Din Attar, who was featured last week in "The Painting & the Painter." Attar's version was about Ibrahim (Abraham) and the angel Gabriel, but the story itself may predate him. I suspect it had become a common cultural tale by the time James Henry Leigh Hunt came along and invented the poetic character Abu Ben Adhem.
If I have any writing skill at all, Dr. Montgomery is the man to thank. Sir, wherever you are, this one's for you:
bq. "Abu Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase)
Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace
And saw, within the moonlight of his room
Making it rich, and like a lily in bloom
An angel writing in a book of gold.
Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold
And to the presence in his room he said
'What writest thou?' The vision raised its head
And with a look made of all sweet accord
Answered: 'The names of those who love the Lord
'And is mine one?' said Abu. 'Nay not so'
Replied the Angel: Abu spoke more low
But cheerily still and said 'I pray thee then
Write me as one that loves his fellow-men'
The angel wrote and vanished. The next night
It came again with a great awakening light
And showed the names whom love of God had blessed.
And lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest."
Attar's tale was different in an important respect, in that the issue was a list of the friends of G-d and Abraham said to the angel Gabriel: "I am a friend of the friends of G-d".
What do you think it means to be a "friend of the friends of G-d"? Use the comments section to offer your thoughts.
I've been an admirer of your site for many months, but I haven't felt the need to comment before. As a formalist poet, however, I must remark on the disservice you do the author of this verse by failing to break the lines where he intends: on the rhyme-words. This is written in iambic pentamater, so the line-length should not vary.
"What do you think it means to be a "friend of the friends of G-d"? Use the comments section to offer your thoughts."
It seems rather narrower than Abu Ben Adhem's response. Putting aside the historic prickliness of the righteous ("Of course they don't like me! I tell the truth!"), it's generally fairly easy to love the blessed. It's loving the publicans and sinners that takes real work.
Alan,
Actually, the version I use is transcribed from elsewhere... and it looks like it does indeed break on rhyme words.
Could you drop me an email and show me where you think it should break instead?
Wish I could copy/paste in your comment section; then I could put it here. Email coming...
According to Isaac Asimov, Abou ben Adhem's name led all the rest because of alphabetical order.
You're killing the moment, Joseph. :P
Well, I'm afraid I can't answer your question without sounding like the specialist I am. The word "pentameter" has a Greek root, and it literally means a "measure" (meter) of "five" (penta). Not five syllables, but five principal stresses. I'll illustrate with capitols:
a-BU ben AD-hem (MAY his TRIBE in-CREASE)
An iamb is a metrical unit consisting of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one. Since the iamb is the predominant unit or foot in the poem, we call this measure iambic pentameter. It is not meant to be read mechanically or metronomically. Natural speech rhythm will do. The metrical pulse should undergird, not overwhelm it.
There are ten syllables in all but two of the lines, but syllable count does not matter in this type of verse. The stresses denote the measure. And for this reason, I think you may have misremembered line four, which has only four stresses. Or else the poet was careless in his contrivance.
I hope that clarifies this arcane subject a bit.
I went and searched some additional transcriptions, and found that many inserted an "and" in line 4: "Making it rich, AND like a lily in bloom..."
This creates 11 syllables, but does balance to 5 stresses. Given what you've just explained, this would appear to be the correct transcription. I've also made some other changes from the transcription I found, and it looks right now.
Thanks!
To see them clearly, with G-d's eyes.
The question to which I referred above is, of course, not the one about the deity, but the one about the poem, raised in correspondence between JK and myself. I wouldn't presume to answer the original question. It's quite beyond my competence. :)
The whole of mankind is a friend of God (whether we know it or not) Therefore, to be a friend of Gods friends, you are a friend of mankind. - Exactly the same point Abu was trying to get across!
Submitted in memory of my grandfather Charles Goss, a true humanitarian, who always struggled with religion a bit, and loved this poem because it gave him hope that he may be let in afterall....
Salaam to all. As a Muslim, and and Arab one as well, I am very familiar with the emphasis that Islam places on loving our fellow human beings, most especially those who have kind concern and consideration for all of humankind. The Quran tells us that to kill one innocent human being will be is as if one had murdered all of humankind, and to save one human is as to have saved all of humanity, which I interpret to include every person from Prophet Adam, may peace be upon him, to the last person born before Qiyama (Day of Reckoning). I was introduced to this meaningful poem many years ago as a teenager by my driving instructor, and all those many years later, as I re-read it, I am reminded of Martin Buber's reference to the I and the Thou and the directive that man cannot reach God without reaching out to his fellow man as well.
To be a friend of the Friends of God is absolute completion in all directions.