The eyes of wonders in what Abu Al-Tayyib mentioned of inventions and strange things

Eyes of Wonders in what Abu Al-Tayeb brought of inventions and strange things* So, this invention or innovation was not limited to one side of Al-Mutanabbi's poetry, but included the entire creative process? - Exactly. Understanding Al-Mutanabbi requires grasping this highly sensitive attitude towards "invention" and "innovation." Abu Al-Tayeb did not rely on tradition as a crutch or a ready-made mold, but viewed it as a starting point to create a different image, an image that approaches the spirit of the artist who sees what others do not see. The true paradox lies here: how do we deal with great figures? Do we copy them and kill their spirit? Or do we understand the secret of their creativity and create in their style without imitation? Al-Mutanabbi chose the path of innovation, so he did not copy those who came before him, but forged their experiences into his own unique mold to produce new gold. Invention runs in the blood of Al-Mutanabbi’s poetry, in its images and contents. We find it in his pride that surpasses the limits of the self to embrace the absolute: I am the one who the blind looked at my poetry and those who are deaf heard my words. The horses, the night, and the desert know me, and the sword, spear, paper, and pen. This is not just pride, but a declaration of the power of the word and its ability to transcend senses and boundaries. We find it in his wisdom, which extracts the essence of life in few words: As much as determination’s people, the determinations come, and as much as noble’s generosity, the virtues come, and in the eyes of the small, their insignificance grows, and in the eyes of the great, the greatness diminishes. These lines are not just sayings, but a law in understanding the human soul and the nature of things. And this is the essence of his invention: to summarize a complete theory in poetry and life, and to connect all this with his complex relationship with authority, as it was reflected in the presence of Saif Al-Dawla Al-Hamdani, where praise mingled with pride, and advice with challenge.* Can you specify "Eyes of Wonders" that you titled your book with? Do you think his greatness as a poet comes from being a modern and contemporary shadow for us? - Yes. Abu Al-Tayeb Al-Mutanabbi is not just a great poet, but a "phenomenon" of culture and art. He is the "inventor" who never ceased to invent the new, and left us a huge legacy that still inspires, amazes us, and teaches us that the road to immortality does not pass through copying, but through the courage of innovation and the strength of authentic creativity. I can say that the glow of Al-Mutanabbi did not extinguish with his death, but extended to illuminate the paths of poets after him, even in their most intimate and human moments. When Mahmoud Darwish’s voice resonates in the modern era, expressing the pain of loss and the longing of a son: "I long for my mother’s bread," the echo of this deep longing reverberates in the eternal poem of Al-Mutanabbi, written in mourning for his grandmother, where personal longing surpasses the individual to embrace the symbolism of origins and beginnings: I long for the cup she drank from, and I yearn for her resting place in the earth, and what they contained. It is the same pain, the same longing for a past that does not return, and for the roots that shaped us. It is the ability of eternal poetry to touch the strings of the shared human soul, and the ability of Al-Mutanabbi to shape these feelings into forms that remain alive through ages. Perhaps when we contemplate our pains, as Al-Mutanabbi did in his poetry which was not free from the bitterness of experience, we realize that "the worst thing that happened to us was from people, and the most beautiful thing that happened was from God... and we still approach people and distance ourselves from God!" It is a wisdom similar to that of Abu Al-Tayeb, which made him "the wise poet." * Do you think many poets or leaders of our time have taken from Al-Mutanabbi’s wisdom and been inspired by his thought? - Indeed, Al-Mutanabbi’s influence was not limited to the world of poetry and literature, but extended to major leaders who understood the value of the word and the depth of wisdom. The late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, was one of the most admirers of Abu Al-Tayeb Al-Mutanabbi, admiring his inventions, eloquence, and eternal wisdom. Sheikh Zayed, with his wisdom and insight, saw in Al-Mutanabbi "the wise poet," and drew from his description of horses meanings of courage, loyalty, pride, and noble qualities, seeing in him a symbol of pride in Arab identity and its eloquent language. Sheikh Zayed was among the few leaders who celebrated Al-Mutanabbi’s poeticity, his values, and his lofty ideals, and his poetry accompanied him, alongside his admiration for other great poets like Al-Majidi bin Zahir. Perhaps this deep interest from a leader like Sheikh Zayed was one of the incentives that prompted us to write about this distinguished poet. * Do you think that the environment of invention comes from his relationship with Saif Al-Dawla, who was like the great recipient of his poetry and interacted with it? - Yes, Abu Al-Tayeb found a great court and an even greater recipient in Saif Al-Dawla Al-Hamdani. Amid the conflicts of that era with the Buyids and the Ikhshidids, that place was a beacon of knowledge and literature. Saif Al-Dawla was not just a ruler, but a poet and a discerning critic, fully aware of Abu Al-Tayeb’s strength and the secrets of his inventions. This perception by the first recipient, Saif Al-Dawla, was like the fuel that fed the spark of invention in Al-Mutanabbi himself. When a poet knows he is before an audience that understands the secrets of poetry, distinguishes between imitation and following, and between creativity and repetition, he elevates his spirit and soars to higher skies. Saif Al-Dawla did not stop there; he opened windows for Al-Mutanabbi to other cultures—Greek, Persian, and Roman—not to imitate or copy them, but to be a stimulus for innovation with an authentic Arab perspective, proving that Arabness is capable of absorbing the world and expressing it with strength and beauty unmatched. Thus, Al-Mutanabbi broke away from a lineage of poets preoccupied with trivialities or trapped in imitation, while he aspired for his relationship with ancestors to be a dialogue and transcendence, a relationship of invention and innovation, not of repetition and following. * There is a provocative issue with Abu Al-Tayeb Al-Mutanabbi, which is his stance on women... Can you clarify that? - It is known that Al-Mutanabbi specified in a poem praising Kafur Al-Ishaqi in 346 AH, the specifications of the most beautiful woman, and at the same time criticized, the women’s infatuation in his era with artificial beauty and highlighting features that were manufactured and not natural. This means he was not traditional in his view of women. When we examine his poems, especially his elegy for his grandmother who cared for him like a mother, or for Khawla, sister of Sif Al-Dawla Al-Kubra, we find a picture of women that goes beyond the usual in his poetry. Women were not just subjects of flirtation or mourning over ruins, but became symbols and sources of culture, strength, and historical knowledge. He was among the first poets who perhaps intuitively understood the importance of women’s role and their capabilities, granting them in his poetry a status befitting them, as if he foresaw the idea of "empowering women" in poetic language centuries before it became widespread. * Lastly, we ask about the Iraqi artist Mahmoud Shuber, whose paintings adorned your book? - Visual art was not far; the great artist Mahmoud Shuber finds in Al-Mutanabbi’s poetry an inexhaustible source, translating the poet’s linguistic and visual inventions into artistic innovations on his paintings.