Stories That Soften the Heart

Each Arabic line is a button. Press it to go through its words, then press a word for its meaning.

وَعَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِسْحَاقَ قَالَ

And from Muhammad ibn Ishaq, he said

كانَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ إِذَا جَلَسَ مَعَ أَصْحَابِهِ حَدَّثَهُمْ سَاعَةً ثُمَّ قَالَ حَمِّضُونَا فَيَأْخُذُ فِي أَحَادِيثِ الْعَرَبِ ثُمَّ يَعُودُ يَفْعَلُ ذَلِكَ مِرَارًا

When Ibn Abbas sat with his companions, he would talk to them for an hour and then say, 'Refresh us,' and would start discussing Arab stories before returning, doing this repeatedly.

وَعَنْ الزُّهْرِيِّ أَنَّهُ كَانَ يَقُولُ لِأَصْحَابِهِ

And Al-Zuhri used to say to his companions

هَاتُوا مِنْ أَشْعَارِكُمْ هَاتُوا مِنْ حَدِيثِكُم

Bring your poetry, bring your stories

فإن الأذن مجة والقلب حمض

For the ear grows bored and the heart grows weary

وَقالَ ابنُ إِسْحَاقَ كانَ الزُّهْرِيُّ يُحَدِّثُ ثُمَّ يَقُولُ

And Ibn Ishaq said Al-Zuhri used to narrate, then say

هَاتُوا مِنْ ظَرْفِكُم هَاتُوا مِنْ أَشْعَارِكُم

Bring your wit, bring your poetry,

أَفِيضُوا فِي بَعْضِ مَا يُخَفِّفُ عَلَيْكُم وَتَأْنَسُ بِهِ طِبَاعُكُم

Engage in something that eases you and delights your nature.

فَإِنَّ الأُذُنَ مَجَّاجَةٌ وَالقَلْبَ ذُو تَقَلُّبٍ

For the ear grows weary and the heart is fickle.

وَعَنْ مَالِكِ بْنِ دِينَارٍ قَالَ

And from Malik ibn Dinar, he said

كانَ الرَّجُلُ مِمَّن كانَ قَبْلَكُم إِذا ثَقُلَ عَلَيْهِ الحَدِيثُ قَالَ

A man among those before you, when the speech became heavy upon him, would say

إِنَّ الأُذُنَ مَجَّاجَةٌ وَالقَلْبَ حَمِضٌ

Indeed, the ear grows weary and the heart grows weary.

فَهَاتُوا مِنْ طَرَفِ الأَخْبَارِ

So bring from the interesting stories

عَنْ ابْنِ زَيْدٍ قَالَ

From Ibn Zayd, he said

قَالَ لِي أَبِي

My father said to me

إِنَّ كانَ عَطَاءُ بْنُ يَسَارَ لَيُحَدِّثُنَا أَنَا وَأَبَا حَازِمٍ حَتَّى يُبْكِينَا ثُمَّ يُحَدِّثُنَا حَتَّى يُضْحِكَنَا

Indeed, Ata ibn Yasar would narrate to us, to Abu Hazim and me, until he made us cry, then he would narrate until he made us laugh,

ثُمَّ يَقُولُ مَرَّةً هَكَذَا وَمَرَّةً هَكَذَا

Then he would say, 'Sometimes like this and sometimes like that.'