The courtly zuhdiyya : comparative themes in Abū al-ʿAtāhiya’s poetic discourse

This thesis centres on Abū al-ʿAtāhiya’s (748–826 CE/130–211 AH) zuhdiyya, arguing that it is a courtly genre meant to engage with the Abbasid caliphate and members of the elite. A thematic comparative approach is applied to analyse thirteen of Abū al-ʿAtāhiya’s poems. Chapter One provides essential historical and textual analysis of both primary and secondary sources, textually examines the poet’s Dīwān, and offers biographical information about him, profiling the historical and literary contexts of Kufa and Baghdad. Chapter Two undertakes a comparative literary analysis of a zuhdiyya and a madīḥ to highlight thematic parallels and rhetorical strategies used to address the Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd (766–809 CE/149–193 AH). Chapter Three further develops this comparative framework through an examination of the court-related theme of kingship, analysing representations of kingship across two madīḥ and two zuhdiyya poems, to demonstrate the poet’s nuanced rhetorical engagement with this theme and with authority. Chapter Four focuses on the theme of injustice in the zuhdiyya – another theme related to the court – and also employs a comparative framework to inspect seven zuhdiyyāt in order to contrast two types of injustice: societal and personal injustices. Through the three analytical chapters, this research demonstrates how Abū al-ʿAtāhiya strategically employed Qur’anic intertextuality to subtly convey moral advice to the court. Ultimately, this study reveals that Abū al-ʿAtāhiya’s zuhdiyya operated as a sophisticated courtly genre that interacted with authority through a patronage relationship, and was adopted to convey moral guidance within the Abbasid court. By revealing the poet’s adaptive stylistic and rhetorical methods through analysis, this thesis significantly contributes to the understanding of Abū al-ʿAtāhiya’s zuhdiyya as a dynamic literary tool deeply embedded in Abbasid court culture.