Imru' al-Qais

Imru' al-Qais Junduh bin Hujr al-Kindi was a poet from Najd who lived in the late fifth and early sixth centuries, and he was the final king of the Kinda tribe. He is often called the father of Arabic poetry. His long poem "Let us stop and weep" is one of the seven Mu'allaqat, which are regarded as the finest works of pre-Islamic Arabian verse.

His father was Hujr bin al-Harith, the Kindan regent over the Arab tribes of Asad and Ghatafan, and his mother was Fatimah bint Rabi'ah al-Taghlibi. He was likely born in the territory of Asad. According to legend, Imru' al-Qais was the youngest son and started writing poetry as a child. His father disapproved of this, seeing poetry as unbecoming for a prince, and also objected to his son's scandalous habits of drinking and pursuing women. Eventually, his father banished him. But when the Asad tribe rebelled and killed his father, Imru' al-Qais was the only brother who sought revenge. He gave up wine and women, fought the Asad until he had avenged the murder, and spent the rest of his life trying to reclaim his father's kingdom.

Because pre-Islamic Arabia relied on oral tradition and lacked a formal writing system, the details of his life are uncertain. Historians have compared later written accounts with clues in his poems and known events in the Sasanian and Byzantine Empires to reconstruct a likely biography. One account gives his full ancestry as Imru' al-Qais, son of Hujr, son of al-Harith, son of 'Amr, son of Hujr the eater of bitter herbs, son of Mu'awiyya, son of Thawr (founder of Kinda), son of Ufayr. He was also called "the Lost King" because he never regained his father's throne.

His name means "man of Qais," with Qais being a pre-Islamic deity. The Kinda tribe originally came from South Arabia and moved north to Najd in the 4th or 5th century. In the 5th century, they asked the king of Yemen to choose a king for them, and Hujr Akil al-Murar became the first Kindite king. His son 'Amr succeeded him, then 'Amr's son al-Harith, the greatest Kindite king. Al-Harith's son Hujr was made regent over Asad and Ghatafan, and he fathered Imru' al-Qais. When the Persian emperor Kavadh I adopted Mazdakism, al-Harith converted and was made king of Hirah, replacing the Arab vassal al-Mundhir. Kavadh's son Khosrau I rejected Mazdakism, restored al-Mundhir, and al-Harith was likely captured and killed along with two of his sons and over forty kinsmen. Imru' al-Qais mourned this in a poem. In 525, Yemen was occupied by the Axumite Empire, and the Kinda kingdom collapsed. Around this time, the Asad tribe rebelled and killed Hujr.

Historians disagree on Imru' al-Qais' birth year, but one estimate is around 526. He was the youngest son of Hujr, who had other wives and concubines, so Imru' al-Qais may have received little attention. He began writing poetry young, which his father considered inappropriate. One scholar notes that among northern tribes, the chief and the poet were rarely the same person. Another source of conflict was Imru' al-Qais' drinking parties and pursuit of women. One story says Hujr put him in charge of the camel herds, which ended badly. Another says Hujr disowned him after Imru' al-Qais publicly courted his cousin 'Unayzah and, failing to marry her, enjoyed her affections in secret.