Thabit ibn Jabr, better known by his epithet Ta'abbata Sharran was a pre-Islamic Arabic poet of the su'luk school.
20 Facts About Ta'abbata Sharran
1.
2.
Ta'abbata Sharran was known for engaging in tribal conflict with the Banu Hudhayl and Bajila tribes.
3.
Ta'abbata Sharran wrote poems about tribal warfare, the hardships of desert life, and ghouls.
4.
Ta'abbata Sharran's work was prominent in the early poetic anthologies, being preserved in both the Mufaddaliyat and the Hamasah.
5.
Ta'abbata Sharran picked it up and carried it under his arm, but it urinated on him.
6.
Ta'abbata Sharran's clan asked him what he had been carrying, and he replied "the ghul," which prompted them to give him his nickname.
7.
Ta'abbata Sharran went out with her bag and filled it with snakes, then returned to the tent carrying the bag under his arm.
8.
Ta'abbata Sharran threw the bag down in front of her and she opened it, finding the snakes, then fled the tent.
9.
Ta'abbata Sharran lived in the western Arabian regions of Tihama and the Hejaz, near the city of Ta'if.
10.
Ta'abbata Sharran's mother was Amima al-Fahmia, of the Banu al-Qayn.
11.
Ta'abbata Sharran himself married a woman of the Banu Kilab.
12.
Ta'abbata Sharran lived as a su'luk, a term which can be translated as brigand, brigand-poet, or vagabond.
13.
Ta'abbata Sharran was one of the few su'luk poets who was not repudiated by his tribe.
14.
Ta'abbata Sharran lived as a brigand, accompanied by a band of men including Al-Shanfara, Amir ibn al-Akhnas, al-Musayyab ibn Kilab, Murra ibn Khulayf, Sa'd ibn al-Ashras, and 'Amr ibn Barrak.
15.
Ta'abbata Sharran was travelling at night in the territory of the Banu Hudhayl, when a ghul stepped in his way.
16.
Ta'abbata Sharran fought the ghul and killed her, then spent the night on top of her.
17.
Ta'abbata Sharran wandered the desert in quest of an escape from death, but he perished.
18.
Ta'abbata Sharran was mocked in a humorous hija' poem written by Qays ibn 'Azarah of the Banu Hudhayl, involving an incident in which Qays was captured by the Fahm and bargained for his life with Ta'abbata Sharran and his wife.
19.
Ta'abbata Sharran appeared as a character in the Resalat Al-Ghufran, written by Al-Ma'arri around 1033.
20.
Interest in al-Shanfara led naturally to his associate Ta'abbata Sharran, who became known and appreciated in Europe during the 19th century.