Kiokozi cha Banati
In this poem the author instructs Muslim women on the doctrine and practice of their religion. The first five stanzas are devoted to thanks and praise. Stanzas six through 14 discuss the importance of being educated in the requirements of Islam. Stanzas 15 through 23, which may remind the reader of...
| Full title: |
Kiokozi cha Banati [electronic resource]. |
|---|---|
| Format: | Electronic |
| Language: | Swahili |
| Published: |
[n.d.].
|
| Series: |
SOAS Digital Library.
ASC. DISCIP. REGIONS. DLIT. DREL. RAFR. ISLAMIC. SWAHILI. ILOAA. IASC. |
| Subjects: | |
| Online access: |
Electronic Resource Click here to view record |
| Summary: |
In this poem the author instructs Muslim women on the doctrine and practice of their religion. The first five stanzas are devoted to thanks and praise. Stanzas six through 14 discuss the importance of being educated in the requirements of Islam. Stanzas 15 through 23, which may remind the reader of portions of the utenzi of Mwana Kupona, discuss the importance of obeying one's husband and of covering oneself in public. The poet then names the five pillars of Islam (stanzas 24-26) and the six pillars of faith (27-29), discussing each of the former (30-36) and then the latter (37-46). After this he discusses the nature of God (47-50); the 25 prophets (51-67); the seven categories of action in Islam (68-75); the wives of the Prophet Mohammed -- although this list is partial (76-89); the children of the Prophet (90-94); cleanliness as required by Islamic law (95-111); ritual purity (112-142); how to pray (143-180); the procedure for burial (181-187); the period during which marriage is forbidden after the death of a husband (188-198); the period during which marriage is forbidden after a divorce (199-208). The poem concludes with a prayer, with the poet identifying himself in the final stanza as a resident of Lamu and a member of the Al-Bakaria family. The manuscript contains a variety of errors. Peculiarities of spelling and word division sometimes make the poet's meaning obscure. Arabic words, for example, are often wrongly divided, so that 'nataka lamu' must be read a 'natakalamu' and 'taka mali' as 'takamali.' 'Ib'adhwi' in stanza 172 should read 'Ab'adhwi.' In stanza 95 the final half-line is missing, while he number 154 is assigned to two successive stanzas. In stanza 110 the poet names Sheikh Al-Amin (bin Ali Al-Mazrui, of Mombasa) as a source of instruction. |
|---|---|
| Language: | Swahili |
| Published: |
[n.d.].
|
| Subjects: | |
| Series: |
SOAS Digital Library.
ASC. DISCIP. REGIONS. DLIT. DREL. RAFR. ISLAMIC. SWAHILI. ILOAA. IASC. |
| Access: |
[cc by-nc] This item is licensed with the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License. This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this work non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. |