Sharh Ibn Aqil on Alfiyyat Ibn Malik — Volume 2 (شرح ابن عقيل على ألفية ابن مالك) — Page 14

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

شَرْحُ ابْنِ عَقِيلٍ: الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي.

Sharh Ibn Aqil: Part Two.

اللُّغَةُ: «هَذَا لَعَمْرُكُمْ»، الْعُمْرُ - بِفَتْحٍ فَسُكُونٍ - الْحَيَاةُ، وَقَدْ فَصَلَ بَيْنَ الْمُبْتَدَأِ الَّذِي هُوَ اسْمُ الْإِشَارَةِ وَخَبَرِهِ، بِجُمْلَةِ الْقَسَمِ - وَهِيَ قَوْلُهُ: لَعَمْرُكُمْ، مَعَ خَبَرِهِ الْمَحْذُوفِ - وَيُرْوَى: هَذَا لَجَدُّكُمْ، وَالْجَدُّ: الْحَظُّ وَالْبَخْتُ، وَهُوَ أَيْضًا أَبُو الْأَبِ.

Language: Regarding 'Hadha la-amrukum' (This is, by your life), 'umr'—pronounced with a fatha followed by a sukun—means life. The author separates the subject (the demonstrative pronoun) from its predicate with an oath clause, specifically 'la-amrukum', which includes an omitted predicate. Another reading is 'Hadha la-jaddukum' (This is your luck), where 'jadd' refers to fortune or luck, though it also means a grandfather.

الصَّغَارُ، بِزِنَةِ سَحَابٍ - الذُّلُّ، وَالْمَهَانَةُ، وَالْحَقَارَةُ.

'Al-saghar', following the pattern of 'sahab', denotes humiliation, abasement, and insignificance.

بِعَيْنِهِ، يَزْعُمُ بَعْضُ الْعُلَمَاءِ أَنَّ الْبَاءَ زَائِدَةٌ، وَكَأَنَّهُ قَدْ قَالَ: هَذَا الصَّغَارُ عَيْنُهُ، وَلَا دَاعِيَ لِذَلِكَ.

Regarding 'bi-aynihi' (itself), some scholars argue the 'ba' is redundant, as if the phrase were simply 'Hadha al-sagharu aynuhu' (This is the very humiliation). There is no necessity for that interpretation.

الْإِعْرَابُ: هَذَا، اسْمُ إِشَارَةٍ مُبْتَدَأٌ.

Parsing: 'Hadha' is a demonstrative pronoun functioning as the subject.

لَعَمْرُكُمْ، اللَّامُ لَامُ الِابْتِدَاءِ، وَعُمْرٌ: مُبْتَدَأٌ، وَخَبَرُهُ مَحْذُوفٌ وُجُوبًا، وَالتَّقْدِيرُ: لَعَمْرُكُمْ قَسَمِي، وَعُمْرٌ مُضَافٌ وَالضَّمِيرُ مُضَافٌ إِلَيْهِ، وَالْجُمْلَةُ مُعْتَرِضَةٌ بَيْنَ الْمُبْتَدَأِ وَخَبَرِهِ لَا مَحَلَّ لَهَا مِنَ الْإِعْرَابِ.

In 'la-amrukum', the 'lam' is the particle of initiation. 'Umr' is a subject with an obligatorily omitted predicate, understood as 'la-amrukum qasami' (By your life is my oath). 'Umr' is in a genitive construction with the pronoun. The entire clause is parenthetical, occurring between the subject and its predicate, and holds no grammatical position.

الصَّغَارُ، خَبَرُ الْمُبْتَدَأِ الَّذِي هُوَ اسْمُ الْإِشَارَةِ.

'Al-saghar' is the predicate of the demonstrative subject.

بِعَيْنِهِ، جَارٌ وَمَجْرُورٌ مُتَعَلِّقٌ بِمَحْذُوفٍ حَالٍ، وَقِيلَ: الْبَاءُ زَائِدَةٌ، وَعَلَيْهِ يَكُونُ قَوْلُهُ عَيْنٌ تَأْكِيدًا لِلصَّغَارِ، وَعَيْنٌ مُضَافٌ وَالْهَاءُ مُضَافٌ إِلَيْهِ.

'Bi-aynihi' is a prepositional phrase linked to an implied state. Some say the 'ba' is redundant, making 'ayn' an emphatic intensifier for 'al-saghar', with 'ayn' in a genitive construction with the pronoun.

لَا، نَافِيَةٌ لِلْجِنْسِ.

'La' is a particle negating the entire genus.

أَمٌّ، اسْمُ لَا مَبْنِيٌّ عَلَى الْفَتْحِ فِي مَحَلِّ نَصْبٍ.

'Umm' is the noun governed by 'la', indeclinable on a fatha in the accusative position.

لِي، جَارٌ وَمَجْرُورٌ مُتَعَلِّقٌ بِمَحْذُوفٍ خَبَرِ لَا.

'Li' is a prepositional phrase linked to the omitted predicate of 'la'.

إِنْ، شَرْطِيَّةٌ.

'In' is a conditional particle.

كَانَ، فِعْلٌ مَاضٍ نَاقِصٌ فِعْلُ الشَّرْطِ، مَبْنِيٌّ عَلَى الْفَتْحِ فِي مَحَلِّ جَزْمٍ.

'Kana' is an incomplete past verb serving as the conditional verb, indeclinable on a fatha in the jussive position.

ذَاكَ، ذَا: اسْمُ كَانَ، وَخَبَرُهَا مَحْذُوفٌ، وَالتَّقْدِيرُ: إِنْ كَانَ ذَاكَ مَحْمُودًا، أَوْ نَحْوَهُ.

In 'dhalika', 'dha' is the noun of 'kana', while its predicate is omitted; the implied meaning is 'If that were praiseworthy' or something similar.

وَلَا، الْوَاوُ عَاطِفَةٌ، لَا: زَائِدَةٌ لِتَأْكِيدِ النَّفْيِ.

In 'wa-la', the 'waw' is a conjunction, and 'la' is an extra particle used to emphasize the negation.

أَبٌ، بِالرَّفْعِ - مَعْطُوفٌ عَلَى مَحَلِّ لَا وَاسْمِهَا؛ فَإِنَّهُمَا فِي مَوْضِعِ رَفْعٍ بِالِابْتِدَاءِ عِنْدَ سِيبَوَيْهِ، وَفِيهِ إِعْرَابَانِ آخَرَانِ سَتَعْرِفُهُمَا فِي بَيَانِ الِاسْتِشْهَادِ بِالْبَيْتِ.

'Abun' is in the nominative case, conjoined to the position of 'la' and its noun, as they occupy a nominative position of initiation according to Sibawayh. There are two other ways to parse this, which you will learn when we analyze the verse citation.

الشَّاهِدُ فِيهِ: قَوْلُهُ «وَلَا أَبٌ»، حَيْثُ جَاءَ مَرْفُوعًا عَلَى وَاحِدٍ مِنْ ثَلَاثَةِ أَوْجُهٍ: إِمَّا عَلَى أَنْ يَكُونَ مَعْطُوفًا عَلَى مَحَلِّ لَا مَعَ اسْمِهَا كَمَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ فِي الْإِعْرَابِ، أَوْ عَلَى أَنْ لَا الثَّانِيَةَ عَامِلَةٌ عَمَلَ لَيْسَ، فَالِاسْمُ الْمَرْفُوعُ بَعْدَهَا هُوَ اسْمُهَا وَخَبَرُهَا مَحْذُوفٌ، وَإِمَّا عَلَى أَنْ لَا الثَّانِيَةَ لَيْسَتْ عَامِلَةً أَصْلًا، بَلْ هِيَ زَائِدَةٌ، وَيَكُونُ أَبٌ مُبْتَدَأٌ خَبَرُهُ مَحْذُوفٌ، وَقَدْ ذَكَرَ ذَلِكَ الشَّارِحُ الْعَلَّامَةُ.

The evidence here is the phrase 'wa-la abun', where the word appears in the nominative case for one of three reasons: either it is conjoined to the position of 'la' and its noun as previously parsed; the second 'la' functions like 'laysa', making the following nominative word its noun with an omitted predicate; or the second 'la' is entirely non-functional and redundant, leaving 'abun' as a subject with an omitted predicate, as the learned commentator noted.

وَمِثْلُهُ قَوْلُ جَرِيرِ بْنِ عَطِيَّةَ: بِأَيِّ بَلْدَةٍ يَا نُسَيْرُ بْنَ عَامِرٍ وَأَنْتُمْ ذَنَاكِي، لَا يَدَيْنِ وَلَا صَدْرُ؟

A similar example is the line by Jarir ibn Atiyyah: 'In what land, O Nusayr ibn Amir, are you, while you are base—having neither hands nor a chest?'

وَقَدْ وَرَدَ عَلَى غِرَارِ ذَلِكَ قَوْلُ الْمُتَنَبِّي: لَا خَيْلَ عِنْدَكَ تُهْدِيهَا وَلَا مَالُ فَلْيُسْعِدِ النُّطْقُ إِنْ لَمْ يُسْعِدِ الْحَالُ

In a similar vein, Al-Mutanabbi said: 'You have no horses to offer, nor wealth; so let speech bring happiness if circumstances do not,' referring to the 'la' of absolute negation. ⟶ (sentence continues on next page)

Vocabulary · المفردات (10 verbs · 71 nouns)

• فَصَلَ — to separate
• رَوَى — to narrate
• زَعَمَ — to claim
• كَانَ — to be
• عَرَفَ — to know
• جَاءَ — to come
• ذَكَرَ — to mention
• وَرَدَ — to arrive
• أَهْدَى — to gift
• أَسْعَدَ — to make happy
• شَرْح — explanation
• جُزْء — part
• لُغَة — language
• عُمْر — life
• فَتْح — opening
• سُكُون — stillness
• حَيَاة — life
• مُبْتَدَأ — subject
• اسْم — noun
• إِشَارَة — indication
• خَبَر — predicate
• جُمْلَة — sentence
• قَسَم — oath
• قَوْل — saying
• جَدّ — grandfather
• حَظّ — luck
• بَخْت — fortune
• أَب — father
• صَغَار — humiliation
• زِنَة — weight
• سَحَاب — cloud
• ذُلّ — abasement
• مَهَانَة — disgrace
• حَقَارَة — meanness
• عَيْن — eye
• عَالِم — scholar
• بَاء — the letter ba
• دَاعِي — reason
• إِعْرَاب — grammatical analysis
• لَام — the letter lam
• ابْتِدَاء — beginning
• تَقْدِير — estimation
• مُضَاف — genitive
• ضَمِير — pronoun
• مَحَلّ — place
• جَار — preposition
• مَجْرُور — genitive
• حَال — state
• تَأْكِيد — emphasis
• هَاء — ha (letter)
• جِنْس — genus
• أَمّ — mother
• نَصْب — accusative
• شَرْط — condition
• جَزْم — jussive case
• مَحْمُود — praised
• نَحْو — direction
• وَاو — letter waw
• نَفْي — negation
• رَفْع — nominative case
• مَوْضِع — position
• بَيَان — clarification
• اسْتِشْهَاد — citation
• بَيْت — verse
• شَاهِد — witness
• وَاحِد — one
• ثَلَاثَة — three
• وَجْه — aspect
• عَمَل — work
• مَرْفُوع — elevated
• أَصْل — origin
• شَارِح — commentator
• عَلَّامَة — scholar
• مِثْل — likeness
• بَلْدَة — town
• يَد — hand
• صَدْر — chest
• غِرَار — manner
• خَيْل — horse
• مَال — wealth
• نُطْق — speech