The Wine of Love and Life: Ibn al-Farid's al-Khamriyah and al-Qaysari's Quest for Meaning

Ibn al-Farid (d. 632/1235) has long been venerated as a Sufi saint and poet whose verse stands as a high point in Arabic poetry. Several of his poems became religious and literary classics, among them the al-Khamriyah or Wine Ode. Perhaps the first and certainly the most influential commentary on this poem was the Sharh Khamriyat Ibn al-Farid by Dawud al-Qaysari (d. ca. 748/1347). Al-Qaysari was a direct spiritual descendent of the great Sufi master Ibn al-'Arabi (d. 637/1240), whose disciple…