EXCELDV: Excellence of Division

    From The Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric

    حسن التقسيم
    EXCELDV: Excellence of Division
    CategoryLinguistic Embellishments
    (‘ilm al-badī‘)
    SubcategoryRhythmic Structuring & Balance
      
    Balaghascore.com
    CodeCD-7
      
    BalaghaBase.org
    CodeQ130
      
    OpenAlex.org
    IDW4415412883
      
    Cite this page
    🔗 DOI10.64393/balagha.Q130
     Download PDF
      
    Taxonomy
    ARDTv0.1.0, v0.1.1

    Definition

    Excellence of Division (ḥusn al-taqsīm) is an Arabic rhetorical device where the communicator divides a single line of a poem (bayt) into equal parts (ajzāʾ mutasāwiya).[1]

    Mechanism

    • The bayt is divided into equal parts (ajzāʾ mutasāwiya).[1]
    • The parts are described as rhymed (musajjaʿa).[1]
    • A bayt may be divided into three parts or four parts; both are attested in the examples.[1]
    • In this encyclopedia, the mechanism is described as the segmentation of a single poetic line into multiple equal units, each forming a discrete rhythmic segment within the same line.
    • The recurrence of rhymed endings across these segments creates a patterned internal division within the bayt.

    Recognition

    ḥusn al-taqsīm may be present when:

    • A single bayt is divided into equal parts.[1]
    • The division results in three or four parts.[1]
    • The parts are described as rhymed (musajjaʿa).[1]

    The following diagnostic tests aid identification:

    • Test 1: Check whether the bayt can be segmented into equal parts of similar length.
    • Test 2: Check whether the segments display recurring rhymed endings.

    Diagnostic Rhetorical Effects

    • Excellence of Division gives the verse a musical resonance (jarsan mūsīqiyyan) that appeals to the ear and understanding (yaʾkhudhu bil-asmāʿ wal-afhām).[1]

    Applying the Recognition Framework

    The information on this page can be used to evaluate whether this device is present in a candidate lexical item using the Specific Device Recognition part of the Universal Framework for Identifying Arabic Rhetorical Devices:

    • Use the Definition, Mechanism, and Recognition sections of this page in Step 1.
    • Apply the substitution test in Step 2.
    • Consider contextual indicators in Step 3.
    • Use the Diagnostic Rhetorical Effects section of this page in Step 4.

    Examples

    Source Example (three-part division)

    مُتَفَرِّدٌ بِصَبَابَتِي / مُتَفَرِّدٌ بِكَآبَاتِي / مُتَفَرِّدٌ بِعَنَائِي

    Alone in my longing / alone in my sorrows / alone in my suffering

    Explanation
    The verse is divided into three equal parts, each forming a separate segment within the same line. Each segment ends with a similar rhyme pattern, illustrating the division described in Abd al-Ghani (2011).[1]
    Source Example (four-part division)

    فَنَحْنُ فِي جَذَلٍ / وَالرُّومُ فِي وَجَلٍ / وَالْبَرُّ فِي شُغُلٍ / وَالْبَحْرُ فِي خَجَلٍ

    We are in joy / the Byzantines in dread / the land in toil / the sea in shame

    Explanation
    Attributed to Abū al-Ṭayyib al-Mutanabbī. The verse is divided into four equal parts, each ending with the same rhyme (ـجَلٍ), illustrating the four-part division described in the source.[1]
    Source Example (four-part division)

    وِصَالُكُمْ هَجْرُ / وَحَبُّكُمْ قِلَى / وَعُطْفُكُمْ صَدٌّ / وَسِلْمُكُمْ حَرْبُ

    Your union is separation / your love is hatred / your tenderness is rejection / your peace is war

    Explanation
    Attributed to al-ʿAbbās ibn al-Aḥnaf and cited via Abū al-Qāsim al-Āmidī. The verse is divided into four equal parts, each forming a discrete segment within the same line, exemplifying the four-part division described by Abd al-Ghani (2011).[1]
    Constructed Example (four-part division)

    الْعِلْمُ نُورٌ / وَالْجَهْلُ ظُلْمَةٌ / وَالصِّدْقُ قُوَّةٌ / وَالْكَذِبُ ذِلَّةٌ

    Knowledge is light / ignorance is darkness / truth is strength / falsehood is humiliation

    Explanation
    The bayt is divided into four equal parts, each consisting of a nominal sentence (jumla ismiyya). The segments end in rhymed feminine terminations (نُورٌ / ظُلْمَةٌ / قُوَّةٌ / ذِلَّةٌ — the latter three sharing the ـَةٌ ending), illustrating the musajjaʿ internal division characteristic of ḥusn al-taqsīm.

    Notes

    • Abd al-Ghani (2011) explicitly restricts this device to poetry only (khāṣṣ bil-shiʿr faqaṭ).[1]
    • The term musajjaʿa is used in the source to describe the rhymed segments; it has been retained in transliteration to preserve its technical meaning.

    References

    1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Ayman Amin Abd Al-Ghani, Al-Kāfī fī al-Balāgha: Al-Bayān, wa al-Badiʿ wa al-Maʿānī (Cairo: Dār al-Tawfīqiyya lil-Turāth, 2011), 249-251.



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