# XIV explained — The Luzumiyat

> Chapter companion for The Luzumiyat by Abu al-ʻAlaʼ al-Maʻarri.

## What happens

The chapter reflects on the passage of a funeral procession, equating the sounds of mourning and joy as one in the face of night and transience.

## Themes in this chapter

### Mortality and Transience

The funeral procession and the vanishing howdaj underscore the fleeting nature of life and the unity of sorrow and joy in the face of death.

## Key lines

> But now the funeral is passing by, And in its trail, beneath this moaning sky, The howdaj comes⁠—both vanish into night; To me are one, the sob, the joyous cry.

The funeral procession moves along, followed by a howdaj under the grieving sky; both disappear into darkness, and I see no difference between a sob and a cry of joy.

_The poet equates mourning and celebration, suggesting that all human expressions are equal in the face of mortality._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_luzumiyat_se/chapters/xiv
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_luzumiyat_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_luzumiyat_se/chapters