Humayda and al-Hajjaj: by al-Fayd she bore a daughter, whom al-Hajjaj married; and before her al-Hajjaj had had Umm Aban bint al-Nu'man ibn Bashir. Humayda addressed to al-Hajjaj a few verses which there is no room to quote.
One day she came to visit her daughter, and al-Hajjaj said to her: "Humayda, once I could bear your jesting; but today I am in Iraq, and they are an evil people — so take care." She said: "I will hold my tongue until I leave."
She once said to her husband Rawh ibn Zinba', who was swarthy and massive: "How can you hold lordship when three traits are in you: you are of Judham, you are a coward, and you are jealous?" He said: "As for Judham, I stand at its very summit... As for cowardice, I have but one soul; had I two, I would give one of them freely. As for jealousy, that is a matter in which I do not care for your hints — and a man is right indeed to be jealous over the foolish, witless woman," etc.
She was the beloved of Abu Dahbal al-Jumahi, the well-known poet, and was of his tribe. He was a fortunate man, one of the nobles of Banu Jumah; as for her, she was a merry woman to whom men would gather for conversation, the recitation of poetry, and the telling of tales, and Abu Dahbal never quit her company, along with all who gathered about her; and she loved him too... And when she was told that he was enamored of another, she wrote to him, reproaching him and telling him what his ill-usage had wrought upon her heart.
She was the wife of Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan and the mother of Yazid. Her spirit grew straitened at what had come upon her, and he said to her: "You are in the midst of a great dominion whose worth you do not know — and before today you were in the woolen cloak." Then she spoke these verses:
A tent in which the winds flutter is dearer to me than a lofty palace; a young camel plodding after the caravans is dearer to me than a mincing mule; a dog barking the night-callers away from me is dearer to me than a tame cat; to wear a cloak of wool, with my eye content, is dearer to me than wearing gauzy stuffs; to eat a crust in the corner of my tent is dearer to me than eating the soft loaf; the voices of the winds in every mountain pass are dearer to me than the tapping of tambourines; and a slender, high-hearted youth of my cousins is dearer to me than a gross and violent brute. The roughness of my life in the desert is sweeter to my soul than this life of ease; I seek no substitute for my homeland — and what a noble homeland it is!
I used to repeat these verses when I was only a little girl, and I still thrill to them when I hear them. Maysun's fame rests upon these verses, which have passed from mouth to mouth.
A woman's capital is her beauty. She must therefore give it every care and preserve it. Some women believe that beauty demands a great deal of time. But the truth is otherwise: an hour and a half each week is enough to care for beauty and preserve it:
In the morning
15 minutes: the bath 15 minutes: care of the nails 25 minutes: dressing the hair
9:30: The bath
Rub your body with a special brush to remove the dead skin, especially at the elbows and the lower leg. Then massage the elbows twice with a little cream. Finally, dust your body with talcum powder, which takes the place of the oily substance that protects the body from outside friction.
9:45: Hands and feet
Cutting the nails is very easy after a hot bath,
so begin with the fingernails, shaping them like an "almond"; as for the toenails, it is best to cut them at the corners, lest they grow into the skin afterward.
As for corns, they must be treated at once with a special remedy from the doctor.
Then take care to massage the heel and the lower leg with a rich cream, so that dry skin does not form there and tear the stockings.
10:00: The hair
The hair must be washed well once or twice every week. Then rinse away the soap with water mixed with vinegar, which gives the hair softness and luster.
As for setting the hair, you can carry out this operation yourself. It is enough to use the following mixture:
1 part: a special gum for the
you but your filth between the door and the house. That is the prayer of Rawh the good — well do I know it; may God water his grave with the low-hanging cloud that travels by night.
And she said to Fayd also:
O Fayd, I used to take you for a flood; but I found in you neither flood nor Euphrates.
And she said of him:
Fayd is no overflower of bounty toward us — yet with vomit Fayd overflows for us indeed.
(How astonishing, the way the name Fayd matched the meaning of vomit!!)