The Commandments in the Work of Al-Asmaʻῑ, The History of the Early Arab Kings: The Banī Hūd

Abstract

The work of Al-Asma'ī, The History of the Early Arab Kings: The Banū Hūd, belongs to the genre of Al-ĀDĀB Al-ṢULṬANIYYA, the Eastern equivalent of the Western genre of mirrors for princes. Its content consists of commandments that the ruler imparts to his heir prince in the form of advice and sermons. It is important to first highlight Al-Asma'ī’s skill and talent in compiling and organizing the commandments drawn from the cultural heritage of Arab tribes during the early Abbasid period. What also stands out is the author’s concern, based on this tribal cultural legacy, to establish a reference for governance rooted in an idealistic vision of the history of Yemeni kings, so that the Abbasid ruler could adopt it without needing to rely on the mirrors of Persian kings.