Al Madha is a devotional poem commemorating the birth (mawlid) of the Prophet Muhammad from al-Andalus during the Morisco period (1500-1614). Since adherence to Islam was punishable by burning at the stake during this period of Spanish history, these poems are as much an example of resistance to the Inquistion and an assertion of Andalusi Muslim identity as they are indicative of the love of the Spanish Muslims for the Prophet Muhammad.
This beautiful song is taken from a manuscript found hidden in a false ceiling when a Spanish house was restored in 1882. Written in the 16th century at a time when Muslims had to disguise their identity in Spain after the kingdom of Spain forced the removal of all Jewish and Muslim peoples in 16th century.
Translated from an Arabic original, the poem may have had wide currency among the Mudejars, ancestors of the Morriscos.The poem has sonority and musicality and was sung to the accompaniment of musical instruments at festive and religious ceremonies. The following couplets serve as an illustration:
Transliteration and Meaning of Madha-Spanish Poem
Ya habibi ya Muhammad
O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad
May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Debuwes de la loor a min senor ensalsado
After praising my exalted Lord
Farre alssala sobre alnnabi onrrado
I shall bestow my blessings upon the honorable Prophet
Alssala siyenbere seya alturado
May prayers and blessings always be raised
Sobre nuwestoro alnnabi Muhammad
Upon our Prophet Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad
O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad
May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Alssala ke seya esbandesido
May prayers and blessings be widespread
Ensiyelos i-yen tiyerras seya oyido
And heard in the heavens and the earth
Porque a nosotros seya meresido
So that we may deserve it
E ayamos el-amor de Muhammad
And find the love of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad
O my beloved O Muhammad
Wa-alssaltu ala Muhammad
May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Alssalaes ke no se puwedan kontar
Prayers that cannot be enumerated
Mas son ke la pulubiya i las arenas de la mar
For they are more than the rain and the sands of the sea
Porque bodamos biyen entarar
So that we may enter well
En la roghariya de Muhammad
In supplication of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad
O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad
May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
No podiriyan todos los korasones
All hearts cannot
Lonparar todas las bendisiyones
Name all the benedictions
Ni kontar las donasiyones
Nor count the gifts
Ke fuweron dadas a Muhammad
That were bestowed upon Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad
O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad
May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Diso el senyor de la gharandiya
The Lord of Greatness said
No kiriyariya a noche ni diya
That He would not create night or day
Ni eskuredad ni luz no abriya
Nor darkness or light
Sino por el gharande amor de Muhammad
Had it not been for the great love of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad
O my beloved, O Muhammad
Wa-alssalatu ala Muhammad
May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Ni aljanna ni jahannam no terniya
There would be neither Paradise nor Hell
Ni al-‘arshi ni alkursi no fariya
Nor Divine Throne
Ni siyels ni tieyrras no abriya
Nor Heaven nor Earth
Sino por la onnor de Muhammad
Had it not been for the honor of Muhammad
Ya habibi ya Muhammad
O my beloved O Muhammad
Wa al-ssalatu ala Muhammad
May prayers and blessings be upon Muhammad
Ref 1 :(Poem and translations are taken from: Anwar Chejne, Islam and the West: The Moriscos, a Cultural and Social History [Albany: State University of New York Press, 1983], pp. 150-166)
About the book : Islam and the West: The Moriscos is the first comprehensive study of this long-neglected subject. Chejne surveys and analyzes the self-expression of the Moriscos and assesses their status as a minority struggling for survival, placing them in the social context of ideological conflict, the clash of religions and cultures, and differing perceptions. This book provides a more complete picture of the literatures and cultures of medieval Spain. Want to Read more ,Get this book from Amazon.
Ref 2 : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_conversions_of_Muslims_in_Spain
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