Hadramauti
Who knows the heart of the Christian? How does he reason?What are his measures and balances? Which is his seasonFor laughter, forbearance or bloodshed, and what devils move himWhen he arises to smite us? I do not love him.
He invites the derision of strangers--he enters all places.Booted, bareheaded he enters. With shouts and embracesHe asks of us news of the household whom we reckon nameless.Certainly Allah created him forty-fold shameless.
So it is not in the Desert. One came to me weeping--The Avenger of Blood on his track--I took him in keeping.Demanding not whom he had slain, I refreshed him, I fed himAs he were even a brother. But Eblis had bred him.
He was the son of an ape, ill at ease in his clothing,He talked with his head, hands and feet. I endured him with loathing.Whatever his spirit conceived his countenance showed itAs a frog shows in a mud-puddle. Yet I abode it!
I fingered my beard and was dumb, in silence confronting him.His soul was too shallow for silence, e'en with Death hunting him.I said: 'Tis his weariness speaks,' but, when he had rested,He chirped in my face like some sparrow, and, presently, jested!
Wherefore slew I that stranger? He brought me dishonour.I saddled my mare, Bijli, I set him upon her.I gave him rice and goat's flesh. He bared me to laughter.When he was gone from my tent, swift I followed after,Taking my sword in my hand. The hot wine had filled him.Under the stars he mocked me--therefore I killed him!
Words in this poem
- booted a.
- Wearing boots, especially boots with long tops, as for riding; as, a booted squire.
- bareheaded a.
- Having the head uncovered; as, a bareheaded girl.
- nameless a.
- Without a name; not having been given a name; as, a nameless star.
- allah n.
- The name of the Supreme Being, in use among the Arabs and the Mohammedans generally. [contr. fr. the article al the + ilah God.]
- eblis n.
- The prince of the evil spirits; Satan. [Written also Eblees.] [Ar. iblis.]
- abode n.
- Act of waiting; delay. [OE. abad, abood, fr. abiden to abide. See Abide. For the change of vowel, cf. abode, imp. of abide.]
- fingered a.
- Having fingers.
- confronting n.
- dealing with (a person or problem) directly; taking the bull by the horns.
- presently adv.
- At present; at this time; now.
- wherefore adv.
- For which reason; so; -- used relatively. [Where + for.]
- dishonour n.
- Lack of honor; disgrace; ignominy; shame; reproach. [OE. deshonour, dishonour, OF. deshonor, deshonur, F. déshonneur; pref. des- (L. dis-) + honor, honur, F. honneur, fr. L. honor. See Honor.]
- saddled a.
- Having a broad patch of color across the back, like a saddle; saddle-backed.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Hadramauti is in the public domain. This text is taken from Songs from Books, Project Gutenberg ebook #15529; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Rudyard Kipling, Hadramauti, in Songs from Books (1912), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #15529, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/kipling-songs-from-books/hadramauti.html, id L20324.
Form and metre
Hadramauti is 26 lines in 6 stanzas. The rhyme scheme is AABB, complete in 4 of its 6 stanzas.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 AABB reasonA · seasonA · himB · himB
- 2 AABB placesA · embracesA · namelessB · shamelessB
- 3 AABB weepingA · keepingA · himB · himB
- 4 --AA clothing · loathing · itA · itA
- 5 AABB himA · himA · restedB · jestedB
- 6 --AABB dishonour · her · laughterA · afterA · himB · himB
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Who knows the heart of the Christian? How does he reason? | 13 | ······/˘···/˘ |
| What are his measures and balances? Which is his season | 13 | ···/˘·/˘···/˘ |
| For laughter, forbearance or bloodshed, and what devils move him | 15 | ·/˘˘/˘·/···/˘·· |
| When he arises to smite us? I do not love him. | 13 | ··˘/˘········ |
| He invites the derision of strangers--he enters all places. | 16 | ·˘/·˘/˘·/˘·/˘·/˘ |
| Booted, bareheaded he enters. With shouts and embraces | 15 | /˘·····/˘···˘/˘ |
| He asks of us news of the household whom we reckon nameless. | 15 | ·······/···/˘/˘ |
| Certainly Allah created him forty-fold shameless. | 13 | /˘/˘˘/˘·/˘·/˘ |
| So it is not in the Desert. One came to me weeping-- | 14 | ······/˘····/˘ |
| The Avenger of Blood on his track--I took him in keeping. | 15 | ·˘/˘·········/˘ |
| Demanding not whom he had slain, I refreshed him, I fed him | 15 | ˘/˘······˘/···· |
| As he were even a brother. But Eblis had bred him. | 13 | ···/·/˘·/˘··· |
| He was the son of an ape, ill at ease in his clothing, | 14 | ············/˘ |
| He talked with his head, hands and feet. I endured him with loathing. | 15 | ·········˘/··/˘ |
| Whatever his spirit conceived his countenance showed it | 12 | ·/˘·/˘/·/˘·· |
| As a frog shows in a mud-puddle. Yet I abode it! | 14 | ·······/˘··˘/· |
| I fingered my beard and was dumb, in silence confronting him. | 15 | ·/˘······/˘˘/˘· |
| His soul was too shallow for silence, e'en with Death hunting him. | 15 | ····/˘·/˘···/˘· |
| I said: 'Tis his weariness speaks,' but, when he had rested, | 13 | ····/˘·····/˘ |
| He chirped in my face like some sparrow, and, presently, jested! | 14 | ·······/˘·/˘/˘ |
| Wherefore slew I that stranger? He brought me dishonour. | 13 | /˘···/˘···˘/˘ |
| I saddled my mare, Bijli, I set him upon her. | 13 | ·/˘·········· |
| I gave him rice and goat's flesh. He bared me to laughter. | 13 | ···········/˘ |
| When he was gone from my tent, swift I followed after, | 13 | ·········/˘·· |
| Taking my sword in my hand. The hot wine had filled him. | 13 | /˘··········· |
| Under the stars he mocked me--therefore I killed him! | 12 | ············ |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.