THE TWO GREATEST EGYPTIAN POETS Ibn al-Farid & Ahmed Shawqi SELECTED POEMS Translation & Introduction Paul Smith IBN AL-FARID, an Egyptian poet (1181-1235), is the undisputed master of Islamic mystical (Sufi) poetry in Arabic. He is not only ta poet but a Perfect Master (Qutub) a God-realized soul, and it is his journey to unity with God he reveals in probably the longest qasida (ode) in Arabic (761 couplets), his famous The Mystic's Progress. The...