Qays ibn al-Mulawwah was a young man who fell deeply in love with Layla Al-Aamiriya. From the very first day he laid eyes on her at school, he was captivated by her beauty and grace. He was certain of his love for her, and it consumed him entirely. Qays began to write beautiful, heartfelt love poems about Layla, reciting them loudly on the streets for anyone who cared to listen. His words were so passionate and intense that they resonated deeply with everyone who heard them, earning him the nickname Majnun, meaning "madman."
One day, Majnun gathered all his courage and approached Layla's father to ask for her hand in marriage. His heart pounded with anticipation, but his request was met with a firm refusal. Layla's father believed that such a marriage would only bring shame to their family. He reasoned that it was not suitable for his daughter to marry someone who was perceived by everyone as a madman. Layla, despite her own feelings for Majnun, was promised to another man.
Devastated by this rejection, Majnun was overcome with sorrow. Unable to bear the pain of being separated from Layla, he left his home and family to seek solace in the wilderness. There, he lived a lonely and sorrowful life among the animals of the forest. He spent his days writing poems about his undying love for Layla, pouring his heart and soul into every verse. The animals became his only companions, and he found a strange comfort in their presence.
Layla, on the other hand, was forced into a marriage she did not desire. Although she remained a faithful wife to her husband, her heart still belonged to Majnun. She often thought of him and the love they shared, but she knew that their fate had been sealed by forces beyond their control.
The news of Layla's marriage reached Majnun, and it was a blow that shattered his already fragile heart. He continued to live in solitude, refusing to return to his parents' home in the city. His mother and father missed him terribly and hoped every day that he would come back. They left food for him in the middle of the garden, praying that he would one day return from the desert. But Majnun remained in the wilderness, writing his poems in solitude, never speaking to another soul.
Majnun's time alone was spent surrounded only by the animals of the forest, who gathered around him and protected him during the long desert nights. Travelers passing by often saw Majnun on their way to the city. They spoke of how he spent his days reciting poems to himself and writing them in the sand with a long stick. They said he had truly gone mad and was heartbroken beyond repair.
Years passed, and Majnun's parents both died. Out of respect for them, Layla decided to send a message to Majnun about their deaths. She found an old man who had seen Majnun in the desert and convinced him to deliver the news on his next journey.
One day, the old man crossed paths with Majnun in the desert. There, he carefully delivered the news of Majnun's parents' death and witnessed the profound impact it had on the young poet. Overcome with regret and loss, Majnun cut himself off from the rest of the world, vowing to live in the desert until he died.
Years later, Layla's husband died. The young woman hoped that she would finally be with her one true love; that she and Majnun would at last be together forever. But tradition demanded that Layla stay in her home alone to mourn her husband's death for two full years without seeing anyone else. The thought of not seeing Majnun for two more years was more than Layla could bear. After being separated for so long, with two more years of loneliness and not seeing her true love, Layla lost all hope. She died of a broken heart, alone in her home, never seeing Majnun again.
The news of Layla's death reached Majnun in the wilderness. He immediately traveled to where Layla was buried, and there he wept and wept until he too succumbed to his grief and died beside the grave of his true love.
Majnun's love for Layla was pure and unwavering. He spent his days alone, surrounded by the animals of the forest, reciting his poems and writing them in the sand. Travelers passing by often spoke of him, saying that he had truly gone mad with grief. Majnun's love for Layla was so intense that it consumed him entirely, and he could not bear to live without her.
In the end, Majnun's love for Layla was stronger than anything else in the world. He lived and died for her, and his poems remain a testament to the power of true love. Their story is one of unending devotion and the tragic beauty of a love that could never be fulfilled.
As Majnun once wrote:
"I passed by these walls, the walls of Layla
And I kissed this wall and that wall.
It’s not the love of the houses that has taken my heart
But of the one who dwells in those houses."
