How Classical Arabic Poetry Teaches Us to Say Alhamdulillah. Hand, Tongue, and Hidden Heart

بِسْمِ اللّهِ الرَّحْمـَنِ الرَّحِيمِ

 

 

Hand, Tongue, and Hidden Heart
A short poem on gratitude, its story, and where to find it

 

1. The poem  

The famous two lines are:

وَما كانَ شُكري وافِيًا بِنَوالِكُمُ
وَلَكِنَّنِي حاوَلْتُ فِي الجُهدِ مَذْهَبَا

أَفادَتْكُمُ النَّعْماءُ مِنِّي ثَلاثَةً
يَدِي وَلِسَانِي وَالضَّمِيرَ المُحَجَّبَا

A natural modern-English rendering:

My thanks have never fully matched your gifts,
yet I have tried to make effort my chosen path.

Your kindness has drawn from me three things:
my hand, my tongue, and the heart hidden within.

You can feel how compact it is: the poet admits that gratitude is too small for the favour received, but insists on giving everything he can — action, speech, and inner feeling.

 

2. What the poem is actually saying

Let’s unpack the lines a bit.

“وما كان شكري وافياً بنوالكم”

My gratitude has not been equal to your giving.

• شُكري: my gratitude / my thankfulness.

• نَوالكم: your generosity, what you give freely.

The poet starts with humility: no matter how much he thanks, it does not really match the size of the favour.

“ولكنني حاولت في الجهد مذهباً”

But I have tried to choose the way of doing all I can.

• حاولت في الجهد مذهباً: literally, “I tried to take effort as a path.”
  He’s saying: Even if I fall short, I am not lazy about gratitude.

“أفادتكم النعماء مني ثلاثة”

Your blessings have produced three things from me.

• أفادتكم: have benefited you, or yielded to you.

• النعماء: the blessing / kindness you showed me.

The idea is: because you were generous, you now “own” certain parts of me.

“يدي ولساني والضمير المحجبا”

My hand, my tongue, and the heart that is veiled inside.

• يدي: my hand → physical actions: service, help, work.

• لساني: my tongue → words: praise, thanks, dua.

• الضمير المحجب: the hidden inner self → the heart: love, recognition, sincere intention.

In other words:

You have my actions, my words, and my inner heart.
All three are now in your service.

That is exactly how many classical scholars define الشُّكر (gratitude):

بالشَّكر يكون بالقلب واللسان والجوارح – by the heart, the tongue, and the limbs. (Quranpedia)

The poem almost reads like a neat little definition of shukr turned into verse.

 

3. Where does this poem come from?

Earliest written sources

In the sources we can actually see on paper, the earliest clear witness is:

1. Al-Zamakhsharī (d. 538 AH) – al-Kashshāf on the verse

   {ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَالَمِينَ} (Q 1:2)

   He explains that ḥamd (praise) is mainly by the tongue, while shukr (gratitude) is for specific blessings and is done by heart, tongue, and limbs. Then he quotes the poem as an illustration: (Quranpedia)

   أَفادَتْكُمُ النَّعْمَاءُ مِنِّي ثَلاثَةً ... يَدِي وَلِسَانِي وَالضَّمِيرَ المُحَجَّبَا
   وَما كانَ شُكْرِي وافِيًا بِنَوالِكُمُ ... وَلَكِنَّنِي حاوَلْتُ فِي الجُهدِ مَذْهَبَا

   He then comments: your favour “has taken possession” of my hand, tongue, and heart — so all of them and their actions belong to you. (lib.efatwa.ir)

2. Al‑Nasafī (d. 710 AH) – Madārik al‑Tanzīl (another famous tafsīr)
   Nasafī repeats the same distinction between ḥamd and shukr, and again brings the line:

   أَفادَتْكُمُ النَّعْماءُ مِنِّي ثَلاثَةً *** يَدِي وَلِسَانِي وَالضَّمِيرَ المُحَجَّبَا

   then explains: “that is, the heart,” and says this line shows shukr is one of the three: heart, tongue, limbs. (quran-tafsir.net)

3. Commentary on al‑Ḥikam al‑ʿAṭā’iyya (Ibn ʿAtā’ Allāh’s aphorisms)
   In the explanation of the saying “Whoever does not thank blessings exposes them to disappearance…” the commentator defines shukr and brings the two lines together as a classic example of full gratitude by heart, tongue, and limbs. (The Single Monad Model of the Cosmos)

   The commentary spells out the sense very clearly: your hand serves them, your tongue praises them, and your heart is filled with love and loyalty for them. (The Single Monad Model of the Cosmos)

4. Al‑Suyūṭī (d. 911 AH) – Nawāhid al‑Abkār (his marginal notes on al‑Bayḍāwī’s tafsīr)
   Suyūṭī quotes the poem while discussing الشكر, citing al‑Zamakhsharī’s other work al‑Fā’iq as a source for the definition of shukr, and says the poet gathered all three “branches” of shukr in this one line. (Shamela)

So:

• The earliest explicit appearance we can easily track is in al‑Kashshāf, early 6th century AH.

• Later tafsīr and commentary works treat it as a well‑known poetic example of the threefold nature of shukr.

Is the poet known?

Short answer: No reliable early attribution.

• Classical authors usually introduce it with “قال الشاعر” (“a poet said”) without giving a name. 

As always, there are later claims about its author. Personally, I would treat other later claims about it being written by this or that, as uncertain at best. When strong early sources either give no name or explicitly say “we don’t know the author”, and much later sources suddenly attach a famous imam’s name, it looks more like devotional guesswork than solid transmission.

So, the safest position is:

This is an anonymous line (or pair of lines) from the classical tradition, preserved by the Qur’an commentators and language scholars as a perfect illustration of what real gratitude involves.

4. Why classical scholars loved this poem

If you’re a mufassir, linguist, or preacher trying to explain shukr, this poem is almost too handy:

1. It matches the textbook definition.
   Many scholars define gratitude as:

   • recognition in the heart,

   • praise on the tongue,

   • and obedience / service by the limbs. (Quranpedia)

   The poet lines them up in one neat list: hand – tongue – hidden heart.

2. It puts the giver in the centre.
   The focus is not “look how grateful I am,” but: your favour has taken hold of my whole being. There’s a nice shift from the self to the benefactor.

3. It balances humility with effort.

   • Humility: “My gratitude isn’t enough.”

   • Responsibility: “But I’m still trying, with all the effort I can manage.”

   I like that balance a lot – it avoids both arrogance (I have thanked you properly) and despair (I can never thank, so why try?).

4. It is easy to memorise and teach.
   Two simple bayts, clear vocabulary, a rhythmic list of “three things” – perfect for students, Friday khutbahs, or lessons on manners.

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5. Key online sources for the poem

Here are some direct links where you can see the poem inside its classical context (all Arabic):

1. al‑Zamakhsharī – al‑Kashshāf, Qur’an 1:2
   – Quranpedia edition (Quranpedia)

2. al‑Nasafī – Madārik al‑Tanzīl, Qur’an 1:2
   – al‑Mawsūʿa al‑Shāmila / al‑Jāmiʿ al‑Tārīkhī (quran-tafsir.net)

3. al‑Samīn al‑Ḥalabī – al‑Durr al‑Maṣūn
   – quotation and “I did not find its author” note on the verse {ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَالَمِينَ} (Ahlulbayt Library)

4. Commentary on al‑Ḥikam al‑ʿAṭā’iyya (ʿAbd al‑Majīd al‑Sharṇūbī)
   – see the commentary on the wisdom: “من لم يشكر النعم فقد تعرض لزوالها…” where the poem is quoted and explained. (The Single Monad Model of the Cosmos)

5. al‑Suyūṭī – Nawāhid al‑Abkār (Ḥāshiya on al‑Bayḍāwī)
   – his detailed note on the line “أفادتكم النعماء مني ثلاثة…” and the reference to al‑Fā’iq for the definition of shukr. (Shamela)

If you’re building class material, those five are a strong “source set” to rely on.

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6. The poem again – Arabic text with line‑by‑line meaning

Here it is in a simple teaching layout, Arabic followed by a short English meaning.

1. وَما كانَ شُكري وافِيًا بِنَوالِكُمُ
   My gratitude has never truly matched the generosity you showed me.

2. وَلَكِنَّنِي حاوَلْتُ فِي الجُهدِ مَذْهَبَا
   But I have tried to choose the path of doing all I can.

3. أَفادَتْكُمُ النَّعماءُ مِنِّي ثَلاثَةً
   Your blessings have drawn from me three things and made them yours…

4. يَدِي وَلِسَانِي وَالضَّمِيرُ المُحَجَّبَا
   my hand in service, my tongue in praise, and my heart that is hidden within.

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