Chronicles of al-Sūdān (Taʾrīḫ al-Sūdān)
Timbuktu (Tombouctou, Tin Bukt)
Title
The time of the Prophet's praises
Short description
A rigid control is imposed over Timbuktu and this includes moving the traditional time of the Prophet's praises in the month of Rabiʿ al-awwal.
Text on source
ورجع القائد حدّ واصحابه الى تنبكت وجعلوا على اجسامهم الشوكة لاهلها ولبسوا لهم جلد النمر وشتّتوا جماعتهم في المجالس وبقى البلد زمانًا طويلًا لا يتحدّث فيه اثنان في مجلس وقبل وصول المحلة للبلد امر صاحب الامر بالدور فيه عند صلاة العشاء ومرة قبلها بالتشديد والتوكيد حتّى لا يمدح المدّاحون ليالي الشهر الكبير الّا بعد صلاة المغرب والعادة المعروقة المعهودة لا يكون الّا بعد صلاة العشاء [س. ١٩٨]
English translation
When Qāʾid Ḥaddu returned to Timbuktu with his men they behaved as if they had barbs on their bodies or were acting as leopards. They broke up assemblies, and for a long time no two persons would congregate to chat. Even before the main force reached the city, the commander-in-chief gave orders that at the time of the evening prayer, and once before it, there should be a patrol to enforce this order rigidly, to such an extent that during the nights of the "great month" the panegyrists [maddāḥūn] could only chant the Prophet's
praises immediately after the sunset prayer, though it had been their long-established custom to wait until after the evening prayer
Folios/Pages
253
Date
1609 circa
Observations on the events description
The tradition of chants to praise the Prophet in the month of Rabiʿ al-awwal is widespread in the entire Muslim world.
The dots on the map indicate the places where sound and music events were described. They don't represent travel stages.
Participants
No other participants in this event description.
How to quote
Pintimalli A., "The time of the Prophet's praises" (Event description), Echos. Sound Ecosystems in Travelogues. Published 2024 10 10.doi: 10.25430/echos.travels.139
This work is licensed under CC-BY-SA 4.0 
