A ''sha'ir'' () was a pre-Islamic Arab poet believed to have magical powers.

History

The origin of the term ''sha'ir'' is unknown. The ancient Arab culture viewed the ''sha'ir'' as a type of wizard, able to commune with

supernatural Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

forces, or '' djinni'', for both knowledge and power. Members of the tribe treated ''sha'ir'' as

oracle An oracle is a person or thing considered to provide insight, wise counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. If done through occultic means, it is a form of divination. Descript ...

s and wisemen. The poems and songs of the ''sha'ir'' inspired tribe members during war, and were considered powerful weapons. Many thought sha'ir could supernaturally communicate with the djinn and the results were beautiful poetry inspired by the mystical being.

Modern adaptation

In the ''

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'' fantasy role-playing game, a type of kit, or variation on a

character class In tabletop games and video games, a character class is an occupation, profession, or role assigned to a game character to highlight and differentiate their capabilities and specializations. In role-playing games (RPGs), character classes ag ...

, called the ''sha'ir'' was created for the '' Al-Qadim''

campaign setting A campaign setting is a setting for a tabletop role-playing game or wargame campaign. Most campaign settings are fictional worlds; however, some are historical or contemporary real-world locations. A '' campaign'' is a series of individual adve ...

. In the game, however, ''sha'ir'' have actual magical powers, and can communicate with

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s. In addition to being advisors, ''sha'ir'' can also be found wandering alone in the desert, something the real ''sha'ir'' were not known for.

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite book , editor1=Charles Dudley Warner , editor2=John William Cunliffe , editor3=Ashley Horace Thorndike , editor4=Harry Morgan Ayres , editor5= Helen Rex Keller , editor6=Gerhard Richard Lomer , title=The Warner Library , volume=30 , pages=9–14 , publisher=Warner Library Co , year=1917 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LAoIAQAAIAAJ {{cite book , author=Grubb, Jeff , authorlink=Jeff Grubb , title= Al-Qadim: Arabian Adventures , pages=42–43 , publisher=

TSR, Inc TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had been ...

, year=1992 , isbn=1-56076-358-2 {{cite book , author=Kuiper, Kathleen , title=Islamic Art, Literature, and Culture , pages=58–61 , publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group , year=2009 , isbn=978-1615300976 Pre-Islamic Arabian poets Mystic poets Occult writers Spiritual mediums Advisors Diviners Jinn Arabic words and phrases