Quote by Layla al-Akhyaliyya: “How can joy visit a soul whose beloved is gone forever?”

This rhetorical question powerfully conveys the profound and overwhelming grief that Layla felt. It suggests that the absence of a cherished person can utterly extinguish happiness, leaving an irreplaceable void and a persistent sense of sorrow.

Following the death of Tawba ibn Humayyir, Layla composed some of her most poignant elegies. This quote reflects the deep personal loss she experienced and the social constraints that likely prevented her from expressing her grief openly in other ways.

Arab poet born around 660 CE in the Hijaz region of Arabia, one of the most celebrated female poets of the early Islamic period. She is known especially for her elegies and love poems, many written in correspondence with the poet Tawba ibn Humayyir.