The Luzumiyat
The Luzumiyat (Arabic: اللزوميات) is the second collection of poetry by al-Ma'arri, comprising nearly 1600 short poems organised in alphabetical order and observing a novel double-consonant rhyme scheme devised by the poet himself. The work is also known as Luzūm mā lā yalzam (Arabic: لزوم ما لا يلزم) which is variously translated as Unnecessary Necessity, The Self-Imposed Compulsion or "committing oneself to what is not obligatory"; this title is a reference to the difficult, 'unnecessary', rhyme scheme which al-Ma'arri applied to his work.