Freedom of thought in Arabic classic oriental literature

Along with the Arabs, representatives of other nations closely participated in the development of classical Arabic literature. Even before Islam, black poets (sa`alik poets) of Habesh origin were an important part of ¿Jahiliyyah¿ poetry. As the emergence of Islam as a religion was accompanied by the invasion of futuhat and other lands, it resulted not only in the spread of this religion in large territories, but also in the flow of representatives of other nations to Islamic centers of science and culture. The majority of the representatives of non-Arab nations in the Arab world were the Mawali who had embraced Islam and had been exiled from captivity. The Mawali, the creators of the Shu`ubiyya movement, were not merely foreigners but an important force against the Arabian subjugation. The policy of the Arab tribal fanaticism, sometimes disregarding the Islamic traditions and customs, was sometimes heterodox. In the period of the Abbasid literature, Hereticism and Manichaeism first of all reflected the thoughts of non-Arabs. The Shi`ite-motivated motifs also played an important role in the activity of the non-Arab poets.