Rise for the teacher and honour him: the teacher is…
Quote
Rise for the teacher and honour him: the teacher is almost a messenger.
Arabic original
قم للمعلم وفّه التبجيلا، كاد المعلم أن يكون رسولا.
What it means
A teacher passes on more than information: teaching helps shape people. Comparing the teacher to a messenger is a poetic way of expressing the dignity and responsibility of that work.
The story behind this quote
This line opens Shawqi’s poem honouring teachers. The following verse explains the image by describing the teacher as someone who builds and nurtures souls and minds.
The comparison between teacher and messenger rests on the act of transmission. In the poem, education shapes the mind while also carrying moral responsibilities. The respect requested at the beginning therefore goes together with high expectations of the person doing the teaching.
The source
قصيدة «قم للمعلم» (الشوقيات), مطلع القصيدة
The text appears in the indicated source. A traditional attribution remains distinct from proof of authorship: see the context.
More quotes by Ahmed Shawqi
Do you know anyone nobler or greater than the one who builds and nurtures souls and minds?
My homeland: even if eternal paradise kept me from you, my soul would long to return.