Abū Sa‘id Khudri relates: We were going with Allah’s Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be with him). As we reached the place (known as) Arj, there met (us) a poet who had been reciting a poem. Thereupon Allah’s Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be with him) said: ‘Catch the satan or detain the satan, for filling the belly of a person with pus is better than stuffing his brain with poetry.’ (Sahih Muslim)
A poet is commonly a mental rambler who tries to transform into beautiful verses his wayward whims and fleeting emotions. The Qur’ān says: “As for poets, only the wayward follow them. Do you not see that they wander about in every valley and say that which they do not act upon.” (26:224-26) There are also a good number of ahadith which prove that poetry is not something commendable in Islam.
But this condemnation of poets excludes “those who believed and acted righteously and remembered Allah much, and when they themselves were subjected to wrong, they exacted retribution no more than to the extent of the wrong”. (26:227) The Holy Messenger also appreciated righteous poets like Hassan bin Thabit, Labid and Umayya bin Abū Salt.
Islam does not regard poetry as evil in itself. Poetry is to be commended and encouraged only if it emanates from minds steeped in faith, and tries to carry out in life the fine sentiments it expresses and aims at the glory of God, or the praise of persons who strive in the way of Allah rather than at self-glorification.