1. The loved ones descended with the stratagem of enemies,
So a meeting of them became with meeting.
١. نَزلَ الأحبّةُ خِطّةَ الأعداءِ
فغدا لقاءٌ منهمُ بلِقاءِ
2. How many clear stabs expose feverishly,
Without the glance of a clear doe eye.
٢. كم طعنةٍ نَجْلاءَ تَعرِضُ بالحِمىَ
من دون نَظْرةِ مُقلةٍ نَجْلاء
3. O habitat of soft most verdant youth, like our covenant
With composure beneath the melodious arch.
٣. يا مَعْهدَ الرَشأ الأغَنّ كعَهْدِنا
بالجْزعِ تحت البانةِ الغَنّاء
4. By you, Samra became brown, though she is from Qina,
In the shadow of each long brown one.
٤. بك أصبَحتْ سَمْراءُ وهي منَ القنا
في ظلِّ كلِ طويلةٍ سَمْراء
5. Will you two convey to me in the morning a greeting,
Sent carefully from the living?
٥. هل تُبلِغانِ ليَ الغداةَ تحيّةً
تُهدَى على حَذَرٍ منَ الأحياء
6. If you convey it by nightfall to Al-Udhayb,
We will avoid it towards Al-Wa’sa.
٦. إنْ تبلُغا شَرَفَ العُذَيبِ عشيةً
فَتيامناَ عنه إلى الوعساء
7. Stand in place of the hunter of men instead of her,
Describe the crime of her doe eyes.
٧. وقِفا لصائدةِ الرّجال بدَلّها
فَصفا جِنايةَ عينها الحوراء
8. And talk secretly, so the horsemen of its domes
Incline their spears to listen.
٨. وتَحدَّثا سِرّاً فحولَ قبابها
سُمرُ الرّماحِ يَمِلنَ للإصغاء
9. From every weeping woman, blood without her,
The day of stabbing with a blue doe eye.
٩. من كلِّ باكيةٍ دماً من دُونها
يومَ الطّعان بمُقلةٍ زرقاء
10. And Samira, the voice of screaming, even if she becomes,
Invited by deaf ridge.
١٠. وسميعةٍ صوتَ الصّريخِ وإن غدَتْ
مَدعوَّةً بالصعدة الصمّاء
11. O doll without raising her insides,
The plunging of the young man with horses in a sea of blood.
١١. يا دُميةً من دونِ رَفعِ سُجوفها
خوْضُ الفتى بالخيلِ بحْرَ دِماء
12. My fear of the watcher's eviction, if I
Find the beloved intending proximity.
١٢. خَوفي لإقصاءِ الرّقيبِ لوَ أنّني
أَجدُ الحبيبَ يَهُمُّ بالإدناء
13. If the loved ones helped, I would say with composure,
The enemies' necks are easier for me.
١٣. لو ساعدَ الأحبابُ قلتُ تجلُّداً
أَهوِنْ عليّ برِقبةِ الأعداء
14. And if you refuse, I am not the first sinner
Who expects kindness from a beautiful one.
١٤. ولئن صدَدْتِ فلستُ أوّلَ خاطيءٍ
يَتوقَّعُ الإحسانَ من حسناء
15. Do you allow an infatuated one a visit?
Maybe it will heal him from distress.
١٥. هل تأذنين لمُغرمٍ في زَورةٍ
فلعلّها تَشفي من البُرحاء
16. For you have led me away from comfort,
And filled my insides with the fire of passion.
١٦. فلقد ملكْتِ عنِ السُّلوِّ مقادتي
وحشوت من نارِ الجوى أحشائي
17. And I have endured ten years without you, since the bending of An-Nawa,
And ten is the utmost extent of endurance.
١٧. وصبَرْتُ عَشراً عنكِ مُذْ شَطَّ النّوى
والعِشْرُ أقصى غايةِ الإظماء
18. And I have concealed my love sickness from the censurers,
But my tears have burst forth in disclosure.
١٨. ولقد كَتَمتُ عنِ العَذول صَبابتي
لكنّ دَمْعيَ لَجَّ في الإفشاءِ
19. So let the jealous ones rejoice that her rejection
Of me is what comforts a group, while my crying distresses them.
١٩. فلْيهنأِ الغَيرانَ أنّ صدودَها
مِمّا يُروّحُ مَعشراً وبكائي
20. Say to a watcher over us, suspicious
And gossipy from a group of enemies:
٢٠. قُولا لخائفةٍ علينا رِقْبةً
ووِشايةً من معشرٍ بُعَداء
21. My tears and your frugality follow a path
That makes observers and guardians needless.
٢١. دَمْعي وبُخْلُكِ يَسلُكانِ طريقةً
تُغْنِي عنِ الواشينَ والرُّقَباء
22. And in the place where the two banners fell from the folds of passion,
There are blood stains complaining of the aggression of enemies.
٢٢. وبمَسْقِطِ العلَمَيْنِ من طُررِ الَّلوى
دِمَنٌ شكَوْنَ تَطاوُلَ الإقواء
23. I glanced repeatedly at its yards,
And remembered the era of those companions.
٢٣. كَررّتُ ألحاظي إلى عَرَصاتها
وذكَرتُ عهْدَ أولئك القُرناء
24. And I gave its attacker's soil my tears to drink,
That flow like the still dew.
٢٤. وسقَيْتُ صاديَ تُرْبِها بمَدامعٍ
تَنهلُّ مثْلَ الدِيمةِ الوطْفاء
25. And the white teardrop diminished there,
So I watered it with the red teardrop.
٢٥. والدّمعةُ البيضاءُ قَلّتْ عندَها
فمَطرتُها بالدّمْعةِ الحَمراء
26. So how much anguished drinking for grief when it was empty
Of its inhabitants, the bend of Al-Jur’a.
٢٦. فكَمِ التجَرُّعُ للتّحسُّرِ أن خلا
من ساكنيهِ مُنحنَى الجَرْعاء
27. Patience, even if the mixed company departed,
For solace is stored for the time of funerals.
٢٧. صبْراً وإنْ رحَل الخليطُ فإنّما
ذُخِرَ العَزاءُ لساعة الأرزاء
28. And ask the knights of Jesus if you provoked them,
It will tear the garment of the white desert.
٢٨. واسألْ عِتاق العيسِ إن ثَوّرْتَها
سَيراً يمزّقُ بُردةَ البيداءِ
29. Maybe the horses will renew their affection for you
With a visit to Az-Zawra.
٢٩. فعَسى المطايا أن يُجدِّدَ وخْدُها
لك سَلوةً بزيارةِ الزَّوراءِ
30. So I marked the ignorances of Mahama silently,
And its gardens with the signs of tattooing.
٣٠. فوسَمتُ أغفالَ المهامةِ واطئاً
وجَناتِها بمناسمِ الوجنْاء
31. Until An-Nukha was laid to rest at the shore of the Tigris,
And the atmosphere was thick with darkness.
٣١. حتّى أُنيخَ بشّطِّ دجلةَ أَينُقى
والجَوُ في سمْكٍ من الظّلماء
32. And the bridge you'd think is a black thread
That appeared over a white scarf.
٣٢. والجسْرُ تَحسَبُه طِرازاً أسْوداً
قد لاح فوق مُلاءةٍ بيضاء
33. And the night copied the planets a copy
For the earth, imperfect in illumination.
٣٣. والّليلُ قد نَسخ الكواكبَ نُسخةً
للأرضِ غير سقيمةِ الأضواء
34. For the green one has the original, so it is in her hand,
And with it she meets the copy of dust.
٣٤. والأصل للخضراء فهْوَ بِكَفّها
وبهِ تُقابِلُ نُسخةَ الغَبراء
35. So it is as if the revolving heavens have displayed
Their writing to the beholder's eye.
٣٥. فكأنّما الفَلَك المُدار بمَشْقِها
أبدى كتابتَه لعَيْنِ الرائي
36. It made the entire sky a copy,
From its skill on a page of water.
٣٦. أًمسى وقد نسخَ السّماءَ جميعَها
من حِذْقِه في صَفحةٍ للماء
37. So that it may serve the Helper Master if He wished,
With copying in the diary of requitals.
٣٧. كي يَخْدُمَ المولَى المُعين لو ارتضَى
بالنسْخِ في ديوانِ الاستيفاء
38. And if He accepted him as a servant, He would see for him
What multiplies from year to year.
٣٨. ولو ارتَضاه خادماً لرأى له
ماذا يُضاعَفُ من سناً وسنَاء
39. Who has remained between His hands lesser than any scribe,
You will find him with bowed forehead.
٣٩. مَن ظَلَّ بين يدْيهِ أدنى كاتبٍ
تَلْقاه واطىء هامةِ الجوزاء
40. Who conveyed the pens beyond the span of the spear
For the kingdom the day of conflicting opinions.
٤٠. مَن بلَّغ الأقلامَ فوق مدى القنا
للمُلْكِ يومَ تَطاعُنِ الآراءِ
41. Who has surpassed the degree of competence, a limit
The equally matched cannot wish for.
٤١. مَن حَلَّ من درَجِ الكِفاية غايةً
أَعيا تَمَنّيها على الأكْفاء
42. With morals created for attaining the heights,
And ways endowed with all praise.
٤٢. بخلائقٍ خُلِقَتْ لإدْراك العُلا
وطَرائقٍ حَظيَتْ بكُلّ ثناء
43. And a hand that is stingy with a seed if it reckoned,
And stingier than it with a seed if it dispersed.
٤٣. ويدٍ تَشِحُّ بذرّةٍ إن حاسبَتْ
وببذرةٍ منها أقَلُّ سَخاء
44. If he doesn't forgive, then seek his grace,
To show you the generosity of the forgiving ones.
٤٤. إنْ لم ُيُسامِحْ ثَمّ فاطْلُبْ رِفْدَه
لِيُريك كيف سَماحةُ السَّمحاء
45. A king who in his might and generosity
Resembles two fires in the morning and evening.
٤٥. مَلِكٌ يَشُبُّ لبأَسِه ولجودِهِ
ناريْنِ في الإصباح والإمساء
46. His hands have apportioned his weapons and pardons
In two portions, for enriching and annihilating.
٤٦. قَسمتْ يَداه عُداتَه وعُفاتَه
قسمْينِ للإغْناء والإفناء
47. One whose ambition finds the landmarks of his abode
Ever inhabited by the learned.
٤٧. ذو هِمّةٍ تَلْقى معَالمَ دارِهِ
مَعمورةً أبداً من العُلماء
48. Precious pearls are scattered amidst it
Before him with the gazing of peers.
٤٨. تتناثَرُ الدُّررُ الثّمينةُ وسْطَها
قُدّامَهُ بتَناظُرِ النُّظراء
49. And it is as if a full moon in the privacy of his face
Provides illumination for onlookers.
٤٩. وكأنّ بدراً في أسرّة وجْهِه
للنّاظرِين يُمدُّهم بضياء
50. Shoulders shake from him a shudder
When hearing the recitation of readers.
٥٠. تَتزعزع الأعطافُ منه هِزّةً
عند استماع تلاوِة القُرّاء
51. So the jurists' issues are chanted over
Their traces, like the poets' praises.
٥١. فمسائل الفقهاء مُنشَدةٌ على
آثارهنَّ مدائح الشُّعراء
52. These noble traits and lofty principles do not
Rouse the singing of singers and clamor of callers.
٥٢. هذي المكارمُ والمعالي الغُرُّ لا
شدو القيان وضجّة الندماء
53. To God belongs the exclusive right of kings, so the ambition
Of his soul continues to opt for the highest.
٥٣. لله مختص الملوك فلم تزل
تَختَصُّ هِمَّتُه بكُلِّ علاء
54. From a lofty palm for glory, high of branches,
On the day of pride, extensive of shade.
٥٤. من دوحةٍ للمجدِ عاليةِ الذُّرا
يوم الفخارِ مديدةَ الأفياء
55. Everyone saw acquiring wealth as spoils,
But his hands refused anything but praise.
٥٥. كلٌّ رأى كَسْبَ الثّراء غنيمةً
فأَبتْ يداه غير كَسْبِ ثنَاء
56. And Ahmad ibn Al-Fadl has the traits of glory,
Which the virtuous have lauded in praise of him.
٥٦. ولأحمدَ بنِ الفضلِ شيمةُ سُؤْددٍ
وقفَتْ عليه مَحامِد الفُضلاء
57. Ibn Al-Fadl has become a dutiful son, so he deals kindly with him
Like the dutifulness of sons to fathers.
٥٧. قد أصبح ابنَ الفضل فهْو يبرُّه
برَّ البنين لما جِدِ الآباء
58. And he continues to honor whoever seeks refuge with him
Of his visitors, with the nobility of Genealogists.
٥٨. ويَظَلُّ يكرِم مَن إليه يَنتحي
مِن زائريه كرامَةَ النُّسباء
59. So virtue has delighted him through you, O son,
Since you were of his respectable sons.
٥٩. فالفضلُ قَرَّتْ عَينُه بك يا ابنَه
إذ كنتَ من أبنائه النجباء
60. O you who have been charitable with the hand of bounty among mankind,
Following the excellent ambition of the Sublime.
٦٠. يا مُحسناً بيَدِ النّدى بين الورى
تَقليد جيدِ الهمّةِ العَلياء
61. By God, your worth among the people of the time,
Is like the pearl in the sea foam.
٦١. للهِ درُّك من فتَىً علْياه في
وجهِ الزّمان كغُرّةِ الدَّهْماء
62. O you whose house courtyard
Becomes every morning and evening crowded with all hopes.
٦٢. يا مَن إلى بيتٍ تَحُلُّ فناءه
يُمسى ويُصبح حَجُّ كُلِّ رجاء
63. Hopes have become focused on your abode,
Diverted from all other places.
٦٣. أضحَى الرّجاءُ إلى ذُراك وجُوهه
مَصروفَةً من سائر الأرجاء
64. And among the wonders is that your palm has never
Ceased being like the sea in day of generosity, overflowing in gifts.
٦٤. ومن العجائبِ أنَّ كَفَّك لم تزلْ
كالبحرِ يومَ الجُودِ فَرْطَ عطاء
65. Yet the sea has well-known names,
While the palm has never been among names.
٦٥. والبحر أسماء له معروفة
والكَف لم تَكُ قطُّ في الأسماء
66. As for your grandfather, from your courtyard he travelled,
Until he came down, visiting my courtyard.
٦٦. أمّا جَداكَ فمِن فِنائك قد سَرى
حتّى أتاني نازلاً بِفنائي
67. And I was in my land, camped for residence,
With my mounts tied next to me.
٦٧. وأنا بأرضِي للمُقامِ مُخَيمٌ
وركائبي مَعقولةٌ بإزائي
68. So with what, after a connection, should I come following,
When a connection comes following me?
٦٨. فَبِكَمْ على صِلَةٍ أجيءُ وراءها
تُربِي إذا صلةٌ تَجِىء ورائي
69. And your mention of the absent one gladdens me,
While wealth is lesser than the greatest.
٦٩. والذِّكْرُ منك على المغيبِ مُفرِّحى
والمالُ أصغَرُ نائلِ الكُبَراء
70. So I will thank you, maintaining gratitude
Like the gratitude of meadows for the work of clouds.
٧٠. فلأَشكُرنّكَ ما صنَعْتَ مُواصِلاً
شُكْرَ الرّياضِ صنائعَ الأنواء
71. And I will love you among your loved ones, reciprocating
With listening to every poem of singing.
٧١. ولأّحبُوّنّكَ من حِبائكَ جازياً
بسَماعِ كُلّ قصيدةٍ غَناء
72. Sung by a reciter, and enriched by a benefactor,
So it was fascinated by singing for it of a charming voice.
٧٢. غَنّى بها راوٍ وأغنى مُنِعمٌ
فاستُطرِبَتْ لِغنىً لها غَرّاء
73. I would be most cowardly if I did not strive
In a praise poem for the most generous of generous ones.
٧٣. أنا ألأمُ اللُّؤماء إن لم أجتهِدْ
في حُسْنِ مدحةِ أكرمِ الكرماء
74. O you who initiate generosity, and his action
In returning is more generous than in initiating.
٧٤. يا بادِئاً بالمكرماتِ وفعْلُه
في العَوْدِ أكرَمُ منه في الإبداء
75. Nothing above your day in might among mankind,
Except the hoped-for tomorrow of the Sublime.
٧٥. ما فوقَ يَومكَ في الجَلالِ لدى الوَرى
إلاّ الغَدُ المأمُولُ للعلياء
76. So submit to the sons of hope in safety,
Continuous with the gathering of bounties.
٧٦. فاسلَمْ لأبناء الرّجاء سلامةً
مَوْصولةً بتَظاهُرِ النّعْماء
77. You have pleased the Leader with advice, and indeed
Advisors' obedience pleases leaders.
٧٧. أرضَيْتَ بالنُّصْحِ الإمامَ وإنّما
يُرضِي الأئمّةَ طاعةُ النُّصَحاء
78. And you have been appointed by the Sultan of mankind, so he has not seen
For you an equal, O greatest of trustees!
٧٨. وبَلاكَ سلطانُ الأنامِ فما رأى
لك مُشْبِها يا أَعظَمَ الأُمَناء
79. And if you have become, while possessing a state,
You had preceded it in revival.
٧٩. ولئن غدوْتَ وأنت مالك دولةٍ
فلقد سَبقْتَ لها إلى الإحياءِ
80. Kingship is dispensable, while you are the adorner of its abode,
Never coveting a day of rest.
٨٠. المُلْك مَغْنىً أنت آهِلُ رَبْعهِ
لامَلَّ يوماً منك طُولُ ثَواء
81. And time is like a threaded necklace, its arrangement
An order of white and black beads.
٨١. والدّهرُ كالعِقْدِ المُفصَّلِ نَظمُه
نَسَقاً من البيضاءِ والسّوداءِ
82. So you remained an intermediate for it to adorn it,
And so you emulate its eternal extension.
٨٢. فبَقيِتَ واسطةً له لتَزينَه
ولكَيْ تُحاكِيَه امتدادَ بَقاء