1. كَبيشَةُ عِرسي تَمَنّى الطَلاقا

    وَتسأَلُني بَعدَ هَدءٍ فِراقا

    Kabishah, my wife, wishes for divorce,

    And after a quiet interval asks me for separation.

  2. وَقامَت تُريكَ غداةَ الرَحيلِ

    كَشحاً لَطيفاً وَفَخِذاً وَساقا

    And on departure's morning she stood, showing you

    A slender waist, a thigh, and a calf;

  3. ومنسَدِلاً كمثاني الحِبالِ

    تُوسِعُه زَنَبقاً أَو خِلاقا

    And flowing hair like coils of rope,

    Which she lavishes with jasmine oil or fragrant ointment;

  4. وَعذبَ المَذاقَةِ كالأُقحوانِ

    جادَ عليهِ الرَبيعُ البِراقا

    And a sweet-tasting mouth, like daisies

    Which spring rain drenched on the sandy, stony tracts.

  5. تُسائِلُني طَلَّتي هَل لَقيتَ

    قابوسَ فيما أَتيتَ العِراقا

    My wife asks me, 'Have you met

    Qabus when you came to Iraq?'

  6. فَقُلتُ لَها قَد لَقيتُ الهُمامَ

    منطلِقاً بالخَميس انطلاقا

    So I told her, 'I have met the noble hero,

    Going forth with the army in full march.

  7. يَقودُ الجيادَ لأَرضِ العَدوِّ

    فَقَد آضَتِ الخَيلُ شُعثاً دِقاقا

    He leads the steeds to the enemy's land;

    The horses have already become shaggy and lean:

  8. سَراعيفَ قَد عُطِّلَت هُدَّجاً

    أَمامَ الرِفاقِ يَقُدنَ الرِفاقا

    Lanky, stripped bare, shuffling,

    Ahead of the companies, leading the companies.

  9. شَماطيطَ يَمزَعنَ مَزعَ الظِباءِ

    لَم يتَّرِكنَ بِبَطنٍ عِقاقا

    In scattered bands, they bound like gazelles;

    They left no pregnancy in any belly.

  10. فَحيَّيتُه إِذ رأَيتُ الجموعَ

    تُعارِضُه باليَمينِ الوِراقا

    So I greeted him when I saw the hosts

    Gleaming, drawing alongside him on the right.

  11. عُظام المَناكِبِ وَالساعِدَينِ

    تنفرقُ الخَيلُ عنه اِنفِراقا

    Massive in shoulders and both forearms,

    The horses part from him, parting wide.

  12. وَقالَ له اللَهُ اعطِ وهَب

    وَباعَ له المَجدُ بَيعاً صِفاقا

    And God said to him, 'Give and bestow,'

    And glory sold itself to him in a binding bargain.

  13. وَما أَسَدٌ من أُسودِ العَرينِ

    يعتَنِقُ السائلينَ اِعتِناقا

    And no lion among the lions of the den,

    Clasping those who seek it in its embrace,

  14. بأَجرأَ منه عَلى بُهمَةٍ

    وأَقدَم منه صِراحا صِداقا

    Is braver than he against a formidable warrior,

    Or bolder than he, in plain truth.

  15. وَما البَحرُ تطمو قَوامِيسُه

    بأنفقَ منه لِمالٍ نِفاقا

    Nor is the sea, its deep waters surging,

    More lavish than he in spending wealth.

  16. أَصاحِ تَرى البرقَ لَم تغتمِض

    طَوارِقُه يأتَلِقنَ ائتِلاقا

    O friend, do you see the lightning? Never dimming,

    Its night-visiting flashes blaze brilliantly.

  17. يُضيءُ حَبيّاً دنا بَركُهُ

    يُقيمُ فواقا وَيَسري فواقا

    It lights a massed cloud whose breast hangs low;

    It stays a moment and journeys a moment.

  18. سَقى وارِداتٍ فهَضبَ الرِداة

    فانعَقَّ فَوقَ الغَبيطِ انعِقاقا

    It watered Waridat, then the hills of ar-Ridah,

    Then burst wide open above al-Ghabit.

  19. فَلَمّا تنَزَّلَ عَن صُلبِه

    وَمَسَّ من الأَرضِ تُربا دُقاقا

    Then, when it descended from its backbone

    And touched the earth's fine dust,

  20. مَرَتهُ الصَبا واِنتَحَتهُ الجَنوبُ

    تَطحَرُ عَنه جَهاما رِقاقا

    The east wind milked it, and the south wind assailed it,

    Driving thin, rainless clouds away from it.

  21. فأَلقى عَلى أَجأٍ بَركَهُ

    كأَنَّ عَلى عَضُدَيهِ رِفاقا

    Then it laid its breast upon Aja,

    As though hobbles lay on its two upper forelegs.

  22. يَكُبُّ العِضاهَ لأذقانِه

    كَكَبِّ الفَنيقِ اللقاحَ البُصاقا

    It topples the thorn trees onto their chins,

    As a prized camel-stallion topples milk-dripping milch camels.

  23. ثَلاثَ لَيالٍ وأَيامَهنَّ

    يَندَفِقُ الماءُ منه اِندِفاقا

    For three nights and their days,

    Water pours from it in torrents.

  24. وَأَلقى البَعاعَ بقيعانه

    فرفَّع ما طورَهُ واِستَفاقا

    And it cast its rain-load into its lowlands,

    Then lifted what lay around it and recovered.

  25. سَقيتُ به جبلى طيىءٍ

    وَلَم أَسقِ شاماً به أَو عِراقا

    I watered with it the two mountains of Tayy,

    And watered neither Syria nor Iraq with it.

  26. وَلكن سقيتُ بِه بلدةً

    تُباسِقُ عَنّا مَعَدا بِساقا

    But with it I watered a land

    That vies with Ma'add in loftiness on our behalf.

  27. فَلَم يأَتِها أَنَّنا معشَرٌ

    حَوَينا المَدى وَملكنا السِباقا

    So word has not reached it that we are a people

    Who have reached the goal and claimed the lead.

  28. وَإِنّا نُجَدِّعُ أَنفَ الفَخارِ

    إِذا ما القِسيُّ غَمَمنَ الرِواقا

    And we cut off the nose of boasting pride

    When bows darken the tent-canopy.

  29. وَإِنّا ادَّعقنا برَغمِ الأُنوفِ

    حِمى أَسَدٍ بالخويِّ ادِّعاقا

    And, in defiance of proud noses, we overran

    Asad's preserve at al-Khuwayy, trampling it down.

  30. صَلقناهُمُ باللِوى صَلقَةً

    سَقَتهُم مِن المَوتِ كأساً دِهاقا

    We struck them at al-Liwa with a crushing blow

    That made them drink a brimming cup of death.

  31. فأضحت بنو أَسَدٍ بعدَها

    تَشيمُ بشِعفينِ بَرقا أَلاقا

    So the sons of Asad afterward came to

    Watch deceptive lightning at Shi'fayn.