قل للنسيم إذا الصباح أعله — أبو زيد الفازازي

قل للنسيم إذا الصباح أعلَّه

والبرق أغمده الغمامُ وسَلَّهُ

Say to the breeze, when dawn has given it another draught,

and to the lightning, which the clouds sheathe and draw:

يتجابدان الروض شرك عنانه

هذاك نبّهه وهذا بلّه

The two tug at the meadow, sharing its reins—

that one awakens it, and this one wets it.

عوجا على وطن الصَّبابة والصِّبا

بتحية تسع المكان وأهله

Turn aside toward the homeland of longing and youth,

with a greeting embracing the place and its people.

وتحملا عني تحية شيق

أبقى النزوع إلى اللقاء أقلَّه

And bear from me the greeting of a yearning lover

whom longing for reunion has left with little of himself.

أهوى العقيق وساكنيه وإنما

أهوى المحل لأجل من قد حلَّه

I love al-‘Aqiq and its inhabitants; and I only

love the abode for the sake of whoever has dwelt there.

بين البصيلة والمجاز مناظر

أودعتها مذ بنت أنسي كلَّه

Between al-Busayla and al-Majaz lie vistas

where I have left all my delight since I departed.

دمن إذا ما الطرف رام سلوكها

لم يدنُ منها أو يجدد نعله

Old dwelling-sites: whenever a steed seeks to traverse them,

it will not approach without renewing its horseshoe.

رقّت مواردها فكانت راحة

وذكت منابتها فكانت نَقلَهُ

Their watering places were gentle, offering rest;

and their flourishing growth became its refreshment.

وتعاقبت أنوارها موصولة

حتى كأن الصبح قيّد ليله

And their blossoms followed one another without a break,

until it seemed that dawn had fettered its night.

وبمصرها وهو النهاية بهجة

خلٌ رأيتُ الناس طرا خله

And in their city—the very height of splendor—

dwells a friend whom I found all people befriending.

هو كالربيع فلست تعدم دائباً

حُسنَيهِ إما طلّهُ أو ظله

He is like spring: you never lack, at any time,

his twin graces, either his dew or his shade.

أثنى عليه بقوله وبفعله

حفظ الجنان بيانه فأملَّه

I praise him for his words and deeds;

the heart preserved his eloquence and then dictated it.

وأرى مبرته وأرعى عهده

لَّ ذكراه وأشكر فضله

And I witness his kindness and keep his covenant,

[...] his memory, and I thank him for his bounty.

يهنا الفضائل أن غذا موصوفها

دون الأفاضل واغتدت صفة له

May the virtues rejoice that he became their bearer,

rather than other worthies, and became his own attribute.

والدهر يَطَّرِح الجليلَ وربما

خرق العوائد نادراً فأجلّه

And Time casts aside the noble, yet sometimes

it breaks its habits—rarely—and honors him.

لكنه قد ظن أن وليه

مذ بان عنه اعتاض منه فمله

Yet he has supposed that his friend,

since parting from him, has replaced him and wearied of him.

لا والليالي السالفات وحسنها

إذ لم أعاين مثلهن ومثله

No—by those bygone nights and their beauty,

for I have never beheld their like, nor his!

ما إن رأت عيناني خلا عبده

يعتاض منه ولا رأته قبله

My eyes have seen no friend whom his servant

could take in his stead, nor did they see one before him.

ثق بي فإن العين فيك قريحة

والجنب نابٍ والفؤاد مولّه

Trust me: my eye is sore for you,

my side cannot rest, and my heart is distraught.

أأبا محمدٌ الوفي على النوى

لأخ رآه أخاً الوفاء وأهله

O Abu Muhammad, faithful despite separation

to a brother whom Loyalty and its people deem a brother:

شيم الزمان كما علمت تفرق

وعساه يجمع بعدها ولعله

Time’s ways, as you know, bring separation;

and perhaps it will reunite us afterward—perhaps it will.

أنبطتها مستعجلاً من خاطر

يشكو لفقدك صحبه ومحله

I drew this poem forth in haste from a mind

that, for lack of you, laments its companions and its dwelling.

فأتتك يرقص حولها ابن قلاقس

طرباً ويشرب بالكبير الأبله

She came to you, Ibn Qalaqis dancing round her

in rapture, and jeering at the great al-Ablah.

بكر رأيتك كفأها من دونهم

والشكل يحسن أن يلاقي شكله

A virgin bride: I judged you her match above all others;

and it is fitting that like should meet its like.

فاسلم على ريب الزمان مبلغاً

أقصى المنى في رفعة وتملّه

So remain safe despite Time’s vicissitudes, attaining

the utmost of your wishes in high station—and savor it.