سمعت سويجع الاثلاث غنى

عَلى مَطلولة العذبات غنا

I heard the little night-bird of the third watch sing,

Singing upon a dew-drenched tree with drooping branches.

أَجابته مغردة بنجد

وَثنت بالاجابة حين ثنى

A songstress in Najd answered him,

And repeated her answer whenever he repeated his song.

وَبرق الابرقين أطار نَومي

واحرمني طروق الطيف وَهنا

Lightning over al-Abraqayn drove sleep from me,

And at midnight denied me the beloved phantom’s visit.

وَذكرني الصبا النجدي عيشا

بذات البان ما أَمرا واهنا

Najd’s east wind recalled to me a life

At Dhat al-Ban—how sweet and pleasant it was!

ذكرت احبتي وَديار أنسي

وَراجعت الزَمان بهم فضنا

I remembered my beloved and the dwellings of my joy,

And recalled the ample, carefree days I spent with them.

وَكادَ القَلب أَن يَسلو فَلما

تذكر أبرق الحنان حنا

My heart had nearly found consolation, but when

It remembered Abraq al-Hanan, it yearned.

ترفق بي فديتك يا رَفيقي

فَما عين سويهرة كوسنا

Be gentle with me—may I ransom you, my companion:

A slightly wakeful eye is not like a drowsing one.

وَقف بي في الطلول وَفي المَغاني

لا ندب يا فَتى طللا وَمغنى

Lead me among the ruined camps and former dwellings;

Do not lament, young man, a ruined campsite or dwelling.

لعل النوح يطفىء نار قلب

يقلبه الجوى ظَهرا وَبطنا

Perhaps lamentation will quench the fire of a heart

That passion turns inside and out.

أَعيذك ما بليت به فاني

عَلى أثر الفَريق شج معنى

I would spare you what has afflicted me, for I am

Grief-stricken and tormented over the departing tribe’s traces.

أشارك في الصبابة كل صب

اذا ما اللَيل جن عليه جنا

I share in the ardor of every lover

When night folds a wing over him.

وَلَو بسط الهَوى العذرى عذري

لما قاسيت سنة قيس لبنى

Even if ‘Udhri love fully laid bare my excuse,

I would not have suffered the fate of Qays, Lubna’s lover.

ولعت بجيرة الشعب اليَماني

وَلَو عازادني كمدا وَحزنا

I fell in love with the neighbors of the Yemeni pass;

Were anguish and sorrow not to revisit me,

أَكاتبهم وَقَد بعدوا بدمع

فَرادى في محاجره وَمثني

I would write to them, though they have gone far away, with tears—

Falling singly from their sockets, and two by two.

فَلا أَدري أهم ملكوا فؤادي

بعقد البيع أَم قبضوء رهنا

I do not know whether they took possession of my heart

By a contract of sale, or seized it as a pledge.

ثملت بهم وَما خامرت خمرا

معتقة وَلا ذانيت دنا

I grew drunk on them, though I tasted no wine—

Neither aged wine nor even drew near a jar.

تأن وَلا تضق بالامر ذرعا

فَكَم بالنجح يظفر من تأني

Be patient, and do not panic at the matter:

How often success comes to one who waits patiently.

وَلا تمدد يدا بسؤال ذل

الى غير الَّذي أغنى واقني

Do not extend a hand in a humiliating plea

To any but Him who enriches and grants possessions.

فبالاقدار يرزق غير عان

بِلا سعي وَيحرم من تعنى

By destiny, one who never toils may be provided for,

While one who wearies himself may be denied.

وَلَم يفت الغَني بالعجز حظ

وَلا بالحزم يدرك ما تمنى

No allotted share wholly escapes a rich man through incapacity,

Nor does prudence secure everything one desires.

فان تر ما تَرى مني فاني

لهجت بمنصب الحسن المثنى

If you see what you see in me, it is because

I am passionately devoted to beauty at its highest perfection:

لسان يَنتَقي زبد المَعاني

فتودعهن شمس الكون ضمنا

A tongue that selects the choicest meanings,

And the Sun of creation contains them implicitly.

وَمدح محمد غرضي وَغيري

اذا غنى حَكى الرشأ الاغنا

Praise of Muhammad is my aim; any other poet,

When he sings, imitates the soft-voiced young gazelle.

رَعى اللَه الحِجاز وَساكنييه

وامطره العَريض المرجحنا

May God preserve the Hijaz and all who dwell there,

And rain upon it from a broad, rain-laden cloud;

وأخصب روضة ملئت وَفاء

وَمرحمة واحسانا وَحسنا

May He make fertile a garden filled with fidelity,

Mercy, beneficence, and beauty—

وَقبرا فيه من ملأ النَواحي

هدى وَندى وايمانا وَيمنا

And a grave containing him who filled every region

With guidance, generosity, faith, and blessing:

امام المرسلين وَمتقاهم

وأكثر غيمهم طلا وَمزنا

Foremost of the messengers and most God-fearing,

More bountiful than their clouds in dew and rain;

واسرعهم عَلى المَلهوف عطفا

واسمعهم لداعي الخير أذزا

Swiftest of them to the distressed, in tender compassion,

And most attentive in hearing one who calls toward goodness;

وَخير مغارس الاكوان أَصلا

وأَطيب منشأ وأتم غصنا

Best-rooted of all creation’s plantings,

Purest in origin and fullest in bough.

نمته دوحة قرشية من

فواتحها ثمار الخير تجنى

A mighty tree of Quraysh reared him, from whose

First blossoms are fruits of goodness to be gathered.

أَتى وَالجاهلية في ظلال

وَكفر تعبد الحجر الاصنا

He came while pagan ignorance lay in shadow,

And unbelief worshiped stones as idols,

وَتأكل ميتة وَدما وَتَسطو

عَلى موؤدة الاطفال دفنا

Ate carrion and blood, and savagely assailed

Infant girls by burying them alive.

فَجاء بملة الاسلام يَتلو

مثانى في الصَلاة الخمس تثنى

Then he came with the creed of Islam, reciting

Oft-repeated verses in the five daily prayers.

وَبدلهم بجور الشرك عدلا

وَبالخَوف الَّذي يجدون أمنا

He exchanged the injustice of their idolatry for justice,

And the fear they felt for safety.

لَقَد خصرت بفرقته قريش

وَكان لهم لو اِعتَمَدوه ركنا

Quraysh indeed suffered grievous loss by forsaking him,

Though, had they relied upon him, he would have been their pillar.

دَعاهم واعظام فعموا وَصَموا

فاِعقب وعظهم ضربا وَطَعنا

He called and admonished them, but they became blind and deaf;

So his admonition gave way to blows and spear-thrusts.

وأَمضى الحكم في القَتلى برازا

وَفي الاسرى مَفاداة وَمنا

He passed judgment upon the slain in open combat,

And granted captives either ransom or gracious release.

وأنزل باغضيه من الصياصي

وَلَم يترك له في الارض قرنا

He brought his enemies down from their fortresses,

And left no rival to him upon the earth.

غدا متقلدا سيفا صَقيلا

وَمعتقلا أصم الكعب لدنا

He went forth girded with a polished sword,

And carrying beneath his arm a supple spear, stout at its socket.

وَصابحهم وَرواحهم بأسد

عَلى جرد طحن الارض طحنا

He assailed them morning and evening with lion-like warriors,

Upon lean steeds that ground the earth beneath them.

فَكَم رفعت لهم همم العَوالي

مَراتب في عراص النجم تبنى

How often their lofty spears raised great aspirations—

Ranks built in the very courtyards of the stars!

وَكَم لِلهاشمي محمد من

فَضائِل عمت الاقصى والادنى

And how many virtues Hashemite Muhammad possesses—

Virtues embracing the farthest and the nearest alike.

وَلَو وزنت به عرب وَعجَم

جعلت فداه ما بلغوه وزنا

Were all Arabs and non-Arabs weighed against him,

I would make them his ransom; in weight they could not equal him.

مني ذكر الحَبيب فذ احبيب

عليه اللَه في التَوراة أَثنى

From me comes mention of the Beloved—for this is the Beloved.

God praised him in the Torah,

وَبشرنا المَسيح به رَسولا

وَحقق وَصفه وَسما وكنى

And the Messiah gave us glad tidings of him as a messenger,

Confirming his description, his name, and his epithets.

وان ذكر وانجىّ الطور فاذكر

نجيّ العرش مفتَقرا لتغنى

When Mount Sinai is mentioned and shines forth, remember

The Throne’s confidant, needy so that you may be enriched.

فان اللَه كلم ذاك وَحيا

وَكلم ذا مشافهة وأدنى

God spoke to that one through revelation,

But spoke to this one face-to-face and drew him near.

وَموسى خر مغشيا عليه

وَأَحمَد لَم يكن ليَضيق ذهنا

Moses fell down unconscious,

While Ahmad’s mind was not overwhelmed.

وَلَو قابلت لفظة لن تَراني

بما كذب الفؤاد فهمت معنى

Compare the words, “You shall not see Me,”

With “the heart did not lie,” and you will grasp the meaning.

وان بك خاطب الاموات عيسى

فاز الجذع حن لذا وأَنا

And if through you Jesus addressed the dead,

The palm trunk won distinction: it yearned for this one and groaned.

وَسلمت الجماد عليه نطقا

فاني يَستَوي الفتيان أَنى

Inanimate things greeted him aloud—

How, then, could the two men ever be equal?

وان وَصَفوا سليمان بملك

فَذاكره الكنوز وَقَد عرضنا

If Solomon is praised for possessing a kingdom,

Remind him of the treasures once offered to our Prophet,

وَطحا مكة ذهبا أَباها

ببيد الملك وَاللذات تفنى

And of Mecca’s vale turned to gold, which he refused:

For sovereignty and pleasures perish.

وَقَد دروع داود لبواس

تَكون من التباس البأس حصنا

David’s coats of mail were garments

Serving as a fortress against the violence of battle;

وَدرع محمد القرآن لما

تَلا وَاللَه يعصمك اطمأنا

Muhammad’s armor was the Qur’an: when

He recited, “And God will protect you,” he rested assured.

واهلك قومه في الارض نوح

بدعوة لا تذر أَحَدا فافني

Noah destroyed his people upon the earth

With a prayer that spared no one and annihilated them;

وَدعوة أحمد رَبِ اِهدي قَومي

فهم لا يَعلَمون كما علمنا

But Ahmad prayed, “My Lord, guide my people,

For they do not know,” as we have learned.

وَقَد كانَ ابن آمنة نَبيا

وآدم لَم يكن حمأ مسنا

The son of Amina was already a prophet

Before Adam had become molded black mud.

وَتحت لوائه للرسل ظل

غدا يوم الجبال تَكون عهنا

Beneath his banner the messengers will find shade

Tomorrow, when the mountains become carded wool.

وَكل المرسلين يَقول نَفسي

وَأَحمَد أَمتى انسا وَجنا

Every messenger will cry, “Myself!”

But Ahmad, “My nation!”—humankind and jinn.

شَفيع المذنبين تول نَصري

اذا ما الدهر لي قَلب المجنا

Intercessor for sinners, undertake my defense

When time turns the shield’s inner face against me.

وَصل بالانس حبل رجاء جاف

بَعيد الدار يطلب منك اذنا

With gracious intimacy, mend my fraying rope of hope:

One far from the Abode asks your leave to approach.

فعجل بافتقادك لي فاني

ضعفت جوار حار وَكبرت سنا

Hasten to visit me, for my limbs

Have greatly weakened, and I have grown old.

حججت وَلَم أَزرك فَلَيتَ شعري

مَتى بمزارك الجافي يهنا

I made the pilgrimage but did not visit you—would that I knew

When this estranged one might rejoice in visiting you.

وَثم صويحب يَرجوك مِثلي

بعادك عنه أَمرضه وأضنى

Here too is a dear young companion who hopes in you as I do;

Distance from you has sickened and wasted him.

يَكادَ يَذوب ان ذكروك شوقا

اليك فَهَل بجاهك منك يدنى

He nearly melts with longing when you are mentioned,

Yearning toward you; through your rank, might he be brought near?

عَسى عطف عسى فرج قَريب

فَقَد وصل الاحبة واِنقطعنا

Perhaps compassion—perhaps relief—is near:

The beloved ones have arrived, while we remain cut off.

فشرفنا بوطء تراب أَرض

بزورتها يحط الوزر عنا

Honor us by treading the soil of a land

Whose visitation lifts the burden of sin from us.

وَقل عَبد الرَحيم ومن يَليه

مَعي يوم الخلود يحل عدنا

And say, “Abd al-Rahim and those beside him

Will dwell with me on eternity’s day in Eden.”

وَيَوم العرض ان سألوك عَني

فقل عدوه منا فَهو منا

On the Day of Presentation, if they ask you about me,

Say, “Count him among us, for he is one of us;”

وَقم بِجَميع اخواني وَصحبي

وَعم أَبا من الانساب وابنا

Stand by all my brethren and companions;

Include every father and son, whatever their lineage.

فَما خسر أمرؤ يَرجوك نجما

لمطلبه وَيحسن فيك ظنا

No man who hopes in you, O star, will fail

In his plea, so long as he thinks well of you.

وكل الانبياء بدور هدى

وَأَنتَ الشَمس أَشرقهم وأسنى

All the prophets are full moons of guidance,

But you are the sun—the brightest and most exalted.

وَهم شخص الكمال وأَنتَ روح

وَهم يسرى يديك وَأَنتَ يمنى

They are the body of perfection, and you its spirit;

They are your left hand, and you are the right.

عَليك صَلاة ربك ما تَناغَت

حمام الايك أَو غصن تثنى

May your Lord’s blessing rest upon you whenever

The woodland doves coo or a bough bends.