إلا مسعد بالهوى من سعاد — Al Staley

إلا مُسعِدُ بالهوى من سعادِ

فنأنَسَ بالقرب بعدَ البِعادِ

Is there no comforter in love from Su'ad,

so that we may rejoice in nearness after separation,

وتنساغ بلوى لمن نحن نهوى

ونغنى وتروى قلوبُ صوادي

and affliction for the one we love become bearable,

and we be content, and thirsty hearts be quenched,

ويلقى المعنَّى بها ما تمنَّى

ويَبرد منّا غليل الفؤادِ

and he whom she torments find what he wished for,

and our heart's burning thirst be cooled,

بحسن تلاقٍ وطيب عناقٍ

وضم تراقٍ وشَمم هوادي

through sweet meetings and pleasant embraces,

and clasping collarbones and breathing the scent of necks,

وتَمساح صدر وتلزام نحرٍ

وترشاق ثغرِ عذابٍ بِرادِ

and stroking a breast and clasping the base of a neck,

and kissing sweet, cool lips,

وتهصيرُ قدٍ وتخميشُ خدٍ

يعلّ بنّدٍ ومسك وجادي

and bending a figure and scratching a cheek,

repeatedly refreshed with blended perfume, musk, and saffron?

أَما غير بخل بميعاد وصل

على طول مطل وتزويد زادِ

Is there nothing but stinginess over a promised meeting,

amid long delays and the giving of travel provisions?

دعا صائحُ البين ما بين قلبين

وجْدَيْ محبين خافٍ وبادي

The herald of parting called forth what lay between two hearts:

the two lovers' longings, hidden and manifest.

هما باشتراك بلوعة شاكٍ

ودمعة باكٍ طويل السِّهادِ

Both share the burning grief of one who laments,

and the tear of a weeper long deprived of sleep.

أُخيَّ تبابي تولّى شبابي

فكيف التصابي وفيم التمادي

My dear brother, woe to me! My youth has departed;

so how can I play the youth, and why persist?

حسانٌ حَداني عليها التّداني

ولكنَ عداني الحجَى بالعَوَادي

Beautiful women—nearness to them spurred me on,

but reason barred my way with hindrances.

فهل أنتَ صاحٍ ومُبدي صلاحٍ

لتفنيد لاحٍ وتسديد هادي

Are you, then, sober and displaying sound judgment,

because of a censurer's rebuke and a guide's correction?

إذا القلبُ شاهدَ لهواً تماهد

حتى تجاهدَ حقّ الجهادِ

When the heart beholds amusement, it settles into ease,

until you strive with all due effort.

أم الشوق داعٍ لحبّ رباعٍ

ومرعى مراعٍ ووصل خِرادِ

Or does longing summon you to love the dwellings,

and to graze in pastures, and unite with shy maidens?

سقى الغيثُ علاً سجالاً وطّلا

بنزوى محلاًّ لأهل الودادِ

May rain water, again and again, in torrents and drizzle,

a dwelling in Nizwa for those bound by affection,

إذا ما السَميّ مَراها العشيُّ

وجادَ الوليَّ غمامُ العهادِ

when evening milks the sky,

and clouds of recurring rain pour down the following shower;

وهبّت صباهُ وحان اشتباه

مراعي رُباهُ ومرعى الوِهادِ

and its east wind blows, and the time comes when alike are

the pastures of its hills and the pasture of the lowlands.

كأَنْ كُّف كهلانَ جادَت بهتَّان

جدواهُ فازدانَ خصبُ البلادِ

As though Kahlan's hand poured forth a torrent

of his bounty, so the land's fertility grew resplendent.

وحيد الزَّمان الأمير اليماني

الصّحيح الضّمان صَلاح الفسادِ

Peerless in his age, the Yemeni prince,

reliable in his pledge, the cure for corruption:

فتىً لا يزال لديه النَّوالُ

وفيه الجمال وفعل السَّدادِ

a youth at whose side bounty never ceases,

and in him are beauty and upright deeds.

ذكيُّ الجَنان جريُّ اللّسان

سخيّ البنان بمثل الغوادي

Keen of heart, bold of tongue,

with fingers as generous as the morning rainclouds.

مواهب تمَّت وزادت وجمًّت

وفاضت وعمّت جميع البلادِ

Gifts that reached fullness, increased, and abounded,

and overflowed and spread through all the land.

واصبح كهلانُ ينميه نبهانُ

والجدَّ قحطان فوق الشدادِ

And Kahlan stands, his lineage traced to Nabhan,

and Qahtan his forefather, above the mighty.

أو لو العوز في الليل بالرّجل والخيل

يدفعن كالسّيل في بطن وادِ

Or, if need arises, by night, with foot soldiers and horses,

they charge like a torrent through a valley's bed.

أعدّو صِعاداً وبيضاً حداداً

وجُردا جياداً ليوم الطّرادِ

They readied tall spears and sharp, gleaming swords,

and sleek, noble steeds for the day of combat,

وحسنَ صَنيعٍ لكل مطيعٍ

وشت جميعٍ لأهل العنّادِ

and good treatment for everyone who obeys,

and the scattering of ranks for the people of defiance.

جَرى في سلوك طريق الملوك

كجري العتيك ومجرى هَدادِ

He ran along the path taken by kings,

like the course of al-Atik and the course of Hadad.

فقال الجميل وأعطى الجزيل

وأَحيا السّبيل سبيل الرّشادِ

So he spoke gracious words and gave abundant gifts,

and revived the path, the path of right guidance.

وشاد البناءَ وجاز السّناء

ونال الثناء لدى كل نادي

And he raised the edifice and surpassed the heights of glory,

and earned praise in every gathering,

بمجد صريح وفعل صحيحٍ

ولفظ فصيح وطبع جوادِ

through genuine glory and sound deeds,

and eloquent speech and a generous nature.

فيا سيدَ الأزد بالعُرف والمجد

والفضل والحمد بين الأيادِي

So, O lord of the Azd, in kindness and glory,

and excellence and praise amid benefactions,

ويابا المعالي حبتك الليالي

بنفع الموالي وكبْت الأعادي

and O father of lofty honors, the nights have endowed you

with benefiting your allies and humbling your foes.

تبارك باريك من ذا يباريك

أمَّن يجاديك بالأجتهادِ

Blessed is your Creator! Who can rival you,

or vie with you in generosity, however hard he strives?

إذا القوم راموا محلك شاموا

سَناك وقاموا مقامّ الرّمادِ

When men aspire to your station, they behold

your radiance, and stand in the place of ashes.

فطاوِلْ وسَامِ شريفَ المقام

حلفَ الدَّوام على الأزديادِ

So tower and vie in greatness, noble in station,

allied to constancy in ever greater increase.

وعشْ ألفَ عيدٍ بجدٍّ سعيدٍ

وعيشٍ رغيد ونيل المرادِ

And live through a thousand festivals in happy fortune,

and a life of ease and the attainment of your wishes.

وعاش محمّدُ ابنك يرشدُ

منك ويسعد بالاستفادِ

And may Muhammad, your son, live and gain guidance

from you, and prosper through what he learns.

وشب نجيباً ذكياً أديباً

حليماً لبيباً بحسن اعتقادِ

And may he grow up noble, intelligent, and cultivated,

forbearing and wise, with sound belief.

ويحيى ويبقى طويلا ويلقى

سروراً ويرقى رفيع العمادِ

And may he live and endure long, and find

joy, and ascend, his pillar high.

يُعافي ويُغْذَى وشانيه يؤذي

بسوءٍ ويُقذى بشوك القتادِ

May he be kept healthy and nourished, and his hater be harmed

with suffering, and have his eyes irritated by the thorns of the qatad shrub.

وهاك البديعَ أرى لي يضيعُ

إذا الشعر بيعَ بسوق الكسادِ

And take this exquisite verse—I see it going to waste for me

when poetry is sold in a market of slack demand.