في الجيرة الغادين بدر — Alarjani

في الجِيرةِ الغادِينَ بَدْرُ

وَجْهُ الظّلامِ بهِ أَغَرُّ

Among the neighbors departing at dawn is a full moon;

through him the face of darkness shines.

بَدْرٌ يُديرُ عيونَنا

عنه إذا ما سارَ خِدْر

A full moon—our eyes are turned

away from him whenever a curtained litter moves.

يُمسي ويُصبِح وهْو في

أَحدِ الهَوادجِ مُستَسِرّ

He spends evening and morning

concealed in one of the howdahs.

وإذا أُتيحَ له الطُّلو

عُ لناظرٍ فاللّيلُ شَعْر

And if he is allowed to rise

before a beholder, the night is his hair.

عانَقْتُه يومَ الرَّحي

لِ أَضُمُّه والحيُّ سَفْر

I embraced him on the day of departure,

holding him close while the tribe traveled;

والسّهمُ أَقربُ ما تَمُدْ

دُ إليك أَبعدُ ما يَمُرّ

an arrow is nearest when you draw it

toward you, and farthest when it flies.

أَهْوَى إليَّ مُودِّعاً

سَحَراً وفي عَينَيهِ سِحْر

He leaned toward me in farewell

before dawn, with magic in his eyes.

خَصِرَ الحُلِيُّ تَشابَها

للصَّبِّ منه فَمٌ ونَحْر

The jewelry was cool; alike they seemed

to the lovesick man—his mouth and neck.

فدَنا كأنّ الثَّغْرَ عِقْ

دٌ سُحْرةً والعِقدَ ثَغْر

He drew near, as though his mouth were a necklace

before dawn, and his necklace a mouth,

حتّى رشفْتُهُما وقل

تُ كلاهما يا صاح دُرّ

until I sipped them both and said,

“Both, my friend, are pearls.”

ثُمّ انثنَي طَوعَ النَّوى

كالغُصْنِ يُعطَفُ وهْو نَضر

Then he turned away, obedient to separation,

like a fresh bough being bent.

وكأنّما زمني عليْ

هِ تَفرُّقُ الأحبابِ نَذْر

It is as though my time were bound

by a vow to part loved ones.

إنّ الّذين همُ على

إخلافِ مَوعدِنا استمرّوا

Those who have persisted in

breaking their promise to us

ضَمِنوا وفاءً بالعهو

دِ وشيمةُ الأحبابِ غَدر

pledged faithfulness to their covenants,

yet treachery is lovers' nature.

إن أَقسموا لَيُكَدِّرُنْ

نَ العَيشَ لي فلقد أَبرَّوا

If they swore that they would cloud

my life, then they have kept their oath.

فالعيشُ حلوٌ حيث حلْ

لوا وهْو مُر منذ مرّوا

Life is sweet wherever they dwelt,

and bitter since they departed.

قُلْ للفؤادِ إذا غدا

يَعِدُ السُّلُوَّ لِمَنْ تَغُرّ

Tell the heart, when it starts

promising forgetfulness: “Whom are you deceiving?

لا تُعطني خَبَراً وعنْ

دي منكَ في الأيّامِ خُبر

Give me no report: I have

experience of you through the days.

أَوَ ليس يومَ نَوى الخلي

طِ ولم يُدافِعْ عنك حِذر

Was it not on the day the companions departed,

when no caution could defend you,

عاهدْتَ أنَّك يا فُؤا

دي في الجوانحِ تَستَقِرّ

that you pledged, O my heart,

to stay settled within my ribs?

حتّى إذا زحَف الفِرا

قُ غدَوتَ من فَرَقٍ تَفِرّ

Yet when separation advanced,

you began to flee in terror.”

غُرَّ امرؤٌ في النّاسِ خا

ضَ هَوى الأحبّةِ وهْو غِرّ

Deceived is the man among people who plunges

into love for the beloved while still naive.

للّهِ مَن ساروا فسا

رَ بسَيرِهمْ للصّبِّ صَبر

God's are those who departed; with their going,

the lover's patience also departed.

بِيضٌ وسُمْرٌ ما تُزا

رُ فدونَها بِيضٌ وسُمر

Fair and tawny beauties, whom none can visit,

for bright swords and dark spears stand before them.

اللَّحْظُ شَزْرٌ للرَّقي

بِ إذا بدَتْ والطّعْنُ شَزر

Sidelong is their glance at the watcher

when they appear, and sidelong the spear-thrust.

بكَروا بمثْلِ مَها الصَّري

مِ رمَى بأَعينِهنَّ ذُعر

At dawn they left with beauties like the oryx of the sand tract,

fear shooting through their eyes,

أو كالظِّباءِ العاطيات

سَما لَها ضالٌ وسِدْر

or like gazelles reaching upward,

with wild lote and jujube trees rising before them.

ووفَى لها نَجْدٌ وقد

غَدِرَتْ بها للغَوْرِ غُدر

Najd kept faith with them, though

the pools of al-Ghawr had betrayed them.

خلَفتْ لهم عينَ السّما

ءِ عيونُ أرضٍ ثَمَّ غُزر

For them the sky's fountain was replaced

by earth's abundant springs there.

وجَرتْ رياحُ الصّيفِ عا

صفةً تَذُرُّ ثرىً وتَذْرو

The summer winds blew

in gusts, strewing dust and sweeping it away.

وكأنّما البُهْمَى بأف

نيةِ المَباركِ وهْي حُمر

As though the buhma grass in the open grounds

of the camel-rests, reddish in hue,

نَفْضُ الخيولِ من المِرا

ح بها النّواصي وهْي شُقر

were horses tossing, in their frolic,

their blond forelocks there.

والدّارُ إلاّ ذاك من

عَهْدي بها للحَيِّ قَفر

And the dwelling—save for that—which

I knew as the tribe's home is desolate.

والأرضُ تحت يَدِ الزّما

نِ يَخُطُّها عصَرٌ فعَصر

And the earth lies beneath Time's hand;

age after age writes upon it,

مِثْلُ المِحَطّةِ للحسا

بِ يَنوبُها شَفعٌ ووِتر

like a reckoning board

visited in turn by even numbers and odd.

يُمحَى بها ألْفٌ ويُث

بَتُ في مكانِ الألْفِ صفر

A thousand is erased upon it,

and a zero set down in its place.

كم منزلٍ منه المَفرْ

رُ وكان أمسِ بهِ المَقَرّ

How many a dwelling must now be fled,

though yesterday it was a place to stay!

والدّهرُ مثْلُ بنيهِ طَبْ

عاً ما على حالٍ يَقِرّ

Time is like its sons by nature:

it never stays in one condition.

فاحذَرْ مُقارنَةَ اللّئا

مِ فإنّها للشّوكِ بَذر

Beware the company of the base,

for it is the sowing of thorns.

واعتَدْ مُغالطَةَ العيا

نِ فكُلُّ أمرِ الدّهرِ إمر

Accustom yourself to doubting your eyes,

for every affair of Time is a calamity.

قد أصبحتْ سُوقُ الزّما

نِ وما بها للشِّعرِ سِعر

The marketplace of Time has come to this:

there is no price in it for poetry.

فيها نَفاقُ ذوي النَفا

قِ ورِبْحُ ذي التّمويهِ خُسر

Hypocrites find a ready market there,

and the deceiver's profit is loss.

يا صاحِ واللّيلُ البهي

مُ يَجيءُ في أُخراهُ فَجر

My friend, even the pitch-dark night

has dawn arriving at its end.

ما في الأنامِ سوى الإما

مِ وقَصدُه شَيءٌ يَسُرّ

There is none among mankind but the imam,

and going to him brings delight.

فازْجُرْ إليه على الوجَا

عِيساً جَماجِمُهنَّ صُعر

So drive toward him, despite their sore feet,

pale camels whose heads are tilted,

أنضاءَ أسفارٍ لنا

أَفنَى عرائكَهنَّ ضُمر

journey-worn mounts of ours,

whose hump-flesh wasting has consumed.

وكأنّما انتطحَتْ على

أَثباجِها في القاعِ فُدر

As though, upon their backs,

full-grown ibex had butted in the plain.

قد صَفّها الحادي كما اصْ

طفّتْ قطاً في الجَوِّ كُدر

The camel-driver has ranged them as

dusky sandgrouse line up in the sky.

وكأنّما البَيداءُ دَرْ

جٌ تحتها والرَّكْبُ سَطر

As though the desert were a scroll

beneath them, and the caravan a written line.

والآلُ نَهْرٌ والمَطِيْ

يُ عليه للأبصارِ جِسر

The mirage is a river, and the mounts

a bridge across it to the eyes.

من كلِّ فَتلاء الذِّرا

عِ كأنّها حَبْلٌ مُمَرّ

Each a she-camel with sinewy forelegs,

as though she were a tightly twisted rope.

تَحكي وِشاحاً جائلاً

وكأنّما الآفاقُ خَصر

She resembles a swaying sash,

as though the horizons were a waist.

ويَظلُّ راكبُ مَتْنِها

والأرضُ في عَينَيْهِ شِبْر

Her rider stays upon her back,

with the earth a mere handspan in his eyes,

حتّى تُناخَ بساحة

فيها لذَنْبِ الدَّهرِ غَفر

until she is made to kneel in a courtyard

where Time's offense is forgiven,

عند امرئٍ شَهِدَ الزّما

نُ بأنّهُ للدّينِ فَخر

before a man whom Time has testified

to be a glory to the faith.

وسَوابِقٌ أيّامُهُنْ

نَ بنُصرةِ الإسلامِ غُرّ

And past achievements, whose days

are radiant with support for Islam,

ومناقبٌ مشهورةٌ

ما إن يُحيطُ بهِنَّ حَصر

and celebrated virtues

that no reckoning can encompass.

واللّهُ قد باهَى بِه

هل فوقَ أَمْرِ اللّهِ أَمر

God has gloried in him;

is any command above God's command?

فاهتِفْ به مهما بَدا

للدّهرِ عن نابَيْهِ كَشر

So call upon him whenever

Time bares both its fangs.

ولدَى أبي مَنصورٍ ال

مأمولِ للأحرارِ نَصر

With Abu Mansur, in whom

hope rests, free men find aid.

ووراء رايةِ رأْيه

لك عَسكرٌ لِنَداهُ مجر

Behind the banner of his judgment

you have an army, a mighty host of his bounty.

ماضي العزيمةِ ماجدٌ

للهِ في علْياهُ سِرّ

He is resolute in purpose and noble;

God has a secret in his exalted rank.

يُمناهُ يُمْنٌ للمُطي

فِ به كما يُسْراهُ يُسر

His right hand brings good fortune to those

who gather round him, as his left brings ease.

مَن شَفَّه عِشْرٌ إذا

وافَى يدَيهِ شَفاهُ عَشر

Whoever is wasted by ten days' thirst,

on reaching his hands is cured by ten fingers.

أسنَى به دَهْري العطِيْ

يةَ لي وجودُ الدَّهرِ نَزر

Through him my age made its gift splendid

for me, though Time's bounty is scant.

واستَعبدَتْ نَفْسي فضا

ئلُه وعَبدُ الفضلِ حُرّ

His virtues have enslaved my soul,

yet the slave of excellence is free.

بهلالِ وَجْهٍ مُجْتَلا

هُ لصائمِ الآمالِ فِطر

With a crescent face whose unveiled sight

breaks the fast of one fasting in hope,

ونَوالِ كَفٍّ كالغما

مةِ بَطنُها للجودِ وَكْر

and the bounty of a hand like a cloud,

whose belly is generosity's nest.

المجدُ قلبٌ للزّما

نِ وقد حَواهُ منه صَدر

Glory is a heart within Time,

and his breast has enclosed it.

ذو غُرّةٍ وَطيءَ النُّجو

مَ وأعينُ الأعداء خُزر

With a radiant brow, he treads the stars,

while enemies' eyes look askance.

هامُ الملوكِ له النِّعا

لُ ومَفْرِقُ المُلْكِ المَمَرّ

Kings' heads are his sandals,

and the crown of sovereignty his path.

وعلى المَجرةِ ذَيلُه

من رِفعةٍ أبداً يُجَرّ

Upon the Milky Way his robe's train

is dragged forever, so lofty is he

شَرفاً ويَكْبُرُ قَدْرُه

أن يَعتَريهِ منه كِبر

in honor; his worth is too great

for pride to assail him on that account.

مَن جِدُّه للهِ جِدْ

دٌ حين يَنفَعُ أو يَضُرّ

His earnest service to God is sincere,

whether he benefits or harms.

مُتناسِبُ الحالَينِ منْ

هُ لربّهِ سِرٌّ وجَهر

His two states are harmonious:

his secrecy and openness are for his Lord.

دُنياهُ تَخدُمُه كما

يَهوَى وبالحُسّادِ صُغر

His world serves him just as

he desires, while the envious are humbled,

من حيث كان لها بذ

لكَ سابِقاً للّهِ أَمر

because for it, in this, there was

a prior command from God.

مَن خَلْقُه والخُلْقُ إن

لاقيتَه رَوضٌ وَزَهْر

His form and character, if

you meet him, are a garden and blossoms.

عَذُبتْ شمائلُه فسا

عةُ قُربِه للمرء عُمر

His qualities are sweet, so an hour

near him is a lifetime to a man.

وبفضلِه في الدّهرِ حا

سِدُه على رَغْمٍ يُقِرّ

His excellence, through all time, even

his envier admits against his will.

لفَظ الّلآلئَ فاستَبا

نَ بأنّه للفَضْلِ بَحر

He uttered pearls, and so it became clear

that he is an ocean of excellence.

وتناهبتْ أَسماعُنا

كَلِماً يُحبِّرُهنَّ حَبر

Our ears vied to seize

words embellished by a learned master.

يُكتَبْنَ في الأحداقِ مِن

عزٍّ فهنّ لهنَّ ظَهر

They are written in our eyes out of

honor; the eyes are their writing surface.

فبياضُها وَرَقٌ لها

وَسَوادُهُنَّ لَهُنَّ حِبر

Their whites are paper for those words,

and their blacks are ink for them.

طامي عُبابِ العِلمِ حتْ

تَى ليس يُدرَكُ منه قَعر

His knowledge's flood swells so high

that its bottom cannot be reached.

يَعلو ذُؤابةَ مِنْبَرٍ

منه لِدُرِّ القولِ نَثر

He ascends the crest of a pulpit;

from him the pearls of speech are scattered.

كأسٌ من السّحْرِ الحلا

لِ لشُرْبِها بالقومِ سُكر

A cup of lawful magic,

whose drinking makes the people drunk,

في مَجلسٍ هو جَنّةٌ

ولذاكَ فيه تَحِلُّ خَمر

in a gathering that is paradise;

therefore wine is lawful there.

يا ماجداً أضحَى به

ذَنْبُ اللَّيالي وهْو عُذر

O noble man, through whom

the nights' offense now finds its excuse!

ولأجلِ عُذْرٍ واحدٍ

يَهَبُ الذُّنوبَ وهُنّ كُثر

For the sake of a single excuse,

one forgives sins, though they are many.

تَفديكَ أقوامٌ حكَوا

صُوَرا تَضمَّنهُنَّ جُدر

May men be your ransom who resemble

pictures enclosed by walls.

يُدْنَى لخِلْفِ نَوالِهمْ

بَوُّ السّؤالِ ولا يَدِرّ

To the teat of their bounty is brought

the calfskin decoy of begging, yet no milk flows.

ومُعاندٍ من طول ما

اضناهُ فضلُك وهْو غَمر

And an obstinate rival, whom so long

your excellence has exhausted, though he is a fool:

ماتَتْ سرائرُه المِرا

ضُ فصَدْرُه للقلبِ قَبر

his diseased secret thoughts have died,

and his breast is his heart's tomb.

نِكْسٌ ينازِعُك العُلا

ولَرُبَّ خافيةٍ تَطِرّ

A weakling disputes your eminence;

and many a covert feather sprouts.

وإليك فاجْتَلِ غادةً

هيَ من بناتِ الفِكرِ بِكْر

For you, then: unveil a lovely maiden,

a virgin among the daughters of thought,

من هاجرٍ مَدْحَ اللِّئا

مِ فَمدْحُه اللُّؤماءَ هُجر

from one who shuns praising the base;

for praise of the ignoble is foul speech.

شاكي الولاءِ لِسانُه

سَيفٌ ومَدْحُك فيه أُثر

Armed with loyalty, his tongue

is a sword, with your praise its watered pattern.

وهَدِيُّ مَدْحي ما لَهُ

إلاّ الولاءَ المَحْضَ مَهر

The bride of my praise has

no dowry but pure loyalty.

لكنّ كفَك بالنّوا

ل لِمُجْدِبِ الأقوامِ قَطر

Yet your hand, with its bounty,

is rain for drought-stricken people.

أضحَى جنابُك مَعْقِلاً

للحُرّ إن ناواهُ دَهر

Your presence has become a stronghold

for a free man, if Time opposes him.

ولقد تَصاحَبْنا سِني

نَ فهل لذاكَ العَهْدِ ذِكر

We have kept company for years;

is there remembrance of that bond?

وذخرْتُ وُدَّك والكري

مُ وِدادهُ للدَّهرِ ذُخر

I have treasured your affection; the noble

man's affection is a treasure against Time.

ولنا زمانٌ جائرٌ

سَهلُ المَطالبِ فيه وَعر

We have an unjust age;

even easy pursuits are rugged in it.

ولديكَ نُعْمَى إن أَرد

تَ صنيعةً ولديَّ شُكْر

You have bounty, if you wish

to bestow a favor, and I have thanks.