يا من رأى ظعن الحي الذي شحطا — Alarjani

يا مَن رأَى ظُعُنَ الحَيِّ الّذي شَحَطا

كأنّها بينَ أحناء الضُّلوعِ قَطا

O you who saw the departing litters of the clan that went far away,

as though they were sandgrouse among the curves of the ribs.

شَرقيّةٌ غربَتْ دارُ الجميعِ بها

وفَرّقَتْ في البلادِ الجِيرةَ الخُلطَا

Eastbound, they carried the shared home far away,

and scattered the close-knit neighbors throughout the lands.

تَأْتي طِلاعَ الفَلا من كلِّ ناجيةٍ

عَنْسٍ إذا صَعِد الحادي بها هَبطا

They come, filling the breadth of the wastes, on every swift

sturdy she-camel: when its driver climbs with it, he descends.

عزيزةٌ تَمنعُ الأبطالَ جانبَها

وتَنهضُ الخيلُ من قُدَّامِها فَرَطا

Unassailable, it keeps champions from its flank,

while horses ride ahead of it as an advance guard:

جُرْدٌ تَمُرُّ فُويْقَ الأرضِ طائرةً

حتّى كأنّ قَطاها في الحِضارِ قَطا

short-haired steeds flying just above the ground,

until their haunches at the gallop seem like sandgrouse.

إذا دَجا ليلُ نَقْعٍ من سَنابِكها

أطارَ قَرْعُ الحَصى في فَرْعِه شَمَطا

When a night of dust darkens from their hooves,

the striking of pebbles scatters gray hairs through its crown.

إنّ المَطيَّ الّذي هاجَ الحُداةُ له

وَجْداً يَهُزُّ على أثباجِه الغُبُطا

Indeed, the mounts for which the camel-drivers stirred

yearning rock the howdahs upon their broad backs.

لم يَخْطُ من عزّةٍ إلاّ على كَبِدٍ

ولم يُثِرْ منه غيرَ الدَّمْعِ حين خَطا

In their pride they step only upon a liver,

and stir nothing from it but tears as they step.

من كلِّ أدماءَ أغشَوا تحتها نَمَطاً

من الحرير وعالَوا فوقها نَمَطا

Each pale gazelle had a patterned cloth spread beneath her

of silk, and another patterned cloth raised above her.

وفَرَّجوا سُجْفَها عن عارضَيْ قَمَرٍ

يَسْرِى على نُورِه باللّيلِ مَن خَبَطا

They parted her curtains to reveal the two cheeks of a moon,

by whose light a stumbling wanderer travels at night.

دَعُوا الظُّبَى حَشْوَ أجفان الحُماةِ له

كَفَى بما هو من أجفانِه اخْتَرطا

Leave the blades inside the defenders' scabbards for him;

what he has drawn from his eyelids is enough.

تَمْرِي ظُباءُ من الآماقِ مُنْسَفكاً

ما لم يَسِلْه من الأعناقِ مُعتَبِطا

Gazelles draw from eye-corners a spilling flood

that no blade has drawn from throats in wanton slaughter.

أُذْرِي الدّموعَ ويَلْحَى اللاّئمون معاً

على الزّمانِ الّذي قد فَرَّق الخُلَطا

I shed tears, and the reproachers all lay blame

upon time, which has scattered the companions.

لُوموا على ذاك أو كُفّوا لشأْنِكم

بَرْحُ الفِراقِ على بَرْحِ المَلامِ غِطا

Blame it for that, or refrain and mind your own affairs;

the agony of separation covers the agony of reproach.

عَتْبي على القَدَرِ الجاري وأَيُّ فتىً

يُعدَى على حَكَمِ الأقدارِ إن قَسَطا

My reproach is for unfolding fate—but what young man

wins redress against the arbiter of destinies if he is unjust?

فليتَ شِعْري بأيِّ الأمرِ من زَمني

أُصيبُ من عُقدَةِ الأحزانِ مُنتَشَطا

If only I knew through what event of my time

I might find release from the knot of sorrows.

وما مَلكْتُ المُنَى والدَّهرُ فيه رضاً

فكيف أملِكُها منه وقد سَخِطا

I did not attain my wishes while time was favorable;

how, then, can I attain them from it when it is angry?

لَقِيتُ مِمّا يُشيبُ الرأسَ أَعظَمَهُ

لو أنّ شَيباً إذا استوحَيْتَه وَخَطا

I encountered the greatest of what whitens the head—

if gray hair, when summoned, would but fleck it.

وقد نَسِيتُ وما أنسَى بحادثةٍ

عَيشاً تَلقّيتُ في رَيعانِه غِبَطا

I have forgotten, yet no calamity makes me forget

a life in whose prime I encountered felicity.

أَبِيتُ منه على ذِكْرٍ يُؤرِّقُني

شَوقاً إلى سالفِ العَهدِ الّذي فَرَطا

I pass the night remembering it, kept awake

by yearning for the old days that have passed.

في ليلةٍ كُلُّ جُزْءٍ مِن غَياهبِها

من طولِها لَيلةٌ لو قُسِّمَتْ نُقَط

In a night, each part of whose deep darkness

would be a whole night in length, were it divided into dots,

فدامَ للمُلْكِ مَجْدُ المُلْكِ عُدَّتَه

من اللّيالي قَريرَ العينِ مُغْتَبِطا

may Majd al-Mulk endure for the kingdom for its full count

of nights, content of eye and rejoicing.

دامَ الهُمامُ الّذي يَهْمِي ندىً وردىً

إذا أَجدّ رِضاً في النّاسِ أو سُخُطا

May the noble champion endure, who rains bounty and death

when he earnestly shows people favor or wrath:

السّيفَ عَضْباً إذا ما هَبوةٌ ذُكِرَتْ

والغَيثَ سكْباً إذا ما جانبٌ قَحَطا

a keen sword whenever battle-dust is mentioned,

and pouring rain whenever a region suffers drought;

والسَّيْلَ عَزْماً إذا ما الخَطْبُ بادَهُه

والطَّودَ حِلماً إذا ما الجاهلُ اخْتلَطا

a torrent in resolve when calamity suddenly confronts him,

and a mountain in forbearance when an ignorant man raves.

لمّا رأى أنّ أعمالَ الورَى رُتَبٌ

يَظَلُّ يَختَطُّ منها أهلُها خِطَطا

When he saw that humankind's occupations were ranks

whose holders continually marked out their allotted places,

تَوسَّط المُلْكُ في أَسنَى مَراتبِه

وكان من حَقِّ دُرِّ العِقْدِ أن يَسِطا

he stood at the heart of the kingdom, in its loftiest rank;

the pearl of the necklace had a right to occupy its center.

لم يَعتَمِدْ في العُلا من أَمرِها طَرَفاً

ولم يقَعْ رأْيُه في نَقْدِها غَلَطا

He did not settle for an edge in the affairs of loftiness,

nor did his judgment err in appraising it.

لو لم يكُنْ وسَطُ الأشياءِ أَشْرَفَها

ما اختارَتِ الشّمْسُ من أفلاكها الوَسَطا

If the middle of things were not their noblest,

the sun would not have chosen the middle of its spheres.

زاد الممالِكَ باسْتِعْلائِه شَرَفاً

وَفّى البريّةَ للرّاجي بما شَرَطا

He increased the realms' honor through his elevation,

and fulfilled the hopeful's gift according to his terms.

لو عَدَّ في أَقصَرِ الألحاظِ مُمتَحَناً

ما يَحسُبُ النّاسُ طولَ الدَّهْرِ ما غَلِطا

If, put to the test, he counted in the briefest glance

what people count throughout time, he would not err.

هذا على أنّه لو رامَ في سنةٍ

حسابَ ما جادَ في يومٍ لمّا ضَبَطا

This, although if he attempted in a year

to count what he gave in a day, he could not tally it.

تلك اليمينُ الّتي ما هَزَّ أنمُلَها

إلا وفي يَدِ شاني مَجْدِه سُقِطا

That right hand never moved its fingertips

without leaving the hater of his glory stricken with regret.

غَدا بها مالُه المَوفُور مُبتَذَلاً

وراح مالُهُمُ المَوهوبُ مُنضَبِطا

Through it his abundant wealth became freely spent,

while their gifted wealth became securely held.

للهِ أروعُ يأْبَى رأْيُه أبداً

جَعْدَ المساعي ويَرضَى العُلا سَبِطا

God be praised for a splendid man whose judgment always rejects

cramped endeavors and approves of loftiness smooth and free-flowing.

لا يَمْهِلُ الدّاءَ إلا ريْثَ يَحسِمُه

والحزْمُ في نَزْعِ نابِ الشرِّ حين سَطا

He allows an ailment only the time needed to cut it off;

prudence lies in pulling evil's fang when it attacks.

ولا يَغَرُّ بوُدٍّ تحته ضَمَدٌ

كم زَهرةٍ قَتلَتْ مرعىً بها حَبَطا

He is not beguiled by affection with rancor beneath it;

many a flower has killed a grazing beast through bloat.

يا ابنَ الأعزِّينَ من رَيْبِ الزّمانِ حِمىً

والأكثرِينَ على حَدِّ العَدُوِّ سُطا

O son of those whose protection is strongest against time's vicissitudes,

and whose assaults upon the enemy's front are greatest;

والأَطْولينَ إلى فَرْعِ العلاء يَداً

والأبعدِينَ إلى شَأْوِ الكرامِ خُطا

whose hands reach farthest toward the summit of loftiness,

and whose steps go farthest toward the goal of the generous.

أنت الّذي لم يُغادِرْ فَضْلَ مَرتبة

إلا وعاطاهُ أَغلَى مَأْخذاً فعَطا

You are he who leaves no excellence of rank unattained

without reaching for it, however dear to attain, and grasping it:

فوقَ الوِزارةِ لو فكّرتَ مَنزلةً

وإن بكَى الحاسدُ المَفْؤودُ أو نَحَطا

a station above the vizierate, if you reflect,

though the heart-stricken envier weep or groan.

من أصبحَتْ وزراءُ العَصرِ عن يَدِه

مَن شاء أدنَى ومَن لم يَرضَه شَحَطا

One on whose hand the viziers of the age depend:

whom he wishes he brings near; whom he disapproves he sends far away.

فَلْيشكُرِ المُلْكُ ما أولَيتَ من منَنٍ

ولن يُصيبَ مَزيدَ البِرِّ مَن غَمَطا

Let the kingdom thank you for the favors you bestowed;

whoever is ungrateful will receive no further kindness.

لولاكَ كانَ أصابَ العظْمَ كاسِرُهُ

ولاقَتِ الشّحمةُ البيضاءُ مُشتَرَطا

But for you, the breaker would have struck the bone,

and the white fat would have met an inciser.

فَللْتَ عنه شَبا خَطْبٍ رأيتَ بِها

أديمَهُ عن مَدامِي نَحرِه كُشِطا

You blunted for it a calamity's sharp points, by which you saw

its hide stripped from the bleeding wounds of its throat,

أيّامَ لا حِسَّ من خَيلٍ ولا خَوَلٍ

تَمُدُّ هذي الصُّفوفُ الغُلْبَ والسُّمُطا

in days when there was no sign of horses or retainers

to extend these massive ranks and ordered lines.

فقد أفاض عليه اليومَ رَونَقَهُ

وراشَ نُصحُكَ منه نَبلَهُ المُرُطا

Today its splendor has been poured upon it,

and your counsel has feathered its bare arrows.

وقَدَّمَتْ عُصَبُ العافِينَ عن ثِقةٍ

وَفْدَ الأماني إلى وِرْدِ النّدَى فَرَطا

Bands of petitioners have confidently sent

a delegation of hopes ahead to bounty's watering-place.

وراحَ كُلُّ فتىً ألقَى عَصاهُ وقد

أصابَ من وَرَقِ الدُّنيا به خَبَطا

Every young man who laid down his staff departed, having

shaken down through him a harvest of this world's leaves.

إليكَ أَعملْتُها في كُلِّ غامضةٍ

ألقَى الظّلام بها بَرْكاً وَمَدَّمَطا

Toward you I drove them hard through every dark place

where darkness laid down its breast and stretched its back:

مُصطفّةً كالمَدارِي في سَوادِ دُجىً

يَبِتْنَ يَفْرُقْنَ منه لِمّةً قَطَطا

lined up like combs within the blackness of night,

they spend the nights parting its tightly curled locks.

منَ اللّواتي يَزيدُ السّيرُ أَيديَها

سَبْقاً إذا الفَضْلُ من أَنساعِها مَعَطا

They are among those whose forelegs grow swifter with travel

when the excess has been stripped from their girths.

بسَطْتُ ما قد تَطوَّى من أَزِمَّتِها

حتّى طوَيْتُ بها القاعَ الّذي انْبَسَطا

I unfolded what had been folded of their reins,

until with them I folded up the outspread plain.

كم قد غَشِينا بها في مَرِّها خِطَطاً

وكم لَقينا بها من دَهْرِها خُطَطا

How many tracts we traversed upon them in their passage,

and how many of their time's ordeals we met upon them!

إلى كريمِ كِرامٍ في الزّمانِ إذا

قاموا كُسالَى إلى أُكرومةٍ نَشِطا

Toward the noble one among nobles in an age when,

if they rise sluggishly to a generous deed, he springs eagerly.

فأَرْعنى سَمعك المَفْدِيَّ صاحبُه

وعُدَّ غَيرَ الّذي قد قُلتُه لَغَطا

Lend me your ear—may its owner be ransomed—

and count everything other than what I have said as idle noise.

وخُذْه كالدُّرِّ وهْو الدُّرُّ أَسرُدُه

في سلكِ خدْمتِكَ العَلياءِ مُنْخَرِطا

Take it as pearls—it is pearls—which I string

upon the thread of your lofty service.

مِمّا يكادُ إذا غنّى الرُّواةُ به

يُحِسُّ سامعُه في أُذْنهِ قُرُطا

It is verse which, when reciters chant it, almost

makes its listener feel earrings in his ear.

لِسابقٍ في المعالي لو يَصيرُ لها

مُقرَّباً بفِناء المجدِ مُرتَبِطا

For a forerunner in high honors—if only he could become their

favored steed, tethered in glory's courtyard.

قُلْ للأكابرِ زادَ اللهُ مُلكَهمُ

لا تَحرِمُوا الفَضْلَ منكمْ سِيرةً وَسَطا

Tell the grandees—may God increase their dominion—

Do not withhold fair treatment from merit.

عَطْفاً على الشِّعْرِ عَطْفاً إنّه عَمَلٌ

إن لم تُثيبوا عليه أنتمُ حَبِطا

Kindness to poetry, kindness! It is labor

that is wasted unless you yourselves reward it.

يَضيعُ مثْليَ فيما بَينَ أَظهُرِكُمْ

عارٍ منَ العارِ لا يُلقَى عليه غِطا

One like me is neglected in your midst,

naked, yet free of shame, with no covering cast over him.

أُجِيدُ وَسْمَ عُلاكمُ بالمديحِ لها

وأَخرجُ الدَّهرَ من إنعامكمْ عُلُطا

I excel at branding your loftiness with praise,

yet emerge, all my days, unbranded by your generosity.

عامٌ تَقضّى وعامٌ بعدُ تابعُه

لقد تَكلّفْتُ من تأميلِكمْ شَطَطا

A year has passed, and another follows it;

hoping in you has burdened me beyond measure.

فانْعَرْ بها أَيهُا الحادي على طَرَب

إذا التقَى الصُّبْحُ بالظّلماءِ واخْتَلَطا

So cry out to them, camel-driver, in delight,

when dawn meets darkness and mingles with it.

واقْذِفْ منَ المَنزلِ النّائي بأَرحُلِنا

إلى كريمٍ يُوفّي الظّنَّ ما اشْتَرطا

Fling our saddles from the distant dwelling

toward a generous man who fulfills expectation's every stipulation.

وعَدِّ عن مَعشرٍ قَلّتْ مَواهِبُهُمْ

فلو يكونُ ندىً في الجَوِّ ما سَقَطا

Turn away from a people whose gifts are few;

were their bounty dew in the sky, it would not fall.

وثِقْ على كلِّ حالٍ بالقَبولِ لنا

لا يَعدَمُ الدُّرُّ بين النّاسِ مُلتِقطا

Trust, in every circumstance, that we shall find acceptance:

a pearl never lacks a finder among people.

ورُبّما عاد بالإحسانِ سادَتُنا

فقد يُغاثُ الفتَى من بَعدِ ما قَنِطا

Perhaps our masters will return to kindness;

a young man may receive help after he has despaired.

صَبْراً على الدَّهرِ صَبْراً يُستعانُ به

إنّ الحُظوظَ سِراعٌ مَرَةً وبِطا

Patience with time—patience by which help is sought;

fortunes are swift at times, and slow at others.