Sol 6.1

  1. بِتْ حيث شئت ولا يرُعْكَ المنزلُ

    أمِنَ المُعرَّس واستطيب المَنْهلُ

    Spend the night wherever you wish; let no lodging frighten you.

    The resting-place is safe, the watering-place found sweet.

  2. يا سارياً لَبِسَ الحِذارَ وراعهُ

    جورٌ تَقادمَ فهو حافٍ مُعْجلُ

    O night-traveler, clothed in caution and alarmed

    By long-standing injustice, barefoot and hurried onward,

  3. وضحتْ دياجيرُ الخطوبِ بقانتٍ

    تُهْدى بغُرَّتهِ الركابُ الضُلَّلُ

    The darkness of calamities has brightened through a devout man,

    By whose radiant brow straying mounts are guided;

  4. بأغَرَّ وضَّاحِ الجبينِ مُمَجَّدٍ

    يخشى اِشارتَه الخميسُ الجحْفل

    Through a bright-faced, radiant-browed, much-glorified man,

    Whose signal the vast, embattled army fears;

  5. بالمقْتفي أمرَ الاِله ومنْ بهِ

    عمُرَ الطريقُ إِلى النَّجاةِ الأمْثلُ

    Through al-Muqtafi, follower of God's command, through whom

    The surest road to salvation has flourished;

  6. مُحيي الدَّوارس من شريعة أحمدٍ

    ورسومُ سُنَّتِها مُوتٌ عُطَّلُ

    Reviver of the effaced traces of Ahmad's sacred law,

    While the vestiges of its practice lay lifeless and neglected.

  7. حَبْرٌ كميٌّ في الجدالِ وفي الوغى

    شَهدَ الحُسامُ بفضلهِ والمِقْوَل

    A learned scholar, an armored champion in debate and battle,

    To whose excellence sword and tongue bear witness.

  8. فاذا جَرى لمنُازلٍ وجادلٍ

    صُرِعَ الكَميُّ به وحُلَّ المشكل

    When he contends with warrior and disputant,

    The champion is felled by him, the difficult question solved.

  9. جوْنٌ مُسِفٌّ تشْرئبُّ بُروقهُ

    جَمُّ الرَّواعدِ مُجْلبٌ مُتهلِّلُ

    A dark, low-hanging cloud, its lightnings craning upward,

    Rich in thunder, loud-rumbling, radiant.

  10. تخشى بوادرهُ العِدى منْ صاعقٍ

    ويشيمُ بارقَهُ المُسيفُ المرْمِلُ

    His foes dread the outbursts of this thunderbolt-bearing cloud,

    While the ruined and destitute watch his lightning for rain.

  11. سَنَّ السَّكينةَ فوق باسلِ بأسهِ

    والحِلْمُ طوْدُ والعزيمةُ مِقصل

    He set serenity above his fearsome might;

    His forbearance is a mountain, his resolve a cleaving sword.

  12. يتغايَرانِ على ثناءِ مُمَدَّحٍ

    سِيَّانِ خَلْوةُ ليلهِ والمَحْفِلُ

    The two vie jealously to bring praise upon a much-praised man;

    His night's seclusion and his public gathering are alike.

  13. لقِنَتْ مخادعُه الصَّلاةَ لفرط ما

    تُزْجى بهنَّ فريضةٌ وتَنَفُّلُ

    His chambers have learned prayer, so often

    Are obligatory and voluntary devotions offered within them.

  14. وعلِمن من كَرِّ التِّلاوةِ كلَّ ما

    يجري الشُّذوذُ عليه والمُسْتعمل

    And from repeated recitation they have learned all

    That rare and customary readings encompass.

  15. بدَلٌ له من فرط تقوى رَبِّهِ

    شُرْبٌ يُجنِّبهُ الورودَ ومأكلُ

    His deep reverence for his Lord supplies a substitute:

    A draught that spares him seeking water, and food.

  16. لا تَطَّبيهِ زَخارفُ ادُّنيا ولا

    تمْضي به الأهْواءُ أو تتنقَّلُ

    The world's adornments do not entice him, nor

    Do passions carry him away or shift his course.

  17. صعبُ العَريكةِ في الاِله فان غدا

    لِوَدادَةٍ فهو الدَّميثُ الأسْهَلُ

    Unyielding in God's cause; but when he turns

    To affection, he is gentle and easygoing.

  18. خِرْقٌ اذا حُبِسَ القَطارُ بأزمة

    شقيتْ لديهِ نيبُهُ والعُذَّلُ

    Openhanded: when rain is withheld by famine,

    His old she-camels and his reprovers suffer at his hands.

  19. واذا استمرَّ المحْلُ يشفعُ شرَّهُ

    خَصَرٌ يُرَذُّ له الحَصى والجندل

    And when drought persists, its evil joined

    By cold that crumbles pebbles and rock,

  20. واستخْمد الشَّفَّانُ كل ضريمةٍ

    فاذا تَلَظِّيَ كلِّ جَمْرٍ أفْكلُ

    And the cold, rain-laden wind has quenched every blaze,

    So every coal's flaring is a shudder,

  21. ببعيدةِ الاِصْباحِ حالكةِ الدجى

    سهرَ النَّؤومُ بها ونامَ المُفْضلُ

    On a night far from dawn, pitch-black with darkness,

    The heavy sleeper lies awake, while the generous man sleeps.

  22. يثنْي مُصارفُها الجوارحَ عندها

    حتى تُضلَّ الرَّاحَ فيها الأنْمُلُ

    Its shifting gusts bend the limbs back upon themselves,

    Till fingers lose their way to the palms within it.

  23. وأطارتِ الهوْجاءُ كلَّ مُطنَّبٍ

    فالرَثُّ فانٍ والصَّحيحُ مُرَعبل

    And the raging wind has swept away every guyed tent:

    The worn-out is destroyed, the sound torn to shreds.

  24. واستهْدم الجدْبُ الغوارب والذرى

    حيث البَهازِرُ والصِّعابُ البُزَّل

    Drought has brought down high shoulders and humps,

    Even on massive camels and headstrong, full-grown beasts.

  25. في أزْمَةٍ قُذفٍ كأنّض أخيرَها

    منْ بُؤسِها للضَّعْفِ عنهُ أوَّلُ

    In a far-reaching famine, whose final stage seems,

    In all its misery, a feeble beginning beside it;

  26. غَبْراءُ رَيعْانُ الربيعِ كقيْظِها

    في المَحْلِ لا مرعىً ولا مُتبقَّلُ

    Dust-gray, its springtime prime like its summer heat

    In barrenness: no pasture and no patch of greens.

  27. فقديرُ زادِ المُتْرفين على الطَّوى

    قِدٌّ تَناهبُه الأكُفُّ وحَنْظَلُ

    The pot-cooked fare of the pampered, in their hunger,

    Is hide-strips snatched at by hands, and bitter colocynth.

  28. آوى أميرُ المؤمنينَ مُحمَّدٌ

    بددَ الضيوف فكلُّ وعْرٍ مُسْهَل

    The Commander of the Faithful, Muhammad, sheltered

    The scattered guests, making every rough place easy.

  29. وقَرى فأشْهبُ كلِّ جَوٍّ هاطلٌ

    هامٍ وأغْبر كل أرضٍ مُقْبِلُ

    And gave them hospitality: every ashen sky pours down

    Streaming rain, and every dust-gray land grows fruitful.

  30. ومُشَرَّدٍ نَبَتِ البلادُ بحَمْلهِ

    فيكادُ منْ قبلِ المُعرَّسِ يرْحل

    And many a hunted exile whom the lands refused to bear,

    Who nearly departs before reaching his night's resting-place,

  31. جَمِّ المَحاسبِ لو تَبسَّمَ خِلُّهُ

    للقائهِ ظَنَّ التَّبَسُّم يَخْتلُ

    So full of misgivings that, if his friend smiled

    To greet him, he would think the smile concealed a trap.

  32. أعْدى المَطيَّةَ ذعْرُه وحِذارُه

    فأقلُّ سيْريْها الذَّميلُ الزَّلْزلُ

    His terror and caution infected his mount,

    Till the slower of its gaits was a jolting trot.

  33. نكرَ الأنيسَ فلو تألَّفَ عِطْفَه

    ندْمانُ شِربٍ فرَّ وهو مُحَنبل

    He shunned companionship: were his favor sought

    By a drinking companion, he would flee, huddled up.

  34. شَعِثٌ تميلُ به القُتودُ كأنه السِّعْ

    لاةُ يحْدِرُها الكثيبُ الأهْيَلُ

    Disheveled, swaying in his saddle-frames, like a she-

    ghoul sent tumbling down by a loose-pouring dune.

  35. لفظتْهُ أنْديةُ المُلوكِ فلم يُطق

    اِظْهار نُصرتهِ المُطاعُ العَبْهلُ

    Kings' councils spat him out; no longer could

    An obeyed, unfettered ruler openly support him.

  36. آواهُ حِلمُك خيث حبُوةُ أحنفٍ

    محلولةٌ وأخو النَّزاقَةِ يذْبلُ

    Your forbearance sheltered him where Ahnaf's knee-binding

    Comes undone, while the rash man withers.

  37. وعرمرمٍ حجبَ الغَزالةَ نقْعُه

    فالصُّبْحُ ليلٌ بالعَجاجَة ألْيلُ

    And many a mighty host, whose dust concealed the sun,

    Making morning a deeply dark night in its dust-cloud;

  38. زَجِلٌ كأنَّ الرَّعدَ فيه اِشارةٌ

    يخشى الرَّقيب لها مُسِرٌّ مُدْغلُ

    Clamorous: thunder within it seems a signal

    Whose secretive, deceitful sender fears the watcher.

  39. جَمٌّ كأنَّ الخرْقَ منْ اِفْراطهِ

    داني الكُسورِ له رِتاجٌ مُقْفَلُ

    Immense, as though the desert, from its sheer abundance,

    Were close-walled, with a great gate locked.

  40. يَقِظٌ كأنَّ رجالَهُ وجيادَهُ

    شُهْمٌ تناقَلَها ذِئابٌ عُسَّلُ

    Alert, as though its men and steeds were

    Porcupines tossed between swift-trotting wolves.

  41. هَجَرَتْ سوابقُه المياهَ وشاقَها

    ما أنْبعتهُ المُشْرعاتُ الذُبَّلُ

    Its fleet steeds forsook water, yearning

    For what the leveled, hardened lances made gush forth.

  42. وتنكَّبتْ غُدرانهُ ونِهاءَهُ

    لِروىً يمُدُّ به نَساً أو أكْحْلُ

    They shunned its pools and waterholes

    For drink supplied by a thigh-vein or a vein of the arm,

  43. من كُلِّ أغْلبَ لا الأسنَّةَ يختشي

    عند اللقاءِ ولا المّنيَّةَ يحْفِلُ

    From every thick-necked warrior who fears no spearpoints

    In combat, nor pays any heed to death.

  44. حامي الفؤاد يكادُ منْ زفَراتهِ

    تجري حَصينةُ درْعهِ والمُنْصل

    Fiery-hearted, his heaving breaths all but

    Melt his stout coat of mail and sword-blade.

  45. دَلفوا لحرْبكَ جاهلينَ سريرةً

    يحْمي مَعاقِدَها القديمُ الأولُ

    They advanced to war against you, unaware of an inward purpose

    Whose binding knots the Eternal, the First, protects.

  46. فغلَبْتَهمْ والمُرْهفاتُ مَصونَةٌ

    وظُبى القضاءِ من الصوارم أقْتلُ

    So you overcame them, your keen swords still untouched;

    Fate's edges are deadlier than sharp swords.

  47. نَبتِ الديارُ بهم ولو رضْوى نوى

    غِشَّ الاِمامِ تحمَّلتهُ الشَّمْألُ

    The lands cast them out; had even Radwa intended

    Treachery against the Imam, the north wind would have swept it away.

  48. تُزهى الخِلافة منكَ بابن مَناقبٍ

    غُرٍّ تُبِرُّ على النُّجومِ وتفضُلُ

    The caliphate glories in you, heir to noble virtues,

    Radiant, towering above the stars and surpassing them.

  49. طَلعتْ بوادرها فأثرى مُعدِمٌ

    واُجيرَ ملْهوفٌ وعَزَّ مُخَذَّلُ

    Their first signs appeared: the destitute grew rich,

    The distressed found shelter, the forsaken gained strength.

  50. ومكارمٍ لولا شَواغِلُ عَصْرِها

    خَجلَ الخِضَمُّ لجودها والهُطَّل

    And noble gifts that, were it not for their age's distractions,

    Would shame the ocean and rain-clouds with their bounty.

  51. خَفيتْ عن غير اللَّبيبِ وانما

    علم الفِرَنْدَ من الحسام الصَّيْقلُ

    Hidden from all but the discerning: only

    The polisher knows the sword's watered pattern.

  52. يا ابْن الحجاجحِ من ذؤابةِ هاشمٍ

    لهمُ المَزيَّةُ والمَقامُ الأفْضلُ

    O son of chieftains, from the pinnacle of Hashim,

    Theirs are distinction and the most exalted station;

  53. المانِعينَ حِمىً ولم يُسْتصرخوا

    والباذلين غِنىً واِنْ لم يُسألوا

    Defenders of a sanctuary, though no help was sought,

    Bestowers of wealth, though they were not asked;

  54. والخالعي طربَ النُّفوس على القَنا

    بالمَجْرِ فهي إِلى المَعاركِ تَعْسلُ

    Those who bestow their souls' ardor on the lances

    Amid the host, so that they lope toward battle.

  55. من كلِّ متْبوعِ اللواءِ خِلافُه

    مُغوٍ لمنْ لبسَ الخِلافَ مُضلِّل

    Each has a banner men follow; opposing him

    Misguides whoever dons dissent and leads him astray.

  56. قومٌ اذا ضاقَ القريضُ بوصفهم

    أثْنى بفضلِهُم الكتابُ المُنْزَلُ

    A people whom, when poetry proves too narrow to describe,

    The revealed Book praises for their excellence.

  57. شَعفي بمجدك لا ارتيابَ بصدقهِ

    ومعي على الدعوى دليلٌ يُعقَلُ

    My ardor for your glory is beyond doubt sincere,

    And I have proof of my claim that reason can grasp.

  58. الأمنُ بعد الخوفِ محبوبٌ ألا

    أهْوى الذي هو مؤْمنٌ ومُؤمَّلُ

    Safety after fear is beloved: should I not

    Love him who grants safety and is looked to with hope?

  59. نُصِرَ الاِمامُ محمَّدٌ بعَليِّهِ

    وكذاكَ منْ قبلُ النَّبيُ المُرسَل

    The Imam Muhammad was aided by his Ali,

    As was the sent Prophet before him,

  60. بالأقْربَيْنِ الصَّدقْينِ مَوَدَّةً

    شهد النَّديُّ بنُصْحها والقَسْطل

    Through two close kinsmen, sincere in affection,

    Whose faithfulness assembly and battle-dust attest.

  61. فمُفرقٌ للمارقينَ مُبَدِّدٌ

    ومُعفِّرٌ للمُشْركينَ مُقتِّلُ

    One scatters the renegades and disperses them,

    The other casts idolaters into the dust and slays them.

  62. ورأيتُ بدْراً بالعراقِ صَريحةً

    عاشَ المُحِقُّ بها وماتَ المُبْطلُ

    And I saw in Iraq an unmistakable Badr,

    Where the upholder of right lived and the upholder of falsehood died.

  63. فالزَّينبيُّ بحقِّهِ وبصدْقهِ

    للطَّالبيِّ فتى العُلى يَتَقَيَّلُ

    So al-Zaynabi, in his right and his sincerity,

    Follows al-Talibi, the champion of lofty deeds.

  64. غَيرانُ يَمْحَضكَ الودادُ كانه

    صَبٌّ يُصافيهِ حَيبٌ مُجْمِلُ

    Jealous in devotion, he gives you unalloyed love, as though

    A passionate lover cherished by a gracious beloved.

  65. أقْصى مُؤمَّلهِ بَقاؤكَ للِعُلى

    فبَقيتُما ما شَدَّ زنْداً أنْمُلُ

    His utmost hope is that you live on for noble deeds:

    May you both endure as long as fingers strengthen a forearm.