Sol 6.1

  1. زارعُ البغي حاصدٌ للنّدامة

    فاطلب السّلم إن أردت السّلامة

    The sower of injustice reaps regret.

    So seek peace if you desire safety.

  2. لا تثق بالمنى فما كلُّ باغ

    نال ما يرتجي ووفّى مرامه

    Do not trust wishes: not every seeker

    has gained what he hopes for and fulfilled his aim.

  3. رُبّما كانت الأماني مطايا

    للمنايا وموردا للنّدامة

    Wishes may be mounts

    to death, and a watering place of regret.

  4. رُبّما خيّلت لراج منالا

    مثلما خيّلت لراء منامه

    They may conjure a prize for one who hopes,

    as a dream conjures visions for its dreamer.

  5. رُبّ ساع ليجتني طيب عيش

    وهو يجني وليس يدري حمامه

    Many a striver seeks to harvest a pleasant life,

    yet harvests, unawares, his own death.

  6. من سما طالبا لما ليس يُرجى

    طلب العيش من لهاة أسامة

    Whoever reaches high for what cannot be hoped for

    seeks life from a lion's throat.

  7. دع هوى ما إليه نفسك تدعُو

    فالهوى للهوان يُعطي زمامه

    Abandon the desire to which your soul calls you,

    for desire hands its reins to humiliation.

  8. واصحب الرأي ما استطعت بعزم

    منك يفري مضاؤُهُ الصّمصامه

    Keep sound judgment as your companion, with all the resolve

    you can muster, whose keenness cleaves a keen-edged sword.

  9. وإذا الرّأيُ ما اهتدى لك فاجعل

    في يد الصّبر لا سواهُ خطامه

    If judgment finds no path for you, place

    its halter in patience's hand, and no other's.

  10. واركب الحزم في الأمور إذا ما

    بان وجهُ الصّواب واشدُد حزامه

    Ride firm resolve in your affairs whenever

    the face of right appears, and tighten its girth.

  11. واغتنم فرصة بدت من عدُوّ

    إنّ من أعظم السّرُور اغتنامه

    Seize an opportunity that appears from an enemy;

    among the greatest joys is getting the better of him.

  12. وابلُ من تصطفي لنفسك سرّا

    كي ترى منهُ صحوهُ وغمامه

    Secretly test the one you choose for yourself,

    so you may see his clear skies and his clouds.

  13. ودع الرّأي والنّصيحة ممّن

    بسوى الجمع لا يسومُ اهتمامه

    Leave aside the counsel and advice of anyone

    whose concern is set on nothing but amassing wealth.

  14. إنّما رأيُهُ يعود لنفع

    عنهُ لم يرع في سواهُ انتظامه

    His counsel aims only at a profit;

    he cares not whether it serves anyone but himself.

  15. وإذا ما وشى بذي الفضل واش

    فاعتقد عكسه ووال انصرامه

    If a slanderer maligns a man of merit,

    believe the opposite and maintain your break with him.

  16. وإذا ما اعتقدت في العهد شخصا

    كن على يقظة وراع ذمامه

    When you bind someone in a covenant,

    stay vigilant and honor his pledge.

  17. لا تُذع ما كتمتهُ عن عدُوّ

    لصديق فلا يطيق اكتتمامه

    Do not reveal what you concealed from an enemy

    to a friend, for he cannot keep it hidden.

  18. وإذا ما صحبت رب اتّهام

    لا تلم من يُسيءُ فيك اتّهامه

    If you keep company with a man under suspicion,

    do not blame whoever thinks ill of you.

  19. لا تُطل في تردّد لحبيب

    لك فالطّولُ مُؤذنٌ بالسّآمه

    Do not overdo your visits to a beloved

    of yours: excess heralds weariness.

  20. وإذا مسّك الزّمان بعسر

    وأباد اللّئامُ منهُ كِرامه

    If time touches you with hardship,

    and base men have destroyed its noble ones,

  21. فأجد في عليّ بن حُسين

    أحسن المدح تُلف أوفى كرامه

    then excel in praising Ali ibn Husayn;

    give the finest praise and find the fullest generosity.

  22. ملكٌ لو درت عُلاهُ الدّراري

    قبّلت كلّما بدت أقدامه

    A king: had the bright stars known his loftiness,

    they would kiss his feet whenever they came into view.

  23. ملكٌ لو درى الغمامُ نداه

    ما بدت منهُ للحياء غمامه

    A king: had the clouds known his bounty,

    not one cloud would show itself, for shame.

  24. كلّ من فرط رفده كلُّ عاف

    وهو ما كلّ واشتكى إيلامه

    Every suppliant wearies from his abundant gifts,

    yet he has neither tired nor complained of pain.

  25. جاء والدّهرُ نظمهُ في اختلال

    فأعاد الخلالُ منهُ نظامه

    He came when time's order was in disarray,

    and his virtues restored its order.

  26. قلُ لقوم بجهلهم خالفوهُ

    فيم سُوءُ الخلاف ذا وعلامه

    Say to those who opposed him in their ignorance:

    Why this foul opposition, and for what reason?

  27. حكم اللهُ أنّ مُلك عليّ

    وبنيه إلى المعاد أدامه

    God decreed that the reign of Ali

    and his sons should last until the Resurrection,

  28. بطريق القضاء والكشف عمّن

    بالصّلاح ارتدوا وأهل الكرامه

    through decree and disclosures from those

    clothed in righteousness and endowed with saintly grace.

  29. لا تزالُ السّعودُ تقضي بما قد

    يتمنّاهُ والزّمانُ غُلامه

    The auspicious stars keep granting whatever

    he wishes, and time is his servant.

  30. فاقطعوا بالإياس حبل الأماني

    إنّ في السّحب ما يُسمّى جهامه

    So cut the cord of your hopes with despair;

    among the clouds are those called rainless.

  31. وصلوا مهُ بالإطاعة حبلا

    قبل أن يُنفذ القضاءُ سهامه

    Bind a cord of obedience to him,

    before destiny lets fly its arrows.

  32. أتروا صادت الثّعالبُ ليتا

    أو تروا صادت الصّقور حمامه

    Have you seen foxes hunt a lion,

    or have you seen a dove hunt falcons?

  33. أهلُ وسلات الجفاةُ قُلوبنا

    من وفى عهدهم يخونوا ذمامه

    The people of Waslat, harsh of heart—

    they betray the pledge of whoever keeps their covenant.

  34. خالفوا المسلمين حيثُ استحلّوا

    منهمُ المال والدّما والغرامه

    They defied the Muslims when they declared lawful

    their wealth and blood, and the levying of fines.

  35. كلُّ لعن وكلُّ خزي عليهم

    في الدُّنا والعذابُ يوم القيامه

    Every curse and every disgrace be upon them

    in this world, and torment on Resurrection Day.

  36. فقد استمسكوا بواهن حبل

    عن قريب يرون منهُ انفصامه

    They have clung to a frail rope;

    before long they will see it snap.

  37. وتعودُ الفعالُ منهم عليهم

    حسرات يرونها وندامه

    Their own deeds will return upon them

    as sorrows they behold, and regret.

  38. أرضيتم شقّ العصا عن مليك

    جُمع العدلُ فيه والاستقامه

    Have you chosen to split the staff of allegiance to a king

    in whom justice and uprightness are united?

  39. فضلهُ شاملٌ لكلّ البرايا

    حلمهُ عمّ من جفاهُ وضامه

    His bounty embraces all creation;

    his forbearance reaches those who shun and wrong him.

  40. قلبهُ بالورى رؤُوفٌ رحيمٌ

    ويرى بالاله منهُ اعتصامه

    His heart is tender and merciful toward mankind,

    and he sees his safeguard in God.

  41. أيها الموقدون للحرب نارا

    ستكونون للوقود حطامه

    You who kindle a fire for war,

    you will be its shattered wood for fuel.

  42. ليس مثل الأمير نجل حسين

    ملكٌ في شجاعة وشهامه

    None is like the emir, Husayn's son—

    no king—in courage and nobility.

  43. فكأني بطودكم صار دكا

    وأجالت يداه فيه حسامه

    I seem to see your mountain leveled to rubble,

    his hands sweeping his sword through it.

  44. وكأني أراه والنصر منه

    ضاربا في ذراه يوما خيامه

    And I seem to see him, as victory won through him

    pitches its tents one day upon its heights.

  45. ما أرى قط في البرية اشقى

    منكم يا ذوي الردى واللامه

    Never do I see anyone in creation more wretched

    than you, people of ruin and baseness.

  46. من كمثل الأمير في العفو عنكم

    أو بإدراره لكم إنعامه

    Who compares with the emir in pardoning you,

    or in showering his bounty upon you?

  47. أو من غيره ترومُون عزا

    مثل ذا أو قريبه في الفخامه

    Or from whom else do you seek a glory

    like this, or near it in magnificence?

  48. ساء والله وهمكم أيّ سوء

    واتخذتم مواطيء الرجل هامه

    By God, how utterly misguided your fancy is!

    You have made a head of what feet tread upon.

  49. فلئن تدعي الرعية ظملا

    لستمو تدعون يوما ظلامه

    Even if the subjects claim oppression,

    you can never claim a grievance.

  50. ولئن تطلبوا علا فوق هذا

    فاطلبوا الملك فيكم والإمامه

    And if you seek a rank higher than this,

    then seek kingship and the imamate among yourselves.

  51. كم بترشيش من مقام كريم

    فات عنكم ونعمة وكرامه

    How many a noble station in Tarshish

    you have missed, and blessings and honor!

  52. ولكم فاتكم من الربح مما

    تتعاطون حله وحرامه

    And how much profit you have missed in what

    you deal in, lawful and unlawful alike!

  53. سيطيل الاله منكم بُكاء

    ويطيل الاله منه ابتسامه

    God will prolong your weeping,

    and God will prolong his smile.

  54. دم عليا بحصن أمن عليّ

    لست تخشى من الزمان انهدامه

    Remain exalted, Ali, in a fortress of safety;

    you need not fear time bringing it down.

  55. يا مليكا متى به لاذ شاك

    من سقام الزمان أشقى سقامه

    O king, whenever a sufferer seeks refuge with him

    from time's illness, he lays the illness low.

  56. أنا أشكو من زمان غدا في

    مضمر القلب خازنا آلامه

    I complain of an age that has become, within

    the heart's hidden depths, a keeper of its pains.

  57. غربتي في البلاد مدت نواها

    لاضطرار والقصد قصر الإقامه

    My exile in these lands has prolonged its separation

    by necessity, though I meant to stay only briefly.

  58. وظننت المقام لي فيه يسرٌ

    فتجلى بالعسر أقوى علامه

    I thought my stay here would bring me ease,

    but it revealed hardship's strongest sign.

  59. فيه وطنت للشدائد نفسي

    فأرى من لذائذي إيلامه

    Here I have prepared my soul for hardships,

    and count the pain it brings among my pleasures.

  60. بعت ما لم يبع لقوتي اضطرارا

    من جمع الكسا وكور العمامه

    Forced to feed myself, I sold what is not sold:

    my store of garments and the coils of my turban.

  61. والذي قد أمرت للعبد فيه

    منعت عني الولاة اغتنامه

    And what you had ordered here for your servant—

    the governors have kept me from receiving it.

  62. أفظنوا بأن أمرك نهي

    أم إلى الندب أولوا أحكامه

    Did they suppose your command was a prohibition,

    or construe its rulings as mere recommendation?

  63. أم خطاب لهم أتى فيه نسخ

    رفع الحكم لي وأبقى ارتسامه

    Or did a message come to them abrogating it,

    revoking my grant while leaving its written trace?

  64. فكأن الذي به لي أمر تسم

    قطعة من قلوبهم أو غرامه

    As though what you had ordered for me

    were a piece of their hearts, or a fine!

  65. أو رأوا قدر ذاك يعظم عنكم

    أو رأوني صغرت عن ذي المقامه

    Or did they think that amount too great for you,

    or deem me too small for such a station?

  66. أم عصوا أمر واجب لامتثال

    أمنوا منه بطشه وانتقامه

    Or did they disobey a command that must be obeyed,

    feeling safe from his might and vengeance?

  67. إن يكن لي اسمه وهو أكلوه

    أنت أولى بأن تولى احتكمامه

    If its name is mine while they have consumed it,

    you are best entitled to take charge of its settlement.

  68. فاحمني يا مليك وارفع مقامي

    من أعاد وحسد نمامه

    Protect me, O king, and raise my standing

    above foes and envious talebearers.

  69. أنت أعلى من أي يغرك واش

    فتظنّ السراب ماء غمامه

    You are too exalted for a slanderer to deceive you,

    so that you mistake a mirage for raincloud water.

  70. جد على العبد يا أمير على قد

    رك في الفضل والعلا والفخامة

    Give to your servant, O emir, according to your

    rank in bounty, exaltation, and magnificence.

  71. جُد بما للفنا يصيّر لمن جا

    د بما الدهر ليس يغني دوامه

    Give what passes to extinction to one who has given

    what time cannot exhaust in its endurance.

  72. وعجب في مثل ملكك مثلي

    أن يرى حلف فاقة وذمامه

    It is strange, under a sovereignty like yours, that one like me

    should be seen allied to poverty and disgrace.

  73. أنا من ذمّ دهره فيه لامن

    بهم الدهر يستحق الذمامه

    I am one who blames his age in this, not one of those

    because of whom the age deserves its blame.

  74. ليس في النظم والبلاغة مثلي

    في مدى الدهر خلفه وأمامه

    In verse and eloquence there is none like me

    throughout time's span, behind it and ahead.

  75. لو على قدرنا الملوك تساوى

    لم يفز مادحٌ معي بقلامه

    If kings treated us according to our worth,

    no panegyrist beside me would win a nail-paring.

  76. كم حوى فضلكم سوى مُستحق

    ويرى المستحق منه انعدامه

    How many undeserving men your bounty has embraced,

    while the deserving find none of it!

  77. فضلكم عم كائدا وعدوا

    وأخُو مدحكم يناجي اغتمامه

    Your bounty embraces schemers and enemies,

    while your panegyrist confides in his grief.

  78. لم يسؤني الخمول لو لم يوجه

    كل دهر على فيك ملامه

    Obscurity would not grieve me, were it not that

    time constantly reproaches me on your account.

  79. سو في النفع بين خادم مدح

    في علاكم ومن ترى استخدامه

    Give equal benefit to a servant who sings praise

    of your high rank and to those you choose to employ.

  80. أو طريقا به تُشرف قدري

    فيجلي من افتقاري ظلامه

    Or find a way to honor my standing

    and dispel the darkness of my poverty.

  81. لم أرد باليسار إلا لأضفي

    فيك من طيب المديح تمامه

    I sought wealth only that I might lavish

    on you the full sweetness of praise.

  82. دمت في العز والكمال مُهنا

    مالك الملك بدأه وختامه

    May you remain blessed in glory and perfection,

    master of sovereignty from its beginning to its end.