Sol 6.1

  1. إِلَيكَ بَعدَ اِنقِضاءِ الجِدِّ وَاللَعِبِ

    عَنّي فَلَم أَرَ بي ما يَقتَضي أَرَبي

    Away—now that earnestness and play have ended—

    from me! I find in myself nothing to fulfill my desire.

  2. ما زالَ جارُكَ ذو القُربى الفُؤادُ وَقَد

    وَلّى الصِبا لَم يَسَل عَن جارِكَ الجُنُبِ

    Your close-kin neighbor, the heart, still—though

    youth has departed—has not asked after your distant neighbor.

  3. وَالعُمرُ كَالكَأسِ وَالأَيّامُ تَمزُجُهُ

    وَالشَيبُ فيهِ قَذىً في مَوضِعِ الحَبَبِ

    Life is like a cup, and the days mix it;

    gray hair is debris in it where bubbles should be.

  4. أَقولُ إِذ فاضَ مِنّي فيضُ فِضَّتِهِ

    يا وَحشَتي لِشَبابٍ ذاهِبِ الذَهَبِ

    I say, as a flood of its silver pours from me:

    How desolate I am for youth, its gold departing!

  5. نارٌ وَإِن لَم تَكُن كَالنارِ مُحرِقَةً

    فَإِنَّ في الشَعرِ مِنها آيَةَ اللَهَبِ

    A fire, though it does not burn like fire,

    for in the hair there is a sign of its flame.

  6. وَلّى صِباهُ وَأَبقى شُهبَ لَيلَتِهِ

    وَالصُبحُ لَيسَ بِمَأمونٍ عَلى الشُهُبِ

    His youth departed, leaving the shooting stars of his night;

    and dawn cannot be trusted with shooting stars.

  7. ماذا يَعُدُّ عَلى دُنيا شَبيبتِهِ

    تُريهِ وَجهَ الرِضا عَن خاطِرِ الغَضَبِ

    What does he hold against the world of his youth,

    which shows him a contented face from an angry mind?

  8. أَبكي الشَبابَ فَأَمحو لَيلَ صِبغَتِهِ

    بِذائِبٍ مِن ضِياءِ الشَيبِ مَنسَكِبِ

    I weep for youth, erasing the night of its hue

    with the molten, streaming radiance of gray hair.

  9. مَفلولُ حَربٍ صَقيلُ الشعرِ أَبيَضُهُ

    فما أَتَمَّ الَّذي اِستَحلَيتُ مِن سَنِبِ

    Its white hair is polished, yet blunted by war;

    so what I found sweet of [unclear word] never reached completion.

  10. هَذا رَبيعُ لِآلِ فَصلِهِ

    فَيا لَهُ مِن رَبيعٍ حَلَّ في رَجَبِ

    This is a springtime for the family of its season;

    what a spring, arriving in Rajab!

  11. وَيا لِغارَةِ أَيّامٍ سُلِبتُ بِها

    شَبيبَتي وَمَضى المَسلوبُ في السَلَبِ

    Alas for the raid of days in which I was robbed

    of my youth; what was stolen departed among the spoils.

  12. إِذا سَمِعتَ أَنيني عِندَ مُنصَرِفٍ

    رَأَيتَ جَيشَ صَروفِ الدَهرِ ذا لَجَبِ

    When you hear my groaning at a departure,

    you behold the clamorous army of time's vicissitudes.

  13. أَثارَ غارَتُها ما بِالمَفارِقِ مِن

    عَجاجَةٍ وَعَلى الأَعضاءِ مِن تَعَبِ

    Its raid stirred up what lies upon the hair-partings:

    a dust cloud, and weariness upon the limbs.

  14. أَصبَحتُ حَيَّ زَمانٍ مِثلَ مَيِّتِهِ

    حَيَّ التَأَسُّفِ فيهِ مَيِّتَ الطَرَبِ

    I have become a living man of an age, like its dead,

    alive in regret within it, dead to delight.

  15. يا لَيلَةً ما أَظُنُّ الصبحَ يَذكُرُها

    شَيَّبتِ رَأسي وَرَأسُ الفَجرِ لَم يَشِبِ

    O night that I doubt the morning remembers,

    you made my head gray, while dawn's head never grayed.

  16. إِنّي أَمُتُّ إِلَيهِ لَو رَعاهُ بِما

    بَينَ الهُمومِ وَبَينَ اللَيلِ مِن نَسَبِ

    I am related to it—if only it honored that bond—through

    the kinship between sorrows and the night.

  17. أَما رَأَيتَ قَميصَ الصُبحِ يا شَفَقاً

    إِلّا أَتَيتَ عَلَيهِ بِالدَمِ الكَذِبِ

    O twilight, have you never seen the morning's shirt

    without bringing false blood upon it?

  18. وَخَيمَةُ العُمرِ إِن شَدَّ الصَباحُ لَها

    عَمودَهُ كانَ حَبلُ الشَمسِ كَالطَنُبِ

    And the tent of life—if morning fastens for it

    its pole—the sun's cord is like a guy rope.

  19. وَنَحنُ نَأمُلُ أَسبابَ الحَياةِ بِما

    مَثَّلتُهُ وَأَراهُ أَضعَفَ السَبَبِ

    Yet we hope for life's supports through what

    I have pictured, though I see it as the frailest cord.

  20. وَجُمَّةُ العُمرِ أَكدارٌ فَإِن غَلِطَت

    بِالصَفوِ دُنياكَ فَاِعدُدهُ مِنَ التَعَبِ

    Life's pool is all murk; should

    your world mistakenly offer clarity, count it among your troubles.

  21. يُحِبُّكَ الناسُ إِن أَمسَكتَ عَن طَلَبِ

    وَاللَهُ يَمقُتُ إِن أَمسَكتَ عَن طَلَبِ

    People love you if you refrain from asking,

    but God detests it if you refrain from asking.

  22. إِن كانَ رِزقٌ بِماءِ الوَجهِ مُجتَلَباً

    فَرِزقُ رَبِّكَ يأِتي غَيرَ مُجتَلَبِ

    If a livelihood is procured at the cost of one's honor,

    your Lord's provision comes without being procured.

  23. فَما تَمَيَّزَ لي فِعلانِ بَحرُ نَدىً

    يُمِدُّ مَوجَ الظُبا لِلعَيشِ وَالعَطبِ

    The two acts are indistinguishable to me: an ocean of bounty

    feeds waves of sword-edges, for life and ruin.

  24. بَحرٌ وَما قُلتُ تَشبيهاً وَكَيفَ بِهِ

    إِنَّ البَحارَ لِذاكَ البَحرِ كَالقُلُبِ

    An ocean—I do not say this as a simile; how could I,

    when other seas beside that ocean are like wells?

  25. صَرِّح بِذِكراهُ وَاِصدَح بِاِسمِ حَضرَتِهِ ال

    سامي فَإِنَّ اِسمَهُ يَكفي عَنِ اللَقَبِ

    Speak of him openly, and proclaim his august presence's

    lofty name: his name alone makes a title needless.

  26. إِن لَم يَكُن في سَبيلِ المَجدِ هِمَّتُهُ

    إِذاً ثَنى بِسِلاحٍ غَيرِ مُختَضِبِ

    Were his ambition not set on the path of glory,

    he would then turn back with an unstained weapon.

  27. كَأَنَّ جودَ يَدَيهِ عَينُ مَكرُمَةٍ

    كِلاهُما ما عَداهُ مُسبَلُ الحُجُبِ

    The bounty of his hands is like an eye of generosity;

    both are such; all beyond him lies behind lowered veils.

  28. وَرُبَّ حاسِرِ رَأسِ البَغى أَلبَسَهُ

    عِمامَةً لِلرَدى مُحمَرَّةَ العَذَبِ

    Many a man baring rebellion's head has he clothed

    in a turban of death, its trailing ends reddened.

  29. وَرُبَّ راجِلِ رِجلِ الرُشدِ أَركَبَهُ

    ظَهراً أَقامَ بِلا سَرجٍ وَلا قَتَبِ

    Many a man afoot upon the path of right guidance has he mounted

    on a back that stood without saddle or packsaddle.

  30. ماضي المَراسيمِ مَدلولُ الفُؤادِ عَلى

    ما لا تَرى العَينُ في الأَسرارِ مِن حَرَبِ

    His decrees take effect; his heart is guided to

    hostility hidden among secrets the eye cannot see.

  31. كَأَنَّما سَيفُهُ المِرآةُ في يَدِهِ

    فَكُلُّ غائِبِ أَمرٍ عَنهُ لَم يَغِبِ

    As though the sword in his hand were a mirror,

    no hidden matter remains hidden from him.

  32. وَما رَأَيتُ صُروفَ الدَهرِ إِن أَخَذَت

    طَريقَها لَم تَجِدهُ آخِذَ الأُهُبِ

    Never have I seen time's vicissitudes, when they took

    their course, fail to find him fully prepared.

  33. فَضائِلٌ إِن تُشَم فَالنَجمُ في صَعَدٍ

    وَنائِلٌ إِن يُسمَ فَالنيلُ في عَبَبِ

    Virtues—when they are surveyed, the star is ascending;

    and bounty—when it is sought, the Nile surges in flood.

  34. فِكرٌ عَلى رَصَدِ الأَخطارِ مُرتَقِبٌ

    لَكُلِّ واقِعِ أَمرٍ غَيرِ مُرتَقَبِ

    A mind on watch for dangers, keeping vigil

    for every unforeseen turn of events.

  35. حَزمٌ يُعِدُّ لِنارِ الحَزمِ لُجَّتَهُ

    كَم مُسعِرٍ وَيُلاقي النارَ بِالحَطَبِ

    Prudence that readies its deep waters for prudence's fire—

    how many a kindler meets fire with firewood!

  36. تُريهِ عُقبى لَياليهِ أَوائِلُها

    وَفارِسُ الرَأيِ مَن يُلقي عَلى العُقُبِ

    The beginnings of his nights show him their outcome;

    the knight of judgment is one who looks to consequences.

  37. عَجائِبُ الدَهرِ لا تَفنى فَلا عَجَبٌ

    إِلّا لِيَومِكَ إِذ يَفنى بِلا عَجَبِ

    Time's wonders never end; there is no wonder

    except at your day, when it ends without a wonder.

  38. أَمّا البَشاشَةُ في أَفلاكِ أَنعُمِهِ

    فَإِنَّها لِمَدارِ الفَضلِ كَالقُطُبِ

    As for good cheer amid the spheres of his favors,

    it is like the pole of generosity's orbit.

  39. حَسبُ الحَسيبِ بِها لِلمَجدِ صاقِلَةً

    وَما البَشاشَةُ إِلّا صَيقلُ الحَسَبِ

    For a noble man, it suffices as a polish for glory;

    good cheer is nothing but the burnisher of nobility.

  40. في وَجهِهِ نَجمُ جَدٍّ غَيرُ مُنكَدِرٍ

    وَوَعدُهُ بُرجُ سَعدٍ غَيرُ مُنقَلِبِ

    In his face is a star of fortune never dimmed,

    and his promise a constellation of good luck never overturned.

  41. لَم أَلقَ دَهري بِأَحمى مِن عِنايَتِهِ

    وَلا بِأَحنى عَلى المَجفُوِّ مِن أَدَبِ

    I have never faced my age with protection stronger than his care,

    nor with anything kinder to the shunned than courtesy.

  42. إِلَيكَ عَنّي فَلا جَدبٌ وَلا رَهَبٌ

    فَإِنَّني في ذِمامِ اللَهِ وَالسُحُبِ

    Away from me! There is neither drought nor dread,

    for I am under the protection of God and the clouds.

  43. لَو لَم تَكُن سُحُبُ الإِحسانِ تُمطِرُني

    ما كانَ يُنبِتُ طَرسي مِثلَ ذا العُشُبِ

    If the clouds of beneficence did not rain upon me,

    my page would never produce such grass.

  44. وَما أَزالُ عَلى إِحسانِ دَولَتِكُم

    مُثني الحَقائِبِ لا بَل مُثني الحِقَبِ

    Through the beneficence of your rule, I remain

    with saddlebags doubled—nay, praising the ages.

  45. فَجَرِّدوها عَلى الأَعقابِ دافِعَةً

    ما لا يُدافِعُ عَنها أَقطَعُ القُضُبِ

    So unsheathe them for posterity, warding off

    what the sharpest swords cannot ward off from them.

  46. وَاِستَثمِروها عَلى الأَحقابِ مُثمِرَةً

    ما لَيسَ مُستَثمِراً مِن أَصفَرِ القَصَبِ

    And make them bear fruit through the ages, yielding

    what no yellow reed can be made to yield.

  47. لَيسَ الكُنوزُ عَلى الأَموالِ مُشفِقَةً

    فَاِستَودِعوها لَدى الأَحرارِ وَالكُتُبِ

    Treasure-hoards do not safeguard wealth;

    so entrust it to freeborn men and books.

  48. وَبَيتُكَ العامِرُ المَغشِيُّ مَشهَدُهُ

    يَجَلُّ مِقدارُهُ عَن بَيتِهِ الخَرِبِ

    Your flourishing house, whose gathering-place is thronged,

    stands far above his ruined house in worth.

  49. يَموتُ شِعرٌ وَما جَفَّ اليَراعُ بِهِ

    وَبَعضُ ما قيلَ مَذبوحٌ عَلى النُصُبِ

    A poem dies before the reed pen has dried upon it,

    and some of what is said is slaughtered on sacrificial stones.

  50. لا أَشتَكي نُوَبَ الدُنيا وَكَيفَ بِها

    لَو راوَحَت بَينَها يَومَينِ كَالنُوَبِ

    I do not complain of the world's vicissitudes—how would it be

    if it alternated them over two days, like bouts of fever?

  51. المُشرِقاتُ بَنوها حينَ تَسمَعُها

    تَرى بِها وَجَناتِ الخُرَّدِ العُرُبِ

    The radiant ones they fashioned—when you hear them,

    you see in them the cheeks of shy, loving maidens.

  52. حَنَّت إِلَيكَ قَوافي الشِعرِ وَاِستَلَبَت

    مِنّا العِنانَ حَنينَ الوُلَّهِ السُلُبِ

    The rhymes of poetry yearned for you and snatched

    the reins from us, with the yearning of distraught, bereft she-camels.

  53. ما أَغرَبَت في صَوابٍ وَهوَ عادَتُها

    وَما إِصابَةُ مَرمى سَهمِكَ الغَرَبِ

    They did nothing strange in hitting the mark; that is their habit.

    What is a hit scored by your unaimed arrow worth?

  54. إِذا أَصَبتَ بِسَهمٍ قَد رَمَيتَ بِهِ

    وَما اِعتَمَدتَ فَذاكَ السَهمُ لَم يُصِبِ

    If you hit with an arrow you have shot,

    but did not aim, that arrow has not truly hit.

  55. ماءٌ مِنَ السُحبِ أَشطانُ اليَراعِ غَدَت

    تَمتاحُهُ مِن قُلوبٍ هُنَّ كَالقُلُبِ

    Water from the clouds: the ropes of reed pens have come

    to draw it from hearts that are like wells.

  56. جَرَّ النَسيمُ بِمَعناها الذُيولَ وَلا

    زالَت مُوَشَّحَةَ الغُدرانِ بِالعُشُبِ

    The breeze trailed its skirts through their meaning; may they

    ever have their pools garlanded with grass.

  57. حَلَّت دِيارَكَ آمالُ العُفاةِ وَلا

    حَلَّت يَدُ الدَهرِ مِنها مَعقِدَ الطُنُبِ

    The hopes of supplicants have settled in your abodes; may

    time's hand never untie the knot of their tent ropes.

  58. وَكَم يَدٍ تَحمِلُ الأَقلامَ قاصِرَةٍ

    عَن حَقِّها فَتُرى حَمّالَةَ الحَطَبِ

    Many a hand that carries pens falls short

    of their due, and is seen as a bearer of firewood.

  59. إِمامُكَ الصُبحُ كَم يَشكو دُجىً وَوَجىً

    فَظاظَةُ الشَوكِ قَد تُفضي إِلى الرُطَبِ

    Your guide is morning: how often it laments darkness and sore feet!

    The harshness of thorns may lead to ripe dates.

  60. قِصارُ أَقلامِهِ يَصنَعنَ في كُتُبِ

    بِالعَقلِ ما تَصنَعُ القُضبانُ في كُثُبِ

    His short pens work, in writings,

    upon the mind as slender boughs do among dunes.

  61. كأَنَّ أَحرُفَهُ كَأسٌ يَدورُ بِها

    ساقي يَراعٍ عَلَيها الشَكلُ كَالحَبَبِ

    His letters are like a cup carried round

    by a reed-pen cupbearer, its vowel marks like bubbles.

  62. فَاِعجَب لِذا السُكرِ تَزدادُ العُقولُ بِهِ

    نَعَم إِذا الخَمرُ كانَت لِاِبنَةِ الأَدَبِ

    Marvel at this intoxication, through which minds grow stronger—

    yes, when the wine belongs to the daughter of letters.

  63. صَديقَةُ العَقلِ مِنها يُستَفادُ وَما

    عَدَاوَةُ العَقلِ إِلّا لِاِبنَةِ العِنَبِ

    A friend to reason, from her one gains; and

    enmity to reason belongs only to the daughter of the grape.

  64. وَهيَ المَعاني الَّتي الأَسيافُ تَخدُمُها

    مَسلولَةً وَهِيَ لِلأَلفاظِ في القُرُبِ

    These are the meanings that swords serve

    when drawn, while they lie in the sheaths of words.

  65. ما الثَيِّباتُ مِنَ العُجمِ الَّتي جُلِيَت

    عَلَيكَ بِالأَمسِ مِن أَبكارِها العُرُبِ

    What are the once-wed foreign women unveiled

    to you yesterday, beside their Arab virgins?