Sol 6.1

  1. على صفحاتِ العمر خطت يدُ الدهر

    عِظاتٍ لذي الذكرى تُسطرُ بالتبرِ

    Upon the pages of life, the hand of time inscribed

    lessons for the mindful, inscribed in gold.

  2. عرفتُ بها سرَّ الحياة وكنهها

    وما تحتوي الدُّنيا من الحلوِ والمرِ

    Through them I learned life's secret and its essence,

    and what the world contains of sweetness and bitterness.

  3. فما العمرُ إلا مرحلاتٌ نجوزُها

    على الشوكِ أَحياناً وحيناً على الزَّهر

    For life is nothing but stages we traverse,

    over thorns at times, and at times over flowers.

  4. تَشيدُ لنا الأَحلامُ بُرجَ سعادةٍ

    فتنسفُهُ الأيامُ بالنُّوبِ الحُمر

    Dreams build us a tower of happiness,

    then the days demolish it with crimson calamities.

  5. ومهدٍ به نامَ الصغيرُ مقمَّطاً

    كأني به العصفورُ يرقُدُ في الوَكر

    And a cradle where the little one slept, swaddled,

    I seemed to see in him a sparrow sleeping in its nest.

  6. يُريد حراكاً والقماطُ يصدُّهُ

    فيلبثُ مغلولَ اليدين على قسر

    He wants to move, but the swaddling holds him back,

    so he remains with both hands bound, under compulsion.

  7. تُترجمُ عن لوعاتهِ عبَراتُهُ

    فتنثرهُا عيناهُ دراً على النَّحر

    His tears give voice to his pangs,

    and his eyes scatter them like pearls upon his throat.

  8. إذا هزَّ صوتُ الطفل مهجة أمهِ

    فبرقُ الهوى ما بين قلبيهما يجري

    When the child's voice stirs his mother's heart,

    love's lightning runs between their two hearts.

  9. تُناغيه نشوى من ملامح وجههِ

    فيُصغي إلى أَنغامها باسمَ الثغر

    She coos to him, enraptured by his features,

    and he listens to her melodies with smiling lips.

  10. وتنشدُهُ شعرَ الهوى فيُعيدهُ

    بلهجتِه العجماءِ سحراً على سحر

    She recites love's poetry to him, and he repeats it

    in his inarticulate speech—enchantment upon enchantment.

  11. بمرآهُ يغدو السَّهدُ أَشهى من الكرى

    اليها وجنحُ الليلِ ازهى من الفجر

    At his sight, wakefulness becomes sweeter than sleep

    to her, and night's wing more radiant than dawn.

  12. تراه بمرآة الغرام كأنه

    أَخو البدرِ أو ابهى ضياءً من البدر

    Through love's mirror she sees him as though he were

    the full moon's brother, or more radiant than the moon.

  13. وطوراً تخالُ الدهرَ ينضو حُسامَهُ

    على غصنهِ الميَّاس في زهرة العمر

    And at times she imagines time unsheathing its sword

    against his swaying bough, in the flower of life.

  14. فيثقبُ سُوسُ الهمِ جِذعَ فؤَادها

    ويَقذف من حوليهِ موجاً من الذُّعر

    Then worry's woodworm bores through the trunk of her heart,

    and casts from around it a wave of terror.

  15. أَلا إِنَّ عيشَ الأُمِ مرٌّ مذاقُهُ

    وعيشَ ابنها في المهد ضربٌ من الأسر

    Indeed, a mother's life tastes bitter,

    and her son's life in the cradle is a kind of captivity.

  16. ويومٍ به طابت عن الناس مهجتي

    فلم ارَ للسَّلوى سبيلاً سوى القفر

    And a day when my soul was content to leave people behind,

    I saw no path to solace except the wilderness.

  17. خرجتُ وفي صدري الهمومُ كأنها

    رواسٍ ومن يقصي الرواسي عن صدري

    I went out, with cares in my breast as though they were

    rooted mountains—and who could remove those mountains from my breast?

  18. فمذ اشرفت عيني على زهرة الرُّبى

    وقد كللتها بالجُمانِ يدُ القطر

    But when my eye looked upon the flower of the hills,

    which the hand of rain had crowned with pearls,

  19. رأيتُ جيوشَ البشر شدَّت على الأسى

    فلم تُبقِ للأتراح في الصَّدر من إِثر

    I saw the armies of gladness charge upon sorrow,

    leaving no trace of grief within the breast.

  20. هنالك نهرٌ تعقدُ الريحُ فوقَهُ

    زُرودَ لُجينٍ او سلاسلَ من درَ

    There was a river, over whose surface the wind wove

    coats of silver mail, or chains of pearls.

  21. على ضَفَّتيهِ الدَّوحُ مدَّ ظلالهُ

    لهُ نفحاتٌ أَينَ منها شذا العِطر

    On both its banks the great trees spread their shade;

    it had fragrant breaths—how could perfume's scent compare?

  22. إِذا بفراشٍ مر يعدو وراءَه

    صبيٌ ذكت في خدهِ جُذوةُ الحر

    Suddenly a butterfly passed, and running after it was

    a boy, an ember of heat flaring in his cheek.

  23. فلم يرَ غيرَ الدوحِ من ملجأ له

    فلاذَ بهِ حرَّانَ من شدة الفر

    He saw no refuge for himself except the trees,

    so he sought their shelter, burning hot from running so hard.

  24. وقد وقعت عينُ الفتى بعد ساعةٍ

    على بيت نملٍ حول كدسٍ من البرِ

    After a while, the boy's eye fell

    upon an ants' nest around a heap of wheat.

  25. فدمَّرهُ ظلماً وشتت شملهُ

    وأتلفَ ما فيهش من النمل والذخر

    He destroyed it unjustly and scattered its colony,

    destroying the ants and provisions within it.

  26. فقلتُ بنفسي هذهِ صورةُ الذي

    يُذيقُ الورى كأساً أمرَّ من الصبر

    I said to myself: this is the likeness of one

    who makes mankind drink a cup more bitter than aloes.

  27. متى ألفَ الأحداثُ أن ينزلوا الأذى

    بأَعجز خلقِ الله شبُّوا على الغدر

    When the young grow accustomed to inflicting harm

    on God's most helpless creatures, they grow up in treachery.

  28. نظرتُ إلى أهل الشَّبيبةِ نظرةً

    تجلَّت بها شمسُ الحقائق في فكري

    I cast a glance at those in the prime of youth,

    through which the sun of truths shone in my mind.

  29. لهم عزَّةٌ قعساءُ تأبى صغارةً

    وهمتهم من دونها همةُ النسر

    They have unbending pride that scorns abasement,

    and an eagle's ambition falls short of theirs.

  30. يغوصون في بحر المفاخر جهدهم

    ليستخرجوا الدر الثمين من القعر

    They dive with all their might into the sea of glories

    to draw precious pearls from its depths.

  31. أَسودٌ أباةُ الضيم في ساحة الوغى

    لهم عزماتٌ لا تكل عن الصخر

    Lions who refuse humiliation on the field of battle,

    their resolve never falters before rock.

  32. وأَوطانُهم لا يُستباحث ذمارُها

    يحامونض عنها بالمثقفةِ السمرِ

    Their homelands' honor may not be violated;

    they defend them with straightened, brown-shafted spears.

  33. رعى الله أشبال العرين وأسده

    وصانهم من عصبة الختل والمكر

    May God guard the den's lion cubs and its lions,

    and protect them from the band of deceit and guile,

  34. وحيا مَغاوير الحروب تحيةً

    تُرددها في غابها أُسدُ الخِدر

    and salute the champions of war with a greeting

    that the lions of the lair repeat in their forest.

  35. همُ عدةُ الأوطان يحمونَ عزها

    ببأسٍ على حدِ الظبي ابداً يجري

    They are the homelands' mainstay, defending their honor

    with valor forever coursing along the blades' edge.

  36. ولا نالتِ الجلى الكهولَ فإِنهم

    ليجنون زهر الرشد من فتنِ الخبر

    And may great calamity never strike the middle-aged, for they

    reap the blossoms of sound judgment from the trials of experience.

  37. لهم همةُ الفتيان لكن قلبهم

    بصيرٌ بأَخلاق الورى سابرُ الدهر

    They possess the ambition of young men, but their hearts

    discern human character and fathom time.

  38. فلا تستفزُّ المطرباتُ قلوبهم

    وليسوا أَوانَ اللهوِ كالخود في الخدر

    Delights do not unsettle their hearts,

    nor, in hours of amusement, are they like a maiden in her chamber.

  39. فهم بين حدي خفةٍ ورزانةٍ

    نراهم بأَطوادٍ ولا شاربي خمر

    They stand between the extremes of levity and gravity;

    we see them as mountains, and not as drinkers of wine.

  40. إذا رزقَ الكهلُ البنينَ غذاهمُ

    بآدابه الحسنى وأَخلاقهِ الغُر

    When a middle-aged man is granted sons, he nurtures them

    with his fine manners and his noble virtues.

  41. يُلقنهُم في المهد حبَّ غذاهمُ

    ويجعلهم من معشر السوءِ في حجر

    In the cradle he teaches them love—'he nourished them' [text unclear].

    And he shelters them from the company of the wicked.

  42. ويحجزُ عن أسماعهم كلَّ لفظةٍ

    تؤدي بهم يوماً إلى هوةِ الوَزر

    He keeps from their ears every word

    that might lead them one day into the pit of sin.

  43. ويحجبُ عن ابصارهم كلَّ مشهدٍ

    يُثبتُ في الأذهانِ جرثومةَ الشَّر

    He screens from their eyes every sight

    that implants the germ of evil in their minds.

  44. إذا اعوجَّ غصنٌ فيهم هبَّ مُسرعاً

    يثقفهُ غضا فينجو من الكسر

    If a branch among them bends, he springs up hastily

    to straighten it while tender, so it escapes breaking.

  45. وإن بدرت منهم بوادرُ حدةٍ

    يؤدِبهم باللحظ لا الضَّرب والهُجر

    And if flashes of temper emerge from them,

    he disciplines them with a glance, not blows or abusive speech.

  46. فلحظتُهُ أَمضى من السَّيف عندهم

    وهيبتُهُ تُغني عن العُنفِ والزَّجرِ

    For in their eyes his glance is sharper than the sword,

    and the awe he inspires makes violence and rebuke needless.

  47. وإِن صنعوا صُنعاً جميلاً جزاهمُ

    جزاءً يُحلي عندهم عملَ البرِ

    And if they do a beautiful deed, he rewards them

    with a reward that makes doing good sweet to them.

  48. يُديرُ عليهم من رحيقِ حَنانه

    كؤُوساً تُنسيهم مُعتقة الخمر

    He passes round to them, from the nectar of his affection,

    cups that make them forget well-aged wine.

  49. وأشرفُ ما يأتيه في جنبِ خيرهم

    إِزاحةُ سِترِ الجهلِ عن ساحةِ الصدر

    And the noblest thing he does for their welfare

    is lifting ignorance's veil from the expanse of the breast.

  50. فينُفقُ في هذي السَّبيل نُضارَهُ

    ولا ريبَ أَنَّ العلمَ خيرٌ من الدرِ

    On this path he spends his gold,

    and there is no doubt that knowledge is better than pearls.

  51. وشيخٍ جليلٍ كلَّلَ الشَّيبُ رأسهُ

    كتكليل غُصنِ الروض بالنور والزَّهر

    And a venerable old man, whose head gray hair has crowned,

    as a garden bough is crowned with blossoms and flowers.

  52. إِذا فلتِ الأيامُ غربَ مضائهِ

    فآراؤهُ تُغنيكَ عن طلعةِ الزُّهر

    If the days have blunted the edge of his vigor,

    his counsels leave you no need for the bright stars' rising.

  53. وإن جنَّ ليلُ المشكلات تألقت

    له حكمةٌ أَزهى من الشهبِ الغُر

    And if the night of difficulties darkens, there shines

    for him a wisdom more radiant than gleaming stars.

  54. فلا تخطئُ المرمى سهامُ ظُنونه

    ويقرأُ ما في صفحة الغيب بالفكر

    The arrows of his surmises never miss their mark,

    and by thought he reads what lies on the page of the unseen.

  55. تحفُّ به في كلّ نادٍ مهابةٌ

    كما حُفَّتِ الأبطال بالمجد والنصر

    In every gathering, awe surrounds him,

    as heroes are surrounded by glory and victory.

  56. ومجلسهُ منثورة في أديمهِ

    عُقودُ جُمانس او شُذورٌ من للتبر

    And strewn across the surface of his gathering are

    strings of pearls, or fragments of gold.

  57. له مطلعٌ زانتهُ هالةُ حكمةٍ

    كأَني بها من حولهِ هالةُ البدر

    His appearance is adorned by a halo of wisdom,

    as though around him it were the halo of the full moon.

  58. ألا إنَّ الشَّيخِ انفعُ للورى

    من العضبِ في كفِ الفتى الباسلِ الغرِ

    Indeed, an old man is more useful to mankind

    than a keen sword in the hand of a brave, inexperienced youth.

  59. فكم نكبةٍ جلَّى الشيوخُ غيومها

    ولولاهمُ ضاقت بها حيلُ القُطر

    How many disasters' clouds the elders have dispelled,

    without whom the land's resources would have fallen short!

  60. وكم غمرةٍ خاضوا على إِثر غمرةٍ

    ولم يحفلوا يوماً بمدٍ ولا جزر

    And how many deep waters they have waded through, one after another,

    never once heeding flood tide or ebb.

  61. لقد صقلت كفُّ التجاربِ ذهنهم

    وبالصقلِ يغدو الذهن أجلى من الفجر

    The hand of experience has indeed polished their minds,

    and polishing makes the mind clearer than dawn.

  62. فباتوا على خُبرٍ بأطوار دهرهم

    وعلمٍ بما فيها من النفعِ والضُّرِ

    So they have come to know the changing phases of their time,

    and what benefit and harm those phases contain.

  63. إذا كر جيشُ العُسر جرد فكرهم

    عليه من الآراء صَمصامةً تفري

    When the army of hardship charges, their thought draws

    against it, from their counsels, a sword that cleaves.

  64. على أنَّ عمرَ الشَّيخِ مُرٌّ ولو غدا

    على عرشِ عز في سما النهي والأمر

    Yet the old man's life is bitter, even if he comes to sit

    on a throne of glory in the heaven of prohibition and command.

  65. تراهُ أَوانَ القرَّ يهتزُّ رعدةً

    وان حلَّ فصلُ القيظ ذابَ من الحرِ

    You see him in the cold season trembling with shivers,

    and when summer arrives, he melts from the heat.

  66. ينوحُ على عهدِ الشبيبةِ نادباً

    قواهُ وقد خانتهُ في مغربِ العمر

    He laments the days of youth, mourning

    his strength, which has betrayed him at life's sunset.

  67. فلا غروَ إِن يأُسف على زمن الصبا

    فقد باتَ مثل القوس محدودبِ الظهر

    No wonder he grieves for the season of youth,

    for his back has become bent like a bow.

  68. وأَبصارهُ كلَّت واسنانهُ هوَت

    وفي صدره همٌّ احرُّ من الجمر

    His eyesight has weakened and his teeth have fallen,

    and in his breast is a care hotter than embers.

  69. يرى حولهُ أنَّ المنايا رواصدٌ

    لتُنشبَ في احشائهِ مخلبَ الغدر

    He sees death lying in wait around him,

    to sink treachery's claw into his entrails.

  70. وفي يدها المنحاتُ تنحتُ قبرهُ

    وتحفُرهُ كفُّ الردى ايما حفر

    And in its hand is a chisel carving his grave,

    and doom's hand digs it—what a digging!

  71. فليسَ يغيبُ الموت عن عين فكره

    ولا تُصرفُ الأنظارُ عن لجةِ القبر

    Death never vanishes from his mind's eye,

    nor is the gaze turned away from the grave's abyss.

  72. فتباً لدنيا يغمرُ الناسَ همها

    ولذاتها فيها عصيرٌ من الصبر

    So woe to a world whose cares overwhelm mankind,

    and whose pleasures contain the juice of aloes.

  73. إذا شئتَ ان تحيا حليفَ سعادةٍ

    فأكثر من الحُسنى وأقِبل على البرِ

    If you wish to live as happiness's companion,

    do good abundantly and turn toward righteousness.

  74. فخيرُ الورى من زانَ ايَّام عُمرهِ

    بما يُبهجُ الأَلباب في موقفِ الحشر

    For the best of mankind is he who adorns the days of his life

    with what gladdens minds at the resurrection gathering.