وربت أمريكية خلت ودها — Elia Abu Madi

وَرَبَّتَ أَمريكِيَّةٍ خِلتُ وِدَّها

يَدوم وَلَكِن ما لِغانِيَةٍ وُدُّ

Many an American woman's love, I thought,

would endure—but a beauty has no affection.

صَبَوتُ إِلى هِندٍ فَلَمّا رَأَيتُها

سَلَوتُ بِها هِندا وَما صَنَعَت هِندُ

I yearned for Hind, but when I saw her,

through her I forgot Hind and what Hind had done.

وَأَوحَت لَها عَينايَ أَنَّ صَبابَةً

تُلَجلِجُ في صَدري وَأَحذَرُ أَن تَبدو

And my eyes told her that a passionate longing

stirred in my breast, and I feared it would show.

فَأَلقَت في تُرابِها وَتَبَسَّمَت

أَعيٌ سُكوتُ الصَبِّ أَم صَمتُهُ عَمدُ

Then she cast [her gaze] into her dust and smiled:

'Is the lover's silence speechlessness, or is his silence deliberate?'

فَقُلتُ سَلامُ اللَهِ قالَت وَبِرُّهُ

فَقُلتُ أَهَزلٌ ذَلِكَ القَولُ أَم جَدُّ

I said, 'God's peace'; she said, 'And His kindness.'

I said, 'Are those words in jest or in earnest?'

وَأَمسَكتُ أَنفاسي وَأَرهَفتُ بِسَمعي

فَفي نَفسي جَزر وَفي مِسمَعي مَدُّ

And I held my breath and sharpened my hearing,

for within me was an ebb, and in my hearing a flood.

فَقالَت وَدِدنا لَو عَرِفنا مِنَ الفَتى

وَما يَبتَغيهِ قُلتُ ما يَبتَغي العَبدُ

She said, 'We wish we knew about the young man,

and what he seeks.' I said, 'What a slave seeks.

لَهُ كَبِدٌ حَرّى وَقَلبٌ مُكلَمٌ

غَلِطتُ فَما لِلصَبِّ قَلب وَلا كَبِدُ

He has a burning liver and a wounded heart—

I was mistaken: the lover has neither heart nor liver.

قَتيل وَلَكِن ثَوبُهُ كَفَنٌ لَهُ

وَكُلُّ مَكانٍ يَستَريحُ بِهِ لَحدُ

He is slain, yet his garment is his shroud,

and every place where he rests is a grave.

فَإِن لَم يَكُن مِن نَظرَةٍ تَرأَبُ الحَشا

فَرُدّي عَلَيهِ قَلبُه وَبِهِ زُهدُ

So if there is no glance to mend his innermost being,

then return his heart to him, though it is unwanted.'

فَضَرَّجَ خَدَّيها اِحمِرارٌ كَأَنَّما

تَصاعَدَ مِن قَلبي إِلى خَدِّها الوَجدُ

A blush then suffused both her cheeks, as though

passion had risen from my heart to her cheek.

وَقَرَّبَها مِنّي وَقَرَّبَني الهَوى

إِلى أَن ظَنَنّا أَنَّنا واحِدٌ فَردُ

Love drew her close to me and drew me close,

until we thought we were one single being.

وَكَهرَبَ روحَينا فَلَمّا تَنَهَّدَت

تَنَهَّدتُ حَتّى كادَ صَدري يَنهَدُّ

And it electrified our two souls; when she sighed,

I sighed until my breast almost caved in.

وَكانَ حَديثٌ خِلتُ أَنّي حَفِظتُهُ

فَأَذهَلَني عَنهُ الَّذي كانَ مِن بَعدُ

There was a conversation I thought I had remembered,

but what happened afterward made me forget it.

أَمَرتُ فُؤادي أَن يُطيعَ فُؤادَها

فَيَبكي كَما تَبكي وَتَشدو كَما تَشدو

I commanded my heart to obey her heart,

to weep as she weeps and sing as she sings.

وَقُلتُ لِنَفسي هَذِهِ مُنتَهى المُنى

وَهَذا مَجالَ الشُكرِ إِن فاتَكَ الحَمدُ

And I told my soul, 'She is the utmost of my wishes,

and this is an occasion for gratitude, if praise eludes you.

فَإِن تَرغَبي عَنها وَفيكِ بَقِيَّةٌ

فَما أَنتِ نَفسي إِنَّما أَنتِ لِيَ ضِدُّ

If you turn away from her while any life remains in you,

you are not my soul; you are merely my adversary.'

وَمَرَّت لَيال وَالمُنى تَجذِبُ المُنى

وَقَلبي كَما شاءَت يَلين وَيَشتَدُّ

Nights passed, and wishes drew wishes,

and my heart softened and hardened as she wished.

تَروح وَتَغدو وَاللَيالي كَأَنَّها

وُقوفٌ لِأَمرٍ لا تَروحُ وَلا تَغدو

She came and went, while the nights seemed

to stand still for some purpose, neither coming nor going.

وَما زُلتُ تَستَخفي عَلَيَّ عُيوبُها

إِلى أَن تَوَلّى الغَي وَاِتَّضَحَ الرُشدُ

Her faults kept hiding themselves from me,

until delusion departed and sound judgment became clear.

رَأى الدَهرُ سَدّاً حَولَ قَلبي وَقَلبَها

فَما زالَ حَتّى صارَ بَينَهُما السَدُّ

Time saw a wall around my heart and hers,

and did not stop until the wall stood between them.

خُدِعتُ بِها وَالحُرُّ سَهلٌ خِداعُهُ

فَلا طالِعي يُمن وَلا كَوكَبي سَعدُ

I was deceived by her—and a noble man is easy to deceive.

My ascendant brings no luck, nor my star good fortune.

وَكُنّا تَعاهَدنا عَلى المَوتِ في الهَوى

فَما لَبِثَت إِلّا كَما يَلبَثُ الوَردُ

We had pledged to die in love,

but she stayed only as long as a rose endures.

كَأَنّي ما أَلصَقتُ ثَغري بِثَغرِها

وَلا باتَ زِندي وَهوَ في جيدِها عِقدُ

As though I had never pressed my lips to hers,

nor spent a night with my forearm a necklace around her neck;

وَلَم نَشتَمِل بِاللَيل وَالحَيُّ نائِمٌ

وَلَم نَستَتِر بِالرَوض وَاللَيلُ مُمتَدُّ

nor wrapped ourselves in night while the neighborhood slept,

nor hidden in the garden while the night stretched on;

وَلا هَزَّنا شَدوُ الحَمائِمِ في الضُحى

وَلا ضَمَّنا بَيت وَلَم يَحوِنا بُردُ

nor been stirred by the doves' singing in the forenoon,

nor had a house sheltered us, nor a cloak enfolded us.

أَإِن لاحَ في فودي القَتيرُ نَكَرتِني

أَيَزهَدُ في الصَمصامِ إِن خَلِقَ الغِمدُ

Have you disowned me because gray hair has appeared at my temple?

Is a keen sword spurned if its scabbard is worn?

لَئِن كانَ لَونُ الشَعرِ ما تَعشَقينَهُ

فَدُم أَبيَضاً ما دُمتَ يا شَعرِيَ الجَعدُ

If the color of hair is what you love,

then stay white as long as you last, O my curly hair.

فَلا تَشمَتي مِنّي فَلَستُ بِمَأمَنٍ

وَلا تَزهَدي فيهِ فَلَيسَ بِهِ زُهدُ

So do not gloat over me, for I am not safe,

and do not disdain it, for there is no shunning it.

هُوَ الفاتِحُ الغازي الَّذي لا تَرُدُّهُ

عَنِ الفاتِحِ الغازي قِلاع وَلا جُندُ

It is the conquering invader whom neither

fortresses nor troops can keep away from a conquering invader.

فَلَو كانَ غَيرَ الشَيبِ عَنّي صَرفتُهُ

وَلَكِنّنَ حُكمَ اللَهِ لَيسَ لَهُ رَدُّ

Were it anything but gray hair, I would turn it away from me,

but God's decree admits no reversal.

وَإِن تُعرِضي عَن مَفرِقي وَهوَ أَبيَضٌ

فَيا طالَما قَبَّلتِه وَهوَ مُسوَدُّ

And if you turn away from my crown now that it is white,

oh, how often you kissed it when it was black!

شَفى اللَهُ نَفسي لا شَفى اللَهُ نَفسَها

وَلا غابَ عَن أَجفانِها الدَمع وَالسُهدُ

God has healed my soul; may He never heal hers,

and may tears and sleeplessness never leave her eyelids.

فَلا ثَغرُها دُر وَلا أُقحُوانَةٌ

وَلا دَمعُها طَل وَلا ريقُها شُهدُ

Her mouth is neither pearls nor a daisy,

nor are her tears dew, nor her saliva honey;

وَلا قَدُّها غُصن وَلا خَيرَزانَةٌ

وَلا خَصرُها غَور وَلا رِدفُها نَجدُ

nor is her figure a bough or a bamboo cane,

nor her waist a valley, nor her rump a highland;

وَلا وَجهُها شَمس وَلا شَعرُها دُجىً

وَلا صَدُّها حَر وَلا وَصلُها بَردُ

nor her face a sun, nor her hair night's darkness,

nor her rejection heat, nor her union coolness.

أُحَبُّ إِلى نَفسي الرَدى مِن لِقائِها

وَأَجمَلُ في عَينَيَّ مِن وَجهِها القِردُ

Death is dearer to my soul than meeting her,

and a monkey is fairer to my eyes than her face.

فَإِن تَلمَسِ الثَوبَ الَّذي أَنا لابِسٌ

قَدَدتُ بِكَفِّيَ الثَوبَ مِن قَبلُ يَنقَدُّ

If she touches the garment I am wearing,

I will tear the garment with my own hand before it comes apart;

وَإِن تَقرُبِ الدارَ الَّتي أَنا ساكِنٌ

هَجَرتُ مَغانيها وَلَو أَنَّها الخُلدُ

and if she approaches the house where I live,

I will forsake its haunts, even if it is paradise.

فَإِن كانَ غَيري لَم يَزَل دينُهُ الهَوى

فَإِنّي وَلا أَخشى المَلامَة مُرتَدُّ

If another's religion is still love,

then I, unafraid of blame, am an apostate.