متى أنا طاعن قلب الفجاج — Ibn Al Khayyat

مَتى أَنا طاعِنٌ قَلْبَ الْفِجاجِ

وَرامِي الْخَرْقِ بِالْقُلُصِ النَّواجِي

When shall I pierce the heart of the mountain passes,

And assail the desert expanse with swift young she-camels,

وَقائِدُ كُلِّ سَلْهَبَةٍ عَبُوسٍ

إِلى يَوْمٍ يَطُولُ بِهِ ابْتِهاجِي

And lead each long-limbed, fierce mare

Toward a day that prolongs my delight?

سَيَعْتَمُّ الْهَواجِرَ كُلُّ مُجْرٍ

إِلى أَمَدِي وَيلْتَحِفُ الدَّياجِي

Every racer will wear the midday heats as a turban

On the way to my goal, and cloak itself in darkness.

فِراشِي مَتْنُ كُلِّ أَقَبَّ نَهْدٍ

وَثَوْبِي ما يُثِيرُ مِنَ الْعَجاجِ

My bed is the back of every lean, sturdy steed,

And my garment the dust it raises.

إِذا الْجَوْزاءُ أَمْسَتْ مِنْ مَرامِي

فَأَيْنَ سُرايَ مِنْها وَادِّلاجِي

If Orion has become one of my aims,

How far below it lie my night journeys and predawn marches!

سِوى الصَّهْباءِ عاصِفَةٌ بِهَمِّي

وَغَيْرُ الْبِيضِ مِنْ أَرَبِي وَحاجِي

Something other than tawny wine sweeping away my cares,

And other than fair women, is my desire and need.

عَزَفْتُ فَما لِسارِي الْبَرْقِ شَيْمِي

وَلا لِلرَّسْمِ قَدْ أَقْوى مَعاجِي

I have turned away; no longer do I watch the night-roving lightning,

Nor turn aside to the traces of a dwelling now deserted.

وَما عَنْ سَلْوَةٍ إِغْبابُ دَمْعِي

وَإِقصارُ الْعَواذِلِ عَنْ لَجاجِي

It is not forgetfulness that makes my tears intermittent,

Or makes the reproving women retreat before my persistence.

وَلكِنْ جَلَّ عَنْ فَنَدٍ وَلَوْمٍ

غَرامِي بِالْمَحامِدِ وَالْتِهاجِي

Rather, too lofty for foolish reproach and blame are

My passion for praiseworthy deeds and my burning ardor.

حَمانِي الْعَزْمُ حَظِّي مِنْ ذَواتِ الثُّ

غُورِ الْغُرِّ وَالْمُقَلِ السَّواجِي

Resolve has denied me my share of women with

Gleaming mouths and languid eyes.

وَما عِنْدَ الْحِسانِ جَوى مَشُوقٍ

صَدَعْنَ فُؤادَهُ صَدْعَ الْزجاجِ

The beauties do not share a yearning lover's anguish—

They shattered his heart as glass is shattered.

عَرَضْنَ لَنا فَمِنْ لَحْظٍ مَرِيضٍ

وَمِنْ بَرَدٍ غَرِيضٍ فِي مُجاجِ

They appeared before us: languid glances,

And fresh hailstones amid their mouths' moisture.

وَمِسْنَ فَكَمْ قَضِيبٍ فِي كَثِيبٍ

يَشُوقُكَ بِاهْتِزازٍ فِي ارْتِجاجِ

They swayed—how many a branch upon a dune

Entices you with its swaying amid a quiver!

كَأَنَّ نِعاجَ رَمْلٍ لاحَظَتْنا

وَإِنْ كُرِّمْنَ عَنْ حَمْشِ النِّعاجِ

As though antelope does of the sands had glanced at us,

Though exalted above the does' leanness.

إِلامَ أَرُوضُ جامِحَةَ الأَمانِي

وَداءُ الدَّهْرِ مَغْلُوبُ الْعِلاجِ

How long shall I tame my headstrong hopes,

While time's disease is beyond cure?

إِذا اْلعَذْبُ النَّمِيرُ حَماهُ ضَيْمٌ

فَجاوِزْهُ إِلى الْمِلْحِ الأُجاجِ

If injustice bars the sweet, wholesome water,

Pass beyond it to the salty, bitter brine.

أَحُلُّ بِحَيْثُ لا غَوْثٌ لِعافٍ

وَأَطَّرِحُ الْمَغاوِثَ وَالْمَلاجِي

I settle where no supplicant finds aid,

And cast aside the places of succor and refuge,

كَمَن تَرَكَ الأَسِنَّةَ صادِياتٍ

غَداةَ وَغىً وَطاعَنَ بِالزِّجاجِ

Like one who left his spearheads thirsting

On a morning of battle, and fought with spear-butt spikes.

أَأَبْغِي فِي ذِئابِ الْقاعِ مَنْعاً

وَأَتْرُكُ جانِبَ الأَسَدِ الْمُهاجِ

Should I seek protection among the plain's wolves,

And leave the side of the lion roused to fury?

فَأُقْسِمُ لا نَقَعْتُ صَدىً بِماءٍ

إِلى غَيْرِ الْكِرامِ بِهِ احْتِياجِي

I swear I shall never slake a thirst with water

For which I must depend on anyone but the noble.

عَسى الطَّعْنُ الخِلاجُ يَذُبُّ عَنِّي

إِذا جاوَرْتُ فُرسانَ الْخِلاجِ

May rending spear-thrusts defend me

When I dwell beside the horsemen of al-Khilaj.

أُولئِكَ إِنْ دُعُوا لِدَفاعِ خَطْبٍ

أَضاءُوا نَجْدَةً وَالْيَوْمُ داجِ

Those men, when summoned to repel a calamity,

Shine with valor though the day is dark.

هُمُ الأمْلاكُ حَلُّوا مِنْ عَدِيٍّ

مَحَلَّ الطَّرْفِ حُصِّنَ بِالْحَجاجِ

They are kings who hold, within Adi,

The eye's place, guarded by its socket.

بُدُورُ دُجُنَّةٍ وَبُحُورُ سَيْبٍ

وَأُسْدُ كَرِيهَةٍ وَحُصُونُ لاجِي

Full moons in darkness, seas of bounty,

Lions in battle, fortresses for seekers of refuge.

كِرامٌ وَالظُّبى كَالنّارِ شُبَّتْ

عَشِيَّةَ عاصِفٍ ذاتِ اهْتِياجِ

Noble men, while blade-edges blaze like a fire kindled

On a turbulent evening of raging wind.

مَواسِمُهُمْ مَضارِبُ كُلِّ ماضٍ

خَلُوطٍ لِلْجَماجِمِ بِالْجآجِي

Their branding irons are the striking edges of every keen blade,

Mingling skulls with breastbones.

إِذا عَمَدُوا لِداءٍ أَنْضَجُوهُ

وَلَيْسَ الْكَيُّ إِلاّ بِالنِّضاجِ

When they set about an illness, they sear it thoroughly;

Cautery is nothing without thorough searing.

جَحاجِحُ لا يُعابُ مَنِ اسْتَباحَتْ

صُدُورُ رِماحِهِمْ يَوْمَ الْهِياجِ

Great chieftains: no shame befalls one struck down by

The points of their spears on the day of battle.

لَهُمْ خَفْضُ النَّواظِرِ حَيْثُ حَلُّوا

مِنَ الدُّنْيا وَمُنْقَطَعُ الضَّجاجِ

For them, eyes are lowered wherever they settle

In the world, and clamor falls silent.

تَرى الْهاماتِ ناكِسَةً لَدَيْهِمْ

كَأَنَّ بهِنَّ مُوضِحَةَ الشِّجاجِ

You see heads bowed before them,

As though bearing a gash that exposes bone.

بِحسّانِ بِنِ مِسْمارٍ أُقِيمَتْ

قَناةُ الدِّينِ مِنْ بَعْدِ اعْوِجاجِ

Through Hassan ibn Mismar was straightened

The spear-shaft of religion after its bending,

بِأَرْوَعَ لا يَهابُ هُجُومَ خَطْبٍ

وَلا يَرْتاعُ لِلأْحَدَثِ الْمُفاجِي

Through a splendid man who fears no assault of calamity

And does not quail at a sudden misfortune.

نَفُوذٌ حَيْثُ لا تَصِلُ الْعَوالِي

إِلى قَصْدٍ يُجِيزُ وَلا انْعِراجِ

He presses through where spearheads cannot reach,

Passing straight toward his goal without a swerve,

إِذا شَوْكُ الْقَنا اليَزَنِيُّ أَضْحى

أَمامَ الْخَيْلِ مَضْروبَ السِّياجِ

When the thorns of Yazani spears have become

A fence erected before the horses.

وَما طَرَقَ الرَّجاءَ الْفِكْرُ إِلاّ

وَعِزُّ الدِّينِ غايَةُ كُلِّ راجِ

Never has thought visited hope without

Izz al-Din being every hopeful man's goal.

أَغَرُّ مَتى أَخّذْتَ لَهُ بحَبْلٍ

فَما الْغَمَراتُ إِلاّ لانْفِراجِ

A radiant man: whenever you take hold of his rope,

The depths of distress are bound to clear.

جَمِيلُ مَكارِمِ الأَخْلاقِ يَجْلُو

بِها الشَّحْناءَ مِنْ صَدْرِ الْمُداجِي

Beautiful in noble character, he clears away

With it the rancor from the dissembler's breast.

عَمَدْتَ الْبَيْتَ مِنْ كَلْبٍ وَطَيٍّ

عَلَى حَسَبِ وَصِهْرٍ ذِي انْتِساجِ

You have upheld the house of Kalb and Tayy

On ancestral honor and interwoven marriage ties.

يُناجِي مِنْهُ تحَسّانٌ سِناناً

لَقَدْ كَرُمَ الْمُناجى وَالْمُناجِي

From that house, Hassan confides in Sinan;

Noble indeed are both the one addressed and the speaker.

ذُُؤابَةُ كُلِّ مُعْتَمٍّ بِفَخْرٍ

وَنُخْبَةُ كُلِّ مُعْتَصِبٍ بِتاجِ

The crest of all who turban themselves with glory,

And the choicest of all whose brows are bound with crowns.

وَرامَ الْحاسِدُونَ لَدَيْكَ تَبْلاً

وَدُونَ مَرامِهِمْ حَزُّ الْوِداجِ

The envious sought vengeance against you,

But between them and their aim lies the slitting of jugulars.

وإِنَّ طِلابَ مَجْدِكَ وَهْوَ بَسْلٌ

كَخِيسِ اللَّيْثِ مَحْذُورِ الْوِلاجِ

Seeking your glory, inviolate as it is,

Like a lion's thicket whose entrance is feared,

لأَعْجَزُ مِنْ قُصُورِكَ عَنْ سَماحٍ

وَأَعْوَزُ مِنْ عَدُوٍّ مِنْكَ ناجِ

Is more unattainable than your failing in generosity,

And rarer than an enemy who escapes you.

وَما غَرّاءُ سارِيَةٌ هَطُولٌ

تَبَجَّسُ بِانْسِفاحٍ وارْتِجاجِ

No bright, night-roving cloud pouring rain,

Gushing in torrents and shuddering,

كأَنَّ بُرُوقَها بِسَناكَ لاحَتْ

فَهمَّ اللَّيلُ مِنْها بانْبِلاجِ

As though its lightning shone with your radiance,

Till night seemed ready to break into dawn,

يَشُوقُكَ ما تُغادِرُ مِنْ غَدِيرٍ

وَرَوْضٍ بِالأناعِمِ وَالنِّباجِ

Enticing you with the pools it leaves behind

And meadows at al-Ana'im and al-Nibaj,

بِأجْوَدَ مِنْ نَدى كَفَّيْكَ جُوداً

وَلا طامِي الْغَوارِبِ ذُو الثجاجِ

Is more generous than the bounty of your two hands,

Nor is the sea, its crests swelling and pouring forth.

أَبَيْتَ أَبا النَّدى إِلا اخْتِلاطِي

بِنائِلِكَ الْمُؤَمَّلِ وَامْتِزاجِي

You insist, father of bounty, that I mingle

With your hoped-for gifts, and blend with them.

وَما الشِّيَمُ الْحِسانُ بِمُسْلِماتٍ

فَتىً مِثْلِي إِلى النُّوَبِ السِّماجِ

Those fine qualities will never surrender

A young man like me to ugly calamities.

مَتى ما أَدَّعِي أَنَّ الْقَوافِي

يَمانِيةُ الْهَوى فَبِكَ احْتِجاجِي

Whenever I claim that rhymes

Are Yemeni in their love, you are my proof.

أَلَمْ تَرَها تَزُورُكَ مُحْكَماتٍ

كَرائِمَ مِنْ وُحادٍ أَوْ زُواجِ

Do you not see them visiting you, finely wrought,

Noble verses, whether single or paired?

يَضِيقُ الأَعْصُرِي بِها ذِراعاً

وَيَعْذُرُ عَجْزَهُ عَنْها الخَفاجِي

Al-A'suri finds his reach too short for them,

And al-Khafaji excuses his inability to match them.

كَسَرْدِ التُّبَّعِيِّ ثَنى الْعَوالِي

بِأَمْنَعَ مِنْ مُصَفَّحَةِ الرِّتاجِ

Like the Tubba'i's mail, turning back spearheads

With protection stronger than a metal-plated gate.

تُكَلِّفُ مَعْشَراً فَتَهِيمُ وَجْداً

بِمَدْحِكَ وَالشَّجى غَيْرُ التَّشاجِي

They tax a company, then wander in passionate longing

In praise of you; true anguish is not feigned anguish.

إِذا ما هَجْمَةٌ وَرَدَتْ لِخِمْسٍ

كَفاها ظِمْئُها زَجَلَ المُجاجي

When a great camel herd reaches water on its fifth day,

Its thirst spares it the water-caller's cries.

وَغَيْرُكَ مَنْ يُقَصِّرُ بِي فَيُمْسِي

لِسانِي مادِحاً وَالْقَلْبُ هاجِ

Someone other than you neglects me, leaving

My tongue praising while my heart reviles.

وَظَنِّي فِيكَ لَيْسَ بِمُسْتَحِيلٍ

كَهَمِّي عِنْدَ مَدْحِكَ وَاعْتلاجِي

My hope in you is not unattainable,

Like my ambition in praising you and my inward struggle.

كَما أَرْسَلْتَ في عِدٍّ جَمُومٍ

مَرِيرَ الْفَتْلِ مَشْدُودَ الْعِناجِ

As when you lower into an ever-full spring

A tightly twisted rope, its bucket-cord firmly secured.

سَأَشْكُرُ حادِثاً ألْقى زِمامِي

إِلَيْكَ وَرُبَّ أَمْنٍ فِي انْزِعاجِ

I shall thank the event that cast my rein

To you; often safety lies in upheaval.

وَيَجْزِي حُسْنَ صُنْعِكَ رَبُّ فِكْرٍ

ذَكِيُّ الزَّنْدِ وَهّاجُ السِّراجِ

A master of thought will repay your kindly act,

With a quick-sparking fire-stick and a blazing lamp.

وَتَعْلَمُ أَنَّ خَيْرَ الْمالِ مالٌ

سَقاكَ الْحَمْدَ مَعْسُولَ الْمِزاجِ

You know that the best wealth is wealth

That gives you praise to drink, honey-sweet in its blend.

فَإِنَّ لَقائِحَ الْمَعْرُوفِ كانَتْ

لَدى الْكُرَماءِ مُنْجِبَةَ النَّتاجِ

For the pregnant she-camels of kindness have always been

With the generous, bearers of noble offspring.