قلبي وسمعي في شغل عن الفند — Ibn Alkhatib

قلْبي وسَمْعيَ في شُغْلٍ عنِ الفَنَدِ

فأقْصِرِ اللّوْمَ عَنّي اليومَ أوْ فزِدِ

My heart and hearing are too occupied for reproach.

So cease reproaching me today—or heap it on.

قد كُنتُ أصْغي لما تُوحي إليّ بهِ

لوْ كانَ قلْبي قبْلَ اليومِ طوْعَ يَدي

I would have listened to what you impart to me,

had my heart, before today, been subject to my hand.

وكمْ كتَمْتُ وأسْرَرْتُ الهَوى زَمَناً

طَيَّ الجوانِحِ حتّى خانَني جلَدي

And how often I concealed love and kept it secret for a time,

folded within my ribs, until my fortitude betrayed me.

وشِيمَةُ النّفْسِ إنْ أخْفَتْ سَريرَتَها

بدَتْ شَواهِدُها يوْماً على الجَسَدِ

And the soul's nature is this: if it conceals its secret,

its signs appear one day upon the body.

قالُوا الهَوى بعْدَ بُعْدِ الدّارِ مُنْتَكَثٌ

فقُلْتُ هذا قِياسٌ غيرُ مُطَّرِدِ

They said, "Love unravels once the dwelling grows distant."

So I said, "This is an analogy that does not always hold."

سَلوا عنِ الحُبِّ منْ قَلْبي مُجرِّبَهُ

فَما المُقَلِّدُ يوماً مثْلَ مُجْتَهِدِ

Ask my heart about love, for it has experienced it;

for an imitator is never like an independent reasoner.

سَقى الإلاهُ زَمانَ الوصْلِ صوْبَ حَيا

جَوْنِ الرّبابةِ لا نَزْرٍ ولا ثَمِدِ

May God water the season of union with pouring rain,

from a dark cloudbank, neither scant nor a mere trickle,

وجادَ رَبْعاً على أكْنافِ كاظِمةٍ

كُنّا بهِ منْ لَذيذِ العيْشِ في رَغَدِ

and drench a dwelling on the outskirts of Kazima,

where we lived in ease, amid life's delights.

والكأسُ تُجْلى عَروساً في مِنَصَّتِها

والرّوْضُ يرْفُلُ في أثْوابِهِ الجُدُدِ

And the cup was unveiled, a bride upon her dais,

and the garden strutted in its new robes.

وكلّما راشَ قبْلَ القَطْرِ عارِضُهُ

تدرّعَ النّهْرُ مَصْقولاً منَ الزّرَدِ

And whenever its cloud spread its plumage before the rain,

the river donned a polished coat of mail.

والسُّحْبُ تَبْكي وثغْرُ الزّهرِ مُبْتَسِمٌ

والنّرْجِسُ الغَضُّ ساهٍ والغَمامُ نَدي

And the clouds wept, while the flowers' lips smiled,

and the tender narcissus was heedless, and the clouds were moist.

عُهودُ أُنْسٍ وأيّامٌ لَنا انْصَرَفَتْ

أخْنى علَيْها الذي أخْنى على لُبَدِ

Seasons of companionship and days of ours have gone;

what destroyed Lubad has destroyed them.

ما للزّمانِ رَمَتْ نَحْوي نَوائِبُهُ

فأقْصَدتْني بِلا عَقْلٍ ولا قَوَدِ

What ails Time? Its calamities have fired at me,

and struck me dead, with neither blood-money nor retaliation.

وسَدّدَ الدّهْرُ دوني كلَّ شاحِبةٍ

زَرْقاءَ أصْمى شَباها فِلْذَةَ الكَبِدِ

And Time aimed every pallid spear at me,

blue-tipped, its point mortally piercing a piece of my liver.

سَطا عليّ وقدْ قلَّ النّصيرُ وهَلْ

يُرْجى الغَناءُ لدَى كَفٍّ بِلا عَضُدِ

It assailed me when supporters were few—and can

help be hoped for from a hand without an arm?

وسارَ أبْناءُ دَهْري فيَّ سِيرَتَهُ

ويُشْبِهُ الأبَ حقّاً مُنْجَبُ الولَدُ

And the sons of my age followed its ways toward me,

and a well-born son does indeed resemble his father.

تَخِذتَهُمْ عُدّةً للدّهْرِ فانْقَلَبوا

وهُمْ عليّ لدَهْري أعْظَمُ العُدَدِ

You took them as a bulwark against Time, but they turned,

and became my age's greatest weapons against me.

مَن مُنْصِفٌ بيْنَ آمالي وغايَتِها

فقدْ تجاوزْنَ في مَطْلي على الأمَدِ

Who will judge fairly between my hopes and their goal?

For they have gone beyond the limit in keeping me waiting.

كأنّي لمْ أُنِطْ بالنّجْمِ منْ هِمَمي

ولمْ أسِرْ في المَعالي سيْرَ مُتّئِدِ

As though I had not hung some of my aspirations upon a star,

nor advanced through lofty honors with a measured step,

ولا اتّخَذْتُ منَ الأنْصارِ لي وَزَراً

فكانَ يوسُفُ بعْدَ اللهِ مُعْتمَدي

nor chosen myself a refuge among the Ansar,

so that Yusuf, after God, became my mainstay,

ولا نَظَمْتُ على لَبّاتِهِ مِدَحي

نَظْمَ الحُليِّ على لَبّاتِ ذي غَيَدِ

nor strung my praises about his neck,

like jewels strung about the neck of a graceful beauty.

خليفَةٌ منْ صَميم العُرْبِ دوْحَتُهُ

فيها انْتَهى المجْدُ مُسْتَوْفىً ومنها بُدي

A caliph whose family tree is of the purest Arab stock,

in which glory reached its fullest measure, and from which it began.

في كَفِّهِ لبَني الآمالِ بحْرُ نَدىً

عذْبُ المَذاقَةِ هيْنٌ غيرُ ذي زَبَدِ

In his palm, for the children of hope, lies a sea of bounty,

sweet to the taste, gentle and without foam.

لوْ أنّ راحَتَهُ فاضَتْ أنامِلُها

في الغيْثِ لمْ يَقْتَصِرْ يوماً على بَلَدِ

If the fingertips of his palm overflowed

in rain, it would never be confined to a single land.

إنْ أبْهَمَ الخَطْبُ أذْكى في دُجُنّتِهِ

رأياً يُفَرِّقُ بيْنَ الغَيِّ والرَّشَدِ

If a crisis grew obscure, he kindled in its darkness

a judgment distinguishing error from right guidance.

وإنْ عَدا الدّهْرُ أبْدى منْ أسرَّتِهِ

وكَفِّهِ رأْيَ حيْرانٍ ورَيَّ صَدي

And if Time attacked, he brought forth from his brow

and his palm counsel for the bewildered and drink for the thirsty.

وإنْ نظَرَتَ الى لأْلاءِ غُرّتِهِ

يومَ الهِياجِ رأيْتَ الشّمْسَ في الأسَدِ

And if you looked upon the radiance of his brow

on the day of battle, you saw the sun in the Lion.

حتّى إذا محّصَ اللهُ القُلوبَ بها

ولا دِفاعَ لِحُكْمِ الواحِدِ الصّمَدِ

Until, when God put hearts to the test through it—

and there is no resisting the judgment of the One, the Eternal Refuge—

وَقَفْتَ والرّوْعُ قدْ ماجَتْ جَوانِبُهُ

بحَيْثُ لا والِدٌ يلْوي على ولَدِ

you stood firm while terror raged on every side,

where no father turned back for his child.

وصَلْتَ يوْمَ التَقَى الجَمْعانِ مُنْصلِتاً

كالصّقْرِ في السِّرْبِ أو كاللّيثِ في النّقَدِ

And you came charging on the day the two hosts met,

like a falcon among a flock, or a lion among small sheep.

فأصْبَحَ الدّينُ لا تَخْفى مَعالِمُهُ

وأصْبَحَ المُلْكُ مرْفوعاً على عَمَدِ

So the faith's landmarks were no longer hidden,

and the kingdom stood raised upon pillars.

إنّ الحُروبَ سِجالٌ طالَما وَهَبَتْ

في اليومِ فُرْصَتَها واسْتَرْجَعَتْ لِغَدِ

Wars have alternating fortunes; how often they have granted

their opportunity today, then taken it back tomorrow.

لا يَغْرُرِ الرّومَ ما نالُوا وما فَعَلوا

فإنّ ذلِكَ إمْلاءٌ الى أمَدِ

Let the Romans not be deceived by what they have gained and done,

for that is a reprieve until an appointed term.

فلِلقُلوبِ من الغَمّاء مُنْصَرفٌ

بِما تقدّمَ في بَدْرٍ وفي أحُدِ

For hearts find an escape from grievous sorrow

in what happened before at Badr and at Uhud.

وإنّ دونَ طِلابِ الثّأرِ أُسْدَ وَغَى

منْ قوْمِكَ الغُرِّ أو آبائِكَ النُّجُدِ

And at hand for the pursuit of vengeance are lions of battle,

from your illustrious people or your valiant forefathers.

قد أقْلَقوا كلَّ مَشْحوذِ الغِرارِ الى

شَنِّ الغِوارِ وسَلّوا كلَّ ذي مَيَدِ

They have made every keen-edged blade restless for

launching raids, and drawn every swaying spear.

والعزْمُ بادٍ وصُنْعُ اللهِ مُرْتَقَبٌ

والفَتْحُ مُنْتَظَرٌ إنْ لمْ يَحِنْ فَقَدِ

And resolve is manifest, and God's work is awaited;

and victory is expected—if its hour has not come, it all but has.

وعادَةُ النّصْرِ لا تَسْتَبْطِ مَقْدَمَها

إنْ لمْ تُوافِكَ في سبْتٍ فَفي أحَدِ

And do not think accustomed victory slow in coming:

if it does not reach you on Saturday, then on Sunday.

وهاكَها منْ بَناتِ العُرْبِ ساحِرَةً

هيْفاءَ تَخْتالُ بيْنَ الدّلِّ والغَيَدِ

And take her: a sorceress among the daughters of the Arabs,

slender-waisted, strutting between coquetry and languid grace.

ولسْتُ يوماً على شِعْرٍ بمُقْتَصِرٍ

ولا بأبْياتِ منْظومٍ بمُنْفَرِدِ

And I have never confined myself to poetry,

nor occupied myself solely with lines of composed verse.

وإنّما أنا روْضٌ والعُلومُ لهُ

غيْثٌ فإنّي جَنى إنْ شِئْتَهُ تَجِدِ

Rather, I am a garden, and the sciences are its

rain; for I am ripe fruit—if you desire it, you will find it.

بَقيتَ في ظِلِّ مُلْكٍ غيْرِ منْصَرِمٍ

مُصاحَبٍ غيْرِ محْصورٍ الى أمَدِ

May you remain in the shade of a kingdom never ending,

accompanied, not bounded by any term.