ما قام لولا هواك المدنف الوصب — Ibn Anin

ما قامَ لَولا هَواكَ المُدنَفُ الوَصِبُ

يَبكي الطلولَ وَأَهلُ المُنحَنى غَيَبُ

Were it not for love of you, the wasted, ailing man would not have risen,

Weeping over the ruins, while the bend's people are absent.

وَيَسأَلُ الربعَ عَن سُكّانِهِ سَفَهاً

وَقَد مَحَت آيَه الأَرواحُ تعتَقبُ

And he foolishly questions the dwelling-place about its inhabitants,

Though successive winds have erased its traces.

يُكَفكفُ الدَمعَ أَحياناً وَتَبعَثُهُ

لَواعِجُ الشَوقِ أَحياناً فَيَنسَكِبُ

At times he checks his tears, but they are stirred

At times by longing's burning pangs, and spill.

صَبٌّ إِذا نامَ أَهلُ الحَيِّ أَزعَجَهُ

ذِكرٌ يُعاوِدُهُ مِن عيدِهِ طَربُ

A lovesick man whom, when the camp's people sleep, there troubles

A returning memory, whose recurrence brings rapture.

تَدعو هَواجِسُهُ طَيفَ الخَيالِ وَسُلـ

ـطانُ الكَرى عَنهُ بِالأَشواقِ مُحتَجبُ

His restless thoughts summon the phantom image, while the dominion

Of sleep is veiled from him by longings.

يَهيمُ شَوقاً بِأَقمارٍ عَلى قُضُبٍ

مُلدٍ تَجاذَبُها ظُلماً لَها الكُثُبُ

He wanders lovesick, longing for moons upon branches,

Supple branches that dunes unfairly tug at.

مِن كُلِّ واضِحَةِ اللَبّاتِ تَبسِمُ عَن

مُرَتَّلٍ زانَهُ التَأشيرُ وَالشَنَبُ

Each a woman with radiant throat-hollows, smiling to reveal

Well-ordered teeth adorned with fine serration and cool freshness.

تُريكَ مِن وَجهِها الوَضّاحِ إِن سَفَرَت

بَدراً وَتَبدو هِلالاً حينَ تَنتَقِبُ

From her radiant face, when she unveils, she shows you

A full moon; she appears a crescent when she veils herself.

يا ضَرَّةَ الشَمسِ إِنَّ الحُبَّ أَبعَدَني

فَلَيتَ شِعري بِماذا مِنكِ أَقتَرِبُ

O rival of the sun, love has set me far away;

If only I knew by what means I could draw near to you.

إِن كانَ لِلحُسنِ في العِشرينَ عِندَكُم

حَقُّ الزَكاةِ فَإِنّي البائِسُ الجُنُبُ

If beauty, at twenty, is liable among you

To the due of almsgiving, then I am the destitute stranger.

وَمَهمَهٍ طامِسِ الأَعلامِ مُتَّصِلٍ

تَواهَقَت بِيَ في أَجوازِهِ النُجُبُ

And a desert stretching on, its landmarks effaced,

Through whose inner reaches fine-bred camels raced, bearing me,

في لَيلَةٍ مِثلِ عَرضِ البَحرِ حالِكَةِ الـ

ـجلباتِ قامَت بِها لا تَهتَدي الشُهُبُ

On a night like the sea's expanse, with pitch-black

Veils, where the stars stood unable to find their way.

فَأَسفَرَ الصُبحُ لي عَن رايَةٍ بَلَغَت

أَقصى المَدى وَتَناهَت دونَها الرُتَبُ

Then dawn revealed to me a banner that had reached

The farthest height, with all ranks ending below it.

المَورِدُ العَذبُ وَالنادي الرَحيبُ وَإِد

راكُ المُنى وَالقِرى وَالمَربعُ الخصِبُ

The sweet watering-place, the spacious gathering-place, and the attainment

Of wishes, hospitality, and the fertile pasture.

في ظِلِّ أَبلَجَ يُستَسقى الغَمامُ بِهِ

فَيَستَهِلُّ وَيُستَشفى بِهِ الكلَبُ

In the shelter of a radiant man, through whom rain is sought from the clouds,

So they pour down; through him a cure for rabies is sought.

المُستَقِلُّ بِما أَعيا المُلوكُ بِهِ

وَالمُستَقِلُّ لَنا الدُنيا إِذا يَهَبُ

He alone bears what kings could not undertake,

And deems the world too little for us when he gives.

ثَبتُ الجَنانِ لَهُ حُلمٌ يَوَقِّرُهُ

إِذا هَفا بِحَلومِ السادَةِ الغَضَبُ

Steadfast of heart, he has a forbearance that lends him dignity

When anger unsettles the judgments of great lords.

مَعَشَّقٌ لِلمَعالي لا يَزالُ لَهُ

في كُلِّ مَرتَبَةٍ عَذراءُ تُختَطَبُ

Enamored of high honors, he always has

In every rank a virgin honor to be wooed.

صافي الضَمائِرِ مَرضِيُّ السَرائِرِ مَحـ

ـمودُ المَآثِرِ تُزهى بِاِسمِهِ الخُطَبُ

Pure in intentions, approved in his inner thoughts, praised

For his glorious deeds; sermons take pride in his name.

لَهُ أَيادٍ مُقيماتٌ مُسافِرَةٌ

لَم يَخلُ مِن بِرها عُجمٌ وَلا عَربُ

His favors both stay at home and journey abroad;

Neither non-Arabs nor Arabs have lacked their kindness.

مَولىً إِذا اِفتَخَرَ الساداتُ في مَلَأٍ

سَما بِهِ الأَشرَفانِ العِلمُ وَالحَسَبُ

A lord who, when the great lords boast before an assembly,

Is lifted by the two noblest things: learning and ancestral honor.

وَإِن دَجا لَيلُ خَطبٍ عَمَّ فادِحُهُ

ذَكا لَهُ النَيِّرانِ الفَضلُ وَالأَدَبُ

And if the night of a calamity darkens, its crushing burden spreading,

His two luminaries blaze: excellence and culture.

وَإِن سَقَت رَوضَةَ القِرطاسِ راحَتُهُ

رَأَيتَ سَيفيَّ وادٍ مِنهُ تَعتَجِبُ

And if his palm waters the garden of paper,

You see a valley's twin banks, at which you marvel.

كَأَنَّما صَدرُهُ البَحرُ المُحيطُ وَمِن

أَقلامِهِ غاصَةٌ لِلدُّرِ تَنتَخِبُ

As though his breast were the encompassing ocean, and from

His pens came divers selecting pearls.

إِذا اِحتَبى لِلفَتاوى فَهوَ مالِكُها

وَإِن حَبا خَجِلَت مِن جودِهِ السُحُبُ

When he sits, knees clasped, for legal rulings, he is their master;

And when he bestows gifts, the clouds blush at his generosity.

فَما رَأَينا إِماماً قَبلَ رُؤيَتِهِ

يَرى النَوافِلَ فَرضاً فِعلُها يَجِبُ

Before seeing him, we had never seen an imam

Who deems voluntary benefactions an obligation that must be performed.

وَالحوبُ أَن يَسبِقَ السُؤّالُ نائِلَهُ

وَأَعظَمُ الذَنبِ أَن يَبقى لَهُ نَشَبُ

The sin is for beggars to forestall his bounty,

And the greatest offense is that any wealth remain his.

يَنأى بِعِطفَيهِ إِعظامٌ وَيَجذِبُهُ

طَبعٌ كَريمٌ إِلى الحسنى فَيَنجَذِبُ

Awe holds his shoulders aloof, yet he is drawn

By a noble nature toward goodness, and he yields.

يَقظانُ لِلمَجدِ يَحمي ما تَوارَثَهُ

آباؤُهُ الصيدُ مِن فَخرٍ أَبٌ فَأَبُ

Watchful for glory, he guards what was passed down

By his proud forefathers: renown, father after father.

مِن أُسرَةٍ حازَ شيبانُ الفخارَ بِهِم

فَهم لَهُ شَرَفٌ باقٍ إِذا اِنتَسَبوا

From a family through whom Shayban won renown;

They are its lasting honor whenever they declare their lineage.

قَومٌ تَرى المَجدَ في أَبياتِهِم زُمَراً

فَالمَجدُ يُخزَنُ وَالأَموالُ تُنتَهَبُ

A people in whose houses you see glory in throngs;

Glory is hoarded, while wealth is plundered.

صيدٌ إِذا اِنتَسَبوا سُحبٌ إِذا وَهَبوا

أُسدٌ إِذا وَثَبوا حَتفٌ إِذا غَضِبوا

Proud nobles when they declare their lineage, rainclouds when they give,

Lions when they spring, death when they rage.

لَو أَزمَعوا أَمرَهُم يَوماً عَلى أَجَأٍ

رَأَيتَ أَركانَ سَلمى خيفَةً تَجِبُ

Were they one day to direct their resolve against Aja,

You would see Salma's foundations tremble in fear.

يا أَيُّها الصاحِبُ المَولى الوَزيرَ وَمَن

إِلى مَفاخِرِهِ العَلياءُ تنتَسبُ

O Sahib, lord and vizier, and you

To whose glories loftiness itself traces its lineage,

دُعيتَ في الدَولَةِ الغَرّاءِ صاحِبَها

حَقاً وَظَنَّ جَهولٌ أَنَّهُ لَقَبُ

In the radiant state you were called its Sahib,

In truth; an ignoramus thought it merely a title.

أَلبَستَها مَجدَكَ الضافي فَباتَ لَها

ذَيلٌ عَلى مَنكِبِ الجَوزاءِ يَنسَحِبُ

You clothed it in your ample glory, so it came to have

A train trailing over Orion's shoulder.

وَكَم رَدَدتَ العِدى عَنها بِغَيظِهِمُ

وَأَكبُدُ القَومِ لِلأَحقادِ تَلتَهِبُ

And how often you drove its enemies back in their fury,

While those men's livers burned with rancor.

إِذا كَتائِبُها عَن نَصرِها قَعَدَت

في حادِثٍ جَلَلٍ قامَت بِهِ الكُتُبُ

When its battalions held back from securing its victory

In a momentous crisis, letters rose to the task.

كَثَرتَهُم في دِمَشقٍ وَهيَ خالِيَةٌ

وَقَد أَناخَ عَلَيها الجَحفَلُ اللَجِبُ

You outnumbered them in Damascus, though it lay empty,

When the clamorous host had encamped against it.

كَتائِبٌ أَضحَتِ البَيداءُ مُتأَقَةً

مِنها وَضاقَت بِها البُطنانُ وَالحَدَبُ

Battalions with which the desert became brimming,

And hollows and heights were too narrow to hold them.

يَقودُهُم مِن بَني أَيّوبَ كُلُّ فَتىً

ماضي العَزائِمِ لا نِكسٌ وَلا نَخِبُ

They were led by youths of the sons of Ayyub, each

Unyielding in resolve, neither weakling nor coward.

أُسدٌ مَخالِبُها بيضُ الظُبى وَلَها

مِنَ الذَوابِلِ غيلٌ نَبتُهُ أَشِبُ

Lions whose claws are bright sword-edges, and who have

A thicket of slender spears, its growth densely tangled.

حَتّى إِذا أَشرَفَت مِنهُم دِمَشقُ عَلى

حَربٍ لَها الوَيلُ مِن عُقباهُ وَالحربُ

Until, through them, Damascus stood on the brink of

A war whose aftermath would bring it woe and despoilment,

مَنَحتَها مِنكَ عَزماً صادِقاً خَضَعَت

لَهُ ظُبى الهِندِ وَالخَطِيَّةُ السُلُبُ

You bestowed on it your own true resolve, to which bowed

The blades of India and the slender spears of al-Khatt.

فَكانَ رَأيُكَ فيها رايَةً طَلَعَت

بِالنَصرِ فَاِنجابَتِ اللأواءُ وَالكُرَبُ

Your counsel became a banner within it, rising

In victory, and hardship and distresses dispersed.

وَباتَ أَثبَتُهُم جَأشاً وَأَحزَمُهُم

رَأياً وَأَمضى سِلاحاً عَزمُهُ الهَرَبُ

And the steadiest-hearted among them, the most prudent

In judgment and keenest in arms, resolved to flee.

وَكانَ ظَنُّهُم أَن تَلتَقي بِهِم

مِصرُ البَوارَ وَتَغشى النُوبَةَ النُوَبُ

They had thought that, through them,

Egypt would meet ruin and calamities would engulf Nubia.

فَأَجفَلوا وَزَعيمُ القَومِ غايَةُ ما

يَرجو مِنَ اللَهِ أَن تَبقى لَهُ حَلَبُ

So they fled, and the utmost their leader

Hoped of God was that Aleppo might remain his.

تَدبيرُ أَروَعَ لا يَعيا بِنازِلَةٍ

وَلا يَبيتُ لِخَطبٍ قَلبُهُ يَجِبُ

The management of a brilliant man, unbaffled by calamity,

Whose heart never spends the night pounding at a crisis.

إِذا شَياطينُ بغيٍ خيفَ سورَتُها

فَإِنَّ آراءَهُ في رَجمِها شُهُبُ

When the onslaught of the devils of rebellion is feared,

His counsels are meteors hurled to stone them.

عَزمٌ بِهِ أَخمَدَ اللَهُ الشِقاقَ وَلا

هُزَّت رِماحٌ وَلا سُلَّت لَهُ قُضُبُ

A resolve through which God quenched discord, without

Spears being brandished or swords drawn for it.

وَلَو سَعى غَيرُهُ فيها لِيَرأَبَها

أَنامَهُ المُقعِدانِ العَجزُ وَالتَعَبُ

Had another striven there to mend the breach,

The two cripplers, helplessness and weariness, would have laid him to sleep.

ضَفَت مَلابِسُ نُعماهُ عَلَيَّ فَقَد

رُدَّت بِهاليَ أَثوابُ الصِبى القُشُبُ

The garments of his bounty have spread amply over me; indeed,

Through it, my fresh robes of youth were restored to me.

وَبِتُّ خِلواً مِنَ الآمالِ وَاِتَّصَلَت

بَيني وَبَينَ العُلى مِن بابِهِ نَسَبُ

I passed the night free of wishes, and there was forged

Between me and greatness, through his door, a bond of kinship.

هذا المَديحُ الَّذي ما شانَهُ خَلَلٌ

كَلّا وَلا شابَهُ في مَجدِكُم كَذِبُ

This is praise that no flaw has marred;

No indeed, nor has any falsehood about your glory tainted it.

مَعنىً بَديعٌ وَأَلفاظٌ مُنَقَّحَةٌ

غَريبَةٌ وَقَوافٍ كُلُّها نَخَبُ

An original meaning and polished words,

Rare, and rhymes, all of them choice.

ما كُلُّ عودٍ بِنَبعٍ حينَ تَعجُمُهُ

يَخورُ تَحتَ ثَنايا العاجِمِ الغَرَبُ

Not every stick is nabʿ-wood when you bite to test it;

Willow gives way beneath the tester's incisors.

قَد يَشهَدُ الحَربَ بِالزَغفِ المُضاعَفِ أَقـ

ـوامٌ وَيَشهَدُها مَن لِبسُهُ اليَلَبُ

Some people may face battle in doubled chain mail,

And others face it clad in leather armor.

فَاِسلَم وَلا زالَتِ الآلاءُ سابِغَةً

عَلَيكَ ما عادَتِ الأَيّامُ وَالحُقُبُ

So remain safe, and may blessings remain abundant

Upon you as long as days and ages recur.