تنبّأ المتنَبّي فيكُمُ عُصُرا

تنبّأ المتنَبّي فيكُمُ عُصُرا

ولو رأى رأيكم في شعِره كفَرا

ولو رأى رأيكم في شعِره كفَرا

Al-Mutanabbi claimed prophethood among you for a time;

Al-Mutanabbi prophesied an era about you all

and had he seen your judgment of his verse, he would have disbelieved.

Had he seen your opinion of his poetry, he would have blasphemed

مهْلاً فلا المتنبّي بالنبيّ ولا

مهْلاً فلا المتنبّي بالنبيّ ولا

أعُدُّ أمثالَهُ في شعره السُّوَرا

أعُدُّ أمثالَهُ في شعره السُّوَرا

Easy! Al-Mutanabbi is no prophet, nor

Hold on! Al-Mutanabbi is no prophet and

do I count the maxims in his verse as Quranic chapters.

I do not consider his poems to be scripture

تِهْتُمْ علينا بمرآه وعلَّكُمُ

تِهْتُمْ علينا بمرآه وعلَّكُمُ

لم تُدركوا منه لا عَيناً ولا أثَرا

لم تُدركوا منه لا عَيناً ولا أثَرا

You lorded it over us for seeing him, though perhaps you

You criticize him for his mirror, as if

had seen neither him in person nor a trace of him.

You did not understand from it neither form nor trace

هذا على أنّكُم لم تُنصِفوه ولا

هذا على أنّكُم لم تُنصِفوه ولا

أورثتموه حميدَ الذكر إن ذُكِرا

أورثتموه حميدَ الذكر إن ذُكِرا

This, though you have not done him justice, nor

That is, even though you did not do him justice or

left him a good name, should he be mentioned.

Make his mention honorable if mentioned

وَيْلُمِّهِ شاعراً أخمَلتْمُوه ولم

وَيْلُمِّهِ شاعراً أخمَلتْمُوه ولم

نَعلمْ له عندنَا قدْراً ولا خَطَرا

نَعلمْ له عندنَا قدْراً ولا خَطَرا

Woe to his mother—what a poet! You have obscured him, and we

Woe to him as a poet whom you made imperfect and

recognized neither his worth nor his standing among us.

We do not know for him any worth or significance with us

فقد حَمَلتُمْ عليهِ في قَصائِدِهِ

فقد حَمَلتُمْ عليهِ في قَصائِدِهِ

ما يُضْحِكُ الثَّقَلَينِ الجِنَّ والبشَرا

ما يُضْحِكُ الثَّقَلَينِ الجِنَّ والبشَرا

For you have foisted upon him, in his poems,

For you critiqued in his poems

what makes both kinds of beings laugh—jinn and humankind.

What makes both mankind and jinn laugh

صَحَّفْتُمُ اللّفظَ والمعنى عليهِ معاً

صَحَّفْتُمُ اللّفظَ والمعنى عليهِ معاً

في حالةٍ وزعمْتُمْ أنّه حَصَرا

في حالةٍ وزعمْتُمْ أنّه حَصَرا

You have garbled both wording and meaning to his detriment,

You distorted the words and their meanings together

all at once, and claimed that he was tongue-tied,

And claimed he had made a mistake

إذ تُقسِمونَ بَرأسِ العَيرِ أنّكُمُ

إذ تُقسِمونَ بَرأسِ العَيرِ أنّكُمُ

شافَهْتُموهُ فهل شافَهتم الحَجَرا

شافَهْتُموهُ فهل شافَهتم الحَجَرا

as you swear by the ass's head that you

As you swear by the head of a camel that

spoke with him face to face—did you speak with a stone?

You met him in person, did you meet a rock?

فما يقولُ لنا القرطاسُ ويلكُمُ

فما يقولُ لنا القرطاسُ ويلكُمُ

إنّا نَرَى عِظَةً فيكُم ومُعتَبَرا

إنّا نَرَى عِظَةً فيكُم ومُعتَبَرا

Then what does the paper tell us? Woe to you!

So what does the paper tell us, woe to you

Indeed, in you we see a warning and a lesson.

We see a lesson and example in you

شعراً أحَطتُمْ بهِ عِلماً كأنّكُمُ

شعراً أحَطتُمْ بهِ عِلماً كأنّكُمُ

فاوضْتُمُ العِيرَ في فحواهُ والحُمُرا

فاوضْتُمُ العِيرَ في فحواهُ والحُمُرا

Verse you have thoroughly mastered—as though you

A poetry you encompassed with knowledge as if

conferred with the caravan and the donkeys about its meaning!

You negotiated with the camel about its contents and donkeys

فلو يُصِيخُ إليكم سمْعُ قائِلِهِ

فلو يُصِيخُ إليكم سمْعُ قائِلِهِ

ما باتَ يعمَلُ في تحبيرِه الفِكَرا

ما باتَ يعمَلُ في تحبيرِه الفِكَرا

For had its poet's ear listened intently to you,

If only the hearing of its sayer would cry out to you

he would not have spent the night taxing his thoughts to polish it.

He would not spend the night pondering it

أريتموني مثالاً من روايتكم

أريتموني مثالاً من روايتكم

كالأعجميِّ أتى لا يُفصِحُ الخَبرا

كالأعجميِّ أتى لا يُفصِحُ الخَبرا

You showed me a sample of your version,

You showed me an example from your narration

like a foreigner who came unable to make his message plain:

Like a non-Arabic speaker who cannot articulate the news

أصَمُّ أعْمى ولكنْي سهِرْتُ لهُ

أصَمُّ أعْمى ولكنْي سهِرْتُ لهُ

حتى رددتُ إليهِ السمعَ والبصَرا

حتى رددتُ إليهِ السمعَ والبصَرا

deaf and blind; but I kept vigil over it

Deaf, blind, but I stayed up for him

until I restored its hearing and sight.

Until I returned his hearing and vision

كانتْ معانيه ليلاً فامتعضْتُ لَهُ

كانتْ معانيه ليلاً فامتعضْتُ لَهُ

حتى إذا ما بَهرنَ الشمسَ والقمرا

حتى إذا ما بَهرنَ الشمسَ والقمرا

Its meanings were night, so I grew indignant on its behalf;

His meanings were dark nights so I was disgusted by him

and when at last they outshone the sun and moon,

Until the sun and the moon shone

ضَجرتُمُ وأتانا من مَلامكُمُ

ضَجرتُمُ وأتانا من مَلامكُمُ

ومن معاريضِكُم ما يُشبهُ الضَّجَرا

ومن معاريضِكُم ما يُشبهُ الضَّجَرا

you grew vexed, and there came to us, from your reproaches

You were annoyed and your blame of us came

and from your veiled remarks, something resembling vexation.

And your disapproval that resembles annoyance

تَتْرَى رسائلُكم فيه ورُسْلُكُمُ

تَتْرَى رسائلُكم فيه ورُسْلُكُمُ

إذا أتَتْ زُمَراً أردفْتُمُ زُمَرا

إذا أتَتْ زُمَراً أردفْتُمُ زُمَرا

One after another come your letters about it and your messengers;

Your letters about him come in groups

when they arrive in groups, you send more groups after them.

When they come in bands, more bands follow

فلو رأى ما دهاني من كِتابِكُمُ

فلو رأى ما دهاني من كِتابِكُمُ

وما دها شِعْرَهُ منكم لما شَعُرا

وما دها شِعْرَهُ منكم لما شَعُرا

For had he seen what befell me from your book,

If only he could see what your writing did to me

and what befell his verse at your hands, he would never have become a poet.

And what your mouths did to his poetry, he would not sense

ولو حَرصْتُم على إحياء مُهْجَتِهِ

ولو حَرصْتُم على إحياء مُهْجَتِهِ

كما حرَصْتُم على ديوانه نُشِرا

كما حرَصْتُم على ديوانه نُشِرا

And had you been eager to revive his soul

Had you tried to revive his genius

as you were eager for his collected poems, he would have been resurrected.

As you tried to publish his diwan, it would have spread

هَبُوا الكِتابَ رددْناهُ برُمَّتِهِ

هَبُوا الكِتابَ رددْناهُ برُمَّتِهِ

فمن يرُدُّ لكُم أذهانَهُ أُخَرا

فمن يرُدُّ لكُم أذهانَهُ أُخَرا

Suppose we have returned the book in its entirety—

Send the book, we will return it completely

who, then, will restore its thoughts to you anew?

But who will return his minds to you afterwards?

لئن أعدْتُ عليكمُ منْهُ ما ظَهَرا

لئن أعدْتُ عليكمُ منْهُ ما ظَهَرا

فما أعَدْتُ عليكُمْ منْه ما استترا

فما أعَدْتُ عليكُمْ منْه ما استترا

If indeed I have returned to you what was apparent in it,

If I compile against you from it what is apparent

I have not returned to you what lay hidden in it.

I have not compiled against you from it what is hidden

أعَرْتُموني نفيساً منه في أدَمٍ

أعَرْتُموني نفيساً منه في أدَمٍ

فمَن لكم أن تعاروا البحثَ والنظَرا

فمَن لكم أن تعاروا البحثَ والنظَرا

You lent me something precious from it, in leather;

You stripped me of the finest parts of it into leather

who, then, will ensure you are lent inquiry and reflection?

So who has permitted you to forbid searching and thinking?