رشيتك يا دهر لو كنت تُرشا

رشيتك يا دهر لو كنت تُرشا

واخشاك والدهر يرجى ويخشى

واخشاك والدهر يرجى ويخشى

I would bribe you, O Time, if you could be bribed.

I wish you well, O Time, if you could wish well,

And I fear you; Time inspires both hope and dread.

And I fear you, though Time is hoped for and feared.

طرحت الحبائل مبثوثة

طرحت الحبائل مبثوثة

على الأرض تسعى افاعي رقشا

على الأرض تسعى افاعي رقشا

You scattered snares far and wide,

I have cast my traps scattered

over the earth: mottled vipers that slither,

On the ground, snakes slithering.

رواعش تهتز مثل الصلال

رواعش تهتز مثل الصلال

تعضُّ عضاضا وتنهش نهشا

تعضُّ عضاضا وتنهش نهشا

trembling, swaying like asps,

Tremors quiver like elflocks,

biting fiercely and tearing savagely.

Biting and rending bite by bite.

يناقش مني نحاس الزمان

يناقش مني نحاس الزمان

فرنداً ترقرق في السيف نقشا

فرنداً ترقرق في السيف نقشا

Time's copper challenges what is within me:

Time scratches copper from me,

a watered pattern shimmering, engraved in the sword.

A coat of mail clanging from the sword's engraving.

فمالي اكتِّم سرَّ الزمان

فمالي اكتِّم سرَّ الزمان

وكم قد اباح بسري وافشي

وكم قد اباح بسري وافشي

Why, then, do I conceal Time's secret,

Why should I hide the secret of Time

when so often it has revealed my secret and divulged it?

When it has unveiled my secret and broadcast it?

تعبت اماشي زماني ومن

تعبت اماشي زماني ومن

يماشي الزمان اذا اعوجَّ ممشى

يماشي الزمان اذا اعوجَّ ممشى

I am weary of keeping pace with my time; and who

I grew tired walking my Time, and he who

can keep pace with Time when its path turns crooked?

Walks Time, when it twists, how can he walk straight?

فما قيل قد شاد حتى أماد

فما قيل قد شاد حتى أماد

فكم ثلَّ عرشا واثَّل عرشا

فكم ثلَّ عرشا واثَّل عرشا

No sooner is it said to have built than it makes things totter.

What was said it built up until it towered,

How many a throne it has toppled, and how many established!

So it diminished thrones and multiplied thrones.

فيحسن طوراً وطورا يسيء

فيحسن طوراً وطورا يسيء

ولم يأت بالنصح الا وغشَّا

ولم يأت بالنصح الا وغشَّا

It does good at one time, and wrong at another,

It is fine a while, then does ill,

and never offers sincere counsel without deceiving.

And it came with no counsel but deceit.

يقطِّب وجهاً اذا المرء هشَّ

يقطِّب وجهاً اذا المرء هشَّ

وان قطَّب المرء هش وبشا

وان قطَّب المرء هش وبشا

It frowns when a man smiles,

It frowns if a man grows meek,

and if the man frowns, it smiles and beams.

And if a man frowns, it grows meek and gentle.

اذا ضنَّ ضنّ سجال القطار

اذا ضنَّ ضنّ سجال القطار

وان جاد جاد رذاذا ورشا

وان جاد جاد رذاذا ورشا

When it withholds, it withholds torrents of rain;

If it is miserly, it is miserly towards the flowing rain,

and when it gives, it gives drizzle and sprinklings.

And if it is generous, it is generous with drizzling and spraying.

اسرّح فيه اللحاظ الصحاح

اسرّح فيه اللحاظ الصحاح

فترجع مرضى دوامع عُمشا

فترجع مرضى دوامع عُمشا

I let my sound eyes roam over it,

I set forth in it sincere intercession,

and they return sick, tearful, and bleary-eyed.

Yet it sent back clouded insights.

وما زال ازلمه اذرمى

وما زال ازلمه اذرمى

فتى الحزم من كان يخشى ويغشى

فتى الحزم من كان يخشى ويغشى

And it was still [unclear word] when it struck

Still it throws its trimmed one

the resolute youth, who was feared and sought out.

When a resolute man who fears and covers is thrown.

تشوش وشيُ طراز العلى

تشوش وشيُ طراز العلى

بفقديَ ذاك الطراز الموشى

بفقديَ ذاك الطراز الموشى

The embroidery of glory's brocade fell into disarray

It disturbed and discolored the embroidery of the eminent

through my loss of that richly embroidered ornament.

With the loss of that embroidered brocade.

فقدتك فقد الشمال اليمين

فقدتك فقد الشمال اليمين

بسطاً وقبضا وفتكا وبطشا

بسطاً وقبضا وفتكا وبطشا

I lost you as the left hand loses the right,

I lost you and lost the right hand of the North,

for reaching and grasping, for slaying and striking.

Grasping and drawing back, killing and crushing.

فقدتك فقد امرئ كفه

فقدتك فقد امرئ كفه

وقد يفقد المرء كفيه دهشا

وقد يفقد المرء كفيه دهشا

I lost you as a man loses his hand,

I lost you and lost a man whose palm

and a man may lose both his hands, bewildered.

Could be lost in wonder.

فقدتك فقد الفتى عينه ال

فقدتك فقد الفتى عينه ال

طموحة لمحاً ولحظا ورمشا

طموحة لمحاً ولحظا ورمشا

I lost you as a young man loses his eye—the

I lost you and the youth lost his ambitious eye,

far-gazing one, for glancing, looking, and blinking.

Aspiring, glancing, and batting.

فما دنَّست عرضك المخزيات

فما دنَّست عرضك المخزيات

ولا ضمَّ برد علائك فحشا

ولا ضمَّ برد علائك فحشا

No shameful deeds sullied your honor,

You were not disgraced by disgraces,

nor did the mantle of your eminence enfold anything vile.

Nor did the cold include you in anything indecent.

وفي الناس من ان تفتِّش حشاه

وفي الناس من ان تفتِّش حشاه

جرابٌ به الريح والبويحشى

جرابٌ به الريح والبويحشى

Among people are those whose innards, if searched, prove

Among the people are those, if you search their thoughts,

a sack full of wind, and a stuffed calfskin.

Whose bags contain only wind and emptiness.

تبصّر فدهرك غير البصير

تبصّر فدهرك غير البصير

فلاتكُ انت مع الدهر اعشى

فلاتكُ انت مع الدهر اعشى

See clearly, for your Time is not clear-sighted;

You look, but other than the perceptive, your Time

do not be dim-sighted yourself along with Time.

So do not you be blind with Time.

هو الموت يدرك حتى العقاب

هو الموت يدرك حتى العقاب

ولو قد بنت في ذرى الجو عشا

ولو قد بنت في ذرى الجو عشا

It is Death, overtaking even the eagle,

It is death that takes even the eagle

even if she has built a nest in the heights of the sky.

Though it builds in the sky’s orbit a nest.

فلم يبقِ انساً ولا جنة

فلم يبقِ انساً ولا جنة

ولم يبقِ طيراً ولم يبق وحشا

ولم يبقِ طيراً ولم يبق وحشا

It has spared neither humans nor jinn,

No human remains nor jinn,

nor has it spared birds, nor wild beasts,

No bird remains nor beast.

ولا من اذا انصاع ينحو الكفاح

ولا من اذا انصاع ينحو الكفاح

يناطح كبش الكتيبة كبشا

يناطح كبش الكتيبة كبشا

nor one who, rushing forth, makes for combat,

None remains who, when urged, inclines towards struggle,

locking horns with the battalion's ram, himself a ram.

Butting the ram of the battalion like a ram.

سقته من الغر غر السحاب

سقته من الغر غر السحاب

سحابة لطف على القبر تنشى

سحابة لطف على القبر تنشى

May the bright clouds water him, one of the noble,

It gave him to drink from the pitcher of pitchers of clouds

a cloud of kindness rising above the grave.

A cloud of subtle rain over the grave that grows.

وروّى ثراه ملث الرباب

وروّى ثراه ملث الرباب

بشوء بوب مزن يصون اجشَّا

بشوء بوب مزن يصون اجشَّا

And may lingering clouds drench his soil

It watered his earth with poured heavy rain,

with a rainburst from deep-thundering clouds that give protection.

Preserving it with rain keeping corruption away.