Sol 6.1

  1. أَرَبَّت بِعَينَيكَ الدُموعُ السَوافِحُ

    فَلا العَهدُ مَنسِيٌّ وَلا الرَبعُ بارِحُ

    The streaming tears linger in your eyes;

    neither the old bond is forgotten nor the dwelling gone.

  2. مَحى طَلَلاً بَينَ المُنيفَةِ فَالنَقا

    صَباً راحَةٌ أَو ذو حَبِيَّينِ رائِحُ

    A ruined campsite between al-Munifa and al-Naqa was erased

    by a gusting east wind, or an evening cloud with twin banks.

  3. بِها كُلُّ ذَيّالِ الأَصيلِ كَأَنَّهُ

    بِدارَةِ رَهبى ذو سِوارَينِ رامِحُ

    There, each cloud trailing its skirts at dusk seems

    a spearman wearing two bracelets at Darat Rahba.

  4. أَلا تَذكُرُ الأَزمانَ إِذ تَتبَعُ الصِبا

    وَإِذ أَنتَ صَبٌّ وَالهَوى بِكَ جامِحُ

    Do you not remember the days when you pursued youthful pleasures,

    when you were lovesick and passion ran unbridled with you?

  5. وَإِذ أَعيُنٌ مَرضى لَهُنَّ رَمِيَّةٌ

    فَقَد أُقصِدَت تِلكَ القُلوبُ الصَحائِحُ

    And when languid eyes had their quarry—

    those sound hearts were mortally struck.

  6. مَنَعتِ شِفاءَ النَفسِ مِمَّن تَرَكتِهِ

    بِهِ كَالجَوى مِمّا تُجِنُّ الجَوانِحُ

    You withheld the soul's cure from one whom you left

    with something like an inward fever from what his ribs conceal.

  7. تَرَكتِ بِنا لوحاً وَلَو شِئتِ جادَنا

    بُعَيدَ الكَرى ثَلجٌ بِكَرمانَ ناصِحُ

    You left us parched; yet, had you wished, we would have been showered with

    pure Kirman snow, shortly after slumber.

  8. رَأَيتُ مَثيلَ البَرقِ تَحسِبُ أَنَّهُ

    قَريبٌ وَأَدنى صَوبِهِ مِنكَ نازِحُ

    I saw the likeness of lightning: you think it

    near, yet even its nearest rainfall is far from you.

  9. إِذا حَدَّثَت لَم تُلفِ مَكنونَ سِرِّها

    لِمَن قالَ إِنّي بِالوَديعَةِ بائِحُ

    When she speaks, you will not find her guarded secret disclosed

    to one who says, 'I divulge what is entrusted to me.'

  10. فَتِلكَ الَّتي لَيسَت بِذاتِ دَمامَةٍ

    وَلَم يَعرُها مِن مَنصِبِ الحَيِّ قادِحُ

    That is she who has no ugliness,

    nor has any flaw in her tribe's lineage tainted her.

  11. تَعَجَّبُ أَن ناصى بِيَ الشَيبُ وَاِرتَقى

    إِلى الرَأسِ حَتّى اِبيَضَّ مِنّي المَسائِحُ

    She marvels that grayness has reached my forelock and climbed

    over my head, until my locks have turned white.

  12. فَقَد جَعَلَ المَفروكَ لا نامَ لَيلُهُ

    يُحِبُّ حَديثي وَالغَيورُ المُشايِحُ

    For it has made the unloved husband—may his night be sleepless—

    love my conversation, and the fiercely jealous man as well.

  13. وَما ثَغَبٌ باتَت تُصَفِّقُهُ الصَبا

    بِصَرّاءِ نِهيٍ أَتأَقَتهُ الرَوايِحُ

    No rocky pool, slapped all night by the east wind,

    in a waterhole's stony bed, brim-filled by evening rainclouds,

  14. بِأَطيَبَ مَن فيها وَلا طَعمُ قَرقَفٍ

    بِرَمّانَ لَم يَنظُر بِها الشَرقَ صابِحُ

    is sweeter than her mouth, nor is the taste of strong wine

    at Ramman, where a morning drinker did not await sunrise.

  15. قِفا فَاِستَخيرا اللَهَ أَن تُشحَطَ النَوى

    غَداةَ جَرى ظَبيٌ بِحَومَلَ بارِحُ

    Halt, you two, and seek God's guidance over a far-flung parting,

    on the morning a gazelle ran right to left at Hawmal.

  16. نَظَرتُ بِشِجعى نَظرَةً فِعلَ ذي هَواً

    وَأَجبالُ شِجعى دونَها وَالأَباطِحُ

    At Shij'a I cast a glance, as a lover does,

    with Shij'a's mountains and gravel beds between me and her,

  17. لِأُبصِرَ حَيثُ اِستَوقَدَ الحَيُّ بِالمَلا

    وَبَطنُ المَلا مِن جَوفِ يَبرينَ نازِحُ

    to see where the tribe had lit its fire at al-Mala,

    though al-Mala's valley is far from the heart of Yabrin.

  18. إِذا ما أَرَدنا حاجَةً حالَ دونَها

    كِلابُ العِدى مِنهُنَّ عاوٍ وَنابِحُ

    Whenever we seek something, there stand in its way

    the dogs of our foes—some howling, some barking.

  19. وَمِن آلِ ذي بَهدى طَلَبناكَ رَغبَةً

    لِيَمتاحَ بَحراً مِن بُحورِكَ مايِحُ

    And from the people of Dhu Bahda we sought you eagerly,

    that a well-dipper might draw from one of your seas.

  20. إِذا قُلتُ قَد كَلَّ المَطِيُّ تَحامَلَت

    عَلى الجَهدِ عيدِيّاتُهُنَّ الشَرامِحُ

    Whenever I said, 'The mounts are spent,' onward pressed

    their tall 'Idiyya camels, despite exhaustion,

  21. بِأَعرافِ مَوماةٍ كَأَنَّ سَرابَها

    عَلى حَدَبِ البيدِ الأُضاءُ الضَحاضِحُ

    across a wasteland's ridges, as though its mirage

    were shallow pools upon the desert's rises.

  22. قَطَعنَ بِنا عَرضَ السَماوَةِ هَزَّةً

    كَما هَزَّ أَمراساً بِلينَةَ ماتِحُ

    They swept us across al-Samawa's breadth in a swaying rush,

    as a well-drawer shakes ropes at Lina.

  23. جَرَيتَ فَلا يَجري أَمامَكَ سابِقٌ

    وَبَرَّزَ صَلتٌ مِن جَبينِكَ واضِحُ

    You have raced, and no frontrunner runs ahead of you;

    and your clear, smooth brow has come to the fore.

  24. مَدَحناكَ يا عَبدَ العَزيزِ وَطالَما

    مُدِحتَ فَلَم يَبلُغ فَعالَكَ مادِحُ

    We have praised you, O Abd al-Aziz, and often

    have you been praised, yet no praiser has done justice to your deeds.

  25. تُفَدّيكَ بِالآباءِ في كُلِّ مَوطِنٍ

    شَبابُ قُرَيشٍ وَالكُهولُ الجَحاجِحُ

    They offer their fathers as your ransom in every place—

    the young men of Quraysh and its mature, noble chiefs.

  26. أَتَغلِبُ ما حُكمُ الأُخَيطَلِ إِذ قَضى

    بِعَدلٍ وَلا بَيعُ الأُخَيطَلِ رابِحُ

    O Taghlib, al-Ukhaytal's verdict, when he judged, was not

    just, nor is al-Ukhaytal's bargain profitable.

  27. مَتى تَلقَ حُوّاطي يَحوطونَ عازِباً

    عَريضَ الحِمى تَأوي إِلَيهِ المَسالِحُ

    When you meet my guardians, guarding one far from home,

    with a wide protected domain where armed bands find shelter,

  28. أَتَعدِلُ مَن يَدعو بِقَيسٍ وَخِندَفٍ

    لَعَمرُكَ ميزانٌ بِوَزنِكَ راجِحُ

    do you match one who calls on Qays and Khindaf?

    By your life, the balance weighs heavily against you.

  29. يَميلُ حَصى نَجدٍ عَلَيكَ وَلَو تُرى

    بِغَوريِّ نَجدٍ غَرَّقَتكَ الأَباطِحُ

    Najd's very pebbles lean against you; and were you seen

    in Najd's lowlands, the gravel beds would drown you.

  30. فَلَو مالَ مَيلٌ مِن تَميمٍ عَلَيكُمُ

    لِأُمِّكَ صِلدامٌ مِنَ العِزِّ قارِحُ

    If a single contingent of Tamim turned against you all,

    your mother would have a rock-hard, seasoned champion of might.

  31. وَقُلتَ لَنا ما قُلتَ نَشوانَ فَاِصطَبِر

    لِحُرِّ القَوافي لَم يَقُلهُنَّ مازِحُ

    You said to us what you said while drunk; now endure

    the choicest rhymes—their speaker was not jesting.

  32. فَكَم مِن خَبيثِ الريحِ مِن رَهطِ دَوبَلٍ

    بِدِجلَةَ لا تَبكي عَلَيهِ النَوايِحُ

    How many a foul-smelling man of Dawbal's clan

    lies at the Tigris, unwept by the mourning women!

  33. تَرَدَّيتَ في زَوراءَ يَرمي بِمَن هَوى

    رُؤوسَ الحَوامي جولَها المُتَطاوِحُ

    You plunged into a crooked well, where whoever falls is hurled

    onto the tops of hard stones by its toppling wall.