وليلة فيها قصر — Kashajim

وليلةٍ فيها قِصَرْ

عِشَاؤُها معَ السَّحَرْ

And a night so brief,

its evening meeting the predawn hour,

صافِيَةٍ مِنَ الكَدَرْ

تُقْضَى ولم تَقْضِ الوَطَرْ

clear of all distress,

it ends before desire is fulfilled,

وحياً كلمحٍ بِالبَصَرْ

أو خَطْرَةِ مِنَ الخَطَرْ

swiftly, like a blink of the eye,

or a thought flitting among thoughts.

في مِثْلِها الْتَذّ السَّحَرْ

واستوطَأَ الجَنْبُ الإِبَرْ

On such a night, the predawn hour is sweet,

and the side finds needles soft to lie on.

تَمْحُو إساءَاتِ القَدَرْ

وتترُكُ الدَّهْرَ أَغَرْ

It wipes away fate's wrongs

and leaves time bright-faced.

لهوتُ فيها مُسْتَتِرَ

بِطارقٍ على حَذَرْ

I took my pleasure in it, hidden away,

with a wary visitor in the night,

حَيْرَانَ من فَرْطِ الذَّعْرِ

ينهَضُ باسِمي إنْ عَثَرْ

bewildered by overwhelming fear,

rising with my name on his lips if he stumbled.

نَشْوَانُ مِنْ غَيْرِ سُكُرْ

إلاَّ الدَّلاَلَ والخَفَرْ

Rapturous, with no intoxication

save coquetry and bashfulness,

يَفْضَحُهُ النّشْرُ العَطِرْ

آنَسْتُهُ حتّى اسْتَقَرّ

his fragrant scent betrays him.

I put him at ease until he settled

هُنَيْهَةً ثُمّ سَفَرْ

عَنْ دَعَجٍ وَعَنْ حَوَرْ

for a moment; then he unveiled

dark eyes and their brilliant whites,

وعارضٍ مِثْلِ القَمَرْ

يَلُوحُ في ليلِ الشَّعَرْ

and a cheek like the moon,

gleaming in the night of his hair.

لا يَشْتَفِي مِنْهُ النَّظَرُ

لو ضربْتَهُ لَقَطَرْ

The gaze cannot have its fill of it;

if you struck it, it would drip.

وَمَبْسِمْ عذبِ الأَشَرْ

فيه مع الطّيبِ خَصَرْ

And a smiling mouth with sweet, fine-edged teeth,

with coolness alongside its fragrance,

أُلِّفَ من خمرٍ وَدُرْ

وافَرْحَتي حِيْنَ حَضَرْ

fashioned of wine and pearls.

Oh, my joy when he arrived!

وارتَاحَ مُشتاقٌ وَسُرْ

سُرُورَ أرضٍ بِعَطَرْ

A yearning lover found relief and joy,

like earth rejoicing in perfume,

أوْ عَيْنِ أَعْمَى بِنَظَرْ

أَذْكَرْتُ ذَنْباً فاعْتَذَرْ

or a blind man's eye in sight.

I mentioned an offense; he apologized.

ثم اعْتَذَرْتُ فَشَكَرْ

ثم نَشَجْتُ فَزَفَرْ

Then I apologized, and he thanked me.

Then I sobbed, and he sighed.

ثم لثَمْتُ فَنَخَرْ

كنفسِ الظَّبْي انْبَهَرْ

Then I kissed him, and he snorted,

like the breathing of a winded gazelle.

ثم تجاذبْنَا الأُزُرْ

فلا تَسَلْ عَنِ الخَبَرْ

Then we tugged back and forth at our wraps;

so do not ask what happened.

ثُمّ تَأَبَى فَنَفَرْ

يا قُرْبَ وِرْدٍ مِنْ صَدَرْ

Then he resisted and drew away.

How close coming to water is to leaving it!

ما إِنْ دَنَا حَتّى شَطَرْ

وَلاَ وَفَى حَتّى غَدَرْ

No sooner had he drawn near than he went far away,

nor had he kept faith before he betrayed.

وجاشَ بحرٌ وَزَخَرْ

وَلي إذا الهَمُّ غَمَرْ

And a sea seethed and surged.

And when sorrow engulfs me, I have

عَزْمٌ على الهَوْلِ مُمِرْ

وهِمّةٌ ذاتُ كِبَرْ

a steadfast resolve in the face of terror,

and an ambition of lofty reach,

مع السِّمَاكِ والمَجَرْ

بمثلِهَا أمْرِي أَمِرْ

up with al-Simak and the Milky Way.

With such ambition my affairs grow mighty.

وسابحٍ نَهْدٍ طمِرْ

لو سَابَقَ الرِّيْحَ ظَهَرْ

And a swimming-gaited steed, full-chested and fleet,

if it raced the wind, it would prevail;

أو ساجَلَ البَرْقَ فَخَرْ

أو كاثَرَ البَحْرَ كَثَرْ

or vied with lightning, it would triumph;

or rivaled the sea in abundance, it would surpass it;

أو بادَرَ السَّيْلَ بَدَرْ

أَدْهَمُ كاللَّيْلِ اعْتَكَرْ

or raced the torrent, it would come first.

Jet-black as night in its deepening gloom,

لَوْلاَ الخجُولُ والغُرَرْ

وَمُطْلَقُ الحَدِّ ذَكَرْ

but for its white fetlock-rings and forehead blazes.

And a hard-steeled sword with an unfettered edge,

عَضْبٌ بِمَتْنَيْهِ أَثَرْ

مَدَّ الفِرِنْدَ وَجَزَرْ

keen, with a pattern on both its flats,

its watered pattern flowed and ebbed

فِيْهِ كَمَا مَدّض النَّهَرْ

كَمَا التَقَى نَمْلٌ وَذَرْ

along it, as a river swells,

like ants and tiny ants intermingling.

وَكَامِنَاتٌ تُنْتَظَرْ

شَتٍّى النَّبَاتِ كَالْحِبَرْ

And lurking ones, awaited,

varied in coat, like striped fabrics,

هِيْمٌ إَلَى الصَّيْدِ ضُمُرْ

مِنْ كُنِّ مِغْوَارٍ أَشِرْ

lean and thirsting for the hunt,

from the lair of a bold, high-spirited raider,

يَضْمَنُ مَأْمُولَ الظَّفَرْ

أَغْضَفُ أَحْذَاهُ الزَّهَرْ

who guarantees the hoped-for victory:

a floppy-eared hound, given flowers—

سُوسَنُ أُذْنَيْهِ النَّظَرْ

عَادَ عَلَى الوَحْشِ مِكَرْ

the lilies of his ears—by the gaze.

He assailed the beasts—he had outwitted

بِغَيْرِهَا وَلاَ بِغُرْ

خَتْلاً فَإِنْ رَاعَتْ كَسَرْ

others too, and was no novice—

by stealth; if they startled, he felled them,

مُسْتَحْبِبَاً لِمَا هَصَرْ

أَخْذَ عَزِيْزٍ مُقْتَدِرْ

relishing whatever he crushed,

with the grip of one mighty and powerful,

مِنْ غَيْرِ تَدْمَاءِ الثَّغَرْ

مِنْهُ بِنَابٍ وَظُفُرْ

without bloodying the mouth

with any fang or claw of his.

بِمْثِلِه مِثْلِي بَكَرْ

وَالصُّبْحُ لَمَا يَنْفَجِرْ

With such as he, one such as I set out early,

while dawn had not yet broken,

بِحَتْفِ أَظْبٍ وَبَقَرْ

وَالبَرَكَاتُ فِي البُكَرْ

bringing death to gazelles and wild cattle;

and blessings lie in early mornings.

فِي زُمْرَةٍ خَيرِ زُمَرْ

مِنْ نَفَرِ أيِّ نَفَرْ

In a company, the best of companies,

of men—and what men!—

مِنْ آلِ سَاسَانَ صُبُرْ

عَلَى تَصَارِيْفَ الغِيَرْ

from the house of Sasan, steadfast

through fortune's shifting reversals,

قَدْ حَلَبُوا الدَّهْرَ دِرَرْ

وَجَرَّبُوا حُلْواً وَمُرْ

they have milked time's flowing bounty

and experienced both sweet and bitter,

مُسَاعِدِيْنَ فِي الحَضَرْ

مُوَافِقِيْنَ فِي السَّفَرْ

helpful companions at home,

congenial companions on the road.

أَلْهَاهُمُ قَرْعُ الوَتَرْ

وَشَدْوُ غِزْلاَنِ السُّتَرْ

The striking of the string amused them,

and the song of gazelles behind curtains,

نَحْو وَشِعْرٌ وَخَبَرْ

وَمُسْنَدٌ مِنَ الأَثَرْ

grammar, poetry, and narrative lore,

and traditions with chains of transmission,

وَيَوْمُ فَخْرٍ يُدَّكَرْ

فَأَنْتَ مِنْهُمْ فِي ثَمَرْ

and a day of glory recalled.

So among them you are amid fruit

يُغْذِي وَيُجْنَى بِالفِكَرْ

وَمُلَحٍ مِنَ الفِقَرْ

that nourishes and is harvested by thought,

and witty gems from choice passages

يَطِيْرُ مِنْهُنَّ الشَّرَرْ

يَا لَكَ مِنْ قَوْلٍ خَطَرْ

from which sparks fly.

Oh, what words of high worth!

كَالْعِقْدِ حَلَّ فَانْتَثَرْ

عَرُوضُ قَوْلٍ مُشْتَهَرْ

Like a necklace unfastened and scattered.

In the meter of a celebrated verse,

سَارَ لِأَدِهَى مَنْ شَعَرْ

وَبَلْدَةٍ فِيْهَا زَوَرْ

spread abroad, by the wiliest maker of verse:

"And a land of crooked paths."