نظرت وركن من ذقانين دونه — Layla Al Akhyaliyya

نَظَرْتُ ورُكْنٌ مِنْ ذِقانَيْنِ دُونَهُ

مَفاوِزُ حَوْضَى أيّ نَظْرَةِ ناظِرِ

I looked; a spur of Dhiqanayn lay beyond

the wastes of Hawda—what a watcher's gaze!

لأونَس إن لَمْ يَقصُرِ الطّرفُ عَنْهُمُ

فَلمْ تَقْصُرِ الأخْبارُ والطَّرفُ قاصرِي

To glimpse them, if my sight did not fall short of them;

yet the news did not fall short, though my sight failed me.

فَوارِسُ أَجْلَى شَأْوُها عَنْ عَقِيرَةٍ

لِعاقرِها فيها عَقِيرَةُ عاقِرِ

Horsemen whose racing revealed a slain victim,

for whose slayer there lay among them a slayer's victim.

فآنَسْتُ خَيْلاً بالرُّقَيِّ مُغِيرَةً

سَوابِقُها مِثْلُ القَطا المُتَواتِرِ

Then I descried horses raiding at al-Ruqayy,

their foremost runners like sandgrouse following one another.

قَتِيلُ بَنِي عَوْفٍ وأَيْصُرُ دُونَهُ

قَتِيلُ بَني عَوْفٍ قَتِيلُ يُحاِيرِ

The victim of Banu Awf, with Aysur before him—

the victim of Banu Awf, the victim of Yuhayir.

تَوارَدَهُ أسْيافُهُمْ فكَأَنَّما

تصادَرْنَ عَنْ أَقطاعِ أَبْيضَ باتِرِ

Their swords came upon him in succession, as though

they withdrew from fragments of a keen white blade,

مِنَ الهِنْدُوانِيّاتِ في كلِّ قِطْعَةٍ

دَمٌ زَلَّ عَنْ أَثْرٍ مِنَ السَّيْفِ ظَاهِرِ

one of the Indian swords; in every fragment

was blood that slipped from a visible sword-mark.

أَتَتْهُ المَنايا بَيْنَ زَعْفٍ حَصِينَةٍ

وأسْمَرَ خطّيٍّ وخَوْصاءَ ضَامِرِ

Death came to him amid strong coats of mail,

a brown Khatti spear, and a lean, narrow-eyed mare,

عَلى كلِّ جَرداءَ السَّراةِ وسابحٍ

دَرَأْنَ بِشُبَّاكِ الحديدِ زَوافِرِ

on every sleek-backed mare and swimming steed.

Broad-flanked, they surged forward in meshes of iron,

عَوابِسَ تَعْدُو الثّعْلَبِيَّةَ ضُمَّراً

وَهُنَّ شَواحٍ بالشّكِيمِ الشَّواجِرِ

grim-faced and lean, running with a foxlike gait,

their mouths agape around the jaw-prising bits.

فلا يُبْعِدَنْكَ اللّهُ يا تَوبُ إنّما

لِقاءُ المنايا دارِعاً مِثْلُ حاسِرِ

May God not cast you far away, O Tawb; for

to meet death armored is as to meet it unarmored.

فإلاّ تَكُ القَتْلى بَواءً فإنَّكُمْ

ستَلْقَوْنَ يَوْماً وِرْدُهُ غَيْرُ صادِرِ

If the slain are not equal in blood, then you

will face a day whose water-seekers never return.

وإنَّ السَّلِيلَ إذْ يُباوِي قَتِيلَكُمْ

كَمَرْحُومَةٍ مِن عَرْكِها غَيْرِ طاهِرِ

And al-Salil, when matched in blood against your slain man,

is like a pitied woman, unclean from her menses.

فإنْ تَكُنِ القَتْلى بَواءً فإنَّكُمْ

فَتىً ما قَتَلْتُمْ آلَ عَوْفِ بنِ عامِرِ

But if the slain are equal in blood, then you

have killed a man indeed, house of Awf ibn Amir.

فَتىً لا تَخَطَّاهُ الرِّفاقُ ولا يَرى

لِقدْرٍ عيالاً دُونَ جارٍ مُجاوِرِ

A man no traveling company passed by, who would not see

his household fed from a pot while a nearby neighbor went without.

ولاَ تأخُذُ الكُومُ الجِلادُ رِماحَها

لِتَوْبَةَ في نَحْسِ الشّتاءِ الصَّنابِرِ

Nor did the sturdy, high-humped camels take up their spears

against Tawba in the misery of bitter winter.

إذا ما رأَتْهُ قائِماً بِسِلاحِهِ

تَقَتْهُ الخِفافُ بالثِّقالِ البَهازِرِ

Whenever they saw him standing with his weapons,

the light camels shielded themselves from him with the heavy, massive ones.

إذا لَمْ يَجُدْ منها برسْلٍ فَقَصْرُهُ

ذُرى المُرْهَفاتِ والقِلاصِ التَّواجِرِ

If he found no milk among them, his sole recourse was

keen sword-points and prized young she-camels.

قَرى سَيْفَه منها مُشاشاً وضَيْفَه

سَنامَ المَهارِيسِ السِّباطِ المشافِرِ

He fed his sword their joint-bones, and his guest

the hump of massive, long-lipped she-camels.

وتَوْبَةُ أحْيا مِنْ فَتاةٍ حَيِيَّةٍ

وأَجْرأُ مِنْ لَيْثٍ بخَفّانَ خادِرِ

Tawba was more bashful than a shy maiden,

and bolder than a lion lurking in its lair at Khuffan.

فَتى لا تَراهُ النّابُ إلفاً لسَقْبِها

إذا اخْتَلَجتْ بالناسِ إحْدى الكَبائرِ

A man no old she-camel saw as her male calf's companion,

when one of the great calamities swept through the people.

ونِعْمَ الفَتى إنْ كانَ تَوْبَةُ فاجِراً

وفوق الفتى إن كان ليس بفاجِرِ

What a fine man, even if Tawba was a sinner,

and more than a man if he was no sinner.

فَتىً يَنْهَلُ الحاجاتِ ثُمَّ يَعُلُّها

فيُطلِعُها عَنْهُ ثَنايا المَصادِرِ

A man who gave needs their first drink, then their second,

then sent them from him up the passes of return.

كأنَّ فَتى الفِتْيانِ تَوْبَةَ لَمْ يُنِخْ

قَلائصَ يَفْحَصْنَ الحصا بالكَراكِرِ

As though Tawba, the finest of men, had never made

young she-camels kneel, scraping pebbles with their chest-pads;

ولَمْ يَبْنِ أَبْراداً عِتاقاً لِفِتيةٍ

كِرامٍ وَيَرْحَلْ قَبْلَ فَيْءِ الهواجِرِ

nor pitched fine cloaks as shelters for youths

of noble spirit, nor set out before the noon shadows returned;

وَلَمْ يَتَجَلَّ الصُّبْحُ عَنْهُ وَبَطْنُهُ

لَطِيفٌ كطَيِّ السِّبِّ لَيْسَ بِحادِرِ

nor had dawn revealed him with his belly

slender as a fold of fine cloth, not bulging.

فَتىً كان لِلْمَوْلى سَناءً ورِفْعَةً

وللطّارقِ السَّاري قِرىً غيْرَ باسِرِ

A man who brought his kinsman honor and elevation,

and food, without a frown, for the wayfarer arriving by night;

ولَمْ يُدْعَ يَوْماً لِلْحِفاظِ وللنَّدى

ولِلْحَرْبِ يَرْمي نارَها بالشرائِرِ

nor had he ever been summoned to defend honor or show generosity,

or to war, whose fire he fed with sparks,

وللبازِلِ الكَوْماءِ يَرْغُو حُوارُها

وللخيلِ تَعْدُو بالكُماةِ المَساعِرِ

or to a mature, high-humped she-camel whose calf lowed,

or to horses racing with war-kindling armored warriors.

كأَنَّكَ لَمْ تَقْطَعْ فَلاةً ولَمْ تُنِخْ

قِلاصاً لَدى فَأْوٍ مِنَ الأَرضِ غائرِ

As though you had never crossed a desert, nor made

young she-camels kneel beside a deep cleft in the earth;

وتُصْبِحْ بمَوْماةٍ كأنَّ صَرِيفَهَا

صَريفُ خَطاطِيفِ الصَّرى في المَحاوِرِ

nor greeted dawn in a wasteland, their tooth-grinding like

the squeak of water-drawing hooks on their axles.

طَوَتْ نَفْعَها عنّا كِلابٌ وآسَدَتْ

بِنا أَجْهَلِيها بَيْنَ غاوٍ وشاعرِ

Kilab withheld its help from us and roused like lions

against us its greatest fools, misleaders and poets alike.

وَقَدْ كانَ حَقّاً أَنْ تَقُولَ سَراتُهم

لَعاً لأخِينا عالياً غَيْرَ عاثِرِ

Yet it was right that their leaders should say,

'May our brother rise high, without stumbling!'

ودَوِّيَّةٍ قَفْرٍ يَحارُ بِها القَطا

تَخَطَّيْتَها بالنّاعِجاتِ الضوامِرِ

Many a barren wilderness, where sandgrouse lost their way,

you crossed on lean, swift white she-camels.

فَتَاللّهِ تَبْنِي بَيْتَها أُمُّ عاصِمٍ

عَلى مِثْلِهِ أُخْرى اللّيالي الغوابِرِ

By God, Umm Asim will never pitch her tent

over his like through all the nights remaining.

فليسَ شِهابُ الحَرْبِ تَوْبَةُ بَعْدَها

بِغازٍ وَلا غادٍ بِرَكْبِ مسافِرِ

For Tawba, war's blazing star, will never again

go raiding or set out with a company of travelers.

وَقَدْ كانَ طَلاَّعَ النّجادِ وبَيِّنَ اللّ

سانِ ومِدْلاجَ السُّرى غَيْرَ فاتِرِ

He used to scale high ridges and was clear of

tongue, journeying by night without flagging.

وقَدْ كانَ قَبْلَ الحادِثاتِ إذا انْتَحَى

وَسائقَ أَو مَعْبُوطةً لَمْ يُغادِرِ

Before calamities came, whenever he sought

herds to drive off or a sound beast to slaughter, he left none behind.

وكُنْتَ إذا مَوْلاكَ خافَ ظُلامَةً

دَعاكَ ولَمْ يَهْتِفْ سِواكَ بناصِرِ

Whenever your kinsman feared injustice,

he called you, invoking no other helper.

دَعاكَ إلى مَكْرُوهَةٍ فَأجَبْتَهُ

عَلى الهَوْلِ منّا والحُتُوفِ الحَواضِرِ

He called you to a dreaded ordeal, and you answered him,

despite the terror among us and deaths close at hand.

فإنْ يكُ عبدُ اللّهِ آسَى ابْنَ أمِّهِ

وآبَ بأسلابِ الكميّ المُغاوِرِ

If Abd Allah aided his mother's son,

and returned with the spoils of the armored raider,

وكان كذاتِ البَوِّ تَضْرِبُ عِنْدَهُ

سِباعاً وقد أَلْقَيْنَهُ في الجراجِرِ

and was like a she-camel with a stuffed calf, striking beside it

at beasts that had already swallowed it into their gullets,

فإنّك قَدْ فارَقْتَهُ لَكَ عاذِراً

وأنّى لحيٍّ عُذْرُ من في المقابِرِ

then you have parted from him while he excused you—

but how can the living gain pardon from one in the graves?

فأقسمتُ أَبكي بَعْدَ توبَةَ هالكاً

وأحْفِلُ من نالَتْ صُرُوفُ المقادِرِ

So I swore to weep for no dead man after Tawba,

nor heed whom the turns of fate struck down.

على مِثْلِ همّامٍ ولابْنِ مُطَرِّفٍ

لِتَبْكِ البواكي أو لبِشْرِ بْنِ عامِرِ

For the likes of Hammam, and for Ibn Mutarrif,

let mourning women weep, or for Bishr ibn Amir.

غُلامانِ كانا اسْتَوْرَدا كُلَّ سَوْرَةٍ

مِنَ المَجْدِ ثُمَّ اسْتَوْثَقا في المصادِرِ

Two youths who ventured into every surge

of glory, then made sure of their return.

رِبيعَيْ حَياً كانا يَفيضُ نَداهُما

عَلى كُلِّ مغمورٍ نَداهُ وغامِرِ

Two rainy springtimes whose bounty overflowed

upon all whose bounty was submerged, and all whose bounty overflowed.

كأَنَّ سَنا نارَيْهِما كُلَّ شَتْوَةٍ

سَنا البَرْقِ يَبْدُو للعُيُونِ النواظِرِ

As though their two fires' glow in every winter

were lightning's glow, appearing to watching eyes.

فَتىً فيه فتيانيَّةٌ أريحيَّةٌ

بقيَّة أعرابيَّةٍ مِنْ مُهاجِرِ

A man of youthful gallantry and generous spirit,

a remnant of Bedouin nature in an emigrant.

أَتَتْكَ العَذارى مِنْ خَفاجَةَ نِسْوَةٌ

بِماءِ شُؤُونِ العَبْرَةِ المُتَحادِرِ

The maidens came to you, women of Khafaja,

with tear-water streaming from their tear-ducts.