أمولاي والآمال تستعبد الحرا — Mahmoud Qabadu

أَمولايَ والآمالُ تستعبدُ الحرّا

إِذا لَم يَكُن بدٌّ فَأنتَ بِنا أحرى

O my lord, hopes enslave the free man;

if there is no escape, you are most deserving of us.

لَنا أنفسٌ طالَت مُغالاتُنا بِها

تَرى الريّ أَن تظما ولا تَردُ الكدرا

We have souls we have long prized beyond measure;

they deem thirst a quenching, rather than drinking muddy water.

تَرى أنّ غبناً أَن تبيعَ مذلّةً

بوفرٍ وربحاً أَن تبيعَ بها الصبرا

They deem it a loss to trade humiliation

for riches, and a gain to trade it for patience.

وَأنّ منَ الأسرِ اِتّخاذ حليلة

وَجارٍ وتفضيلاً لدارٍ على أخرى

They count taking a wife among the forms of captivity,

and taking a neighbor, and preferring one home to another.

أَلَم تَكُ أرضُ اللّه واسعةً لأن

يُهاجرَ فيها مَن بهِ الوطنُ اِزورّا

Was not God's earth wide enough for

one whose homeland spurned him to migrate within it?

وَفي الناسِ مَن عدّ الهوانَ تواضعاً

وَعدّ اِعتزازَ النفسِ من جهله كبرا

Among people are those who count abasement as humility,

and in their ignorance count self-respect as arrogance.

وَيَختلفُ الضدّان وَالفعلُ واحدٌ

فَيَرتابُ والإنسانُ في نفسه أدرى

The two opposites differ, though the act is one,

so one doubts; yet a person knows his own self best.

وَنفسُ الفتى مِن همّه فإِذا سما

سَمَت وَإِذا ما اِنحطّ تتبعه قهرا

A young man's soul springs from his aspiration: if it rises,

his soul rises; and if it sinks, his soul must follow.

على أَنّه ما شبّ عن طوقِ حاجةٍ

فَتىً أبداً عمراً إِلى أَن قضى العمرا

Yet the collar of need is never outgrown

by any young man, throughout his life, until his life is spent.

وَلكن عليهِ سعيهُ متوخّيا

وَإِن هو لم ينجَح فَقد أبلغ العُذرا

But he must strive, intent on his aim;

and if he fails, he has fully established his excuse.

تَقاعَدتُ أزماناً عَن الحظّ راغباً

إِلى أَن أقامَتني له الدعوةُ الكبرى

For ages I held back, turning away from fortune,

until the great summons roused me to pursue it;

إِلى أن رأيتُ المجدَ والجودَ والعلى

تَراءت لنا عيناً وعَهدي بِها ذكرا

until I saw glory, generosity, and eminence

appear before us in person, though I had known them only by report.

فَشاهَدت في إِقليم تونسَ آيةً

تُصغّر أخبارَ الألى عِندنا خبرا

So in the region of Tunis I witnessed a marvel

that dwarfs the tales of those known to us by report.

قَضى اللَّه تَشريفي بِزورتيَ الّذي

بهِ شَرّفَ اللّه السيادةَ والفخرا

God decreed my honor through my visit to the man

through whom God ennobled lordship and glory.

فَعاينتُ نوراً يملأ العينَ قرّةً

عَلى أنّها مَهما رَنت تنقلب حسرى

I beheld a light that fills the eye with delight,

though whenever it gazes, it returns exhausted.

وَلاقيتُ برّاً قَد طَمى برّ بحره

فَجابَت لَه آمالُنا البرّ والبحرا

I encountered goodness whose sea of goodness had overflowed,

so our hopes crossed land and sea toward him.

وَناسمتُ روضاً يَشرحُ الصدرَ نورهُ

فَتخرجُ أَسماعي بِلابله شُكرا

I breathed a garden's breeze, its blossoms gladdening the breast,

so its nightingales drew thanksgiving from my hearing.

فَلَم أرَ قَبلي ذا إِباءٍ تقودهُ

سَلاسلُ حاجاتٍ إِلى جنّةٍ قسرا

Never before had I seen a proud man led

by chains of need forcibly into a paradise.

أَتيتُ وذمُّ الدهرِ مِلء جَوانحي

فَلمّا تبدّى ظلتُ أمتدحُ الدّهرا

I came with reproach of time filling my breast;

but when he appeared, I kept praising time.

وَأَقبلتُ تَكسوني مَهابته حيا

فَأعثُر في ذيلِ الكلامِ وما اِنجرّا

And I approached, his majesty clothing me in bashfulness,

so I stumble over speech's hem and all that trails behind it.

أَرى سيمياءِ المجدِ تُشرقُ حوله

فَأزوي اِحتشاما حينَ يبسط لي البشرى

I see the signs of glory shining around him,

so I shrink back in reverence when he offers me glad tidings.

فَإن أَنا لم ألف المقام بواجب

فَإنّ لِمثلي من أبي النخبة العذرا

If I have not met the occasion as duty requires,

then one such as me has his excuse from Abu al-Nukhba.

لَقيتُ عظامَ الرومِ في أرضِ قيصرٍ

وَلكنّه الإكسيرُ إِن حسبوا تبرا

I met Rome's great men in Caesar's land,

but he is the elixir, if they are reckoned raw gold.

عَذيري ذو الإدراكِ يحتار عبرةً

وَلَو لاحَ أهلُ الكهفِ للغمر ما فرا

My excuse is this: a discerning man is bewildered by a marvel,

while, were the People of the Cave to appear to a fool, he would not flee.

قديماً رَأيتُ المجدَ وَالفضلَ وَالعلى

معانيَ لَكن قد تجسّدنَ لي صورا

Long ago I saw glory, excellence, and eminence

as meanings; now they have taken embodied forms for me.

وَقبلاً رَهبتُ الشمسَ والبدر نائياً

فَكيفَ وَما ساوى الّذي بَيننا بشرا

Before, I feared the sun and full moon from afar;

how, then, when the one among us has no human equal?

لَعَمري لو أنّ الشمسَ والبدرَ أشعرا

علاهُ كَما أُشعرتُ ضلّا عن المجرى

By my life, if the sun and full moon were shown

his eminence as I was, they would stray from their course.

أَما إنّه الإنسانُ أكمل نفسهُ

وَحسبك بالإنسانِ أن يكتمل قدرا

Indeed, he is the human being who perfected his soul,

and it suffices a human being to attain perfection in worth.

لَقَد آنسَ المولى المشير كماله

يبينُ بليلٍ من شبيبتهِ الفجرا

The lord marshal indeed perceived his perfection,

which revealed dawn within the night of his youth.

فَأَدناهُ صهراً واِصطفاهُ وزيرهُ

وَشدّ بِه أزراً وَأَشركه أمرا

He drew him near as a kinsman by marriage and chose him as his minister,

strengthened his back through him and shared his command with him.

وَأودعَ في كفّيهِ خزنةَ مالهِ

فَمِن راحَتَيه نعرفُ المدَّ والجزرا

He entrusted the treasury of his wealth to his two hands,

and through his palms we know the flow and ebb.

كَفى بِأميرِ المُؤمنينَ شهادةً

وِللّه ما أَسنى شَهيداً وما أسرى

The testimony of the Commander of the Faithful is enough;

by God, what a splendid witness, what a noble one!

أَبانَ لَنا تَخصيصه عَن مُهذّبٍ

تَباهَت بهِ الأيّام واِنشَرحَت صدرا

His special choice revealed to us a refined man

of whom the days boasted, their breasts expanding with joy.

يجرُّ رداءَ الحمدِ أبيض ضافياً

إِذا جرّ ذيلَ الكبرِ ذو التيه مغترّا

He trails the robe of praise, white and ample,

when the vain man drags pride's hem, deluded.

يَرى أنّ فضلَ المالِ والجاهِ مَسكن

حِمامٍ إِذا لَم يستحلّ لَه أَجرا

He sees surplus wealth and rank as a dwelling

for death, unless he gains reward through them.

كَريمُ النهى لم يدرِ قطّ لسانهُ

لِمستحملٍ هجراً وصدره غمرا

Noble of mind, his tongue has never known

harsh words for a petitioner, nor his breast rancor.

يَصومُ عَنِ الفحشاءِ جَهراً وخفيةً

وَعَن غيرِ قولِ العرفِ لا يَشتهي الفِطرا

He fasts from indecency, openly and in secret,

and wishes to break his fast with nothing but good speech.

نَزوعٌ عنِ العليا عزوفٌ عن الهوى

رجيعٌ عَلى أَن يستفزّ وَأن يغرى

He withdraws from high station and turns away from desire,

seasoned against being provoked and enticed.

يَجلّي له غيبَ العواقبِ ظنّه

وَيُرخي عَلى العوراءِ مِن فضله سترا

His intuition unveils to him the unseen outcomes,

and his graciousness draws a veil over faults.

تَعادَلَ فيهِ الخَلقُ وَالخُلقُ الرِّضا

كَما جَمعَ الوردُ النضارة والعطرا

In him, outward form and pleasing character are in balance,

as the rose unites freshness and fragrance.

كأنّ أماني العالَمين تَزاحَمَت

عَلى نطقِهِ لُطفاً وفي وَجههِ بشرا

As though the wishes of all worlds had thronged

as gentleness upon his speech and cheer upon his face.

تشارك فيه المكرُمات فلا ترى

بِهِ خصلةُ منهنّ مِن أُختها أحرى

The noble qualities share him, so you see

no trait among them more fitting to him than its sister.

كَأنّ صفات الفضلِ أَضحَت لِشخصهِ

مَرايا بَدَت فيهنّ طَلعَته الغرّا

As though the qualities of excellence had become, for his person,

mirrors in which his radiant countenance appeared.

وَلا عيبَ فيه غيرَ إِفراط برّه

بذي نسبةٍ للّه إِن مانَ أو برّا

There is no fault in him except his excessive kindness

to anyone connected to God, whether he lies or speaks truth.

وَليسَ يُبالي حيثُ كانَ صنيعهُ

كَما لا يُبالي المزنُ أَن يسقيَ القفرا

He does not care where his kindness falls,

as rain clouds do not mind watering barren ground.

لِنائلهِ روضٌ به تنبتُ المنى

وَلكنّه إِن فاضَ يجتثّها غمرا

His bounty has a garden where wishes grow;

but if it overflows, it uproots them in its flood.

كأنّ الأماني مغنطيسٌ لبرّه

فَما خَطَرت إلّا وَأَتبعها برّا

As though wishes were a magnet for his kindness,

none cross the mind without his following them with kindness.

كَأنّ نَداه وَالمنى قَد تَحالَفا

عَلى أن يَعُمّا الأرضَ لا يَدعا فترا

As though his bounty and wishes had made a pact

to encompass the earth, leaving not a span.

كأنّهما نوعا هيولا وصورةٍ

فَلستَ ترى من جوهرٍ عَنهما يعرا

As though they were the two kinds, matter and form,

so you see no substance bare of them.

أَمولايَ هَذا بعض ما قَد جنيتهُ

مِن الروضةِ الغنّاء لا عَدِمت قطرا

O my lord, this is some of what I have gathered

from the luxuriant garden—may it never lack rain.

قَطفتُ بِأيدي الفكرِ مِن زهراتها

عَلى خجلٍ كَالطيرِ يلتقطُ البرّا

I plucked with thought's hands some of its blossoms,

in shyness, like a bird picking up wheat.

عَلى أنّ في فردوسِ أخلاقكَ العلى

نُضاراً وَأَمناً يطردُ الهمّ والذعرا

Though in the paradise of your lofty virtues

are gold and safety that banish care and terror.

فَها أنا ذا أُهدي الثمارَ لغارسٍ

وَأُهدي إِلى البحرِ الجَواهرِ والدرّا

Here I am, offering fruits to their planter,

and offering jewels and pearls to the sea.

عَقيلةُ فكرٍ تنقصُ البرقَ لامعاً

وَتُنزلُ مِن أَعلى مجرّته النسرا

A noble maiden of thought, dimming lightning's gleam,

and bringing the Eagle down from the summit of its Milky Way.

تُوافيكَ عذراً برزة الوجهِ لم تكن

تفارقُ لولا حبُّ خدمتكَ الخِدرا

She comes to you a virgin, her face unveiled; never would she

have left her secluded chamber but for love of serving you.

تَضلّع من ماءِ الحياةِ فُؤادها

فَتبقى ويَفنى الدهرُ جاريةً بكرا

Her heart drank its fill of the water of life,

so she remains a virgin maiden while time perishes.

تضوّع ريّاها وطابَ نَسيمُها

وَراقَ فَلم يحمِل سِوى ذِكركم نشرا

Her fragrance spread, and her breeze grew sweet,

and delightful, carrying no scent but remembrance of you.

إِذا زِدتها نقداً تزدكَ نضارةً

وَتنشرُ إِن رمتَ النسيءَ لَها مَهرا

If you increase her ready payment, she increases your splendor,

and she spreads abroad if you seek deferred payment as her dowry.

تُفاخِرُ أَبكارَ العراقِ وإنّما

مناقبكَ اللّاتي يُعلّمنها الفخرا

She vies in pride with Iraq's virgins, and it is only

your merits that teach her pride.

حِجازيّةُ الألفاظِ لَو جُليت على

حليفِ الثريّا عضّ أنمله العشرا

Hijazi in her words, were she unveiled before

the Pleiades' companion, he would bite his ten fingertips.

يَهشُّ لَها قلبُ الحسودِ وسمعهُ

وَيهتزّ هامُ الساخِطينَ لها سكرا

The envious man's heart and hearing thrill to her,

and the heads of the resentful sway for her, intoxicated.

أَضاعَت أبيّات القوافي بمقولي

وَكان قصيراً لا تطيعُ له أمرا

She has laid waste the defiant rhymes through my tongue,

though it was weak, and they obeyed no command from it.

فَأصبحتُ أَتلو مِن مديحك رقيةً

لأشفي من أدوائي الجسم والفكرا

So I began reciting an incantation from your praise,

to heal my body and mind of my ailments.

بَقيتَ لَنا ذخراً وللدهرِ زينةً

تَفوزُ بكَ الدنيا وَتشتاقك الأُخرى

May you remain our treasure and an adornment to time;

through you this world triumphs, and the next world longs for you.