على مثلها كان العلاء يحوم — Mihyar Al Daylami

على مثلها كان العلاءُ يحومُ

وتقعد بالملك المُنَى وتقومُ

Around the like of this high glory used to hover,

and hopes make kingship sit and rise.

ويخفُق قلبُ الدهر شوقاً وتلتظى

إلى الرِّيّ أيامٌ لواغبُ هِيمُ

Time's heart throbs with longing, and blaze

for a quenching draught days weary and thirst-crazed.

وتطمَح ألحاظُ الوزارة كلّما

وَهَى عامرٌ منها وسالَ قويمُ

The eyes of the vizierate aspire whenever

what flourished in it weakens and what stood upright flows away.

مجالسُ تنبو عن ظهور وُلاتِها

فتنزِعُ تبغي غيرَهم وترومُ

Seats recoil from their holders' backs,

and wrench free, seeking and craving others.

تغيبُ المعالي فيهمُ عن صدورها

وتحضُرُ أسماءٌ لهم وجسومُ

Through them, high virtues vanish from those seats of honor,

while their names and bodies are present.

جرى السابقُ الممسوحُ غرّةُ وجهِهِ

ونكَّصَ ملطومُ الجبين بهيمُ

The front-runner raced, his white facial blaze caressed;

a dark one, slapped upon the brow, fell back.

جوادٌ يؤدِّي عن كريم عروقِه

فيبرُزُ والعرقُ الكريم نمومُ

A noble steed, giving proof of his noble veins,

he comes to the fore: noble blood betrays itself.

قناةٌ من المجد التّليد صليبةٌ

لها مركز في المكرماتِ صميمُ

A hard spear-shaft of ancestral glory,

its planting-place deep within noble deeds.

تمُدّ أباً وابناً لنحر حسودها

أنابيبُ لم تعلَقْ بهنَّ وُصومُ

Father and son extend toward their envier's throat—

shaft-sections to which no blemishes have clung.

من الدوحة الغيناء يُضحِك تُربَها

رضاعُ المعالي والترابُ فطيمُ

From the luxuriant tree, whose soil is made to smile

by the suckling of high virtues, though the soil is weaned.

سقاها بنو عبد الرحيم فدلَّها

بهم دمِثٌ بين العِضاهِ رخيمٌ

The sons of Abd al-Rahim watered it; thus its graceful bearing,

through them, is gentle and tender among thorn-trees.

زكتْ ما زكتْ حتى انتهتْ ثمراتُها

إلى خير فرع شفَّ عنه أُرومُ

It flourished and flourished, until its fruits reached

the finest branch any rootstock ever disclosed.

وفَى لعميد الدولتين بها الحيا

فرفَّ لها ظلٌّ ورقَّ نسيمُ

For Amid al-Dawlatayn, the rain dealt faithfully with it;

its shade fluttered, and its breeze grew gentle.

حلتْ في حلوق الذائقين جَنَاتُها

به ولأخلاقِ الرجال طُعومُ

Its gathered fruits grew sweet in the tasters' throats

through him; men's characters have flavors.

هنَا اليومَ هذا الأمرُ أنك ربُّه

وكافلُه بالرأي وهو يتيمُ

Today this office rejoices that you are its lord,

its guardian through sound judgment, though it is an orphan,

وحاويه لما قيّض الله بُرءَهُ

وقد حام راقٍ واستماتَ سليمُ

and its possessor when God ordained its cure,

after the charm-healer hovered and the snakebitten man resigned himself to death.

توافى عليه الناسُ أين دواؤه

وراحوا ومنهم عاجزٌ وسئومُ

People gathered about it: 'Where is its cure?'

and departed, some powerless, some weary.

فلا لُعنتْ أمُّ الوزارة إنها

لأنجب أنثى يوم عنك تقومُ

No curse upon the vizierate's mother: she is

the noblest of mothers when she rises from bearing you.

لقد ولدتْ منك الذي لا أخاً له

وهل تلد العذراءُ وهي عقيمُ

She has borne, in you, one who has no brother;

yet can a virgin bear while she is barren?

تسنَّمها قَومٌ بغير مناكبٍ

ففي كلّ ظهرٍ جُلبةٌ وكُلومُ

Men mounted her without shoulders fit to bear her,

so every back bears a scab and wounds.

تساعَوا فبان ابن اللَّبون بقوةٍ

عليهم وفيهم جِلَّةٌ وقُرومُ

They raced, and the young camel stood out in strength

above them, though among them were mature camels and mighty stallions.

يَعُدُّونَ فضلَ السنِّ سبقاً إلى المدى

وأن المعالي شارةٌ ووسُومُ

They count greater age as outstripping others toward the goal,

and high virtues as finery and brands.

وكم ذَابلٍ يَنمي بجوهرِ نفسِه

فيُرعَى ووافي النبت وهو وخيمُ

Yet many a withered plant grows through its own substance

and is grazed, while another, lush-grown, is noxious.

فهلّا كما تكفِي كفَوْا وتعلّموا

ليعقِلَ تدبيرَ الأمور عليمُ

Why did they not serve as you serve, and learn,

so that one deemed learned might understand the ordering of affairs?

فقلْ لمُجرِّ العجبِ فضلَ عنانه

توقَّ عِضاضَ العُجبِ فهو غذومُ

Tell the man who lets conceit's loose rein drag:

'Beware conceit's bite: it is a ravenous biter.'

ظننتَ الحمى ما لم تذد عنه ضائعاً

وفي الغاب أُسدٌ لو عَلمتَ جُثومُ

You thought the sanctuary lost unless you defended it,

though in the thickets crouch lions, if you but knew.

ستعلمُ إن شاورتَ رأيَك والهوى

على البغي أيَّ الآمرين تلومُ

If you consult your reason and desire, you will know,

concerning oppression, which counselor to blame.

تبين فما كلّ النفوس عظائمٌ

إذا هنّ لم يُدفَع بهنّ عظيمُ

Discern: not all souls are great

if no great danger is repelled through them.

لقد طال باعُ الملك واشتدّ عُوده

بأروعَ لم يُحْلل عليه حريمُ

Kingship's reach has lengthened and its stem grown strong

through a majestic man whose sanctuary has never been violated.

ومن أين تخشَى خطَّةَ الجور أمةٌ

وأنت لها بالصالحات زعيمُ

How should a people fear a course of oppression,

when you guarantee them righteous deeds?

تقلَّب حتى عاد نفعاً ضِرارُها

وشِقوتُها بالأمس وهي نعيمُ

He turned affairs until their harm became benefit,

and their misery of yesterday became delight.

وقرّت رعاياه فأمست عيونُها

تنام على أمّ الحمى وتُنيمُ

His subjects rested secure; now their eyes

sleep at the sanctuary's very heart, and let others sleep.

مشى الذئبُ بين السرحِ كلُّ نصيبه

لحاظٌ يسوِّي بينها وشميمُ

The wolf walked among the grazing herds; all his share

was glances cast evenly among them, and a sniff.

ورُعتَ كما آمنتَ بالعدل فاشتفى

بريءٌ وأعيا أن يُبِلَّ سقيمُ

You struck fear as you gave safety through justice, so healing came

to the innocent, while the sick could find no cure.

رأى بك ركن الدين بلجةَ شمسه

غَناءً ويومُ الناظرين مغيمُ

Rukn al-Din saw in you his sun's bright radiance,

ample aid, while the onlookers' day was overcast.

فأغمدَ قوماً وانتضاك بصيرةً

بما ينتضِي من صارمٍ ويَشيمُ

He sheathed others and drew you with clear insight

into the keen blades he draws and sheathes.

وأعطاك ما لا يأتلي الظنُّ يرتمي

غلوّاً ولا مُغلِي الرجاء يسومُ

He gave you more than tireless fancy, shooting

extravagantly, could reach, or extravagant hope demand:

كرائمَ من سرّ الملوك مصونةً

لها منك كفءٌ في الرجال كريمُ

precious things, guarded among the secrets of kings,

for which you, among men, are a noble match.

فمحبوكةٌ حبْكَ السماء وسيعةٌ

لها من أديم الباقيات أديمُ

A broad robe, woven like the heavens,

whose fabric is the fabric of enduring things.

تفرّدَ منها كلُّ لون بشعبةٍ

من القلب تصبو نحوه وتهيمُ

Each of its colors claims a separate portion

of the heart, which yearns toward it and is enraptured.

كأن أخاك الغيثَ وُلِّيَ نسجَها

فزهرته وسمٌ لها ورُقومُ

As though your brother, the rain, were charged with weaving it,

so its blossoms became its markings and embroidery.

تكاثف جنباها فلو خفَّ حملُها

من التبر خلناها عليك تقومُ

Its sides are densely woven; were it less heavily laden

with gold, we would think it could stand upon you.

ومترفةٌ للريح رقةُ جسمها

ومنشؤها بالقريتين جسيمُ

And a sumptuous piece, its body delicate as the wind,

its origin in the two towns distinguished.

طغى طَرَفاها واستكان وسيطُها

خُضوعاً فمنها وابلٌ وعميمُ

Its two ends overflow; its middle bows

in submission: from it come downpours and abundant rain.

تَضوَّرُ من ثقلِ النُّضارِ كأنها

بما سال في الخدين منه أَميمُ

It writhes beneath the gold's weight, as though it were,

from the gold flowing down its cheeks, wounded in the head.

هي التاج لولا أن تُسمَّى عِمامةً

مجازاً ومُسمِيها بذاك ظلومُ

It is a crown, were it not called a turban

figuratively—and whoever calls it that is unjust.

ومرصوعةٌ بالدرِّ في موضع الحُبَى

لها السيف ضوءٌ والنجاد قسيمُ

And one, pearl-studded at the girdling-place,

whose radiance is the sword, whose partner is the baldric.

يَرُوعُ العدا ما راقَ منها كأنها

نجومٌ بها قلبُ العدوّ رجيمُ

What charms the eye in it terrifies foes, as though it were

stars with which the enemy's heart is pelted.

تنطَّقْتها حَلْياً وقُلِّدتَ فوقها

صقيلاً يُريك البشرَ وهو شتيمُ

You girded it on as an ornament, and above it were hung with

a polished blade showing you cheer, though grim,

جرازاً يصيح الموتُ من شَفَراته

ويرجو قضاءَ الدَّين وهو غريمُ

a cutter, from whose edges Death cries out,

hoping his debt will be repaid, for he is a creditor.

وهِيفٌ تطاريف الدماء خضابُها

وضافي كُساها أعظمٌ ولحومُ

And slender weapons, dyed with streaks of blood,

whose ample clothing is bones and flesh.

إذا فَرَّجتْ بين الأصابع غادرتْ

جوانفَ لا يُبْنَى لهنّ هَديمُ

When they part between the fingers, they leave

slanting gashes whose ruin cannot be repaired.

تناطُ بمثل الشمس لوناً وصِبغةً

يقيك الردى منها أصكُّ لحيمُ

They hang with something sunlike in color and hue;

a flat, thick-bodied shield wards their deadly harm from you.

وأمّ بنينَ استبطنتْهم فصدرُها

غصيصٌ بهم عند الحِضانِ كظيمُ

And a mother of sons, enclosing them within her, her breast

choked with them in the embrace, tightly pent.

يعُقُّونها بالضغط وهي عليهمُ

عَطُوفٌ بدَرّات الرَّضاع رؤومُ

They wrong her with their pressure, yet toward them she is

tender, a loving mother with flowing draughts of milk.

تخال الأفاعي الرُّقشَ ما ضمَّ منهمُ

حَشاها وهم فيها أخٌ وحميمُ

You would think them speckled snakes, those enclosed in

her womb, though within it they are brother and dear friend.

فمن ذي لسانٍ مفصح وهو أخرسٌ

ومن بائح بالسرِّ وهو كتومُ

One has an eloquent tongue, though mute;

another divulges secrets, though secretive.

لها من سبيك التِّبرِ لَونٌ مورّسٌ

ووجهٌ من العاج النصيع وَسيمُ

She has a yellow-dyed hue of cast gold,

and a handsome face of pure ivory.

تدين العطايا والمنايا بأمرها

ويأمُلُ مُثرٍ نفعَها وعديمُ

Gifts and deaths submit to her command,

and rich and destitute alike hope for her benefit.

وغضبان من جنّ المِراح كأنه

عصا النبع لولا رادفٌ وحزيمُ

And a fiery steed, a demon of high spirits, as though he were

a rod of nabʿ-wood, but for rump and girth.

له عُنقٌ في صفحة الجوّ شَارفٌ

وذيلٌ على خدّ التراب عميمُ

His neck rises high into the face of the sky,

his full tail spreads along the cheek of the earth.

تقابلَ في أطرافه العتقُ والْتَقَى

عليه خؤول سُبَّقٌ وعُمومُ

Nobility answers itself in all his limbs, and there meet

in him race-winning uncles, maternal and paternal.

أغرُّ تقول الفجرُ شقَّ جبينَهُ

ومن لونه ليلٌ عليه بهيمُ

White-blazed: you would say dawn had split his forehead,

while his color casts pitch-dark night over him.

كأن الهلالَ بين جنبيه طالعٌ

ورصعَ الحُلَى من جانبيه نُجومُ

As though the crescent rose between his flanks,

and the studs of his ornaments on either side were stars.

ومجنونة تطوِي الطريق كأنما

تنفَّسَ منها في الحزام ظليمُ

And a wild one, folding up the road, as though

an ostrich breathed within her girth.

هي البرق خطواً والكثيبُ وَثارةً

ولِيناً وأختُ الريم أو هي ريمُ

She is lightning in step, a sand-dune in softness

and suppleness, a gazelle's sister—or a gazelle herself.

إذا انتسبتْ لم يُخزِها معَ خالها ال

كريم أبٌ في الشاحجات لئيمُ

When her lineage is traced, she is not shamed, beside her uncle, the

noble, by any lowborn father among the braying beasts.

ترى الموكبَ الجَعجاعَ جُلُّ سميرِهِ

أحاديثُ مَا يَسري بها ويقيمُ

You see the clamorous cavalcade: most of its night-talk

is tales of her, whether it journeys with her or halts.

لها منهمُ حظُّ اللسان إذا مشت

مديحاً وحظُّ العين حين تقومُ

From them she wins the tongue's share when she walks,

in praise, and the eye's share when she stands.

منائحُ كانت في السماء ذخيرةً

لكم ومُنىً عهدي بهنّ قديمُ

Gifts once stored in heaven

for you, and wishes I have known of old.

لقد طال سُكرُ الدهر ثم صحا بها

وسُفِّه حتى اليومِ وهو حليمُ

Long did Time remain drunk; then through them it sobered,

and was called foolish until today, though it is wise.

وَفَتْ بمواعيد السعادة فيكمُ

وقد مَلَّ ممطولٌ وكَلَّ غريمُ

They fulfilled happiness's promises to you,

when the man kept waiting had tired, and the creditor flagged.

وبتَّ بغيظ الحاسدين فمَسمعٌ

صَليمٌ وأنفٌ في التراب رغيمُ

You passed the night enraging the envious: an ear

cut off, and a nose abased in the dust.

فلسنا نسوم الدهرَ فيها زيادةً

سوى أنها تبقى لكم وتدومُ

We ask Time for no increase in these,

except that they remain yours and endure.

زجرتُ لكم طيرَ الميامن قبلها

وأعلمتكم أني بذاك عليمُ

I augured for you from birds of good omen before this,

and told you that I was versed in that.

وأني وراء الغيب تطلُعُ فيكمُ

بصائرُ لي معروفةٌ وعزيمٌ

And that, from beyond the unseen, concerning you arise

familiar insights of mine and firm resolve.

ومن آيتي في الشعر أن لا عيافتي

تخيبُ ولا فالي الجريّ يخيمُ

A sign of my poetic gift is that neither my bird-divining

fails, nor my bold augury falters.

فوفُّوه حقَّ الشعر وارعَوا ذمامَه

وصحبتَه إن اليسيرَ ذميمُ

So pay it poetry's due, and honor its bond

and companionship: scant giving is blameworthy.

أنا المرء لم يخبث لكم قط سره

ولم تُسله عنكم رقىً وتميمُ

I am the man whose secret heart toward you was never foul,

nor did spells or amulets make him forget you.

على رعْي واديكم يجرُّ حبالَه

ويُشبعه غضٌّ لكم وهشيمُ

He trails his ropes while grazing in your valley,

and your fresh growth and dry fodder alike satisfy him.

فمالي وُسمتُ اليومَ بالشعر وحدَه

وفيّ صفاتٌ غيرهُ ووسومُ

Why, then, am I branded today with poetry alone,

when I have qualities and marks besides it?

ألم أك أيامَ الهوى لِيَ كلُّه

مُقيماً عليكم لا أكاد أريمُ

Was I not, when all affection was mine,

abiding with you, scarcely ever departing?

تجاذب أذيالي يدٌ منكم يداً

ويعطِفكم مجدٌ عليّ وخيمُ

One of your hands vied with another to tug my skirts,

and weighty nobility inclined you toward me.

إذا قال قوم شاعرٌ حسبُ غِرتُمُ

عليّ وقلتمْ شاعرٌ ونديمُ

When others said, 'Only a poet,' you grew jealous

for me, and said, 'A poet and a boon companion.'

فها أنا ملقىً في الرذايا كأنني

جليبٌ تنافاه الرُّعاةُ كليمُ

Yet here I am, cast among exhausted beasts, as though

a wounded beast brought from afar, shunned by the herdsmen.

أرى ماءَ حوضٍ كنتُ صفَّقتُ شِرْبَه

أُطرَّد عنه والغِرابُ تعومُ

I see the water of a pool whose draught I once poured,

yet I am driven from it, while the great buckets float.

أقولُ لنفسيَ كلَّما خِفتُ يأسَها

رويدَكِ تَظمَى الأرضُ ثم تُسيمُ

Whenever I fear my soul's despair, I tell it:

'Be patient: the earth thirsts, then gives pasture.'

وما الغيث إلا قَطرةٌ بعد قَطرةٍ

مُرِشٌّ ويتلوه أجشُّ هزيمُ

Rain is only drop after drop,

a sprinkling, followed by a hoarse, rumbling downpour.

لنا في كَفالات الوزير غرائسٌ

ستُثمرُ خيراً والكريم كريمُ

Under the vizier's guarantees we have plantings

that will bear good fruit: the noble remain noble.

بلغتُ بك الآمال فابلغ بِيَ التي

تحسِّنُ وجهَ الدهر وهو شتيمُ

Through you I reached my hopes; bring me, then, to that

which beautifies Time's face, though it is ugly.

وما بيَ إلا العزُّ فاستبقني به

وكالميت حرٌّ عاش وهو مَضيمُ

I seek only honor: preserve me through it;

a free man who lives oppressed is like the dead.

ومن شرف الإعراق أن تبلغَ المدى

وأنتَ على حُسن الحفاظِ مقيمُ

Among the honors of deep-rooted lineage is to reach the goal

while remaining steadfast in honorable loyalty.