ألا قل لذى حمق تسربل بالغدر — Mohamed Almawali

ألا قُل لِذى حمق تسربل بالغدرِ

وجانب أهل العدل والفضل والقدرِ

Listen: tell the man of folly who has clothed himself in treachery

and shunned the people of justice, virtue, and dignity:

تأهب لقد جاشت قريحةُ ماهرٍ

عليك بأمواج تلاطَمُ كالبحرِ

Prepare yourself: a master's poetic inspiration has surged

against you in waves crashing like the sea—

قوافٍ كأمثال السيوفِ قواطعاً

رجوماً لأهلِ الغدرِ والزيغ والمكرِ

rhymed verses, sharp as swords,

missiles against the people of treachery, deviation, and deceit.

ومن كان ذا حقدٍ فيسودُّ وجهه

ومن كان ذا وُدٍّ فيعرفُ بالبِشْرِ

And whoever harbors rancor, his face grows black,

and whoever bears affection is known by his cheerful countenance.

ويعرف أخلاقُ الورى بسماعِها

وتبدى لنا المكنون في السرِّ والجهرِ

And people's characters are known when these verses are heard,

and they reveal to us what is concealed, in secret and in public.

فَذرْنى وهَجْوى للمخالفِ والذي

يعنِّفُ أهلَ العدلِ والدين والذكرِ

So leave me to my satire of the dissenter and the one who

harshly rebukes the people of justice, religion, and remembrance.

سأطلق أَمْراسى عليه سوابقاً

تفتتُ منه أَعْظُمَ الظهرِ والصدرِ

I shall unleash my ropes upon him, racing ahead,

shattering the bones of his back and chest.

فأرسلها سَهما على أمِّ رأسه

فتهوِى به سفلاً إلى أعمق القَعْرِ

So I send them as an arrow at the crown of his head,

and they send him plummeting down to the deepest abyss.

إذا قرئت يوماً له وهو حاضرٌ

يقولُ لهم يا ليتنى كنتُ في القبرِ

When they are recited to him one day while he is present,

he says to them: "Oh, if only I were in the grave!"

وتعصفهم عصفَ الرياحِ بشدة

فتتركهم صَرْعى على الأرض بالقَمْرِ

And they buffet them fiercely, as winds do,

so they leave them struck down upon the earth, overpowered.

أحاطَ بهم في دهرهم سوءُ مكرهم

وأكثر ما أغوتهمُ نخوةُ الكِبْرِ

The evil of their plotting has engulfed them in their lifetime,

and what most led them astray was the swagger of arrogance.

ولو فكروا في أمرهم لتدبَّرُوا

ولكنهم حَمْقَى تعَاموا عن الفِكرِ

And had they thought about their situation, they would have reflected,

but they are fools who willfully blinded themselves to thought.

فتبّاً وخسراناً لهم ضلَّ سعيُهم

ودارت عليهم دائراتٌ مِن الدهرِ

So ruin and loss upon them! Their striving has gone astray,

and the calamities of time have turned against them.

قد استحوذَ الشيطان جهلا عليهمُ

فأنساهُمُ ذكرَ القيامةِ والنشْرِ

Satan has indeed gained mastery over them through ignorance,

so he made them forget remembrance of Judgment Day and resurrection.

فحادُوا وخانُوا واشرأبُّوا وخالفوا

وباتُوا وناموا واستقامُوا على النُّكرِ

So they strayed, betrayed, reared their heads, and dissented,

and spent the night, slept, and remained steadfast in wrongdoing.

فما نفعتهم رأفةٌ ولطافةٌ

وهل ينفع المقباسُ في ظلمةِ القبرِ

So compassion and gentleness did them no good;

and can a torch help in the darkness of the grave?

ولسْنَا نُبالى باللئامِ وطعنهم

علينا وفينا سيدُ البَدْو والحضْرِ

And we care nothing for the base and their attacks

against us, while among us is the lord of nomads and townsfolk.

فذاكَ إمامُ المسلمين بلعربٍ

سلالة سلطان الفتى المرتضَى الذَّمْر

For that is the Muslims' imam, Bilʿarab,

scion of Sultan, the esteemed and valiant youth.

جوادٌ له كفٌّ إذا انهلَّ جودُه

على الخلق أغْناهم عن الغيثِ والقَطْرِ

Generous is he: when his hand's bounty pours

upon creation, it spares them the need for rain and showers.

أياديه لا تُحصى عداداً وكثرةً

تجلُّ عن الإحصاءِ والعدّ والحصرِ

His favors are beyond reckoning in number and abundance;

they are too great for tallying, counting, and exhaustive reckoning.

يقيسونه بالبحرِ والبحرُ مالحُ

وقد يصفون البحر بالمدِّ والجزرِ

They compare him to the sea, yet the sea is salty,

and indeed, they describe the sea by its flow and ebb.

له الشرفُ الأعلَى على كل باذخٍ

ولا زالَ في يسرٍ وقاليه في عُسرِ

His is the highest honor, above every exalted one.

And may he ever remain in ease, and his hater in hardship.

ولا زالَ في مجدٍ وعزٍّ ورِفعةٍ

مدى العمر منصورَ الكتائب بالنَّصرِ

And may he ever remain in glory, might, and eminence,

throughout his life, his battalions aided by victory.

ولا زالَ من والاهُ في الأمن راتعاً

وأعداؤُه في البُؤسِ والذُّلِّ والْخُسْرِ

And may whoever is loyal to him ever enjoy plenty in safety,

and his enemies remain in misery, humiliation, and loss.

إمامَ الهدى خذها قوافىَ ضمنتْ

معانىَ محضِ الودِّ والحمدِ والشُّكرِ

Imam of guidance, accept these rhymed verses, which embody

meanings of pure affection, praise, and gratitude.

وعشْ أبد الدنيا مليكاً مخلّداً

ودمْ وابقَ دهراً مالكَ النهْىِ في الأمرِ

And live as an immortal king for as long as the world endures,

and endure and remain through the ages, wielding the power to forbid in affairs.