Sol 6.1

  1. إذا رَضِي الرَّحْمَنُ عَنِّي فَكُلُّ مَنْ

    على ظَهْرِها يَرْضَى وإنْ كان رَاغِما

    If the All-Merciful is pleased with me, then everyone

    on earth's back will be pleased, even against his will.

  2. أَمِ الرَّوْضُ الأَريضُ أَمِ ابْتسامٌ

    لِثَغْرِ الزَّهْرِ أَمْ زُهْرُ الْمَعانِي

    Or is it the lush garden, or a smile

    on the blossoms' lips, or radiant meanings?

  3. وسِحْرٌ ما بَعَثْتَ بِهِ إلَيْنا

    فَرِيدَ الدَّهْرِ أَمْ سِحْرُ الْبَيانِ

    And is what you have sent us magic,

    O peerless one of the age, or the magic of eloquence?

  4. بَنَيْتَ بَناتِ أَفْكارٍ حسانٍ

    بِها تَزْدانُ أَبْكارُ الْغَوانِي

    You fashioned fair daughters of thought,

    with which the virgin beauties adorn themselves.

  5. حَبيبُ عِنْدَها يَغْدُو بَغِيضاً

    وأحْمَدُ غَيْرَ أَحْمَدَ في الأَوانِ

    Beside them, Habib becomes hateful,

    and Ahmad is not 'most praiseworthy' in this age.

  6. بِها أَرَجٌ يَضُوعُ لَدَيْهِ ضاعَتْ

    بلا أَرَجٍ مَعانِي الأَرَّجاني

    Within them a fragrance wafts; beside it are lost

    al-Arrajani's meanings, without a scent.

  7. وَكَمْ سَحَبَتْ عَلَى سَحْبانَ ذَيْلاً

    ونَغّصَ ما حَوَتْهُ عَلَى ابنِ هَانِي

    And how often they trailed their hem over Sahban,

    and what they held embittered Ibn Hani.

  8. سَبَقْتَ الصِّيدَ يا بن الصِّيدِ طُرّاً

    بِكُلِّ فَضِلَةٍ يَوْمَ الرّهانِ

    You outstripped all proud lords, O son of proud lords,

    in every virtue on the day of the race.

  9. وحُزْتَ مِنَ المناقِبِ باتّفاقٍ

    نَصِيباً لا يُدانيهِ مُداني

    And of noble qualities you won, by common consent,

    a share no rival can approach.

  10. وجاءَكَ ما تَرُومُ مِنَ الْمَعالي

    عَلَى وُفْقِ اقْتراحِكَ والأَماني

    And the heights you seek have come to you,

    in accord with your request and hopes.

  11. أَجابَتْ طائعاتٍ مُسْرِعاتٍ

    بِهِ قَدْ فُقْتَ يا فَخْرَ الأَوانِ

    They answered, obedient and swift;

    through this you have excelled, O pride of the age.

  12. لَقَدْ جَلَّيتَ مُذْ حَلَّيْتَ جيداً

    لَهُ وجَلَيْتَ أَصْداءَ الْمعاني

    Indeed, you have excelled since you adorned its neck,

    and polished away the rust from meanings.

  13. وعِلْمُ السُّنَّةِ الْغَرّاءِ أَضْحَى

    لَدَيْكَ بِرَغْمِ آنافِ الشّواني

    And knowledge of the radiant Sunnah has become

    yours, though your foes' noses be rubbed in dust.

  14. لَهُ وَخْزٌ بقَلْب أَخي ابْتداعٍ

    شَدِيدٌ دُونَهُ وَخْزُ السِّنانِ

    It has a sting within an innovator's heart,

    so fierce that a spearpoint's sting falls short.

  15. لَحَا اللهُ الأُلَى عادَوا جِهاراً

    نُصُوصاً مِنْ حَديثٍ أو قُرانِ

    May God curse those who openly opposed

    texts from Hadith or the Quran.

  16. فَقَالوا قَدْ رَضِينا قَوْلَ عَمْرٍو

    وَلَيْسَ لِعَمْرِنا في الْعُمْرِ ثَاني

    So they said, 'We have accepted Amr's opinion,

    and our Amr has no equal in this lifetime.'

  17. فَكَانُوا كالّذِي اعْتاضَتْ ذُباباً

    أَنامِلُ راحَتَيْهِ عَن الْعَنانِ

    So they were like one who took flies

    with the fingertips of both hands instead of the reins.

  18. وكَالسّاعِي إلى الظَّلْما بِجَهْدٍ

    ونُورُ الشَّمْسِ في رَأي الْعِيانِ

    And like one straining toward the darkness,

    while the sun's light stands in plain view.

  19. فيا بنَ الأَكْرَمِينَ ومن إلَيْهِمْ

    فِرارُ النّاسِ مِنْ جَوْرِ الزَّمانِ

    So, O son of the noblest, and of those to whom

    people flee from the tyranny of time,

  20. ومَنْ بَلَغُوا إلَى الْعَيُّوقِ فَخْراً

    فما دَاناهُمُ أَبَداً مُدانِي

    and of those who reached al-Ayyuq in glory,

    so no rival ever approached them.

  21. إذا ما حَرّكَتْ قَوْمٌ رُؤوساً

    فَعَدِّ عَنِ التَّثَبُّطِ والتَّواني

    If people shake their heads,

    then cast off hesitation and delay.

  22. فكَمْ دَارَيْتُ فَدْماً بَعْدَ فَدْمٍ

    وأَرْخَيْتُ الْعِنانَ لَمنْ عَناني

    For how often I have humored dullard after dullard,

    and slackened the reins for whoever troubled me.

  23. وقُلْتُ لَعَلَّ بَيْنَهُمُ فُلاناً

    فَكانوا كُلُّهُمْ عَيْنَ الْفُلانِ

    And I said, 'Perhaps so-and-so is among them,'

    but every one of them was that very so-and-so.

  24. فَلاَ حَيّى الإلَهُ ذَواتَ قَوْمٍ

    يُعادُونَ الصَّحِيحَ منَ الْبَيانِ

    So may God never bless such people

    as oppose sound exposition.

  25. يَرَوْنَ الْحَقَّ لا يَعْدُو أُناساً

    مِنَ الأَمْواتِ فانٍ بَعْدَ فاني

    They think the truth goes no further than certain men

    among the dead, one departed after another.

  26. إذَا ما نَحْنُ قُلْنا قَالَ طَهَ

    يَضِيقُ عَلَيْهِمُ رَحْبُ الْمَكانِ

    Whenever we say, 'Ta-Ha said,'

    the wide space grows cramped for them.

  27. وكَمْ سَدّوا إذا سَمِعوا حَديثاً

    لِخَيْرِ الرُّسْلِ أثْقابَ الأَذانِ

    And how often they stopped up—when they heard a saying

    of the best of messengers—the openings of their ears.

  28. أناسٌ يا بنَ وُدّي كُلّ فَرْدٍ

    بذُلِّ الأَسْرِ في التّقْلِيدِ عَاني

    Such people, O son of my affection—each one

    a captive in the abject bondage of blind imitation.

  29. قُصارَى عِلْمِهِ قَالٌ وقيلٌ

    وتَلْبِيسٌ بلُبْسِ الطَّيْلَسانِ

    The utmost of his knowledge is 'he said' and 'it was said,'

    and deception by donning the taylasan mantle.

  30. وإنْ غَنَّتْ لَهُ أَبكارُ عِلْمٍ

    فعِنِّينٌ بعُنَّتِهِ يُعاني

    And though virgin maidens of learning sing to him,

    he is impotent, suffering from his impotence.

  31. يُسيء بِنا إذا غِبْنا مَقالاً

    وفي حَضراتِنا رَعِشُ الجنَانِ

    He speaks ill of us when we are absent,

    but in our presence his heart trembles.

  32. ويَشْهَرُ عَضْبَ مِقْوَلِهِ اغْتِياباً

    ويَلْقانا كَمُخْتَلِج اللّسانِ

    And he brandishes his tongue's sharp sword in backbiting,

    and meets us like one with a faltering tongue.