يا نسيم الصبا تحمل سلامي — Nicolaos al Sayegh

يا نسيمَ الصَبا تَحَمَّل سَلامي

ثُمَّ بلِّغ تَحِيَّةَ المُستَهامِ

O east breeze, carry my greeting,

then convey the salutation of this love-stricken soul

ذلك الوادي الخصيبَ صباحاً

ورُباهُ المُنِيفةَ الإِكرامِ

to that fertile valley in the morning,

and its hills, exalted in honor.

حيثُما النَرجَسُ المُضعَّفُ أَضحَى

ناعساً قائماً على الأَقدامِ

Where the double-flowered narcissus has become

drowsy, standing upon its feet,

والأَقاحي والنَرجَسُ الغَضُّ يزهو

مائلاً والورود في الأَكمامِ

and the daisies and tender narcissus flourish,

swaying, while the roses remain in their buds.

وأَريجُ الطَرَنجَبيلِ ذكيٌّ

فاقَ قَدراً على عبير الخِزامِ

The scent of taranjabil is pungently sweet,

surpassing in worth the fragrance of lavender.

غارُهُ غارتِ الزُهورُ عليهِ

كجيوشٍ وَقتهُ رَشقَ السِهامِ

Its laurel—the flowers guarded it jealously,

like armies shielding it from volleys of arrows.

نمَّ عرفاً فغارت الرَندُ منهُ

فانثنت تشتكيهِ للنَمَّامِ

It divulged its fragrance, and the bay trees envied it,

then turned to complain of it to nammam, the tattletale herb.

وعُيُونٌ في سَفحهِ جارياتٌ

قد رَعَتهُ رِعايةَ استخِدامِ

And springs flowing along its slope

have tended it with a servant's care.

مُذ بكت أَعيُنُ الغَمائِمِ فيهِ

قابَلَتها زُهورهُ بابتِسامِ

Since the eyes of the clouds wept upon it,

its flowers answered them with smiles.

رَشَفَت نسمةُ الاصائلِ صبحاً

اذ سَرَت عَذبَ ثَغرهِ البَسَّامِ

At dawn the breeze of late afternoons sipped,

as it passed, the sweetness of its smiling mouth.

قبَّلَتهُ القُبولُ في وَجَناتٍ

من مباهي تلك الوُجوهِ الوِسامِ

The east wind kissed it upon cheeks

among the splendors of those handsome faces.

صافَحَت باكراً موائسَ روضٍ

ليّنات القُدودِ لدن القوامِ

Early it clasped the swaying beauties of a garden,

tender of figure, supple of stature.

صَفَّقَت راحةُ الغُصونِ ومالت

راقصاتٍ من صوتِ شَد والحَمامِ

The palms of the branches clapped, and they swayed,

dancing to the sound of song and doves.

خَطَبَ العَندَليبُ في مِنبَرِ الدَو

حِ فأَمسَى لوُرقهِ كالإِمامِ

The nightingale preached from the pulpit of the grove,

and became like an imam to its gray doves.

والهَزارُ الصَدُوحُ والسنُّ والشُحرُورُ

اضحى يفتنُّ بالأَنغامِ

The melodious nightingale, the sunn-bird, and the blackbird

began to vary their melodies.

وذَواتُ الأَطواقِ تلحنُ شَجواً

هَيَّجَت بالبُكا شُجونَ غَرامي

And the ring-necked birds sang plaintively,

stirring with their weeping the sorrows of my love.

كُلَّما عَدَّدَت نُواحَ نواها

حَرَّكَت للنَوَى سُكونَ هِيامي

Whenever they repeated the lament of their separation,

they roused my quiet passion with the thought of parting.

أَلَّفَت بالنُواحِ طائِرَ قلبي

يا فؤادي يَمِّم رُبوعَ اليَمامِ

With lament they won over the bird of my heart:

O my heart, make for the dwellings of the doves.

والنواقيسُ فوقهُ قارعاتٌ

في انتِصافِ الدُجى صُدورَ الظَلامِ

And above it the bells were striking,

at midnight, the breasts of darkness.

نَبَّهَت كلَّ قانتٍ ومُصَلٍّ

جَفنُهُ لم يَبِرَّ طَيفَ المَنامِ

They roused every devotee and worshipper

whose eyelid had not welcomed the phantom of sleep.

لم يَزَل رافعاً إلى اللَه عقلاً

مستمدّاً ذَكاهُ بالإِلهامِ

He continued raising his mind toward God,

drawing its brightness from inspiration,

ناسياً ما وراءَهُ كُلَّ يومٍ

قادماً في الوَرَى إلى قُدَّامِ

forgetting every day what lay behind him,

advancing among humankind ever forward,

بصَلوةٍ غَدَت بشَجوٍ رخيمٍ

فعَلَت فوقَ مِنبَرِ الأَفهامِ

with a prayer grown mellow with lament,

which rose above the pulpit of understanding.

ليسَ فيهم وإِن دَجا الليلُ كابٍ

غافلُ اللَحظِ عاثرُ الأَقدامِ

Among them, though the night grows dark, none falters,

heedless of eye or stumbling of foot.

جَمَعَت بِيعةُ المظفَّرِ منهم

مَجمَعاً سِلكُهُ فريدُ النِظامِ

The church of the victorious one gathered from them

an assembly whose thread is peerlessly ordered.

يَتَهادَى سِتِيخُناتِ زَبُورٍ

بهُدُوٍّ وخَشيةٍ واحتِشامِ

It exchanges verses from a psalter

with calm, reverence, and modesty,

وسُكون ورَهبةٍ وخُضوعٍ

وخُشوعٍ وذِلَّةٍ واحتِرامِ

and stillness, awe, and submission,

and humility, lowliness, and respect.

دانَ طَوعاً لرَأس بِيعةِ رَبٍّ

مُوضِحٍ رَسمَهُ بنُوحٍ وسامِ

It willingly obeyed the head of the church of the Lord,

who made His ordinance clear through Noah and Shem,

وبأَبرامَ ثُمَّ بُطرُسَ رُكني

دَع عداهُ من نَسل آلِ ابرامِ

and through Abram, then Peter, my pillar.

Leave aside those besides him of the offspring of Abram's house.

أَينَ لاوِي وحِزبُهُ وبَنُوهُ

يا إِمامَ الهُداةِ أَنتَ إِمامي

Where are Levi, his company, and his sons?

O leader of guides, you are my leader.

هكذا هكذا أَتَتكَ كِرامٌ

تَتَجارى اليكَ يا ابنَ الكِرامِ

Thus, thus, noble ones have come to you,

racing toward you, O son of noble ones.

واذا ما تطارحوا لَحنَ نظمٍ

طَرَحوا اللَحن من فُصول الكَلامِ

And whenever they exchange a melody of verse,

they cast grammatical error out of the passages of speech.

لابسينَ الحِدادَ فوقَ جُسومٍ

شفَّ من تحتِها نحيفُ العِظامِ

Wearing black mourning garb over bodies

beneath which slender bones show through,

لَهُمُ البِرُّ والعَفافُ وِشاحٌ

غيرُ مستردمٍ مَدَى الأَيَّامِ

they have righteousness and chastity for a sash,

never needing mending through all the days.

مَنطَقَت حَقوَهم مناطقُ نُسكٍ

أَكسَبَتهم طَهارةَ الأَجسامِ

Girdles of asceticism bound their waists,

bestowing bodily purity upon them.

توَّجَتهم قلانسٌ واقياتٌ

خِلتُها مِغفَراً على كل هامِ

Protective caps crowned them;

I took them for mail helmets upon every head.

نُصِلَت فيهمِ نِصالُ جِهادٍ

انصلت عَزمَهم من الأَسقامِ

The blades of spiritual struggle were fitted to them,

freeing their resolve from ailments.

أَلَّموا جسمهم بآلام زُهدٍ

أَقذَتِ النفسَ من قَذَى الآلامِ

They pained their bodies with ascetic suffering

that cleansed the soul of suffering's grit.

خاصَموا الجِسمَ واللعينَ ودُنيا

هُ ففازوا بالصُلح من ذا الخِصامِ

They fought the flesh, the accursed one, and his world,

and won peace through this conflict.

وغَزَوا في العِدَى الثلثةِ طُرّاً

بالتُقَى لا بلَهذَمٍ وحُسامِ

They waged war against all three enemies,

with piety, not with sharp spear and keen sword.

ثم أَصموا قلبَ الغَوِيّ فأَهوى

عن سُهادٍ لا عن قِسِيّ سِهامِ

Then they mortally struck the erring one's heart, and he fell,

through wakeful vigil, not through arrows from bows.

ليتَ بيني قد حُمَّ من قبل بيني

عن حِماهم وذُقتُ كأسَ حِمامي

Would that my final parting had been decreed before my departure

from their sanctuary, and I had drunk the cup of my death.

كيفَ أَسلُو وشَخصُهم نُصبُ عيني

حيثُما مِلتُ لا يَزالُ أَمامي

How can I find solace when their forms stand before my eyes,

remaining before me wherever I turn?

وهَوَى حُبِّهِم ثَوى بفُؤَادٍ

قد قَلَتهُ لواعجُ الاهتيامِ

The passion of loving them dwells in a heart

seared by the burning pangs of infatuation.

صاحِ سِربي إلى أماكنِ سِربي

ثم صِح بي بحَيِّ صَحبي الكِرامِ

Friend, lead me to the haunts of my flock,

then call out to me in the quarter of my noble companions.

لم يَكُن غيثُهم كغيثٍ هَمُودٍ

لا ولا برقُهم كبرقٍ جَهامِ

Their rain was not like spent rain;

no, nor their lightning like that of a rainless cloud.

لا ولا وعدُهم بغيرِ وَفاءٍ

لا ولا عهدُهم بغيرِ ذِمامِ

No, nor their promise without fulfillment;

no, nor their covenant without a binding pledge.

لا ولا تُربُهم تُرابُ سِباخ

لا ولا نارُهم بغيرِ ضِرامِ

No, nor their soil the soil of salt flats;

no, nor their fire without a blaze.

لا ولا نُسكُهم بغيرِ صَلاحٍ

لا ولا سِلمُهم بغيرِ سَلامِ

No, nor their ascetic practice without righteousness;

no, nor their peace without safety.

ان تَرُم جَنَّةَ النعيمِ بأَرضٍ

نَعِمَت من خصائص الإِنعامِ

If you seek a paradise of bliss on earth,

blessed with the choicest gifts of grace,

ملكوتٌ يَضُمُّ كل طَهُورٍ

مالِكوهُ ملائكُ العَلامِ

a kingdom embracing every pure soul,

its possessors angels of the All-Knowing,

فَهوَ ديرُ الحَصُور ماري يُحَنَّا

والنبيِّ الكريم نسلِ الكِرامِ

it is the monastery of the chaste Saint John,

the noble prophet, offspring of noble ones,

والنبيه النبيلِ والسابق الحِبرِ

إِمام الهُدَى الرفيعِ المَقامِ

the eminent noble one, the learned Forerunner,

the leader in guidance, exalted in station,

وسليل النبيِّ مَن جَلَّ قَدراً

زَكَريّا النَدبِ التقيِّ الهُمامِ

and scion of the prophet whose worth was great—

Zechariah, generous, devout, and magnanimous—

والمَلاكِ المصيِرِ الحزنَ سَهلاً

والسِراجِ المضيء في الإِظلامِ

the angel who makes rugged ground level,

and the lamp shining in darkness.

يا رَعَى اللَهُ ارضَ وادي عيسى

وسقاها من سانحاتِ الركامِ

O may God watch over the land of Wadi Isa,

and water it from passing banks of cloud.

ورَعَى ديرَهُ المَشِيدَ المباني

ووَقاهُ من غائلِ الإِنهدامِ

May He guard its monastery, with buildings raised high,

and shield it from the calamity of collapse.

ثم حيَّى الحَيا رُباهُ فأَحيَى

ما عَفَت رَسمَهُ يَدُ الأَيَّامِ

Then may rain greet its hills and revive

the outlines erased by the hand of time.

رامَ بانيهِ والمجاهدُ فيهِ

في أَمانٍ من حاسِديهِ اللئَامِ

Its builder and the ascetic striving there sought their aim,

safe from his ignoble enviers.

آلهُ بُغيتي وغاية سُؤلي

ومُرادي ومُنيتي ومَرامي

Its people are my desire and my utmost request,

my wish, my hope, and my aim.

سِيَّما فاضلٌ مِبَرٌ فضيلٌ

زاخرُ الفضلِ بالفضائل هامِ

Especially one virtuous, beneficent, and worthy,

brimming with excellence, enamored of virtues:

مَنهَجي مع نَمُوذَجي وَرَشادي

واعتِمادي وسَيدي وإِمامي

my path, as well as my example and guidance,

my reliance, my master, and my leader.

هُوَ صِنوي الرطيبُ لكنَّ شَتَّا

نَ وبَونٌ ما بينَ ذاوٍ ونامِ

He is my fresh green twin stem; yet how far

apart—what a gulf between one withered and one growing!

قد سَرَت في عُقولهم نِعمةُ اللَهِ

كسَريِ الحيوةِ في الأَجسامِ

God's grace has coursed through their minds

as life courses through bodies.

اكملوا بالسَداد كلَّ كَمالٍ

تمموا بالجِهادِ كُلَّ تِمامِ

Through rectitude they perfected every excellence;

through spiritual struggle they completed every attainment.

كلهم بالصَلاحِ خيلُ رِهانٍ

يَتَبارَونَ بالتُقَى المتسامي

All of them are racehorses in righteousness,

competing in ever-loftier piety,

دُونَ سِقطٍ أَضحى شريدُ حِماهم

أَخَّرَتهُ معاثرُ الأَقدامِ

except a fallen wretch, now an exile from their sanctuary,

whom stumbling steps have left behind.

فات حَدَّ القِياسِ في كل حكمٍ

فَهوَ شاذُ القِياسِ والأَحكامِ

He has passed the bounds of analogy in every ruling,

an anomaly to analogy and established rules.

طوَّحتهُ حُظوظُهُ في بوادي

أرض وادي مدينةِ الأَصنامِ

His fortunes cast him into the wilderness

of the valley land of the city of idols.

خِلتُ نفسي لما حَلَلتُ ثَراها

كسقيمٍ في قبضةِ الأَسقامِ

I imagined myself, when I settled upon its soil,

like an invalid in the grip of ailments.

ما حُصولي بأَرضِ باعَلَ إِلَّا

كحُصولِ الجريحِ بينَ هوامِ

My presence in the land of Baal is only

like a wounded man's presence among vermin.

فمُقامي بها كيُوسُفِ مِصرٍ

في مُقام السُجون لا في المَقامِ

My stay there is like Joseph's in Egypt,

in the abode of prisons, not in high station.

خَصَّني بالبُؤُوس دَهري ولكن

خَصَّصَتني البتولُ بالإِنعامِ

My age singled me out for misery, but

the Virgin singled me out for grace.

فَهيَ للخائفينَ أَعظَمُ أَمنٍ

وَهيَ للمستجير خيرُ مُحامِ

For the fearful she is the greatest security,

and for one seeking refuge the best protector.

وَهيَ بحرٌ تُفِيضُ أَسنَى المزايا

وهيَ رِيٌّ لكل صادٍ وظامِ

She is a sea pouring forth the noblest gifts,

and refreshment for everyone parched and thirsty.

ها أَنا خادمٌ ببابِكِ ذُلّاً

فاقبَليني من أَصغَر الخُدَّامِ

Here I am, a servant humbly at your door;

accept me among the least of the servants.

وارجِعيني إلى محلّ سكوني

حيثُ لي من أَذَى العُداةِ تُحامي

Return me to the place of my repose,

where you defend me from my foes' harm.

وامنَحيني صفحَ الذُنوبِ وكوني

لي شفيعَ الخَلاصِ يومَ الزِحامِ

Grant me forgiveness of sins, and be

my intercessor for salvation on the day of the throng.

فعليكِ السَلامُ ما فاهَ نُطقٌ

فيكِ بين الوَرَى بمدح نِظامِ

So peace be upon you as long as speech utters

praise of you in ordered verse among humankind,

وانبَرَت في طُرُوسها ناطقاتٍ

عنكِ بالشُكر أَلسُنُ الأَقلامِ

and upon their pages speak out

the tongues of pens, giving thanks for you.

وحَظِي منكِ مادحٌ بقَبُولٍ

قد حَباهُ بالمدح حُسنَ الخِتامِ

And a praiser has found acceptance from you,

which bestowed on him, through praise, a happy ending.