تُزمُّ غَداً للظاعنينَ الرَّكائبُ

فتُحدى وتَخدي بالنِّجاءِ النّجائبُ

Tomorrow the camel litters will depart,

To be challenged, and to fall upon the cries with cries,

ويُوحشُ مَغْنى الحَيِّ غِبَّ ارتحالِهِمْ

كما أوحشتْ بعدَ العقودِ التّرائبُ

And the chanting of the living will be made lonesome by their departure,

As the turtle-doves were after the separation of lovers.

وتَبقى الأثافي كالحمائمِ رُكّداً

نأتْ دونَها الأوكارُ فهْيَ غَرائبُ

And the nests will remain like frightened doves,

While their burrows have become strange to them.

أو الكبدُ الحَرَّى يقطِّعُ جُرمَها

ثلاثةَ أجزاءٍ جَوىً مُتراكبُ

Or like a burning liver, its illness tearing it apart into three connected pieces,

The bow of fidelity will pay its ransom just as it did.

ستعطفُ قوس النوى فِدىً مِثلها

وللوجدِ في قَلبي سِهامٌ صَوائبُ

And for the passion in my heart there are healing arrows.

The ruins of the abodes will conceal from the winds

وتكتمُ أطلالَ الديِّارِ مِنَ النّوى

نوائبُ تُفْشي سِرَّهُنَّ النواعبُ

Secrets that the melodious singing will reveal.

And it will weep for the coolness of its shadow that is gone,

وتَبكي على ما فاتَ من بردِ ظلِّها

شَواد سَخيناتُ العيونِ نَوادبُ

With the burning tears of grieving eyes.

Just as she-camels cloaked themselves in the garb of bereavement,

كما ادَّرعتْ زِيّ الحداد ثواكلٌ

تلوَّتْ على أعناقهِنَّ الذَّوائبُ

Bearing litters on their necks.

And there is many a day when parting lays its claim,

وربَّ نهارٍ للفراقِ أصيلُه

ووَجْهي كلا لونيهِما متناسبُ

And my face and its two colors are equal.

So my tears and my form and my camel are soaked,

فدَمعي وشَخصي والمَطيُّ مُقطّرٌ

وقَلبي وقُرصُ الشّمسِ والهَمُّ واجب

My heart and the sun's disk and the worry mandatory.

I have used it to count the stars of my tears,

ظلِلتُ به أُحصي كواكبَ أدمُعي

وفي مثلِ ذاكَ اليومِ تُحصى الكواكبُ

And on such a day the stars themselves are counted.

Who pardons me about an absent one whose image,

فمَن عاذِري مِن غائبٍ وخيالُه

إذا خاطَ جفني النومُ أو غابَ آيبُ

When sleep lines my eyelids or goes away, errs?

It dons the gown of darkness as if

تدرَّعَ سربالَ الدُّجى وكأنّما

على وَجنتيه رونقُ الصُّبح ذائبُ

The radiance of dawn were melting on its cheeks.

And none would watch over it but its sisters,

ولم يكُ يرعاهُ سوى أخواتِهِ

عنيتُ دَراري النُّجومِ مُراقب

I have watched over the scattering of the stars.

So I have kept contacting him while he traveled far away,

فما زلتُ منهُ واصلاً وهْوَ هاجرٌ

وغازلتُ منهُ حاضراً وهو غائِبُ

And kept yearning for him while he was absent.

May God give him a phantom to visit me, while between us

لهُ اللهُ من طيفٍ يزورُ وبينَهُ

وبَيني رمالٌ جمّةٌ وسبَاسِب

Lie vast sands and long journeys.

For in their edges is drinking for the turbid,

فلِلكُدْرِ في أطرافهِنَّ مشاربٌ

وللعُفْرِ في أكنافهِنَّ مَسارب

And in their valleys is drinking for the dusty.

He is the moon, guided by the stars toward us,

هو البدرُ تَهديهِ الكواكبُ نَحونا

كما البدرُ تَهدينا إليهِ الغَياهبُ

As the moon guides us toward those who are absent.

He chases away my cares when he comes visiting me in my sleep,

يُنزِّهُني في رَقدتي وهو وافِدٌ

يوحشُني في يَقظتي وهْوَ ذاهِبُ

And saddens my waking when he goes away.

If one of his nostrils is blocked, the other flows,

فإن سُدَّ منه مِنخَرٌ جاشَ منخرٌ

وإن سرَّ منهُ جانبٌ ساءَ جانب

And if one of his sides is harmed, the other is disgraged.

Just as the gleam of the lying fire deludes

كما غرَّ بالنارِ الكذوبِ وميضُها

عيونَ البَرايا خُلّبٌ أو حبُاحِبُ

The eyes of the innocent, whether bleary or blinking.

Such is the way of fate, it has not made any stretch

كذلكَ دأبُ الدَّهرِ لم يصفُ موردٌ

منَ العيشٍ إلاَ كدَّرتَهُ شوائبُ

Of life pleasant without marring it with impurities.

It has judged unjustly until the happy times were driven out

قضى جائراً حتى اشرأبّت مناسمٌ

إلى حيثُ شاءَتْ واطمأنّتْ غَواربُ

To where they wished, and the wrongs were calm.

The eagle prevailed and ate its fill of the pigeon's flesh,

وصادَ العقابَ الصَّعْوُ فاقتاتَ شلْوَهُ

وصالَ على أسدِ العَرينِ الثّعالب

While the fox feasted on the lion of the den.

So prevail over all those whom

فغالِبْ بما سيّرْتُهُ فيكَ كلَّ مَنْ

تَاه وأيِقنْ أنَّ جندكَ غالِبُ

You dispatched against me, and know your troops will prevail.

Of what my own imaginings have created,

وعندكَ ممّا أنشأتْهُ خَواطِري

غرائبُ فيها للرواةِ رَغائب

There are wonders for the storytellers full of wonders.

One day they appear as brides of peace,

فطوراً بها في السّلم تُجلى عرائسٌ

وطوراً بها في الحربِ تُزجى كتَائب

Another day in war they are battalions thrown into the fray.

A thirsty man scorned meeting you, but ended up

وإنّ امراً عطشانَ وافاكَ شائماً

حَيَاكَ لَمَدلولٌ على الماءِ قارب

Greeted, led to the water's edge.