عَفا العِرضُ بَعدي مِن سُلَيمى فَحائِلُه

فَبَطنُ عَنانٍ رَيبُهُ فَأَفاكِلُه

My virtue endured after me against Sulaima, so its obstacles

The belly of the she-camel doubted it, so he who rides behind overtook it

فَرَوضُ القَطا بَعدَ التَساكُنِ حِقبَةً

فَبَلوٌ عَفَت باحاتُهُ فَمَسايِلُه

The running of the wild cats after tranquility for a period

So an affliction which made its ponds overflow and its streams flow

فَميثُ عُرَيناتٍ بِها كُلُّ مَنزِلٍ

كَوَشمِ العَذارى ما يُكَلَّمُ سائِلُه

The stay of pregnant she-camels in it, at every stop

Like the tattoo of virgins, its questioner is not spoken to

تَمَشّى بِها عوذُ النِعاجِ كَأَنَّها

فَريقٌ يُوافي الحَجَّ حانَت مَنازِلُه

The stray sheep walked in it as though they

Were a group heading for Hajj when their stops approached

ذَكَرتُ بِها سَلمى وَكِتمانَ حاجَةٍ

لِنَفسي وَما لا يَعلَمُ الناسُ داخِلُه

I remembered Sulaima in it and the concealment of a need

To myself, and what people do not know its insider

يَظَلُّ يُؤَتّيني صِحابي كَأَنَّني

صَريعُ مُدامٍ باكَرَتهُ نَواطِلُه

My companions continue to come to me as though I

Were drunk on new wine while its vessels were being emptied

وَما كانَ مَحقوقاً فُؤادُكَ بِالصِبى

وَلا طَرِبٌ في إِثرِ مَن تُواصِلُه

Your heart was not wronged by desire

Nor confusion in the aftermath of one you befriend

وَما ذِكرُهُ سَلمى وَقَد حالَ دونَها

مَصاريعُ حَجرٍ دورُهُ وَمَجادِلُه

The mention of Sulaima while stone buildings

Whose around it and its trenches hindered access to it

وَإِن لَم يُوَرِّعني الشَبابُ وَلَم يَلِج

بِرَأسِيَ شَيبٌ أَنكَرَتهُ غَواسِلُه

Even if youth did not restrain me and grey hair not

Invade my head which its rinsers rejected

وَفَيتُ فَلَم أَعذُر وَلَم يَلقَ غِبطَةً

مَساجِلُ بُؤسي قُمتُ يَوماً أُساجِلُه

I missed, but did not excuse, and misfortune did not meet

With any joy, I rose one day to dispute with it

وَقَد رابَني مِن بَعضِ قَومِيَ مَنطِقٌ

لَهُ جَلَبٌ تُروى عَلَيَّ بَواطِلُه

And speech reached me from some of my people

Having much falsehood its empty talk brought to me

وَمَن يَرَ عِزّاً في قَريعٍ فَإِنَّهُ

تُراثُ أَبيها مَجدُهُ وَفَواضِلُه

Whoever sees honour in a skull, he surely

Inherits his fathers glory and superiority

نَقَلنا لَهُ أَثمانَهُ مِن بُيوتِنا

وَحَلَّت إِلَينا يَومَ حَلَّت رَواحِلُه

We moved its prices to him from our homes

And they came to us the day their departures came

وَكائِن لَنا مِن إرثِ مَجدٍ وَسُؤدُدٍ

مَوارِدُهُ مَعلومَةٌ وَمَناهِلُه

We have inherited glory and pillars

With known sources and springs

وَمِنّا الَّذي رَدَّ المُغيرةَ بَعدَما

بَدا جامِلٌ كَاللوبِ تَبدو شَواكِلُه

And from us is he who repelled Mughira after

He donned his armour like a lion baring its claws

أَتاحَ لَها ما بَينَ أَسفَلَ ذي حِساً

فَحَزمِ اللَوى وادي الرَسيسِ فَعاقِلُه

He opened for it what was between the lower part of Hisa

To the valley of Rasis so he closed its opening, its protector

هَزيرٌ هَريتُ الثَديِ رِئبالُ غابَةٍ

إِذا سارَ عَزَّتهُ يَداهُ وَكاهِلُه

It is a doe I desired, the fattened she-camels of the forest

When his glory walked, his hands and shoulders

شَتيمُ المُحَيّا لا يُفارِقُ قَرنَهُ

وَلَكِنَّهُ بِالصَحصَحانِ يُنازِلُه

The abuse of Muhayya does not leave its horn

But it is by the Sahsah he competes with it

وَأُعطِيَ مِنّا الحَلقُ أَبيَضَ ماجِدٍ

نَديمُ مُلوكٍ ما تَغيبُ نَوافِلُه

And we were given the pure collared white Majid

A prince's drinking companion, his merits do not disappear

وَجاعِلُ بُردِ العَصبِ فَوقَ جَبينِهِ

يَقي حاجِبَيهِ ما تُثيرُ قَنابِلُه

And making the coolness of the headband above his forehead

Protecting his eyebrows from what its spears stir up

وَلَيلَةِ نَجوى يَعتَري العَيُّ أَهلَها

كَفينا وَقاضي الأَمرِ مِنّا وَفاصِلُه

And the night of confiding, fear afflicts its people

We sufficed, and the judge of the matter is from us, its separator

وَيَومَ الرَحى سُدنا وَجَيشَ مُخَرَّمٍ

ضَرَبناهُ حَتّى أَتكَأَتهُ شَمائِلُه

And the day of clanging, we plugged a broken army

We struck it until its shoulders leaned

وَيَومَ أَبي يَكسومَ وَالناسُ حُضَّرٌ

عَلى جَلَبانٍ إِذ تَقَضّى مَحاصِلُه

And the day of Abi Yaksom while people were present

At Jalan when its fruits had finished ripening

فَتَحنا لَهُ بابَ الحَصيرِ وَرَبُّهُ

عَزيرٌ تَمَشّى بِالحِرابِ أَراجِلُه

We opened the door of Hasir for it while its lord

Was small, its feet walking with swords

عَلَيهِ مَعَدٌّ حَولَنا بَينَ حاسِدٍ

وَذي حَنَقٍ تَغلي عَلَينا مَراجِلُه

Upon it was Mu'add planning around us between enviers

And those of rancour whose cooking pots boil against us

وَإِذ فَتَكَ النُعمانُ بِالنّاسِ مُحرِماً

فَمُلِّأَ مِن عَوفِ بنِ كَعبٍ سَلاسِلُه

When Nu'man was brutal with the people in sanctity

We filled his chains with Awf ibn Ka'b

فَكَكنا حَديدَ الغِلِّ عَنهُم فَسُرِّحوا

جَميعاً وَأَحظى الناسِ بَالخَيرِ فاعِلُه

We removed the shackles of captivity from them so they walked freely

And the people were blessed by the good his doer did

وَقُلنا لَهُ لا تَنسَ صِهرَكَ عِندَنا

وَلا تَنسَ مِن أَخلاقِنا ما نُجامِلُه

And we said to him ‘Do not forget your in-law with us’

‘Nor forget the morals with which we indulge him’

فَما عَيَّرَتنا بَعدُ مِن سوءِ جَرعَةٍ

وَلا شيمَةٍ ما بَوَّأَ الخَلقَ حابِلُه

Afterwards, no bitter sip or trait

Has the Creator sited to dispense to its containers

فَتِلكَ مَساعينا وَبَدرٌ مُخَلَّفٌ

عَلى كَتِفَيهِ رِبقَةٌ وَحَبائِلُه

Those were our pursuits, and inherited Badr

With bells on its shoulders and ropes

لَعَمرُكَ إِنَّ الزَبرَقانَ لَدائِمٌ

عَلى الناسِ يَغدو نَوكُهُ وَمَجاهِلُه

By your life, the Zubraqan are lasting

With the people, its plantation and ignorances rise each morning

شَرى مَحمَراً يَوماً بِذَودٍ فَخالَهُ

نَماهُ إِلى أَعلى اليَفاعِ أَوائِلُه

It bought a red cow one day with payments so it pastured

It to the highest of slopes, its beginnings

رَأى مَجدَ أَقوامٍ صَرىً في حِياضِهِم

وَهَدَّمَ حَوضَ الزَبرَقانِ غَوائِلُه

It saw the glory of a few people, Direct in their barnyards

And demolished the barnyard of Zubraqan, its destroyer

أَتَيتَ اِمرَءاً أَحمى عَلى الناسِ عِرضَهُ

فَما زِلتَ حَتّى أَنتَ مُقعٍ تُناضِلُه

You have come to a man protective of his honor with people

You did not stop until you yourself were seated, disputing him

فَأَقعِ كَما أَقعى أَبوكَ عَلى اِستِهِ

رَأى أَنَّ ريماً فَوقَهُ لا يُعادِلُهُ

Then sit just as your father sat

He saw that Rima above him had no equal

فَقَبلَكَ بَدرٌ عاشَ حَتّى رَأَيتُهُ

يَدُبُّ وَمَولاهُ عَن المَجدِ شاغِلُه

Badr met you, he lived until I saw him

Slithering while his patron distracted him from glory

وَيَنفُسُ مِمّا وَرَّثَتني أَوائِلي

وَيَرغَبُ عَمّا أَورَثَتهُ أَوائِلُه

And panting from what my early forefathers bequeathed me

And desiring beyond what his earlier forefathers bequeathed him

فَإِن كُنتَ لَم تُصبِح كَحَظِّكَ راضِياً

فَدَع عَنكَ حَظّي إِنَّني عَنكَ شاغِلُه

If you have not become satisfied with your fortune in the morning

Then leave my fortune be, I for you am distracted

وَأَنكَحتَ هَزّالاً خُلَيدَةَ بَعدَما

زَعَمتَ بِرَأسِ العَينِ أَنَّكَ قاتِلُه

You married a scrawny woman, Khulayda, after

You claimed you would kill he who peeked at her

يُلاعِبُها تَحتَ الخِباءِ وَجارُكُم

بِذي شَبرَمانٍ لَم تَزَيَّل مَفاصِلُه

He toys with her under the canopy while your neighbor

In Dhi Shubraman did not pack his joints

وَأَنكَحتَهُ رَهوى كَأَنَّ عِجانَها

مَشَقَّ إِهابٍ أَوسَعَ السَلخَ ناجِلُه

And you married him Rahwa as though her camels’ howdahs

Were a red Hyena skin the tanner expanded his paring knife on

وَلَمّا رَأَيتَ العِزَّ في دارِ أَهلِهِ

تَمَنَّيتَ بَعدَ الشَيبِ أَنَّكَ ناقِلُه

And when you saw honour in its people’s home

You wished after old age that you move it

وَلَمّا نَرَ الأَخفافَ تَمشي عَلى الذُرى

وَلَمّا يَكُن أَعلى العَضاهِ أَسافِلُه

When he saw the sandals walking on the pearls

When the highest of tree branches is not higher than its lowest

وَلَمّا يَزَل عَن رَأسِ صَهوَةِ عِصمِها

وَلمّا يَدَع وِردَ العِراقِ مَناهِلُه

When he stops wandering from the head of its inviolable alliance

And stops frequenting the Iraq’s springs