إِن لَم تَكُن قَد أحَستَ البَين من سَلِمَه
لاَتُجرِ دَمعاً فَإجرَاءُ الدُّمُوعِ لِمَه
If you wish not to shed tears
Do not weep, for tears should not flow causelessly
بَعض دَمعِكَ إِنَّ الدمعَ فِيهِ لِمَن
يُعتَادُهُ الوَجدُ مَا يَشفي ألَمَه
Save some of your tears, for in tears there is
One who is used to passion whom it does not relieve
الدَّمعُ عِلقٌ نَفِيسٌ غَيرَ أنَّ بِهِ
يَبدُو مِنَ الصَّبِ لِلوَاشِينَ مَا كَتَمَه
Tears are a precious outpouring though through them
Those who spy may detect the lover's hidden grief
فَقَلتُ لاَتَحجُ دَمعَ الصَّبِّ صَائِنَهُ
إِمَّا تَبَيَّنَ أنَّ الحِبَّ قَد صَرَمَه
So I said do not embarrass the tears of passion - hide them
Either it is evident that love's bond is severed
ما كَانَ أجريَ لِدَمعِي البَينُ مِن طَلَلٍ
تَلتَاحُ فِيهِ بَقَايَا الآي مُنثَلِمَه
My tears gained no consent to flow for mere deserted abodes
In whose remnants the tokens of dwellers lie forlorn
عَافٍ كَوَشِي فِرندٍ أو كَوَشمٍ يَدٍ
أسَفَّ فِيهِ النَّؤرَ الرَّجعَ مَن وَشَمَه
Wounding like the slashes of a Firanid sword or the slashes of a hand
In which the branding iron made the exiled wail at its burn
لم تُلفِ فِيهِ أرِيماً إِن وَقفتَ بِه
إلاَّ رَمَاداً كَكُحلِ العَينِ أو حُمَمَه
You will not find there a pasture, should you stand in it
Save ashes like collyrium for the eye or red embers
لِلَّهِ عَصرٌ بِذِي الإِثلِ انقَضَى ومَضَى
سَقِيتُ بِه العُدُوَّ المُستَشِيطُ َدَمَه
By God, a time of the likes of Dhi al-Ithl is no more
With it I would have watered a raging, furious enemy
قَالَت أُمَامَةُ ِإني صِرتُ صَارِمَةً
حَبلَ المَوَدَّةِ والأحشَاءُ مَضطَرِمَه
Umaama says, verily I have become
Severe, and affection's cords within me burn
ولَستُ أرضَى بِأن أُلفي مُخَالِلَةً
مَن لَيسَ شيخي أو أنفي لَهُ كَلِمَه
I am not pleased to be found betraying
One who is not my shaikh or whose word I heed
وصِرتُ أحسَبُ مِنكَ الوَصلً مَنقَصةً
فَقُلتُ مَاذَا لِمَه قُلتُ رُوَيدَكَ مَه
So I deemed being joined to you a lessening
And said, “Why, what for?” I said, “Gently!”
إني غَدَرتُ وشيخي مِن شَمَائلِهِ
غَدرٌ وإني لأقفُو دَائماً شِيَمَه
Verily, I have betrayed my shaikh for his traits
Are betrayal, though I always emulate his traits
فَقُلتُ مَا شَاهَدَتَ عَينَاكِ فِيهِ مِنَ السَيسَا
عَلَى مَا ادَّعَاهُ النَّاسُ مِن عَظَمَه
So I said, “What have your eyes observed in him
Of witchcraft as the people claim of his greatness?”
قَالَت شَريعَتُه لِلشَّرعِ نَاسِخَةٌ
والأولِيَاءُ بِهِ في الدَّهر مختَتَمَه
She said, “His sacred law supersedes
The holy law, and by it saints till Doomsday are sealed”
بَلهَ الكَرَامَاتِ قَد جَلَّت وأعظَمُهَا
أنَّ المَحَارِمَ صَارَت غَيرَ مُحتَرَمَه
“But the miracles! They have been magnificent, the greatest being
That the unlawful has become unforbidden”
وصَارَ دينُ النبي الهَاشِميِّ لُقىً
وصَارَ لُقيَا الغَوَاني لِلصَّلاَحِ سِمَه
“The religion of the Hashimite Prophet has been found
Contradictory, and the talk of libertines deemed uprightness”
وشارك الشيخُ في الزَّوجَاتِ كُلَّ فَتًى
قَسراً ولَمَّا تَكُن بالعَدلِ مُقتَسَمَه
“The shaikh shares all the wives of the young men
By force, though they have not been justly apportioned”
تُلغَى الخَرَائِدُ في حَافَاتِهِ حِلَقاُ
أموَاجُ أردَانِهَا بالمِسكِ مُلتَطِمَه
“Silk khirqas on his outskirts, round which waves
Of Ardaniyya crash, musk-scented”
تَختَالُ في نَسجِ صَنعَاء المُصَوَّرِ في
أرجَائِهِ وتَذُمُّ البَرقَ مُبتَسِمَه
“They strut about, imaged in the weaver's art of Sanaa
On its borders, while lightning smiles at them”
تَأتِيهِ لَيلاً فَرَادَى كَى يَنَالَ لِمَا
يَهوَى وتأتِي نَهَاراً وهيَ مُلتَئِمَه
“They come to him singly by night, that he may get
All he lusts for, and by day in droves”
كَأنَّهُنَّ زَلِيخَا وهوَ يُوسُفُ إل
لا أنَّ يُوسَفَ رَبُّ العَرشِ قَد عَصَمه
“As if they are Zulaikha and he is Joseph
Save that Joseph was protected by his Lord”
وأَنَّهُ عِندَهُ نِصفُ الجمالِ وأن
مَا بَلَّغَت أحَداً هِمَّاتُهُ هِمَمَه
“And that he possesses half of beauty, and that
No ambition of his has fallen short of its goal”
كَأنَّه بَينَها لَو لَم يَكُن خَرقاً
عِرسٌ كَرِيمٌ عَلاَ الأقوَامَ في الكَرَمَه
“As if, were it not for vituperation, he would be
A generous bridegroom transcending people in generosity”
قَالَت أتُنكِرُ مَا قَد قُلتُ فِيهِ أمِن
حِزبِ الشَّرِيفِ المُقَاسِى بالضلالِ حُمَه
She said, “Do you deny what I have said
Of the party of the noble one (al-Muqaffa) lost in error?”
المُقتفي نَهجَ طهَ في فِعَائِلِهِ
مَن لَم يَكُن عَامِلاً إِلاَّ بِمَا عَلِمَه
“Walking the path of Taha in his deeds
One who did not act but with what he knew”
فَقًُلتُ لِلَّهِ هذَاكَ الشَّرِيفُ وَمَا
أجرَى عَلَى مَن أتَاهُ مِنكُمُ دِيَمَه
So I said, “By God, that is the noble one, and
What a splendid cloak he has cast over you!”
فَكَم كَسَا العارِىَ الأوصال مَكرُمَةً
منكم وكَم جندِ جوعٍ عَنكُم هَزَمَه
“How many naked destitutes has he clothed in honour!
And how many a wretched poor army has he vanquished for you!”
لِلَّهِ قَلبٌ له مُبيَضُّ كُلِّ رَجاً
قَد أودَعَ اللهُ في سَودَائِهِ حِكمَه
“By God, he has a pure heart in which God
Has set a wisdom dark in hue”
لِلَّهِ هَيبَةُ لَيثٍ مِنهُ وَاضِحَةٌ
كَأنَّه وهو ضَاحٍ هُوَّ في أجَمَه
“By God, he has the awe of a fierce lion
Radiant, yet terrible in his heat”
يَسطُو عَلَى بِدَعٍ قَد شِبنَ مُنتَضِياً
صَمصَامَةَ الحَقِّ فِئنَ مُنهَزِمَه
“He charges against innovations grown old, determined
To defend the truth though opponents take flight”
قَالُوا إسمهُ في نَوادِينَا المُضَلِّلَ لاَ
أفَّاهُ قُلتُ لهم مَا كَانَ دَاءُ سُمَه
They said, “His name in our clubs is ‘the Misguided,’
Not a mouth denied.” I said to them, “That was no disease to poison him!”
ولَو وَسَمتُم بهَذَا الإسمَ شيخَكُمُ
لَطَابَقَت في إسمِهِ السِّيمَا لِمَن وَسَمَه
“Had you given your own shaikh this name
His traits would correspond to the name's traits in the one so named”
أمَّا الشَّرِيف فَلَم يَعبَأ بِقَولِكُمُ
فِيهِ وإن كَانَ بَعضٌ منكمُ شَتَمَه
“As for the noble one, he did not care what you said
Of him, even if some of you insulted him”
ولَستُ أحسَبُه يُدعَى المُضَلِّلَ إِن
نفي عنِ المصطفي الكُتمَانَ والتَّهَمه
“Nor do I deem him called ‘the Misguided’ if
He denied concealment and suspicion regarding the Chosen One”
أو قَالَ مَا قَالَ في الكُتبِ إِنَّ له
كَفَّا بِقَولِ رَسُولِ اللهِ مُعتِصَمَه
“Or if he said what was said in the Book, for he has
The saying of God's Messenger as his protection”
صَلَّى علَيهِ إله العرشِ مَا نَسَمَت
صَباً وَمَا بَرَّدَت مِنهَا الجَوَى نَسَمَه
“God bless him, whom the God of the Throne so long
As the zephyrs blow and the air brings its breath
