على أثَلاتِ الواديينِ سَلامُ

وبعضُ تحايا الزائرينَ غَرامُ

Peace upon the slopes of the two valleys,

And some of the lovers' greetings are passion.

تذكّرتُ أيامي بها وأحبَّتِي

إِذِ العيشُ غَضٌّ والزمانُ غُلامُ

I recalled my days in it and my loved ones

When life was fresh and time was a lad.

وإِلمامتي بالحيِّ حيثُ تواجهتْ

قصورٌ بأكنافِ الحِمَى وخيامُ

And my knowledge of the alive quarter where

Palaces faced the environs of the sanctuary and tents.

ألامُ على هِجرانهمْ وهمُ المُنَى

وكيف يُقيمُ الحرُّ وهو يُضَامُ

Alas for their estrangement, and they are the purpose,

And how can the free live while he is wronged?

هُمُ شَرعوا أنَّ الجَفاءَ محلَّلٌ

وهمْ حكموا أن الوفاءَ حَرامُ

They deemed that estrangement is permissible,

And they judged that loyalty is forbidden.

بقلبي رَوْحٌ منهمُ وضمانةٌ

وعنديَ بُرءٌ منهمُ وسَقامُ

In my heart is a spirit from them and a pledge,

And with me are dissociation from them and sickness.

وأبلجُ أمّا وجهه حين يجتلى

فشمسٌ وأمّا كفُّه فغَمامُ

And its mother's face when it appears

Is a sun, and its hand is a cloud.

جرى طائري منه سنيحاً وعلَّنِي

بدَرِّ أيادٍ ما لهنَّ فِطامُ

My bird flew from it smoothly and taught me

With a full moon that has no weaning.

وأنزلني منه بألطفِ منزلٍ

كما مُزِجتْ بابنِ الغمامِ مُدامُ

And it descended me in the gentlest descent

As the wine is mixed with the son of the clouds.

شردتُ عليه غيرَ جاحِد نعمةٍ

أكَلَّفُ خسفاً بعدَهُ وأُسَامُ

I was prodigal to it, not ungrateful,

I burden loss after it, and I determine.

وقد يُسلبُ الرأيَ الفتَى وهو حازمٌ

وينبُو غِرارُ السيف وهو حُسامُ

And the young man's opinion may slip while he is decisive,

And the sword's deception appears while it is sharp.

فقد وجدَ الواشونَ سُوقاً ونفَّقُوا

بضائعَ زُورٍ مالهنَّ دَوامُ

So the slanderers found a market and haggled

With the wares of lies that have no permanence.

وبعضُ كلامِ القائلينَ تزَيُّدٌ

وبعضُ قَبولِ السامعين أثامُ

And some of the speakers' talk is pretense,

And some of the listeners’ acceptance is sins.

فأصبحَ شملُ الأُنسِ وهو مُبَدَّدٌ

لديهِ وحبلُ القُربِ وهو رِمامُ

So the unity of intimacy became scattered

To it, and the rope of kinship is worn out.

يُقَرَّبُ دوني من شَهِدتُ وغُيِّبُوا

ويوصَلُ قبلي من سَهِرتُ ونامُوا

It brings me closer to those I saw and they are absent,

And connects before me those who stayed up while I slept.

تَزاورَ حتى ما يُرجَّى التفاتُهُ

وأَعرضَ حتى ما يُرَدُّ سَلامُ

It exchanged visits until its attention was not hoped for,

And it turned away until its greeting cannot be returned.

فلا عطفَ إِلّا سخطةٌ وتنكّرٌ

ولا ردَّ إِلّا ضَجرةٌ وسَآمُ

So no kindness but sullenness and estrangement,

And no response but annoyance and boredom.

فإنِ يَكُ رأيٌ زَلَّ أو قَدَرٌ جَرى

بنازلةٍ فيها عليَّ مَلامُ

If there was an opinion that stumbled or a fate that occurred

With an ordeal in which I am blamed,

فواللّهِ ما قارفتُ فيك خيانةً

أُعابُ بها في مَحْفِلٍ وأُذامُ

By God, I did not betray you,

I am reproached in an assembly and blamed.

ولا قرَّ لي بعدَ التفرُّق مضجعٌ

ولا طابَ لي بعد الرحيل مقامُ

And no bed soothed me after the separation,

And no abode was good after the departure.

ولا ليَ إِلّا في ولائِكَ مَسرْحٌ

ولا ليَ إِلّا في هواك مَسَامُ

And I have no refuge but in your loyalty,

And I have no resort but in your love.

وإِن أكُ قد فارقتُ بابكَ طائعاً

فللدهرِ في الشملِ الجميع عَرَامُ

And if I have left your door willingly,

Time makes the separation of all intimate.

فقبلِيَ ما خلَّى عليّاً شقيقُهُ

وقرَّ بهِ بعدَ العراقِ شآمُ

So welcome me as Ali deserted his brother

And settled with him after Iraq, Damascus.

حياءً فإِنّ الصفْحَ خيرُ مغبَّةٍ

ومعذرةً إِنّ الكرامَ كرامُ

Out of shyness, for pardon is better than resentment,

And for apology, for generosity is generosity.

ألمنا وأعذرتُمْ فإِن تبلُغوا المَدى

من العتبِ نُعْذَرْ دونكمْ وتُلامُوا

We have suffered, and I have excused, so if you reach the extent

Of reproach, we are excused without you, and you are blamed.

وأحسنتمُ بَدءاً فهلّا أعدْتُمُ

ففي العَودِ للفعلِ الجميل تَمامُ

You were good at first, so why did you not

Repeat, for in returning to good deeds is perfection?

أُجلُّكَ أنْ ألقاك بالعُذرِ صادقاً

وبعضُ اعتذارِ المذنبينَ خِصامُ

I value you finding you sincere in apology,

And some apologizing of the sinful is dispute.

أتبعدُ حتى ليس في العَتْبِ مطمعٌ

وتُعرِضُ حتى ما تكادُ تُرامُ

I stay away until there is no hope in reproach

And you turn away until you can barely be addressed.

وتنسَى حقوقي عندَ أولِ زَلَّةٍ

وأنتَ لأهلِ المكرماتِ إِمامُ

And you forget my rights at the first slip,

And you are the imam of the generous.

ألمْ ألقَ فيك الأسرَ وهو مبرّحٌ

وألتذُّ طعمَ الموتِ وهو زُؤامُ

Did I not taste captivity willingly?

And enjoy the taste of death and it is agony?

وأخطُ سوادَ الليل وهو جَحافلٌ

وأرعَ نجومَ الأفقِ وهي سِهامُ

And walk the darkness of night and it has many dangers,

And pasture the stars of the horizon and they are arrows?

هو الذنبُ بين العفو والسيفِ فاحتكمْ

بما شئتَ لا يَعْلَقْ بفعلِك ذَامُ

It is the sin between pardon and sword, so judge

However you wish, no blemish sticks to your deed.

ولا تُبْلِني بالبعدِ عنك فإِنَّما

حياتيَ إِلّا في ذُراكَ حِمامُ

And do not distance me from you, for my life

Is only in catching sight of you, my dove.

إِذا ما جزيتَ السوءَ بالسوءِ لم يكنْ

لفضلكَ بين الأكرمينَ مَقامُ

When you repay evil with evil, your merit

Will have no position among the generous.

أعِدْ نظراً في حالتي تلقَ باطناً

سليماً وسرِّي ما عليه قَتَامُ

Reconsider my state, meet a sound core,

And my secret that has no darkness.

فمثُلكَ لم تغلِبْ عوائدُ سخطهِ

رضاهُ ولم يبعُدْ لديه مَرامُ

The likes of you, his anger habits do not

Overcome his satisfaction, and his purpose is not far.

ولا تنكرنْ فيما تسخّطتَ ساعةً

فقد مرَّ عامٌ في رِضاكَ وعامُ

And do not deny in your transient anger

A year has passed in your satisfaction and a year.

وإِنْ عزَّ ما أرجوهُ منك فإِنَّنِي

لَتُقنعني تسليمةٌ ولِمَامُ

And if the hoped from you is difficult, I

Will be satisfied with concession and blame.

فلا تُشعرنّي عزةَ اليأسِ إِنَّما

أمامي وراءٌ والوراءُ أمامُ

Do not make me feel the dignity of despair,

Before me is the future, and the future is before.

أترضَى لفضلي أن يضيعَ ذمِامُه

ومثلُكَ لم يُخْفَرْ لديهِ ذِمامُ

Are you pleased that the guarantee of my excellence is lost,

And the likes of you, his guarantee is not wasted?

وتحجبُني حتى تهدَّ مناكبي

بابك ما بينَ الوفودِ زِحامُ

And you deprive me until my shoulders slump,

The door between the crowds is crowded.

فإنْ نِمتَ عنّي واطَّرحْتَ وسائلي

فللهِ عينٌ ما تكادُ تنامُ

If you sleep from me and neglect my means,

By God there is an eye that can barely sleep.