أَرى جارَتي خَفَّت وَخَفَّ نَصيحُها
وَحُبَّ بِها لَولا النَوى وَطُموحُها
I see my neighbor has weakened, and her advice has faded,
And love for her, were it not for ambition and longing.
فَبيني على نَجمٍ شَخيسٍ نُحوسُهُ
وَأَشأَمُ طَيرِ الزاجِرينَ سَنيحُها
Between us is an ill-omened unlucky star,
And I take it as an ill omen, the screeching of the deterring birds.
فَإِن تَشغَبي فَالشَغَبُ مِنّي سَجِيَّةٌ
إِذا شيمَتي لَم يُؤتَ مِنها سَجيحُها
If you act wildly, the wildness is ingrained in me,
If you insult, your insults will not diminish me.
أُقارِضُ أَقواماً فَأوفي قُروضَهُم
وَعَفٌّ إِذا أَردى النُفوسَ شَحيحُها
I lend to people, then pay back their loans,
Generosity, when souls are stingy with it.
عَلى أَنَّ قَومي أَشَقَذوني فَأَصبَحَت
دِياري بِأَرضٍ غَيرِ دانٍ نُبوحُها
Though my people have exiled me, so my home
Is in a land not mine, remote is its consolation.
تَنَفَّذَ مِنهُم نافِذاتٌ فَسُؤنَني
وَأَضمَرَ أَضغاناً عَلَيَّ كُشوحُها
Grudges have seeped from them, paining me,
And they harbor malice against me in their breasts.
فَقُلتُ فِراقُ الدارِ أَجمَلُ بَينَنا
وَقَد يَنتَئي عَن دارِ سَوءٍ نَزيحُها
So I said, “Parting from home is best between us,
Though one may dislike leaving an evil home.”
عَلى أَنَّني قَد أَدَّعي بِأَبيهِمِ
إِذا عَمَّتِ الدَعوى وَثابَ صَريحُها
Yet I claim, because of their fathers,
When the claim is widespread and its proof is clear,
وَأَنّي أَرى ديني يُوافِقُ دينَهُم
إِذا نَسَكوا أَفراعُها وَذَبيحُها
And I see my religion conforms to theirs,
If they perform the rituals and sacrifices.
وَمَنزِلَةٍ بِالحَجِّ أُخرى عَرَفتُها
لَها بُقَعَةٌ لا يُستَطاعُ بُروحُها
And I know another status with the pilgrimage,
It has an area that cannot be reached by walking.
بِوُدِّكِ ما قَومي عَلى أَن تَرَكتِهِم
سُلَيمى إِذا هَبَّت شَمالٌ وَريحُها
With your love, no matter if my people abandoned me,
My shelter if a north wind blew and its gusts.
إِذا النَجمُ أَمسى مَغرِبَ الشَمسِ رائِباً
وَلَم يَكُ بَرقٌ في السَماءِ يُليحُها
When the stars set where the sun sets writhing,
With no lightning in the sky to illuminate it,
وَغابَ شُعاعُ الشَمسِ في غَيرِ جُلبَةٍ
وَلا غَمرَةٍ إِلّا وَشيكاً مُصوحُها
And the sun’s rays disappeared without a cover,
Save an impending darkness soon to overcast,
وَهاجَ عَماءٌ مُقشَعِرٌ كَأَنَّهُ
نَقيلَةُ نَعلٍ بانَ مِنها سَريحُها
And a blinding fog rose, as though
It were a slipping sandal whose thong was severed,
إِذا عُدِمَ المَحلوبُ عادَت عَلَيهِمُ
قُدورٌ كَثيرٌ في القِصاعِ قَديحُها
When the milk ran short, many pots returned to them
In the cooking pot, plentiful its ladle.
يَثوبُ إِلَيها كُلُّ ضَيفٍ وَجانِبٍ
كَما رَدَّ دَهداهَ القِلاصِ نَضيحُها
Every guest and neighbor returns to it,
As the suckling camel returns to the milker.
بِأَيديهِمُ مَقرومَةٌ وَمَغالِقٌ
يَعودُ بِأَرزاقِ العِيالِ مَنيحُها
In their hands are shrivelled and closed,
Returning with provisions for the dependents.
وَمَلمومَةٍ لا يَخرِقُ الطَرفُ عَرضَها
لَها كَوكَبٌ فَخمٌ شَديدٌ وُضوحُها
And frowning, whose virtue is not pierced by glances,
It has a lofty, very bright star.
تَسيرُ وَتُزجي السَمَّ تَحتَ نُحورِها
كَريهٌ إِلى مَن فاجَأَتهُ صَبوحُها
It moves about, pouring poison beneath its throat,
Hateful to whomever its early morning surprises.
عَلى مُقذَحِرّاتٍ وَهُنُّ عَوابِسٌ
ضَبائِرُ مَوتٍ لا يُراحُ مُريحُها
Haughty and scowling, shrouds of death,
With no comforter to relieve it.
نَبَذنا إِلَيهِم دَعوَةً يالَ مالِكٍ
لَها إِربَةٌ إِن لَم تَجِد مَن يُريحُها
We sent them an invitation—oh Lord of Malik!—
Difficult for it if it finds no comforter.
فَسُرنا عَلَيهِم سَورَةً ثَعلَبِيَّةً
وَأَسيافُنا يَجري عَلَيهِم نُضوحُها
So we marched against them with the Tha‘labi surah
And our swords flowed upon them gushing,
وَأَرماحُنا يَنهَزنَهُم نَهزَ جُمَّةٍ
يَعودُ عَلَيهِم وِردُنا فَنَميحُها
And our spears thrust them with repeated stabs,
And our returning assault bloodied them.
فَدارَت رَحانا ساعَةً وَرَحاهُمُ
وَدَرَّت طِباقاً بَعدَ بَكُءٍ لُقوحُها
Our millstone turned a while grinding them,
And circulated after their weeping was done.
فَما أَتلَفَت أَيديهُمُ مِن نُفوسِنا
وَإِن كَرُمَت فَإِنَّنا لا نَنوحُها
Their hands did not destroy any of our souls,
Though they were generous, and we do not lament them.
فَقُلنا هِيَ النُهبى وَحَلَّ حَرامُها
وَكانَت حِمى ما قَبلَنا فَنُبيحُها
So we said, “It is the spoils,” and made its forbiddenness lawful,
For it was protected before we bayed it.
فَأُبنا وَآبوا كُلَّنا بِمَضيضَةٍ
مُهَمَّلَةٍ أَجراحُنا وَجُروحُها
Then we and they, all of us, parted bitterly,
Neglected are our wounds and their stabs.
وَكُنّا إِذا أَحلامُ قَومٍ تَغَيَّبَت
نَشِحُّ عَلى أَحلامِنا فَنُريحُها
When the dreams of a people disappear,
We yearn for our dreams, so we can comfort them.
