آياتُ وَصلِكَ يَتلوها عَلى الناسِ
صبٌّ تحرِّكُهُ الذكرى إِلى الناسي
The verses of your connection, he recites to the people
A pouring that memory moves to the people
وَوعدُ وَصلِكَ دينٌ لا وَفاءَ لَهُ
فَلَيتَهُ كانَ بِالهُجرانِ يا قاسي
And the promise of your connection is a debt that has no loyalty
I wish it had been with estrangement, O cruel one
كأسي مزجتُ بأَحزاني وَلي جَسَدٌ
عارٍ مِنَ العارِ لكن بِالضَنا كاسي
My cup I mixed with my sorrows while I have a body
Naked from nakedness but clothed with thrift
وَعفت بعدك طَعمَ الصبرِ حينَ غَدا
كأساً إِذا اِرتُشِفَت لَم يَنتشِ الحاسي
And after you the taste of patience turned
Into a cup that makes the senses numb when sipped
يا ثانياً عطفَه عن مفردٍ دنفٍ
قَد باتَ يَضرب أَخماساً بِأَسداسِ
O you who turned away from a lone, base person
Who spent the night playing solo against doubles
وَمَن إِذا لاحَ في خَدَّيه لي خضِرٌ
قابلتُ رَجواي من لقياه بالياسِ
And when freshness appeared on my cheek to me
I confronted my hopes of meeting him with despair
لا يَخشَ خَدُّكَ سُلواناً لعارضه
فَإِنَّهُ لِجراح القَلب كالآسِ
Your cheek does not fear Sulwan for its height
For it is to the heart's wounds like a staff
قِف تَلقَ جفني بَعد الدَمعِ صَبَّ دماً
ما في وقوفِكَ عِندَ الصَبِّ من باسِ
Stop to receive my eyelids after the pouring tears poured blood
There is no harm in your standing at the pouring
مهفهفٌ لَو رآه الغصنُ منعطفاً
لَما تثنَّت بِهِ أَعطافُ ميّاسِ
Blowing gently, if the branch saw it bending
The twigs of the May tree would not bend with it
كَم قال لي حَليُهُ لما رأى وَلهي
خُذ في وقارِكَ واِتركني وَوسواسي
How much his trinkets said to me when they saw my infatuation
Take your dignity and leave me and my obsession
لا طعنَ فيهِ وَقَدُّ الرُمحِ قامتُهُ
لَكِنَّ قَلبي لَهُ أَضحى كَبُرجاسِ
No reproach in it, yet the standing of the spear
But my heart has become to it like a fortress
ساق كَبَدرٍ يُدير الشَمسَ في يَدِهِ
قَد لانَ عِطفاً ولكن قَلبُهُ قاسِ
The stalks of chamomile turn the sun in their hands
They have softened a little, but their hearts are cruel
أَضحى لعشّاقِهِ من رمحِ قامتهِ
طعنٌ ذكرنا بِهِ طاعونَ عَمواسِ
To its lovers, the standing of its spear
Is a stab that reminds us of the plague of ‘Amwas
وَخَدُّهُ إِن تبدّى تحتَ عارضِهِ
حسبتَهُ في الدُجى لألاءَ نبراسِ
And its cheek if revealed under its height
You’d think it in the darkness the illumination of embers
وَقَدُّهُ قَد رسا مِن تَحتِهِ كفلٌ
كالغُصنِ فَوقَ الكثيبِ الراسِخِ الراسى
And its nape has alighted from beneath it a shoulder
Like a branch above the firmly rooted hill
بَسّامُ ثَغرٍ فَيا فَوزَ المشوقِ إِذا
لَم يَلقَهُ عِندَ رؤياهُ بِعبّاسِ
A smile of a mouth, so what a joy if the ardent
Does not meet it when seeing it with Al-‘Abbas
وَطائِفٍ مِن بَني الشَيطانِ حاربني
فَكُلُّ ساعَةِ لَومٍ يَومُ أَوطاسِ
An attacker from the sons of Satan fought me
So every hour of blame is a day of weakness
يَلومني في سموّي لِلعَلاءِ وَما
عِندي جَوابٌ سِوى أَنّي لَهُ خاسِ
He blames me for my aspiration to supremacy but
I have no answer but that I am lowly to him
قابلتُ بِاللَومِ زَجراً حينَ قُلتُ لَهُ
وَسّعتَ فكري أو ضَيَّقتَ أَنفاسي
I faced the blame with prohibition when I said to him
Have you broadened my ideas or constricted my breath?
أَنا الشِهابُ اِتّخذتُ الأُفقَ لي سكناً
لمّا علوتُ بِفَضلِ اللَهِ في الناسِ
I am the meteor who took the horizon as residence
When by Allah’s grace I ascended amongst the people
الصاحِبُ الساحِبُ الذَيلَ العَفيف عَلى
سحبٍ تجاريه لا تنفكُّ في ياسِ
The close pulling friend whose tail is chaste
Dragging clouds that do not cease in despair
إِنَّ السَحائِبَ إِذ جارته أَتعبَها
نَعَم وَفي النيلِ ما أَبعدتُ مقياسي
Verily the clouds, when they competed with him, exhausted them
Yes, and in the Nile what distant did I measure!
يُجانِس الأصلَ طيبُ الذكرِ مِنهُ فمن
شَهادَةِ القَلبِ ذا سارٍ وَذا راسي
It conforms to the origin, the scent of good mention
So from the testimony of the heart, one who is joyful and firm
قَد عَفَّ زُهداً فَلَم تُعرَف مآثمُهُ
لَكِنَّ ساعاتِهِ أَيّامُ أَعراسِ
He has renounced asceticism so his sins are not known
But his hours are days of weddings
إِن ماسَ في أَرضِ قرطاسٍ لَهُ قَلَمٌ
أَزرى بِغُصنٍ من الرَوضاتِ ميّاسِ
If he revels in the land of paper, he has a pen
More comely than a branch from the gardens blowing gently
يراعة تطعَنُ الأَعدا وتطربُنا
وَتُجتَنى فَهيَ عودٌ ذاتُ أَجناسِ
A charm that stabs the enemy and delights us
Thus it is a fragrant piece of wood of different species
لَو أُلبِسَ الفارسيُّ الروح كانَ إِذاً
أَثنى عَلَيهِ بإِيضاحٍ وَإِلباسِ
If the spiritual were dressed, it would then, when
It is clearly and eloquently described
مِن أسرةٍ أَسروا الخطبَ الَّذي عجزت
عنه الأُلى شدّدوا العليا بأَمراسِ
From a family who took captive discourse that
The sublime were unable to reach, they affirmed principles
بَنو مَكانسِ غزلانُ المَجالسِ بَل
أسدُ الفَوارسِ في سلمٍ وَفي باسِ
The sons of the place of beauty, the gazelles of gatherings, but
The lion of knights whether on the stairs or in affliction
إِذا بَنوا شرفاً يَوماً عَلى شرفٍ
تَرى العَجائِبَ من إِحكام آساسِ
If they build glory one day over glory
You see wonders in the solidity of foundations
بِالفَخرِ قيل وَبالمَجدِ اِعتَلوا رتباً
لَم يرقهنَّ ابنُ عبّادِ بنِ عباسِ
With pride it is said and with glory they climbed ranks
That even the son of ‘Abbad ibn al-Abbas did not attain
تَرى عَجائِبَ مِن أَفعالِ مجدِهُمُ
لَولا العَيانُ أَباها كُلُّ قَيّاسِ
You see wonders of the deeds of their glory
If not for seeing I would deny everything imagined
مَولايَ مَولايَ مجدَ الدينِ دعوة مَن
أَجرى إِلى مَدحِكُم غايات أَفراسِ
My Master, my Master Glory of the Faith, the call of one
Who sent to your praise the goals of noble steeds
إِن قَلَّ نُظماً وَأَنسى مدحَكُم زمناً
فَأَنتَ تَعفو كَثيراً عَن خَطا الناسِ
If I scarce versify and forget your praise a while
You abundantly forgive the mistakes of people
وَإِن يَكُن دارسَ المغنى فَلا برحت
ربوعكم وَهيَ منكم غَيرُ أَدراسِ
If the singer of odes stays, he did not cease dwelling
In your meadows, and it is not other than unconcealed from you
أَو ما رثى فالمديحُ أَجدرُ مع
أَنَّ الرِثاءَ كؤوسٌ تصرعُ الحاسي
As for elegy, praise is worthier along with
The fact that drinking elegy cups makes the senses reel
عَلى الشَهيدِ غمامُ العَفوِ تُبدِلُهُ
في اللَحدِ من بَعدِ إِيحاشٍ بإِيناسِ
Upon the martyr the clouds of pardon replace
Him in the grave after distress with comfort
وَدُمتَ أَنتَ كَما تَختارُ تخلُفُهُ
يا خَيرَ فرعٍ دنا من خيرِ أَغراسِ
While you remain as you choose to leave him
O best branch, one who drew near from the best tree trunks!
طالَعتُ مجموعَكَ المبدي فَضائلَه
كَأَنَّهُ في المَعالي ضوءُ مقباسِ
I reviewed your revealed collection which manifests its merits
As if it were in the heights the light of a lantern
في طَيِّهِ نشرُ طيبٍ لَم يَزَل عبقاً
مِن مِسكِ نقسٍ ومن كافورِ أَطراسِ
In its folds the diffusion of a scent that does not cease to fragrance
With pure musk and camphor flakes
لا زِلتَ للأُدَبا رأساً وأصلُك قَد
رَسا فَأكرِم عَلى الحالَينِ بالراسِ
You are still the pinnacle of literature and your origin has
Settled, so ennoble both states with the head!
وَدمتَ تعرى عَن الأسوا تَصومُ عَن ال
فحشا علاً وَسِواكَ الطاعِمُ الكاسي
And may you remain disclosing baseness, fasting from
Obscenity, sublime, while your equal is the well-fed clothed one
ما لاحَ نجمٌ فأمّا في السَما فهدى
أَو في الثَرى فمن الريحانِ والآسِ
No star appeared, so whether in the sky so it gives guidance
Or in the land so of basil and myrtle
