للهِ درُّ فَوارسٍ أَغمَارِ
لا يرهبونَ بوادرَ الاقْدَارِ
For God has valiant horsemen like surging floods,
Who fear not the onset of destiny,
واذا هم ركبوا الى حاجَاتِهم
لبسوا مضاربَ كلِّ نَصْل عَارِ
And when they ride for their needs,
They don gauntlets that pierce every sharp blade,
وتحككوا حكَّ الجِرابِ وما بهم
الا الارانُ وصحةُ الانْشَارِ
And they gird themselves tightly and carry only spears
And skill in thrusting them home.
بقواطعٍ مأثورةٍ آياتها
في الدارعينَ خفيةِ الآثارِ
With famous tried blades whose strokes
Are hidden in the cuirasses of the foe,
وبكل مطرودِ الكعوبِ سِنَانُه
كالبرقُ ينبضُ أَو لِسَانِ النَّارِ
And every seasoned warrior has a spear
That flashes like lightning or the tongue of flame,
يحبو الكميُّ اذا احتداهُ مِرشَةً
مجنونةَ الاقبالِ والادبَارِ
They love the fight when the melee is joined
In its passionate advance and recoil,
نَعَّارةً تَطغى اذا هي رُوغمتْ
بالفتكِ رجع قَوافها الهَدَّارِ
A mare whom, when she is challenged,
Her rage makes her rush into the midst of the foe.
قومٌ اذا غضبوا فلم يستعبوا
سلوا سُيوفَهم على الأَعْمَارِ
A people who, when they grow angry, do not recover themselves
Till they have sheathed their swords in men's breasts,
يَرمى بهم وبنفسه قُحَمَ الوَغى
غَرِضُ المقامِ عَطَوَّد الأَسفَارِ
And the leader plunges with his own life into the perils of war,
The goal of the sojourn lengthy campaigns.
لا تستريحُ ولا تبيتُ جيادُه
الا على خَطَر من الأَخطَارِ
Their steeds find no rest or sleeping place
Save on the brink of dangers and alarms,
يقدَحْنَ من عزماتِه وهُمومِه
مثل الشَّرارِ تطيرُ كلَّ مَطَارِ
From their resolves and anxieties strike sparks,
Like those that fly from flint and steel.
تأبى بفخرِ الملكِ نفسٌ مُرَّةٌ
مشغوفةٌ بالنقضِ والامرَارِ
A soul habituated to glory's pride
Is averse from truce or retreat.
انْ يطمئنَّ الى الحَشَايا قلبُه
وعناقِ جنبِ الطفلةِ المِعْطَارِ
That his heart should find comfort leaning
On the bosom of a sweetly scented wife,
هَجَرَ اللذَاذَةَ والكرى فجفونُه
لا ينطوين وهن غيرُ قِصَارِ
He has abandoned all delights and dear ones, so his lids
No longer close - they are like the wings of ants.
ما ضرَّ طرفَ العينِ لو داويتَه
بالغمضِ أو عللتَه بعَرَارِ
It would not harm the eye if you healed it
By closing it or treating it with collyrium.
ومُحَجَّب يرجو العفاةُ ببابهِ
نَفْحاً براحتهِ على الزُّوَّارِ
And the commoners hope at his gate
For a whiff of air from his gentle hand to the visitors,
حتى اذا رفعَ الحجابُ ستورَه
شقتْ مهابتُه على الأَبصَارِ
Till when the curtain lifts its veils,
His awesomeness dazzles all who look.
وافيته يوم السُرادقِ خالياً
فاختصَّنى بالاذْنِ والايثَارِ
And I came to him one day in his pavilion empty,
And he favored me with permission and precedence.
وَهَبَ الكرامةَ أَنَّها صِلةُ العُلا
وتحيةُ الاحرارِ للاحْرَارِ
And generously bestowed honor, saying it is
The link with the exalted and greeting of freeman to freeman.
انَّ الاكاريدَ الذينَ تمنعوا
بمعاقلِ الهضباتِ والاوعَارِ
Those Akharids whom you imprisoned
In the fortresses of the hills and rugged places,
وطويتَ كورةَ اصفهانَ اليهم
حتى صَبْحتَ جموعَهم ببوَارِ
And whom you folded up in the land of Isfahan
Till dawn shone upon their gathered forces,
في ليلةٍ سرقَ المُحَاقُ هِلالَها
فكأَنَّهُ في الأُفقِ نصفُ سِوَارِ
In a night whose crescent the darkness stole away
As if it were a bracelet in the horizon,
رَهَجٌ ينم على الطِلابِ عمودُهُ
وسُرى على الاعداءِ غيرُ سِرَارِ
A pillar of fire that slumbers over the seekers
And progresses over the enemy without their knowledge,
وبنو خَفَاجةَ من عقابكَ عالجوا
يوماً طويلَ الشرِ بالأَنبَارِ
And the Banu Khafaja whom you punished
A long day with evil in Anbar,
يَنزونَ من وقعِ الحِرابِ كأَنهم
عطبُ القسي تُثارُ بالاوتَارِ
Who come down from the impact of battle as if they are
The flight of arrows stirred by bowstrings,
أَزرى بهم عند الكريهةِ أَنهم
لا يَخطرونَ الى القَنا الخَطَّارِ
In time of woe, I find them steadfast
Not inclining to the fatal wells,
وَمُجَلَّؤُونَ عن المناهلِ طالما
عُقِرتْ مطيهم على الاعقارِ
Though you left the loyalty of their alliance and faithfulness
And they came to you clad in robes of shame,
تركت لجوثةَ صدقَها ووفاءَها
وأَتتكَ ترفلُ في ثياب العَارِ
And I see that in adversity worship is hard
Its direction never increases save reluctance,
وأَرى عُبَادَةَ في المقادةِ صعبةً
مُسِحَتْ فما تزدادُ غير نِفَارِ
They felt secure from misfortunes as if they had not seen
Traces of city folk and those who chatter idly,
أَمنوا الخطوبَ كأَنهم لم يبصروا
آثارَ أَهلِ الحضرِ والثرثارِ
And your good fortune which preceded them
Was bounties Udad had given, and Rabi'ah ibn Nizam,
وَمَبَارِكاً ملاتْ ايادٌ قبلَهُم
اعطانَها وربيعةُ بن نزارِ
By the life of their ancestor, I warned them
If only they had listened to the warning,
ولعمرُ جدهم لقد أَنذرتهم
لو أَنهم أَصغوا الى الانذارِ
If autumn has deceived us, and the clouds
Have created doubts, harbingers of rain,
ان كان قد خَدَعَ الخريف وأَخلقتْ
فيه الظنونَ مخائلُ الامطارِ
And the diseased eyelid whose sight is impaired
Beware lest Spring prove true - beware!
وتعللَ الثمدُ المُعلِلُ طرفُه
فَحَذَارِ انْ صدقَ الربيعُ حذارِ
Till when the meadows and pastures shine,
They look to you with eyes of fire,
حتى اذا بهر الاباطحَ والرُّبى
نظرتْ اليكَ بأَعينِ النُّوارِ
And Wasim has entrusted his domain to you, so its impact
Comes from your outcry and every near and distant spot.
واستودعَ الوسمى كان وقيعه
من فضلِ صَيِّبهِ وكل قَرارِ
Then you will hear the bells of columns
In which the saddles surge with warriors,
فهناكَ تستَمعونَ جَرسَ كتائبٍ
فيها السروجُ تموج بالأكوَارِ
Their palms have hurried to grasp the spears,
Their cuirasses with unbuttoned straps,
عَجِلَتْ الى فِرصِ الطِّعانِ أَكفُّهَا
فدروعها محلولةُ الأزرَارِ
Raiment whose train sweeps the ground when it is donned
After overflowing over the fingernails.
حلل تحنفتِ الظنى حافاتها
من بعدِ ما طفحت على الأَظفَارِ
They sought the death-shrouds and breasts
In which to rest their wounded, broken frames,
طلبوا الترائبَ والنحورَ وأَسندوا
فيها صدورَ ذوابلِ اِكسَارِ
You knew the passes, and the lands obeyed
Throughout the long sojourn in the abode.
علمتَ كعباً والبلادُ مريعةٌ
طولَ المقامِ على دَرِينِ الدَّارِ
How can the way to Syria now be hers
After the world's regions have seized her?
كيف السبيلُ الى الاشامَةِ بعدما
أخذت عليها الأرضُ بالاقطَارِ
She is content if a rider brings her news,
Even if it be a trifle of reports,
ترتاح أَن يُهدي اليها راكبٌ
خَبَراً ولو من رائعِ الأخْبَارِ
Till when they sought your pardon for themselves,
They sought the pardon of the mighty, forgiving Lord.
حتى اذا عاذوا بعفوكَ عنهم
عاذوا بعفوِ المنعمِ الجَبَّارِ
They sought the one whose patience's composure
Bore the heavy burdens they carried of sins.
عاذوا بمن حَمَلَتْ رزانَةُ حلمهِ
أَثقالَ ما حملوا من الأوزَارِ
You still rise to the highest degrees,
While the light of lights envies your shining,
لا زلتَ في درجِ المعالي صَاعداً
يغتالُ نورَكَ ساطعُ الأَنوَارِ
And through your perfect son endowed with glory,
You have attained in the highest sphere.
وبلغتَ في ابنِكَ ذى المفاخرِ منيةً
بلغت بكَ الغاياتُ في الأوطَارِ
How excellent the caliph succeeding you,
When the earth brings forth and the neighbor raids the neighbor!
نِعْمَ الخليفةُ منك ان نَضَبَ الثَّرى
وغزى المجيرُ على سَوامِ الجَارِ
And we will offer him poems that soar
Whose wild geese are guided to all lands.
ولنهدينَّ الى علاه قصائداً
تُهدى شواردُها الى الأمصَارِ
You have disciplined your army and subjects, taking
Custom by hand to spread it and forbid evil.
هذبتَ جندكَ والرعيةَ آخذاً
بالعُرفِ تنشُرهُ وبالانكَارِ
And you distributed God's wealth when you collected it
Among them without delay or favoritism.
وقسمتَ مالَ اللهِ حينَ جبيتَه
فيهم بلا مَطَلٍ ولا استيثَارِ
And you have chosen a band after testing them,
Sharing with them in benefits and injuries alike,
وجمعتُ بالكَ فاصطفيتَ عصابةً
شاركتهم في النفعِ والاضرَارِ
After fully examining them and trying them
And gathering them in the arena of trial,
من بعدما استقصيتَهم وبلوتَهم
وضممتَهم في حَلبةِ المضمَارِ
Your night remains wakeful and watchful,
Taking precautions and privy to secrets,
وتبيتُ ليلكَ دائباً مستظهراً
بالحزم مطَّلعاً على الاسرَارِ
Devising stratagems no cunning beast with cycles
Could scheme by his wiles or experience.
كيداً حثيثاً لم يكن ليكيدَه
بأَناتِهِ كيوانُ ذو الأَدوَارِ
And praise is not fitting, but for one
Whose leadership is over the noble ones.
والمدحُ ليس خيارُه اِلاَّ لمنْ
كانتْ رئاستُه على الأحرَارِ
