ما عَلى أَحسَنكُم لَو أَحسَنا

إِنَّما نَسأَلُ شَيئاً هَيِّنا

It is no fault of yours if we have done well,

We only ask for something easy.

قَد شَجانا اليَأسُ مِن بَعدِكُمُ

فَغَدَونا بِأَحاديثِ المُنى

Despair has torn us apart after you,

So we engaged in hopeless conversations.

وَعَدوا بِالوَصلِ مِن طَيفِكُمُ

مُقلَةٌ لَم تَدرِ فيكُم وَسَنا

With the promise of reunion from your apparitions,

A lovelorn one who knew no enmity among you.

لا وَسِحرٌ بَينَ أَجفانِكُم

فَتَنَ الحُبُّ بِهِ مَن فَتَنا

Not sorcery between your eyelids,

With which love tempted the tempted one.

وَحَديثٍ مِن مَواعيدِكُم

تَحسُدُ العَينُ عَلَيهِ الأذُنا

And talk of your promises,

The ear envies the eye for it.

ما رَحَلت العيسَ عَن أَرضِكُم

فَرَأَت عَينايَ شَيئاً حَسَنا

The eyes did not see anything beautiful,

Since the caravan left your land.

يا بَني عُذرَةَ إِن ضِفناكُم

فَدَم الهِرماسِ مِنكُم عِندَنا

O sons of Udhra, if we visited you,

The blood of the slain one is with us from you.

أَخَذَت سُمرُكُمُ الثّأرَ بِهِ

لَستُ أَعني لَكُمُ سُمرَ القَنا

Your spears took revenge with it,

I do not mean your spears of cane.

وَسَلَلتُم فيهِ أَلحاظَكُم

فَعَرَفنا بِالسُّيوفِ اليَمَنا

And you slid your glances in it,

So we recognized the Yemeni swords.

هَل لَنا نَحوَكُم مِن عَودَةٍ

وَمِنَ التَّعليلِ قَولي هَل لَنا

Is there any return to you from us?

My question, "Is there any return for us?" is an excuse.

كَم أُسَلّي النَّفسَ عَن حُبِّكُم

وَهيَ لا تَزدادُ إِلّا حَزَنا

How I distract the soul from loving you,

And it only increases in sorrow.

وَلَعَمري لَو وَجَدنا راحَةً

مِن هَواكُم لَطَلَبنا شَجَنا

And by my life if we found solace,

From your love we would seek anguish.

يا نَديميَّ عَلى ذِكرِهِم

وَحَديثُ الشَّوقِ قَد أَسكَرَنا

O my drinking companion, let's remember them,

The talk of longing has intoxicated us.

بَينَ بصرَى وَضُمَير عَرَب

يَأمَنُ الخائِفُ فيهِم ما جَنى

Between Basra and the heart of the Arabs,

The fearful are safe among them from what he harvested.

كُلَّما شُنَّت عَلَيهم غارَة

أَغمَدوا البيضَ وَسَلوا الأَعيُنا

Whenever a raid was launched against them,

They sheathed the swords and pardoned the eyes.

طَلَعَت لِلحُسنِ فيهِم مُزنَةٌ

أَنبَتَت في كُلِّ حِقفٍ غُصنا

For their beauty, luck sprouted among them,

Growing branches in every cheekbone.

ما لِقَلبي لَيسَ يَشفى داؤهُ

كُلَّما زالَ ضَنىً عادَ ضَنا

What is wrong with my heart that its disease does not heal?

Whenever a sorrow passes, sorrow returns.

كُلُّ يَوم صَبوَة عُذرِيَّةٌ

مِن هَواكُم تَتَلاقى الدِّمَنا

Every day there are partridges from Udhra

Meeting together due to love of you.

لَو سَلِمنا مِن تَباريحِ الهَوى

لَذَكَرنا جُملَةً مِن أَمرِنا

If we were safe from the wounds of passion,

We would remember all our matter.

وَشَكَرنا لابنِ نَصرٍ مِنَّةً

أَنطَقَت بِالمَدحِ فيهِ الأَلسُنا

And thank Ibn Nasr for his favor,

Which loosed tongues in praising him.

مُغرَمٌ بِالجودِ ما يَحمِلُهُ

نَصَبُ الفَقرِ عَلى حُبِّ الغِنى

Infatuated with generosity, whatever poverty,

Imposes upon the love of wealth.

كُلَّما عَرَّضَ بِالحَمدِ لَهُ

أَكثَرَ السَّومَ وَأَغلى الثَّمَنا

Whenever praise was presented to him,

He increased the price and made it more expensive.

ما تَراهُ كَيفَ ما مالَت بِهِ

عِقَبُ الأَيّام إِلّا مُحسِنا

You do not see him, no matter how the days,

Inclined with him, except as a benefactor.

وَقَريبٌ بَعُدَت هِمَّتُه

رُبَّ أَمرٍ ما نأَى حَتّى دَنا

And though his ambition was distant,

Many things come near that were remote.

وَإِذا ما أَقبَلَت غائِرَة

كَقَنا الخَطِّ خِفافاً لَدُنا

And when the heavy rains advanced gently,

Like the line of script, supple and smooth.

صاحَ مَحمودٌ عَلى فُرّاطِها

لا فَتىً يَعطِفُها إِلّا أَنا

Mahmoud shouted at its horses,

"None shall turn it back except me!"

خُلِقَت لِلجودِ مِنهُ راحَةٌ

عَلَّمتنا أَن نَذُمَّ المُزنا

Ease was created in generosity for him,

It taught us to suppress sorrow.

يا عِمادَ الحَزم نَعتاً صادِقاً

وَمِنَ الأَلقابِ مَينٌ وَالكُنى

O pillar of wisdom, a true description,

And from the titles grace and nicknames.

لا أَرى عَتبكَ إِلّا ظاهِراً

خَيرُ شَكوى عاشِقٍ ما أَعلَنا

I see no fault in you except apparent,

The best lover's complaint is one made public.

كُنتَ تَرمي زَمَني دوني فَقَد

صِرتُ أَخشى أَن يَكونَ الزَّمَنا

You used to aim your time below me, so now,

I fear the time has become like me.

ما تَعامَلنا بِحَمدِ اللَّهِ في

سَبَبٍ يُوجِبُ خُلفاً بَيِّنا

We have not dealt with thanks to God in,

A cause that necessitates clear betrayal.

غَيرَ شِعرٍ رُبَّما أَهدَيتُهُ

لَكَ إِذ صادَفَ وَقتاً مُمكِنا

Except poetry I may have gifted you,

When an occasion presented itself.

لَيسَ في الأَعداءِ مَن يَفهَمُه

فَيَقولوا إِنَّهُ ما أَحسَنا

None among the enemies understands it,

To say, “How good it was!”

وَلَعَمري إِنَّ في حُبِّهِمُ

ما يرى سَحبانُ إِلّا أَلكَنا

And by my life in their love,

Only the compliant see comfort.

كُلَّ يَوم لِيَ مِنهُم نَوبَةٌ

تَذَرُ الحُرَّ بِهِم مُمتَحَنا

Every day I have an episode with them,

Leaving the free man tried through them.

وَعَلى العِلات لا زِلتُ بِما

أَكرَهُ التَّصريحَ فيهِ فَطِنا

And despite the flaws, I remain with what

I dislike to state plainly, out of tact.

أَنكَروا حِرصي عَلى السّلمِ وَما

أَدَّعي أَنّي أُحِبُّ الفِتَنا

They denied my eagerness for peace, and I do not,

Claim to love discord.

كَيفَ يَهوى الحَرب مَن إِن فُزتُمُ

لَم يَكُن بِالخَيرِ مِنكُم قَمِنا

How can one who loves war love you,

When if you win, we do not have secure refuge?

وَإِذا ضاقَت عَلَيكُم خُطَّةٌ

عَدِمَ المال بِها وَالوَطَنا

And if the strategy narrows upon you,

Neither wealth nor homeland in it.

لَيسَ في المَعقولِ أَن يؤثِرَها

غَيرَ مَن إِن خِفتُ فيها أَمِنا

It is not reasonable to prefer it,

Unless out of fear in it I would be safe.

فَتَنَبَّه لِمَخارِيقِهِمُ

ما عَهِدنا مِنكَ هَذا الوَسَنا

So beware of their deceits,

We did not know this declining vigor from you.

وَاحمِلِ النّاسَ عَلى حُبِّهِمُ

لَيسَ مِن دينِ العُلى أَن تُغبَنا

And carry the people in their love,

It is not the religion of exaltation to deprive us.

إِنَّ مَن أَحرَزَ عَنكُم مَذهَباً

غَيرَ مَن أَنتُم لَهُ كُلُّ الدُّنا

Indeed, whoever adopts a doctrine,

Other than yours, the world entirely is dunya to him.

لَيسَ مَن يَعبُدُ رَبّاً واحِداً

مِثلَ مَن يُشرِكُ فيهِ الوَثَنا

One who worships one God is not,

Like one who associates idols with Him.