زارَتكَ بَعدَ الكَرى زُوراً وَتَمويها
ما كانَ أَقرَبَها لَولا تَنائيها
After the caravan had departed, she paid you short, fleeting visits,
How much closer they would have been, were it not for her aloofness!
زارَت وَجُنحُ الدُجى يَحكي ذَوائِبَها
وَوَدَّعَت وَضِياءُ الصُبحِ يَحكيها
She visited while the wings of night recounted her tale,
And the dawn light bid her farewell, telling of her.
كَيفَ اِهتَدَت وَظَلامُ اللَيلِ معتكر
لَولا سَنا وَجهِها في اللَيلِ يَهديها
How did she find her way when the night was dark?
Were it not for the radiance of her face guiding her in the night.
تَبَرقَعَت في الدُجى تُخفي مَحاسِنَها
فَلَم تَكَد سُدَفُ الظَلماءِ تُخفيها
She was veiled in the darkness, hiding her beauty,
Yet hardly had the cloak of darkness hidden her.
رُوحي فِدىً لَكَ مِن طَيفٍ نَعِمتُ بِهِ
وَلَيلَةٍ بَلَّغَت نَفسي أَمانيها
My soul is ransom for you, for an apparition I enjoyed,
And a night that fulfilled my soul’s wishes.
ما كانَ أَطيبَها لَولا تَصَرُّمُها
عَنّا وَأَعجَبَها لَولا تَقَضِّيها
How much sweeter it would have been, were it not for her reluctance
To visit us, how much more wondrous, were it not for her leaving.
دَع ذا وَرُبّ شَطُونِ البِيدِ نازِحةٍ
غُبرٍ مَعالِمُها طُمسٍ مَوامِيها
Leave this be, like the slopes of a sand dune shifted
By a dusty wind, its features blurred, its paths obscured.
كَأَنَّها وَالسَرابُ الضَحلُ يَرفَعُها
بَحرٌ مِنَ الآلِ طامٍ مَوجُهُ فِيها
As though it and the insubstantial mirage that lifts it
Were a sea of flags with waves surging inside it.
قَطَعتُ أَجوازَها في ظَهرِ سَلهَبَةٍ
حُمٍّ شَوامِتُها صُمٍّ خَوافِيها
I traversed its slopes in the evening gloom,
Its whispered conversations hushed, its paths unclear.
طالَت سَبائِلُها وَامتَدَّ حالِبُها
وَنافَ غارِبُها وَاِنقادَ هاديها
Her tresses flowed long, her braid extended,
Her setting hid them, her guide led the way.
مِثلُ العُقابِ رَأَت صيداً بِشاهِقَةٍ
مِنَ الذُرى فَتَدَلَّت مِن أَعاليها
Like an eagle who saw elevated prey,
She swooped down from the heights in a steep dive,
إِلى ثِمالٍ فَتى الدُنيا الَّذي يَدُهُ
مِثلُ السَحابِ إِذا اِنهلّت عَزالِيها
To a young hero whom the world saw his hand
Rain down like clouds when they unleash their burdens.
المُدركيِّ الحُميديِّ الَّذي شَهِدَت
لَهُ البَرِيَّةُ قاصِيها وَدانِيها
Al-Mudarrisi Al-Humaydi whom the wilderness acknowledged,
Both far and near.
إِذا رَأَيتُم لَنا في المَجدِ شاهِقَةً
مَبنِيَّةً فَأَبو العُلوانِ بانِيها
When you see our glory rising high,
With strong architecture, know that Abu Al-Ulwan built it.
رُوحي وَما مَلَكَت كَفِّي فِدى مَلِكٍ
يَختالُ شِعري بِهِ في مَنطِقي تيها
My soul and all that my hands possess are ransom for a king
Whose fame my poetry spreads in my recitals, besotted.
فَتىً يَهُونُ عَلَيهِ حينَ يَسأَلُهُ
عافيهِ أَن يَهَبَ الدُنيا بِما فيها
A man who considers it trivial, when asked for bounty,
To grant the world and all that is in it.
لا يَكنِزُ المالَ إِلّا بِالعَطاءِ لَهُ
وَخَيرُ مَن كَنَزَ الأَموال مُعطِيها
He hoards wealth only through giving it away,
And the best treasures are those he distributes.
سَقى الحَيا الرَحبَةَ الفَيحاءَ مَسكَنَهُ
فَقَصرَها فَمُصَلّاها فَضاحِيها
He irrigated the vast and fragrant plain where he dwells,
Transforming it into a home with courtyards and meadows.
إِلى السُرى حَيثُ تَنقادُ الجِبالُ لَهُ
مِن دَيرِها فَالأَعالي مِن رَوابيها
To Sura where mountains are tamed for him,
From its monasteries to its lofty watchtowers,
إِلى المُلَيحَةَ حَيثُ العَينُ جارِيَةٌ
مِنَ الصَباحِ إِلى جَلهَاتِ وادِيها
To Mulayha where springs flow
From the morn to the wadis of its valleys.
ذادَ العِدى بَأسُهُ عَنها وَشَرَّدَهُم
حَتّى الأُسودَ العَوادي مِن نَواحيها
His might protected it from enemies and scattered them,
Even the fierce beasts in its outskirts and environs.
يا من تَبِيتُ الرَعايا وَهِيَ شارِعَةٌ
مِن فَضلِهِ بَعدَ فَضلِ اللَهِ بارِيها
O you whom the subjects spend the night praising
After the grace of God, their Creator.
تَزيدُ فَخراً بِكَ الدُنيا إِذا نَظَرَت
إِلَيكَ أَنَّكَ فيها بَعضُ أَهليها
The world gains more pride in you when it looks upon you,
For you are part of its family.
وَما دَرَت أَنَّها وَالخَلقَ واحِدَةٌ
وَأَنتَ يا كُلَّ خَلقِ اللَهِ ثانيها
It knows not that it and creation are one,
And you, O all of God's creation, are its second.
كَم مِنَّةٍ لَكَ عِندي لَستُ أَكفُرُها
وَنِعمَةٍ أَنتَ بَعدَ اللَهِ مُولِيها
How many favors I owe you that I cannot repay,
And blessings you bestowed after God, their Granter.
وَكَم نَظَمتُ لَكَ الأَوصافَ مُحكَمَةً
كَأَنَّها الدُرُّ تَمثيلاً وَتَشبيها
How many eulogies I composed for you, solidly structured,
As if they were pearls in their depiction and detail.
تَسيرُ شَرقاً وَغَرباً وَهِيَ ثابِتَةٌ
يَفنى الزَمانُ وَتَبقى لَيسَ يُفنيها
They travel east and west while remaining steadfast,
Time passes yet they endure, nothing makes them perish.
