يا مُزنَةَ الحَيِّ يَحدُو عِيسَها الحادي
هَلّا شَفَيتِ بِرِيٍّ غُلَّةَ الصادي
O beauty of life, your charm makes the lovesick sing
If only you could heal my aching heart with a kind glance
زَوَّدتِني نَظرَةً زادَت جَوىً كَبِدِي
ما كانَ ضَرَّكِ لَو أَكثَرتِ مِن زادي
Your gaze gave me more anguish, fueling the fires in my liver
It would not have harmed you to give me more provision
أَمّا فُؤادي فَقَد أَضحى أَسيرَكُمُ
يا وَيحَهُ مِن فُؤادٍ مالَهُ فادي
As for my heart, it has become your captive
Oh what an ill-fated heart that has no ransom
مَنُّوهُ زُوراً وَمَنُّوا في المُنى وَعِدُوا
وَعداً جَميلاً وَلا تُوفوا بِميعادِ
They made false promises, and promised in love,
A beautiful promise, but did not keep the appointment
كَيفَ الخَلاصُ وَقَد أَضرَمتِ في كَبِدي
زَندَينِ ضِدَّينِ مِن خافٍ وَمِن بادي
How can I escape when in my heart you have pierced
Two opposing daggers of fear and separation
أَيّامَ نَحنُ بِأَعلى الشِعبِ مَنزِلُنا
وَمَنزِلُ الحَيِّ بَينَ السَفحِ وَالوَادي
We spend our days high up on the mountain slopes
While the tribe camps on the plains and valleys below
ما كانَ ضَرَّكُمُ وَالدارُ جامِعَةٌ
وَغُربَةُ البَينِ لَم تَجلِسُ بِمِرصادِ
It would not trouble you, though our houses are close,
That estrangement did not allow us to settle
لَو أَنعَمت بِالمُنى نُعمٌ وَلَو كَرُمَت
سُعدى فَجادَت بِإِسعافٍ وَإِسعادِ
If you were to grant me my wish, it would be a blessing,
and your generosity would bring me aid and happiness
لَم أَنسَها يَومَ وَلَّت وَهيَ غادِيَةٌ
بِمُهجَتي في الفَريقِ المُزمِعِ الغادي
I will never forget, when she left, taking
my love away in the impending separation
حَسّانَةُ الجِيدِ مَصقُولٌ تَرائِبُها
مِثلُ العَقيقَةِ في وَطفاءَ مِرعادِ
The smooth-cheeked gazelle, her braids
shine like carnelians in the early dawn light
قالَت فَدَتكَ حَياتي وَهِيَ هازِلَةٌ
رُوحي الفِداءُ لِذاكَ الهازِلِ الفادِي
She jokingly said, “I ransom my life for you,”
I ransom my soul for that joking redeemer
أَمسَت أُمامَةُ قَد ضَنَّت بِنائِلِها
فاعتادَ قَلبَكَ مِنها شَرُّ مُعتادِ
Umma has grown miserly with her gifts
So your heart has gotten used to her evil habits
كَأَنَّ لُبَّكَ مُذ بانَ الخَليطُ بِها
لُبُّ المُعَلَّلِ مِن صَفراءَ كَالجادي
Since she revealed her fickle nature,
your heart is like one made sick by yellow bile
مُقتُولَةٌ بِنَمير الماءِ قاتِلَةٌ
تَرى المُصَبَّح مِنها مائِلَ الهادي
Slain by the crocodiles in the water, herself a murderess,
you see the swimmer beside her losing his way
وَفِتيَةٍ لَوَّحَتهُم كُلُّ طامِسَةٍ
قَفرٍ وَكُلُّ سَحيقِ الرِعنِ مُنقادِ
And youths every barren outcast flashed at them,
every smooth-sided flatterer enticed them
تَهوي بِهم شَدَنيّاتٌ مُزَمَّمَةٌ
تَضِلُّ في البِيدِ أَعضاداً بِأَعضادِ
Passionate she-camels hurry them away,
straying confusedly in the wasteland
كَأَنَّهُم مِن نَعامِ الدَوِّ سارِحَةٌ
تَخدي بِجِنٍّ عَلى الأَكوارِ مُرّادِ
As if they were ostriches fleeing Ghost Forest,
streaking wildly across the sand dunes
تَشدُو بِذِكرِ ابنِ مِرداسٍ فَيُطرِبُها
حَتّى تَهِمَّ بِأَن تَشدُو مَعَ الشادي
They are inspired to sing the son of Mirdas,
till they are transported and sing with the singers
مُتَوَّجٌ مِن مُلوكِ الأَرضِ هِمَّتُهُ
مَقسُومَةٌ بَينَ إِصدارٍ وَإِيرادِ
A king crowned over the kings of the earth,
his ambition divided between initiative and income
زُرنا المُعِزَّ فَزُرنا مِن فَتى مُضَرٍ
بَحرَ النَدى وَشِهابَ الحَيِّ وَالنادي
We visited Al-Mu’izz, so we visited a prince of Mudar,
an ocean of dew, a flame of life and activity
وَباتَتِ العيسُ في مَغناهُ حامِدَةً
لِفَضلِهِ وَلِإتهامي وَإِنجادي
The lovers in their passions sing his praises through the night
for his merit, and for rescuing and helping me
فَتىً إِذا قَصَدَ القُصّادُ نائِلَهُ
أَمُّوا مُعَرَّسَ وُفّادٍ وَقُصّادِ
A youth, when the archers seek their prey,
they guide well-trained trackers and archers
أَغَرُّ أَبلَجُ يَلقى الوَفدَ مُبتَسِماً
بِمُشرِقٍ مِثلِ ضَوءِ الشَمسِ وَقّادِ
Dazzling white, radiant, he receives delegations smiling,
with brilliance like the rising sun’s rays
يُهدى بِهِ الرَكبُ وَالظَلماءُ عاكِفَةٌ
لا يُبعِدُ اللَهُ ذاكَ المُرشِدِ الهادي
By him, caravans and those astray in darkness are guided,
may God not remove that rightly-guiding leader
فَخرٌ مُنيفٌ بَناهُ في القَديمِ لَهُم
كَعبُ بنُ عَبدٍ وَإِدريسُ بنُ شَدّادِ
A lofty, splendid palace built for them in ancient times
by Ka’b ibn ‘Abd and Idris ibn Shaddad
ما كُلُّ قَومٍ إِذا طالُوا بِأَنفُسِهِم
طالُوا بِها وَبِآباءٍ وَأَجدادِ
Not every people who boast of their own excellence
boast of their ancestors and forefathers
تَرى الثِيابَ عَلى أَجسادِهِم فَتَرى
تِلكَ الثِيابَ عَلى أَجسادِ آسادِ
You see clothes upon their bodies, and see
those clothes upon the frames of lions
إِذا نَضَوها نَضَوها عَن مَناكِبِهِم
كَما نَضَوتَ سُيُوفاً حَشوَ أَغمادِ
When they unsheathe them they unsheathe them from their shoulders
as you would unsheathe polished swords from scabbards
إِن تَلقَهُم تَلقَ مِنهُم مَعشَراً نُجُباً
أَكبادُهُمُ في الرَزايا غَيرُ أَكبادِ
If you meet them, you meet a noble company
whose hearts in calamities are unlike other hearts
كَأَنَّهُم وَعِتاقُ الخَيلِ تَحمِلُهُم
أَطوادُ حِلمٍ جُلوساً فَوقَ أَطوادِ
It is as if they and the horses they ride
are borne by pillars of forbearance atop pillars
شُمُّ العَرانينِ طَعّانينَ إِن غَضِبُوا
بِالسَمهَرِيَّةِ بِذّالِينَ لِلزّادِ
When angry, they have the sharp scent of mint,
slashing with Indian swords at the provisions
يا بنَ المُلوكِ كَلاكَ اللَهُ مِن مَلِكٍ
مُدَرَّبٍ بِفَعالِ الخَيرِ مُعتادِ
O son of kings, may God give you protection
accustomed to righteous deeds, untiring
كَم مِنَّةٍ لَكَ عِندي ثَمَّرَت جِدَتي
وَكَثَّرَت فَوقَ ظَهرِ الأَرضِ حُسّادي
How many favors I owe you brought fruit from my labors
and multiplied across the face of the earth despite enviers
لَأَجزِيَنَّكَ أَوصافاً مُحَبَّرَةَ
كَأَنَّهُنَّ عُقُودٌ فَوقَ أَجيادِ
I will repay you with odes penned in saffron,
as if they were collars placed around steeds’ necks
تَبقى عَلى غُبَّرِ الأَيّامِ خالِدَةً
خُلودَ ذِكرِكَ في حَضرِ وَفي بادي
Remaining through the dust of days undying,
like memories of you lasting in settled lands and wastelands
