سوى رسَني قاده الباطلُ

وعاج به الطائلُ الحائلُ

He was led astray by falsehood

And was overwhelmed by adversity and troubles

وغيري شَفاه الخيالُ الكذوبُ

وعلَّله الواعدُ الماطلُ

While others were delighted by fanciful lies

And he was promises by the procrastinator

وبات يغلغل في صدره

بجِدِّ الأسى رشأٌ هازلُ

It started gnawing at his heart

The sincere agony of neglect

نبا اليومَ عن كلّ سمعٍ أحبَّ

وسمعي له وطنٌ قابلُ

Today, he has turned deaf towards every beloved voice

While my hearing is ready for him

سرى البرقُ وهناً فما شاقني

وثار فما راعني البازلُ

Lightning flashed, yet it did not bother me

The hailstorm raged, yet the resilient one did not alarm me

وغنّى الحمامُ فلا صافرٌ

هفا بضلوعي ولا هادلُ

The pigeons cooed, but there was no whistling

Neither was there knocking on my ribs or negotiation

وبِيضُ الصوارم لي بارقٌ

وماءُ الجماجم لي وابلُ

The swords gleamed like lightning to me

And the blood of skulls poured on me like rain

ولَلجُبنُ خيرٌ لوَ انَّ الردى

عن المرء في عيشه غافلُ

Cowardice is better if fate

Remains unaware while one leads their life

نشَزتُ فمن شاء فيلجفُني

إذا مِتُّ والعزّ لي واصلُ

I have rebelled so whoever wishes may insult me

When I die, honor will remain loyal to me

كم الضيمُ تحت رواق القنوع

أما يأنف الأدبَ الخاملُ

So much injustice under the porch of contentment

Does proper etiquette not disdain the dormant one?

فلو أُدرِك المجدُ بين البيوتِ

لما أصحَر الأسدُ الباسلُ

If glory was attained in houses

The brave lion would not have deserted

إذا كان في الأرض رزق بلا

سؤال فلا أفلح السائلُ

If there was sustenance on earth without

Asking, the beggar would not succeed

أرى المالَ يحميه ذلُّ الطِّلا

ب كالدُّرِّ يشقى به العاملُ

I see wealth being protected by the humiliation of greed

Like a pearl while the worker suffers for it

تقدَّمْ ولا تتوقَّ الحِمامَ

فما أنت من يومه وائلُ

Step forward and do not await destiny

For you do not belong to its awaited day

وقد دلَّ حائلُ لونِ الشباب

على أنّ عمرَ الفتى حائلُ

The deceptions of youth's color

Have demonstrated that the youth's life is deceptive

حبائلُ لا بدّ من جذبها

وإن هو راخى بها الحابلُ

There are struggles that must be undertaken

Even if the rope-holder has slackened regarding them

أرجِّي غداً وقريباً رجو

تُ لو كان لي في غدٍ طائلُ

I hope tomorrow or soon my hopes

Will be fulfilled if there is any use in tomorrow for me

وكم سال دمعي لحال تزو

لُ وهو على فقدها سائلُ

And how often have my tears flowed for a condition

That has changed while the person responsible laments over its loss

يحبِّب مكروهَ يومي غدي

ويُنسِي أذَى عامِيَ القابلُ

The next day will make my unpleasant present day dear

And make me forget the harm of my past year

وما الخطب في أدبٍ ناتج

ومن دونه أملٌ حائلُ

What is the worry about refined manners

When there is little hope to attain it

إلى كم يكفكف غربي العراقُ

خداعاً وتسحَرني بابلُ

To what extent does Western Iraq deceive me

With its trickery, while Babylon dazzles me

وتُبرِزُ بغدادُ لي وجهَها

فيخدعني حسنُها الخائلُ

And Baghdad displays its beautiful face to me

So its misleading beauty fools me

ويلوِي بأياميَ الصالحا

ت يومُ بَطالتها العاجلُ

And the days of my good life there

Are coiled by the imminent days of its unemployment

وهل نافعي ظلُّ أفيائها

وظلّ علائي بها زائلُ

And does the shade of its loopholes benefit me?

While even its prominent shade will fade away

أقيم عليها بأمر الهوى

وأمرُ النُّهى أنني راحلُ

I remain there by the command of passion

Yet the command of inhibition is that I should depart

غدا ربعُ حالي بها مقفراً

ومن فِقَري ربعُها آهلُ

Tomorrow, a quarter of my state there will be desolate

And a quarter of it will be populated due to my poverty

وفي كلّ نادي قبيلٍ بها

من الفخر بي مجلسٌ حافلُ

And in every tribe's association there

Are gatherings boasting of me

وفوق فَقاريَ من أهلها

وُسوقُ أذىً ما لها حاملُ

And above increasing my reputation among its inhabitants

Is the market of harm that has no bearer

يفوتُ الطُّلاةَ مفاريقُها

إذا صرّ من تحتها الكاهلُ

Its departures will miss the students

When the shoulders have been relieved of its load

إلام أدامجهم سابراً

لساني حشاً داؤها داخلُ

Why do I still associate with them courteously

While my tongue sarcastically criticizes its inner affairs?

وأَحمِل قِلّة إنصافهم

كما يحملُ الجُلبة البازلُ

And I accept their lack of fairness

As the mule accepts its load

فمن جاهلٍ بيَ أو عارفٍ

بخيل فياليته جاهلُ

From an ignorant or knowledgable person

If he is stingy towards me, I wish he were ignorant

وليس سكوتيَ عنهم رضاً

ولكنه غضبٌ عاقلُ

My silence towards them is not satisfaction

Rather, it is wise anger

كفى صاحبي غدرةً أن علت

به الحالُ وانحطّ بي نازلُ

Enough betrayal that his state prevailed

And he deteriorated while I declined

أما تستحي حالياً بالغنى

ومولاك قبل الغنى عاطل

Are you not ashamed of my state of wealth?

While before wealth, your master was unemployed

وان تركب النجم ظهراً إلى

مناك ولي أمل راجلُ

If you ride the star to reach its height

While I have the hopes of one traveling on foot

فأقسم لو دولة الدهر لي

لما مال عنك بها مائلُ

I swear if fate's rule belonged to me

I would not incline away from you with it

ولا اقتسمت بيننا صُوعَها

بأقسطَ ما قسمَ العادلُ

Nor would I have divided its yields between us

More justly than the fair divider

تذكَّرْ فكم قولةٍ أمس قل

تَ والفعلُ يضمنه القائلُ

Remember how many words you said yesterday

While the speaker is responsible for the deed

وكُلْ إن أكلتَ وأطعمْ أخاك

فلا الزاد يبقى ولا الآكلُ

Eat if you eat, and feed your brother

For neither the provision nor the eater remain

عجبت لمغترِسي بالوداد

وغصنِيَ من رفده ذابلُ

I am surprised by those who claim affection

While the branch they nurture is withering

ومنتقِصي حظَّ إسعاده

ويشهدُ لي أنني فاضلُ

And those who reduce my deserved prosperity

While they testify that I am virtuous

أسلّم للفقر كفّى وأن

ت دون فمي رامحٌ نابلُ

I surrender to poverty, enough

While spears are being thrown and I have no shield

وهل عائدٌ بحياة القتي

ل أن يستقاد به القاتلُ

Can the killer benefit from the life

Of the slain so as to restore it?

سل الماضغي بفم الإغتيابِ

أما يبشِمُ الدمُ يا ناهلُ

Ask the backbiter with the mouth of blame

Does he not smell the blood while he drinks, O partaker?

أفي كلّ يومٍ دبيب إلي

يَ بالشرّ عقربُه شائلُ

Does a scorpion carrying harm within it

Creep up to me with evil every day?

يقول العدوُّ ويصغى الصديقُ

وشرٌّ من القائل القابلُ

The enemy speaks and the friend listens

And the receiving listener's evil is worse than the speaker’s

لئن ساء سمعِيَ ما قلتُمُ

ففضلي لما ساءكم فاعلُ

If my hearing has been offended by what you have said

Then my excellence is due to what has offended you

وما عابني ناقصٌ منكُمُ

بشيء سوى أنني فاضلُ

No incomplete one among you has faulted me

In anything besides my excellence

حمَى اللهُ لي منصفاً وحدَه

حمانِيَ وَالجورُ لي شاملُ

May God protect a fair person for me, He alone

Has protected me while injustice encompasses me everywhere

وحيَّا ابنَ أيوبَ من حافظٍ

وفَى وأخى خائنٌ خاذلُ

Greet the son of Ayyub who was loyal and fulfilled

While my brother was treacherous and let me down

كريمٌ صفا ليَ من قلبه ال

ودادُ ومن يده النائلُ

A generous man whose heart contains sincere affection for me

While his aid has reached me

ولم ترتجعه معالي الأمو

ر عني وحولُ الغنى الحائلُ

The greatness of matters does not distance him from me

Nor does the garment of wealth that separates

ولا قلّص الملكُ عاداتهِ

معي وهو في ثوبه رافلُ

Every rope I have tied

Has been cut by his sharp sword

تسحَّلَ لي كلُّ حبلٍ علق

تُ وهو بيمناه لي فاتلُ

I have continued living by one moral

Ever since youth carried away stability

مقيم على خلُقٍ واحدٍ

إذا ملك الشبمَ الناقلُ

I have crowded the bosoms of nights with it

And my back is marked from my belongings being snatched away

زحمتُ صدورَ الليالي به

وظهريَ عن شَملتي ناكلُ

Destiny has encompassed my hopes

After its caretaker became listless

وضمَّ عليّ عزيبَ المنى

وقد شُلَّ سارحُها الهاملُ

By my father’s honor, nothing has harmed me while alive

Except a severing relative who is disloyal

فلا وأبي المجد ما ضرني

حياً قاطعٌ وهُوَ الواصلُ

A man whose generosity is forever neglectful

While arrows and pouring rain are his attributes

فتىً جودُه أبداً مسبِلٌ

وفي الديمة الطلُّ والوابلُ

Each one of his fingers is effective

And no sea except that its coast belongs to him

فكلُّ أنامله لُجّةٌ

ولا بحرَ إلا له ساحلُ

He steps towards glory with outstretched limbs

When the dark-skinned builder falls short

يمدّ إلى المجد باعاً تطول

إذا قصّر الأسمرُ العاسلُ

You will be greeted by his hand that does not disappoint

Along with the fury for which there is a hopeful

تُصافَح منه يدٌ لا يخيب

مع الإشتطاط لها آملُ

His armpit perspires with an aura of sublimity

While the copy of his spear lies fallen and withered

تَعرُّقُه شعبةٌ للعلا

ء والرمحُ منفتلٌ ذابلُ

When an ambition grows stout in the ribs

Its sign is the emaciated waist

إذا سمِنتْ همّةٌ في الضلوع

فآيتها البدَنُ الناحلُ

Their oaths support them at times of tribulation

When the ravaged city desperately calls for help

من القوم تُنجد أيمانُهم

إذا استصرخ البلدُ الماحلُ

The vastness of the resting places of their steeds, the deepness of their skulls

When the obese rider dismounts

رِحابُ المَقاري عماقُ الجفانِ

إذا خفَّض المضغةَ الآكلُ

Having stayed overnight distressed by the manure

While the noble horse avoids it with its leg

وبات من القُرِّ ينفي الصبي

رَ عن رُسغه الفرسُ البائلُ

Branches that the visitor and resident are not rebuked for

Nor is the neighbour ashamed

مطاعيمُ لا يُنهر المستضي

ف فيهم ولا يُخجَل الواغلُ

When the word is dispersed, the conclusive statements

Overflow and the eloquent tongue is potent

وِساعُ الحلوق رِطابُ الشِّفَاه

إذا اعصَوصَبَ الكلم الفاصلُ

With them, the house has reached the sky's ceiling but is not high enough for its creeping plants

Impenetrable, but with chivalry, always yearning

سما بهم البيتُ سقفُ السما

ء لاطٍ لأطنابه نازلُ

Comfort is felt with it when the herd and the camel flock are grazed

And every handsome-faced boy eclipses the full moon with his face

منيعٌ ولكنه بالعفا

ة مستطرَق أبداً سائلُ

Forbearing in youth, reassured in nature

While the present day is neglected and confused

يُراح عليه عزيبُ العلا

إذا روّح الشاءُ والجاملُ

With a long spear, he is resorted to instead of companions

As his separating sword falls short of the necks

وكلّ غلامٍ وراء اللثا

م من وجهه القمرُ الكاملُ

He has two names – with his neighbor he prevents

While he is generous amongst his visitors

حليم الصِّبا مطمئنّ الضلو

ع واليومُ منخرِقٌ ذاهلُ

The father of Abu Talib is enough as an ornament

When the miserly exposes his stinginess

طويل الحمائل يُعزى إلي

ه دون العُرى سيفُه القاصلُ

And the just witness testifying to his glory

When the reporter distorts the news

له اسمان في جاره مانعٌ

وما بين زوّاره باذلُ

If one were to count them step by step

The worker's heels would falter in exhaustion

كفى بأبي طالبٍ طلعة

إذا البخل بان به الباخلُ

May God protect such a brilliant radiance that you have brought forth

Never has a pregnant one given birth to the like of you

وبالشاهد العدْل في مجده

إذا حرَّف الخبرَ الناقلُ

And immortalize your soul for benevolence

Before the auspicious fate declines

إذا عدَّهم درَجاً فاتَهُمْ

وأُخرى كعوبِ القنا العاملُ

So destiny has prided itself on tribulations

While your existence resolutely saves one from them

حمى الله منجِبةً طرَّقت

بمثلك ما ولدت حامِلُ

And you have led by your opinion the mother of footsteps

While the opinion regarding the likes of her goes astray

وخلّد نفسك للمكرما

ت ما ناوب الطالعَ الآفلُ

And you have turned away from the pleasures your power permitted you

While your chastity has cut off from its dishonor

فكم فغَر الدهرُ بالمعضلات

وجودُك منتقذٌ ناشلُ

My reputation and might have thrived due to you

While my ignorant fate had let me down

وناهضتَ بالرأي أمَّ الخطو

ب والرأيُ في مثلها فائلُ

The adversities have recoiled from me

By the sign that you are my guarantor

وأعرضتَ عن لذَّة أمكنتك

وعِرضُك من عارها ناصلُ

And so many of my urgent needs have been

Fulfilled by you, while their time was deferred

سَرى بك عَرفي وعزَّت يدي

وحالمني دهريَ الجاهلُ

And situations in which my life was about to perish

While the water of your help cleansed them

وولَّت تَناكصُ عنّي الخطوب

بآيةِ أنك لي كافلُ

So the clouds of praise will never cease from you

With their rain being purely for you

وكم مطلبٍ بك عاجلتُه

فنيلَ وميقاتُه آجلُ

With every well-founded qualm in justification

A generous word for it, though the miser be silent

وحالٍ تدرَّنَ عيشي بها

وماءُ نداك لها غاسلُ

Be it high or low in the country

The same over its expanse or base

فلا أقشعت عنك سُحْبُ الثنا

ء قاطرُها لك والهاطلُ

My consciousness wanders away from you distracted

Shameful, while my consciousness with you is well-composed

بكلّ مجنَّبةٍ في العدا

جوادٌ لها الكلم الباخلُ

Wondrous are all meanings applied to them

With me being the extractor while they are the simulations

سواء على جَوْبها في البلا

د عالٍ من الأرض أو سافلُ

The Tamim tribe boasts of its distinguished horses

And Wael esteems them for his son

خرائدُ فكري بها عن سواك

أبيُّ وفكري بها عاضلُ

You have built a noble ancestry for them

So your pride has increased their pride

غرائبُ كلُّ مُعانٍ لهن

نَ منتحِلٌ وأنا الناحلُ

Mountains may come crumbling down while your

Upright emblem by it remains erect

يباهل فحلا تميم بها

وتوقرها لابنها وائلُ

Rewards may perish while what you store

From its treasure remains secured and achieved

بنَتْ شرفاً لكُمُ فخرُهُ

إلى فخركم زائدٌ فاضلُ

You will only hear unpleasant babble from others

While words from them are the finest speech

تَردَّى الجبالُ ويبقى لكم

بها علَمٌ قائمٌ ماثلُ

When they speak with wisdom, I cannot

Pretend to choose the articulate style from them

ويفنَى الثوابُ وما تذخَرو

ن من كنزها محرَزٌ حاصلُ

One has walked with pride above the eras of his days

Through them, while he remains glorying and vanishing

أُسودُ الكلام وما تسمعو

ن من غيرها نَعَمٌ جافل

You have remained their listeners

To their miraculous discourse while I am the speaker

إذا نطت منهن بالمهرجا

ن ما أنا منتخِبٌ ناخلُ

Throughout time no favor has been envied

Nor has the slipper-wearer been preferred over the shoed one

مشى فوق هامات أيامه

بها وهو مفتخرٌ خائلُ

بقيتم لها أنتُمُ سامعو

ن معجزَها وأنا قائلُ

مدى الدهر ما حُسِدتْ نعمةٌ

وما فضَلَ الحافِيَ الناعلُ