لَيَاليّ بَعْدَ الظّاعِنِينَ شُكُولُ
طِوالٌ وَلَيْلُ العاشِقينَ طَويلُ
My nights, since they departed, are fraught and strange;
Long they are—and the night of the lover is forever long.
يُبِنَّ ليَ البَدْرَ الذي لا أُريدُهُ
وَيُخْفِينَ بَدْراً مَا إلَيْهِ سَبيلُ
They reveal to me the moon I desire not to see,
While hiding a moon to whom no path can lead.
وَمَا عِشْتُ مِنْ بَعدِ الأحِبّةِ سَلوَةً
وَلَكِنّني للنّائِبَاتِ حَمُولُ
I have not lived in comfort since my loved ones left,
Yet I am one who bears calamities with strength.
وَإنّ رَحِيلاً وَاحِداً حَالَ بَيْنَنَا
وَفي المَوْتِ مِنْ بَعدِ الرّحيلِ رَحيلُ
A single departure has come between us now,
And in death, following departure, lies a journey yet more far.
إذا كانَ شَمُّ الرَّوحِ أدْنَى إلَيْكُمُ
فَلا بَرِحَتْني رَوْضَةٌ وَقَبُولُ
If the scent of the breeze is the nearest I can get to you,
Then may the garden and the zephyr never depart from me.
وَمَا شَرَقي بالمَاءِ إلاّ تَذكّراً
لمَاءٍ بهِ أهْلُ الحَبيبِ نُزُولُ
My choking on water comes only from remembering
The water where the people of my beloved dwell.
يُحَرّمُهُ لَمْعُ الأسِنّةِ فَوْقَهُ
فَلَيْسَ لِظَمْآنٍ إلَيْهِ وُصُولُ
The flash of spearheads above it forbids approach,
So no thirsting soul may find a way to its brink.
أما في النّجوم السّائراتِ وغَيرِهَا
لِعَيْني عَلى ضَوْءِ الصّباحِ دَليلُ
Is there not among the wandering stars and others
A guide to lead my eye toward the light of dawn?
ألمْ يَرَ هذا اللّيْلُ عَيْنَيْكِ رُؤيَتي
فَتَظْهَرَ فيهِ رِقّةٌ وَنُحُولُ
Has this night not seen your eyes through my vision,
That it manifests frailty and wasting away?
لَقيتُ بدَرْبِ القُلّةِ الفَجْرَ لَقْيَةً
شَفَتْ كَبِدي وَاللّيْلُ فِيهِ قَتيلُ
At the Pass of the Peak, I met the dawn in a meeting
That healed my heart, leaving the night there slain.
وَيَوْماً كأنّ الحُسْنَ فيهِ عَلامَةٌ
بعَثْتِ بهَا والشّمسُ منكِ رَسُولُ
A day wherein beauty seemed a token sent by you,
And the sun itself appeared as your messenger.
وَما قَبلَ سَيفِ الدّوْلَةِ اثّارَ عاشِقٌ
ولا طُلِبَتْ عندَ الظّلامِ ذُحُولُ
Never before Sayf al-Dawla did a lover claim revenge,
Nor were vengeance-debts sought within the gloom.
وَلَكِنّهُ يَأتي بكُلّ غَريبَةٍ
تَرُوقُ عَلى استِغْرابِها وَتَهُولُ
Yet he brings forth every marvel, strange and new,
Pleasing in its wonder, yet terrifying to behold.
رَمَى الدّرْبَ بالجُرْدِ الجيادِ إلى العِدى
وَما عَلِمُوا أنّ السّهامَ خُيُولُ
He hurled his sleek steeds at the mountain pass against the foe,
Till they learned, too late, that arrows can be horses.
شَوَائِلَ تَشْوَالَ العَقَارِبِ بالقَنَا
لهَا مَرَحٌ مِنْ تَحْتِهِ وَصَهيلُ
Their tails raised high like scorpions amidst the spears,
Beneath him they pranced with spirit and with neighs.
وَما هيَ إلاّ خَطْرَةٌ عَرَضَتْ لَهُ
بحَرّانَ لَبّتْهَا قَناً وَنُصُولُ
It was but a fleeting thought that seized him at Harran,
Which the spears and blades immediately obeyed.
هُمَامٌ إذا ما هَمّ أمضَى هُمُومَهُ
بأرْعَنَ وَطْءُ المَوْتِ فيهِ ثَقيلُ
A hero who, when he resolves, executes his will
With a massive host where the tread of death is heavy.
وَخَيْلٍ بَرَاهَا الرّكضُ في كلّ بلدةٍ
إذا عَرّسَتْ فيها فلَيسَ تَقِيلُ
And horses worn thin by galloping through every land;
If they halt to rest, it is never for a midday sleep.
فَلَمّا تَجَلّى مِنْ دَلُوكٍ وَصَنْجةٍ
عَلَتْ كلَّ طَوْدٍ رَايَةٌ وَرَعيلُ
When he emerged from Daluk and Sanjah,
A banner and a vanguard crowned every mountain peak.
على طُرُقٍ فيها على الطُّرْقِ رِفْعَةٌ
وَفي ذِكرِها عِندَ الأنيسِ خُمُولُ
Upon paths that rise high above all common paths,
Whose mention among men is obscure and unknown.
فَمَا شَعَرُوا حَتى رَأوْهَا مُغِيرَةً
قِبَاحاً وَأمّا خَلْقُها فَجَميلُ
They perceived nothing until they saw the steeds raiding—
Terrifying in their assault, though beautiful in form.
سَحَائِبُ يَمْطُرْنَ الحَديدَ علَيهِمِ
فكُلُّ مَكانٍ بالسّيوفِ غَسيلُ
Clouds they were, raining down iron upon their heads,
Until every spot was bathed by the flow of swords.
وَأمْسَى السّبَايَا يَنْتَحِبنَ بعِرْقَةٍ
كأنّ جُيُوبَ الثّاكِلاتِ ذُيُولُ
At Irqa, the captives spent the evening wailing,
As if the bosoms of bereaved mothers were trailing hems.
وَعادَتْ فَظَنّوهَا بمَوْزَارَ قُفّلاً
وَلَيسَ لهَا إلاّ الدّخولَ قُفُولُ
The army turned, and they thought it was withdrawing from Mawzara,
Yet its only withdrawal was to penetrate still deeper.
فَخاضَتْ نَجيعَ القَوْمِ خَوْضاً كأنّهُ
بكُلِّ نَجيعٍ لمْ تَخُضْهُ كَفيلُ
It waded through the blood of the enemy, plunging deep,
As if surety for every pool of blood yet uncrossed.
تُسايِرُها النّيرانُ في كلّ مَنزِلٍ
بهِ القوْمُ صَرْعَى والدّيارُ طُلولُ
Fires marched beside it in every dwelling place,
Where the people lay slain and the homes turned to ruins.
وَكَرّتْ فمَرّتْ في دِماءِ مَلَطْيَةٍ
مَلَطْيَةُ أُمٌّ للبَنِينَ ثَكُولُ
It struck again and swept through the blood of Malatya—
Malatya, a mother now bereaved of all her sons.
وَأضْعَفْنَ ما كُلّفْنَهُ مِنْ قُباقِبٍ
فأضْحَى كأنّ الماءَ فيهِ عَليلُ
They overwhelmed the Qubaqib river with their crossing,
Till the water itself seemed feeble and drained.
وَرُعْنَ بِنَا قَلْبَ الفُراتِ كأنّمَا
تَخِرُّ عَلَيْهِ بالرّجالِ سُيُولُ
With us, they struck terror into the heart of the Euphrates,
As if torrents of men were collapsing upon its banks.
يُطارِدُ فيهِ مَوْجَهُ كُلُّ سابحٍ
سَواءٌ عَلَيْهِ غَمْرَةٌ وَمسيلُ
Every swimming steed chases the waves within it,
Indifferent alike to the depths and the rushing current.
تَراهُ كأنّ المَاءَ مَرّ بجِسْمِهِ
وَأقْبَلَ رَأسٌ وَحْدَهُ وتَليلُ
You see him as though the water has swallowed his body,
And only a head and neck advance alone.
وَفي بَطْنِ هِنريطٍ وَسِمْنينَ للظُّبَى
وَصُمِّ القَنَا مِمّنْ أبَدْنَ بَدِيلُ
In the valley of Hinrit and Simnin, the swords
And solid spears found substitutes for those destroyed.
طَلَعْنَ عَلَيْهِمْ طَلْعَةً يَعْرِفُونَها
لهَا غُرَرٌ مَا تَنْقَضِي وَحُجُولُ
They dawned upon them with a rising they knew too well,
Horses marked with endless blazes and white-ankled legs.
تَمَلُّ الحُصُونُ الشُّمُّ طُولَ نِزالِنَا
فَتُلْقي إلَيْنَا أهْلَهَا وَتَزُولُ
The towering fortresses grew weary of our siege,
Casting down their inhabitants to us as they fell.
وَبِتْنَ بحصْنِ الرّانِ رَزْحَى منَ الوَجى
وَكُلُّ عَزيزٍ للأمِيرِ ذَلِيلُ
They spent the night at the fort of al-Ran, exhausted by pain,
For every mighty thing is humbled before the Prince.
وَفي كُلِّ نَفْسٍ ما خَلاهُ مَلالَةٌ
وَفي كُلِّ سَيفٍ ما خَلاهُ فُلُولُ
In every soul but his, weariness takes hold,
And in every sword but his, the edges grow dull.
وَدُونَ سُمَيْساطَ المَطامِيرُ وَالمَلا
وَأوْدِيَةٌ مَجْهُولَةٌ وَهُجُولُ
Before Sumaysat lie dungeons and desert plains,
And unknown valleys and desolate wastes.
لَبِسْنَ الدّجَى فيها إلى أرْضِ مرْعَشٍ
وَللرّومِ خَطْبٌ في البِلادِ جَليلُ
They clothed themselves in darkness on the way to Mar'ash,
While a grave calamity befell the lands of Rome.
فَلَمّا رَأوْهُ وَحْدَهُ قَبْلَ جَيْشِهِ
دَرَوْا أنّ كلَّ العالَمِينَ فُضُولُ
When they saw him standing alone before his army,
They knew that all other beings were superfluous.
وَأنّ رِمَاحَ الخَطّ عَنْهُ قَصِيرَةٌ
وَأنّ حَديدَ الهِنْدِ عَنهُ كَليلُ
They saw that the spears of Khatt fell short of him,
And that the iron of India was dull against his might.
فأوْرَدَهُمْ صَدْرَ الحِصانِ وَسَيْفَهُ
فَتًى بأسُهُ مِثْلُ العَطاءِ جَزيلُ
He drove against them the chest of his steed and his sword—
A youth whose valor is as boundless as his gifts.
جَوَادٌ عَلى العِلاّتِ بالمالِ كُلّهِ
وَلَكِنّهُ بالدّارِعِينَ بَخيلُ
Generous with all his wealth, despite all cause to keep it,
Yet with the lives of armored men, he is miserly indeed.
فَوَدّعَ قَتْلاهُمْ وَشَيّعَ فَلَّهُمْ
بضَرْبٍ حُزُونُ البَيضِ فيهِ سُهولُ
He bade farewell to their dead and escorted their fleeing remnants
With blows that turned the rough helmets into smooth plains.
على قَلْبِ قُسْطَنْطينَ مِنْهُ تَعَجّبٌ
وَإنْ كانَ في ساقَيْهِ مِنْهُ كُبُولُ
In the heart of Constantine lies wonder at his deeds,
Even as his legs are bound in shackles because of him.
لَعَلّكَ يَوْماً يا دُمُسْتُقُ عَائِدٌ
فَكَمْ هارِبٍ مِمّا إلَيْهِ يَؤولُ
Perhaps one day, O Domestikos, you will return;
Yet how many flee only to run back toward their fate?
نَجَوْتَ بإحْدَى مُهْجَتَيْكَ جرِيحةً
وَخَلّفتَ إحدى مُهجَتَيكَ تَسيلُ
You escaped with one of your two souls wounded,
While leaving the other of your souls to flow away.
أتُسْلِمُ للخَطّيّةِ ابنَكَ هَارِباً
وَيَسْكُنَ في الدّنْيا إلَيكَ خَليلُ
Do you surrender your son to the spears as you flee?
Can you find any friend in the world after that?
بوَجْهِكَ ما أنْساكَهُ مِنْ مُرِشّةٍ
نَصِيرُكَ منها رَنّةٌ وَعَوِيلُ
Upon your face is a splashing I will not let you forget;
Your share of it is but wailing and lament.
أغَرّكُمُ طولُ الجُيوشِ وَعَرْضُهَا
عَليٌّ شَرُوبٌ للجُيُوشِ أكُولُ
Did the length and breadth of your armies deceive you?
Ali is a drinker of armies, a devourer of hosts.
إذا لم تَكُنْ للّيْثِ إلاّ فَريسَةً
غَذاهُ وَلم يَنْفَعْكَ أنّكَ فِيلُ
If you are naught but prey for the lion's feast,
It avails you nothing that you are as huge as an elephant.
إذا الطّعْنُ لم تُدْخِلْكَ فيهِ شَجاعةٌ
هيَ الطّعنُ لم يُدخِلْكَ فيهِ عَذولُ
If courage does not drive you into the heat of the thrust,
Then the thrust itself will drive you into it, blamed and shamed.
وَإنْ تَكُنِ الأيّامُ أبْصَرْنَ صَوْلَهُ
فَقَدْ عَلّمَ الأيّامَ كَيفَ تَصُولُ
And if the days have witnessed his assault,
Then he has surely taught the days how to assault.
فَدَتْكَ مُلُوكٌ لم تُسَمَّ مَوَاضِياً
فإنّكَ ماضِي الشّفْرَتَينِ صَقيلُ
May kings who are not named "Swords" be your ransom,
For you are indeed a sword, sharp-edged and polished bright.
إذا كانَ بَعضُ النّاسِ سَيفاً لدَوْلَةٍ
فَفي النّاسِ بُوقاتٌ لهَا وطُبُولُ
If some men are but a sword for the state,
Others among men are merely its trumpets and drums.
أنَا السّابِقُ الهادي إلى ما أقُولُهُ
إذِ القَوْلُ قَبْلَ القائِلِينَ مَقُولُ
I am the forerunner, the guide to the words I speak,
For the saying exists before the speakers give it voice.
وَما لكَلامِ النّاسِ فيمَا يُريبُني
أُصُولٌ ولا للقائِليهِ أُصُولُ
The talk of men regarding what troubles me has no root,
Just as those who speak it have no root of nobility.
أُعَادَى على ما يُوجبُ الحُبَّ للفَتى
وَأهْدَأُ وَالأفكارُ فيّ تَجُولُ
I am envied for the very traits that should command love,
Yet I remain calm while thoughts wander deep within me.
سِوَى وَجَعِ الحُسّادِ داوِ فإنّهُ
إذا حلّ في قَلْبٍ فَلَيسَ يحُولُ
Treat any sickness but the pain of those who envy;
For once it settles in a heart, it never departs.
وَلا تَطْمَعَنْ من حاسِدٍ في مَوَدّةٍ
وَإنْ كُنْتَ تُبْديهَا لَهُ وَتُنيلُ
Do not hope for affection from one who envies,
Even if you show him love and shower him with gifts.
وَإنّا لَنَلْقَى الحادِثاتِ بأنْفُسٍ
كَثيرُ الرّزايا عندَهنّ قَليلُ
Verily, we confront the accidents of fate with souls
To whom a multitude of disasters seems but few.
يَهُونُ عَلَيْنَا أنْ تُصابَ جُسُومُنَا
وَتَسْلَمَ أعْراضٌ لَنَا وَعُقُولُ
We hold it light that our bodies should be struck,
So long as our honor and our minds remain unharmed.
فَتيهاً وَفَخْراً تَغْلِبَ ابْنَةَ وَائِلٍ
فَأنْتِ لخَيرِ الفاخِرِينَ قَبيلُ
So walk in pride and glory, O Taghlib daughter of Wa'il,
For you are the kin of the greatest man who boasts.
يَغُمُّ عَلِيّاً أنْ يَمُوتَ عَدُوُّهُ
إذا لم تَغُلْهُ بالأسِنّةِ غُولُ
It grieves Ali that his enemy should die
By any hand but his, with the piercing of spears.
شَريكُ المَنَايَا وَالنّفُوسُ غَنيمَةٌ
فَكُلُّ مَمَاتٍ لم يُمِتْهُ غُلُولُ
He is the partner of death, and souls are his spoil;
Any death not caused by him is a theft of his due.
فإنْ تَكُنِ الدّوْلاتُ قِسْماً فإنّهَا
لِمَنْ وَرَدَ المَوْتَ الزّؤامَ تَدُولُ
If empires are allotted by fate's decree,
Then they turn to him who braves sudden death.
لِمَنْ هَوّنَ الدّنْيا على النّفسِ ساعَةً
وَللبِيضِ في هامِ الكُماةِ صَليلُ
To him who holds the world cheap for a moment's glory,
While swords clamor loudly in the skulls of the brave.
