رَشا بطرف ناعس وَسنانِ
يَسطو بأفتك من ظَباً وَسنانِ
With a sleepy, tender glance and teeth like pearls
They ravage me more than a gazelle with pearls for teeth;
فتكت لَواحظُه غداة رَحيله
يَوم الوَداع بمهجتي وَجناني
When we parted, their glances stole my resolve
On the day of farewell, and my mind and heart as well.
وَمِن المَحاجر صارَ فيض مَدامعي
يَجري عَلى الخَدين في غدران
Then my tears flowed copiously from my eyelids,
Streaming down my cheeks relentlessly.
فَأَذاع سرّي في الهَوى بَعد الخَفا
لَونٌ لهاتيك المَدامع قاني
So my secret was spread among lovers after being hidden -
The color of those tears betrayed me.
وَالجسم أَصبَح لا خيال لَهُ يُرى
مِن فَرط ما لاقى مِن الهجران
My body was rendered invisible -
No image of it could be seen, such was my abandonment.
لَكن أَنيني حينَ جدَّ بي الجَوى
دل العَذول عَلى خفيّ مَكاني
But when the intensity of love gripped me,
My sighs revealed my hidden place.
فَاِختال في حلل المَسرة وَاِشتَفى
مِني وَبالغ في الأَذى وَلحاني
So they rejoiced, donned their festive attire, and drank
Deeply of me, exceeding in harm and injustice towards me.
وَعليّ حرَّم وَصله وَأَتى عَلى
تَحليل نَقض العَهد بِالبُرهان
And to me they denied even a greeting, arriving at
Permitting the breaking of vows with clear proofs.
يا وَيحه أَيروم مني سَلوة
حَيث الأغنّ أَطاعه وَعَصاني
Woe to them - do they expect devotion from me
When the unfaithful obey them and disobey me?
وَأَنا الَّذي عَقد الغَرامُ لي اللوا
وَإِلى جِهاد العاذلين دَعاني
Yet I was the one who tied the knot of love,
And called them to battle the hostile.
فَطفقت أَخترق الصُفوف وَأَصطَلي
نار الغَضا في جَومة الجولان
So I began to penetrate the ranks and ignite
The fires of anger in the battlefield of Golan.
حَتّى هزمت لَدى النِزال جُموعَهم
بِالصَبر لا بمثقفٍ وَيمان
Until in battle I defeated their multitudes
With patience, not with weapons and spears.
حاشا تلين مِن الصدود شكيمتي
أَو يَلتوي في الحادِثات عناني
Far be it that my resolve should weaken before opponents,
Or that my reins twist in tribulations!
وَالجَد أَسعدَ اللَيالي سالمت
وَصَفا بِنصر العاشقين زَماني
My seriousness has granted me the happiest nights in safety,
And described my time as the victory of lovers.
لم لا وَجَيش الجور بُدِّدَ شَملُه
بِالعَدل من حامي حِمى الإِيمان
Why shouldn't the army of injustice be scattered
By justice at the hands of the protector of the covenant of faith?
صَدر الصُدور سَعيدٍ الشَهم الَّذي
أَحيا مَعاهد ذمة وَأَمان
The happiest of hearts, the magnanimous one who revived
The pacts of protection and security.
عالي الذُرى في عَصره فاقَ الوَرى
وَسما بهمته عَلى كيوان
Sublime in his time, he surpassed mankind,
And soared with his ambition above the planets.
بطل الوَغى وَمبيد مغرور طغى
في فَيلق مِن عصبة الشجعان
Hero of struggles and destroyer of the arrogance of tyranny,
Among a regiment of brave men.
لَيث الشَرى وَمذل كُل مَن اِفتَرى
وَمذيقه في الخَطب كَأس هَوان
The lion of battle, who humiliated all who transgressed,
And made them drink from the cup of humiliation in adversity.
غَيث جَرى في كُل واد فازدرى
لِمَديد نيل نَداه بِالطُوفان
A rain that flowed in every valley, scorning
The extended flow of its Nile in the deluge.
وَروى البِلاد كَما أَراد وَقَد كَسا
فيها العِباد مَلابس الرضوان
He watered the lands as he wished, cloaking
The people in robes of blessing.
وَبنى القِلاع لحفظ مصر وَأَهلها
مِن شرِّ حزب الزيغ وَالعُدوان
He built citadels to protect Egypt and its people
From the evil of the party of deviance and aggression.
وَرماهمُ منها بِنارِ مدافعٍ
هدمت أَساس الحيف وَالبُهتان
He bombarded them with the fire of cannons
That demolished the foundations of wrongdoing and slander.
وَأَباد بِالإقدام عِندَ هُجومه
في الحَرب أَهل الغَيّ وَالطُغيان
With his valor in battle, he destroyed the people of corruption and oppression
When attacking in war.
وَالجَيش بَين يَديه في حملاته
خاض العجاج وَماج في الميدان
Before him, his army plunged into the turbulent fray
And surged on the battlefield.
وَتعوّدت أَفراده يَوم اللقا
تَفريق جَمع كَتائب الفُرسان
His soldiers grew accustomed, when meeting,
To scattering the brigades of horsemen.
وَقَد اِستَقام عَلى صِراط حَماسة
بِسياسة وَرياسة وَبَيان
Through governance, leadership, and eloquence, he followed
The path of zeal straightforwardly.
وَعلا بِنَشر مَعارف وَلَطائف
مَصر بِها اِفتَخرت عَلى البُلدان
By disseminating knowledge and wonders,
Egypt was honored above nations.
وَغَدا جَديراً بِالثنا في دَولة
سادَت بِهِ في أَبهَج الأَزمان
He became worthy of praise in a state
That prospered in the most splendid times.
لا زالَ هَذا الداوريْ في حكمه
بِالحَق يَصدع كُلَّ خصم جاني
This just ruler still rules
Annulling every hostile adversary.
ما هام في وادي نَفيسِ مَديحِه
قَلبي وَأَعرب عَنهُ فيهِ لِساني
My heart has not ceased praising his sublime merits,
And my tongue expresses that in verse.
وَبحسن سيرته تحلَّى وَاِزدَهى
بَين المَلا في عصره دِيواني
With his good conduct he was adorned and distinguished
Among the elite in his time.
فَسُطوره رُسِمت بصدر طُروسه
كَقلائدٍ نُظمت مِن العقيان
His lines were etched into his breast
Like necklaces strung with pearls.
وَثغوره ابتسمت فَأَسفر برقُها
عَن حسن أَسلوب وَعَن تبيان
His cheeks smiled, and their lightning revealed
Eloquent style and clarity of exposition.
فَإذا تلوا مِنهُ المَديح بمحفل
قالوا وَقَد نظروا إِلى أَوزاني
When they recite his praises in an assembly
And look upon my verses, they say:
أَحسنتَ في مَدح الخديوي وَابنه
وَأَبيه وَالأَجناد وَالأَوطان
“You have excelled in praising the Khedive, his son,
His father, the army, and the homeland.
وَلأنتَ أَبلغ ناظم متفننٍ
شادَ المَباني مِن بَديع مَعاني
You are the most eloquent of those who compose artfully,
Constructing meanings from the most ingenious poetry.
أَوَ ما دَروا أَن العَزيز أَمدّني
مِن فَيضه بِالفَضل وَالإِحسان
Or do they not know that the Almighty helped me
With his grace and favor?”
وَأَزال عَن فهمي غَياهبَ سقمه
بِضياء عقلٍ ما لَهُ مِن ثاني
He removed the clouds of sickness from my mind
With the illumination of a peerless intellect.
فَأَتيت فيما صغته بفرائد
في نَظمِها تحكي عقود جمان
So I came up with marvels in the verses I composed,
Which recount bracelets of pearls in their meter.
دامَت لَهُ العَلياء طوع يَمينه
ما غرّدت وَرقٌ عَلى الأَفنان
May supremacy bend to his will
As long as leaves flutter on branches,
أَو ما تحلت في الوُجود بوصفه
كتبٌ عَلَيها بَهجةُ العرفان
Or books extolling his qualities
Adorn existence with the splendor of mystic knowledge.
