أَحَقُّ الأَيادي أَن تُجَلَّ وَتُعظَما
وَتُسلَكَ في الأَعناقِ سَمَطاً وَتُنَظَّما
Are hands most deserving to be adorned and revered,
And worn as necklaces, organized and esteemed?
وَتَلبِسُها الأَيّامُ حَلياً وَكِسوَةً
وَتَسني لَها الأَحقابُ عيداً وَمَوسِما
Should days dress them in jewelry and robes
And eras appoint for them holidays and seasons?
أَيادي الأولى كانوا مَصابيحَ عَصرِهِم
لِمُدَّرِعٍ لَيلاً مِنَ الجَهلِ مُظلِما
The first hands were lanterns of their time
Lighting the way at night for one clad in ignorance’ darkness.
وَمَن أَوضَحوا لِلحائِرينَ مَحَجَّةً
فَساروا بِهِم في العَيشِ نَهجاً مُقَوِّما
They showed the lost the path to tread
Guiding them through life on a straight course.
لَعَمري إِذا الأَعلامُ قيسَت جُهودُها
وَكُلٌّ أَتى عَمّا فَراهُ مُتَرجِما
Truly if the famous were weighed by their works
And each came with what they pioneered translated,
وَجاءَ الكِرامُ الكاتِبونَ فَقيدوا
لِكُلِّ عِصامِيٍّ حِساباً مُرَقَّما
The generous writers would come to record
A numbered account for every excelling leader.
فَمَن مِثلُ عَبدُ اللَهِ في الشَرقِ عالَمٌ
لَهُ مِثلُ مِن رَبّي وَرقى وَعَلَما
Who in the East resembles Abdullah, a scholar
With no peer from my Lord in ascent or knowledge?
تَلاميذُهُ عَدُّ الحَصى وَتَراهُم
بُدوراً بِآفاقِ البِلادِ وَأَنجُما
His students beyond count, you see them
As constellations across horizons and stars.
أَفاضَ عَلى الأَرجاءِ عِلمٌ عَلِمَهُ
فَعَجَّ وَمَن لِلبَحرِ كَقفوَ إِذا طَمى
Knowledge he taught poured over regions
Overflowing, and who can dam the sea's swell?
وَبَثَّ لِسانُ العَرَبِ خَمسينَ حَجَّةً
يُقَوِّمُ مُنآداً وَيُوَضِّحُ مُبهَما
The Arab tongue he armed with fifty proofs
To straighten what leans and clarify the ambiguous.
وَسَلَّ سُيوفاً مِن قَرابِ دِماغِهِ
فَفَلَّ بِها اللَحنَ جَيشاً عَرَمرَما
From his mind’s orb unsheathed swords
That routed the forces of grammatical error in disarray.
وَمَن يَبتَذِل في خِدمَةِ العِلمِ نَفسَهُ
فَأَجدَرَ بِأَن يَغدو عَزيزاً مُكَرَّما
Whoever humbles himself serving knowledge
Is most deserving to live honored and cherished.
رَقى مِن ذَرى التَحقيقِ في النَحوِ ذَروَةً
يُقَصِّرُ عَنها مَن مَضى وَتَقَدَّما
He climbed the summit of investigative grammar
Beyond what predecessors attained and surpassed.
فَلَو كانَ لاقى سيبَويهِ وَرَهطَهُ
لَعادَ لَعَمري سيبَويه اِبنُ أَعجَما
Had he met Sibawayh and his group
Sibawayh, by my life, would be the foreigner!
وَلَم يَكُن ذِياكَ الكِتابَ مَرجَبا
وَرائَحَةُ التُفّاحِ لَم تَكُ مَغَنما
That book of his would not have been so wondrous
Nor would the apple's scent have been so sweet.
وَلَو كانَ في العَصرِ القَديمِ مَجيئَهُ
لَفَتَّ بِعَينِ الجحِظِ العَينِ حَصرَما
Had his coming been in ancient times
He would have dazzled al-Jahiz’s very eyes.
وَأَصبَحَ مَعَهُ الفارِسِيُّ وَاِبنُ فارِسٍ
وَقَد بَرَّئتَ تِلكَ الفَراسَةِ مِنهُما
Al-Farisi and ibn Faris would be with him
While you exonerated them of such perception.
لَباتَت بِأَحشاءِ المُبرَدِ غُلَّةً
وَكادَ اِبنُ جَنِيٍّ يُجِنُّ تَأَلُّما
Doubt would have lodged in al-Mubarrad's mind
And ibn Janni would have fretted in agony.
وَصارَ اِبنُ عُصفورَ مَهيَضاً جَناحَهُ
وَلَو كانَ قَبلَ اليَومِ طارَ إِلى السَما
Ibn ‘Usfur would have folded his wings
Though before today he flew to the heavens.
وَلَو ناظَروهُ في الفَرائِدِ مَرَّةً
رَأَوا مِن عُلاهُ ما يَفوقُ التَوَهُّما
Had they debated him just once
They would have seen wonders beyond imagining.
وَأَصبَحَ مَعَهُ المَجدُ قَد قَلَّ مَجدَهُ
وَآبَ صِحاحُ الجَوهَرِيُّ مِثلَما
Glory beside him is lesser
And Sihah al-Jawhari has declined like him.
وَلَو كانَ جارُ اللَهِ جاراهُ بَذَّهُ
وَما اِفتَخَرَت مِنهُ زَمَخشَرُ بِاِنتِما
Had al-Zamakhshari been his peer it would distress him
For he never boasted having outdone him.
لَقَد سَعِدتُ مِنهُ العُروبَةُ بِالَّذي
تَوَلَّهُ فيها مُستَهاماً مُتَيَّما
With him, pride in Arabic was given such
As he selflessly desired and sought.
وَثارَت لَهُ في نَصرِ أُمَّةِ يَعرُبٍ
عَزائِمَ شَوقٍ خالَطَ اللَحمَ وَالدَما
For the nation of eloquence, zeal rose in him
Mixed with flesh and blood in fervent passion.
قَضى عُمرُهُ سَيفاً يَقِدُ عَداتَها
فَيَرمي بِهِم شَلواً فَشَلواً مُقَسَّما
His life he spent as a sword leading its strikes
Throwing them into disarray cloven and partitioned.
يُبَلِّجُ مِن أَنوارِها كُلَّ ساطِعٍ
وَقَد يُنكِرُ الأَنوارَ مِن رِزقِ العَمى
Dazzling the vision of any shining light
Though the blind may reject the light’s provision.
وَيَكشِفُ عَن أَسرارِها كُلَّ غامِضٍ
عَلَيهِ حِجابُ الجَهلِ كانَ مُخَيِّما
Revealing the essence of each obscurity
Veiled by the cloud of ignorance it was shrouded in.
فَما عَنَّ في يَومِ شُعوبِيُّ فِرقَةٍ
لِمُنقَصَةٍ إِلّا وَخَلاهُ مَلجَما
Never on a day of discord did he belong
To a detracting group, except to bridle them.
وَما لاحَ قَرنُ القَرنِ إِلّا اِنبَرى لَهُ
بِرَميِ الَّذي يَصمي لِعُمري إِذا رَمى
Each generation found him rising
To shoot arrows that pierce, by my life, when shot.
فَلَو شاءَت الفُصحى وَفاءَ جِهادَهُ
لَنَصَتَ لَهُ فَوقَ السَماكينَ مِجثَما
If Arabic wished to repay his struggle
It would erect for him above the heavens a minbar.
فَمَن لِلأُلى مِثلي اِرتَوَوا مِن مَعينِهِ
بِأَن يَنقَعوا مِن ذِكرِ مَعروفِهِ الظَما
So who can blame me, having drunk my fill
From his spring, to overflow with his renowned mention?
عَرَفنا لَهُ فَضلاً عَلَينا وَمِنَّةً
وَلَم يَكُ ما نَرعاهُ عَهداً مُذَمَّما
We knew his merit and favor to us
With no repayment made or pact agreed upon.
وَما أَنا إِلّا مَن تَلَقَى بِضاعَةً
فَنَمَّقَ مِنها جَهدَ مُعيٍ وَنَمنَما
I am but one who received goods
And gleaned as much as my strength and business would allow.
وَما الفَضلُ إِلّا لِلقَسامي عِندَما
يَراني الوَرى دَبَّجتَ بَرداً مُسَهَّما
Merit belongs to the Giver
When people see me clad in a patchwork coat.
وَما هُوَ إِلّا بَعضَ مَرجوعِ صَوتِهِ
وَتَقليدُ ما قَد كانَ جادَ وَأَنعَما
It is but an echo of his voice
And mimicry of one who was generous and bestowed.
حَنانيكَ أُستاذَ الأَساتيذِ إِنَّنا
جَميعاً نُحَيِّ فيكَ مِن شَرَّفَ الحِمى
O teacher of teachers, we all salute you
As the most honorable fever's refuge.
وَلَو أَنصَفَتكَ العَرَبُ لَم يَبقَ مُعرِبُ
عَلى سَطحِها إشلأّا أَتاكَ مُسَلَّما
Had the Arabs been fair to you no Arab
Would remain on its surface but came submitting to you.
وَلَو كانَ لُبنانَ يوفيكَ شُكرُهُ
لَأَوشَكَ فيهِ الصَخرُ أَن يَتَكَلَّما
Had Lebanon properly given you thanks
Nearly every boulder in it would speak!
تَقَبَّلَ ثَناءَ لَو غَدا رَملُ عالِجٍ
بِكَثرَتِهِ لِمَ نوفِ حَقّاً مُحَتَّما
You accepted praise that, had it been grains of sand,
Would not fulfill your right even heaped and piled.
وَقابَلَ بِغَضِّ الطَرفِ مَيسورٍ وامِقٍ
قُصارى مُناهُ أَن تَعيشَ وَتَسَلَّما
You met deficient, blundering criticism
With no more than living and being safe.
