أهاجَكَ ذكرٌ منهمُ ووساوسُ

وَقد نَزَحَتْ بِيدٌ بهمْ وبسابِسُ

The memory of them stirred you, and fantasies,

Though a hand has been removed from them and from fetters,

وَما رحلوا إلّا وَحَشْو حُدوجهمْ

شموسٌ لرُوّادِ الهوى ومقابِسُ

They did not depart except while their hearts

Were suns for the visitors of love and keys,

كأنّ قطينَ الحيِّ لمّا تحمّلوا

جميعاً ضُحىً جُنحٌ من اللّيل دامسُ

As if the tribe of the living, when they bore

Altogether the forenoon, were wings of night advancing,

أو الصَّخرُ من أعلامِ ثَهْلانَ زائلاً

أو الدَّوْحُ دوحُ الغابة المُتكاوسُ

Or the rock of the signs of terrified Thahlan, vanishing,

Or the howdah, howdah of the close-packed forest.

فجادَ ديارَ العامريّةِ وابلٌ

وعادَ ديارَ العامريّةِ راجِسُ

So it rained upon the dwellings of Al-'Amiriyya,

And the dwellings of Al-'Amiriyya returned dry,

ولا دَرَستْ تلك الرّسومَ مُلِمّةٌ

ولا رَمَسَتْ تلكَ الطّلولَ الروّامسُ

Those traces were not erased by any eraser,

Nor were those graceful necks caressed by any intimate friend.

فَقد طالَما قضَّيتُ مأْرَبَةَ الصِّبا

بهنَّ ونُدماني الظّباءُ الأوانسُ

Long indeed I spent the battle of youth among them,

While the gazelles, my boon companions, kept me company,

وبيضٍ لبسنَ الحسنَ عن كلٍِّ مَلْبَسٍ

فَزانَ لَنا ما لا تزين الملابسُ

In white robes whose beauty adorned over any garment,

So they made beautiful for us what garments do not beautify.

يُعِرْن الصِّبا مَنْ لم يكن هَمُّهُ الصِّبا

فيطمع فيه كلُّ من هو آيسُ

They revealed youth to him whose only care was not youth,

That every despairing man might covet it.

وَساقَطن عَذباً من حديثٍ كَأنّهُ

نسيمُ رياضٍ آخرَ اللّيل ناعسُ

And they spoke gently with a conversation as though it were

A breeze from gardens at the dead of night drowsing.

وَلَمّا اِلتَقينا وَالرّقيبُ على الهوى

يُخالِسنا من لحظِهِ ونخالسُ

When we met, while the censor pried on love,

Outwitting him by our glances and evading him by stealth,

أريْنَ وجوهاً للجمال كأنّها

نُصولٌ جَلَتْها للقُيونِ المداوسُ

They showed faces whose beauty was as though

They were sculpture done by the smoothing hands of Time.

فهنّ كمالاً ما لهنَّ صواحبٌ

وهنّ عَفافاً ما لهنَّ حوارسُ

In perfection they have no match,

In chastity no guard to watch over them.

حَلفتُ بِمَن طافَ الحجيجُ ببيتِهِ

ومن هو للرّكنِ اليمانِيِّ لامسُ

I swear by Him whom the pilgrims circumambulate His House,

And whom the Corner of Yemen touches,

وأيدي المطايا يبتدرْن مغَمِّساً

وهنّ خميصاتُ البطون خوامِسُ

While the water skins anticipate him who comes to draw water

Morning and evening, and they are shirts concealing the stomach.

طواها السُّرى طيَّ الحريرِ على البِلى

فهنَّ قِسِيٌّ ما لهنّ معاجِسُ

Chance clothed them in silk mantles over effacement,

So they are aloof; they have no conversation.

ومَنْ أمَّ جَمْعاً والمطيُّ لواغبٌ

تماطل مِضْماضَ الكَرى وتماكسُ

And he who assembles a multitude while the riding beast is refractory

Fools him with the rinsing of the mouth and fraud.

وَما هَرقوا عند الجمارِ على مِنىً

من الدمِ منه مُستَبِلٌّ وجامِسُ

They did not flee before the torrents at Minà

From blood which has a seeker and a concealer.

لقد ولدتْ منّي النساءُ مُشيّعاً

له الرَّوْعُ مَغْنىً والحروبُ مجالسُ

Indeed women were born of me escorting

Raiding, and wars as entertainment for them.

وَقَد جرّبوا أنّي إذا اِحتَدم الوغى

لأَثْوَابِها دون الكتيبة لابسُ

They have tried me when the din of war grew loud

Wearing no armour save their shifts.

بِضَربٍ كَما اِختارَتْ شِفارُ مَناصِلٍ

وطعنٍ كما شاء الكَمِيُّ المداعسُ

With a blow, as the edges of the swords chose,

And a stab, as the firm-handed lancer desired.

تطامَنَ عنِّي كلُّ ذي خُنْزوانَةٍ

وغَمّض دوني الأبلجُ المتشاوسُ

Every one who has a purse turned from me

And the shining one winked at me from afar.

فلم يُرَ لِي لمّا سمقتُ مُطاوِلٌ

ولم يبقَ لِي لمّا سبقتُ منافِسُ

So when I attacked none was found to be my rival,

And when I surpassed none was left as my competitor.

وَذلّلتُها هَوجاءَ سامية القرا

وما كلُّ روّاضٍ تطيعُ الشوامِسُ

I made them submissive, arrogant, lofty ladies,

Yet not every trainer can control spirited horses.

فَقُل للّذي يَبغي الفَخارَ وَدونَهُ

مَفاوزُ لا تَسطيعهنَّ العَرامِسُ

Say to him who aspires to glory but beneath him

Are desolate wastes which the noble ladies cannot traverse−

قَعدتَ عنِ الحُسنى وغيرُك قائمٌ

وقمتَ إلى السوأى وغيرُك جالسُ

'You fall short of fair deeds and others stand,

You rise to foul deeds and others remain seated.'

وَرُمتَ الّذي لَم تسعَ يوماً بطُرْقِهِ

ونَيْلَ الجَنَى عفواً وما أنتَ غارسُ

And you throw at him whom your roads one day cannot contain

The attainment of spoils freely gained without your being a planter.

وإنّي ببرْحِ الأمر في القوِم ناهضٌ

وأنتَ عن الأمر المُبرِّحِ خانِسُ

Indeed I in the affair of the people stand up to act

While you from the affair of standing up to act play truant.

ولِي النظَرُ السّامي إلى كلّ ذِرْوَةٍ

فكيف تساميني العيونُ النّواكسُ

My regard rising to every lofty peak,

How then can ogling eyes make me haughty?

تَرومونَ أَن تعلوا وأنتمْ أسافلٌ

وأن تُشرقوا فينا وأنتم حنادسُ

You wish to rise up while you are the lowliest

And to shine among us while you are extinct coals.

نَهسْتُمْ لَعَمْرِي مَرْوَتي جهلةً بها

فَيا للنُّهى ماذا اِستَفادَ النّواهسُ

By my life you have neighed at my manliness in ignorance of it

So curses on neighing! What has the neighing gained for the neighers?

وَكَيفَ عَجَمْتُمْ هاتماً كلَّ عاجمٍ

ومارستُمُ مَن كَلَّ عنه الممارسُ

How can the stammerers criticize every eloquent man

And consort with every man whose power of speech is impaired?

فَما لعجاجِي منكُمُ اليومَ تابعٌ

وَلا لعُبابي منكُمُ اليومَ قامسُ

None among you today is a follower of my power,

Nor among you today a suppressor of my youthfulness.

فَإِنْ أَنتُمُ أقذيتُمُ صفوَ عيشنا

فَقَد رَغِمَتْ آنافكمْ والمعاطسُ

If you have soured the choice part of our life for us,

Snouts have been rubbed in the dust and the wry-mouths!

وَإنْ جرّ دهرٌ نحوكمْ بعضَ سعدِهِ

فَما أنتُمُ في الدّهرِ إلّا المناحسُ

If Time draws near you a portion of its luck,

You are in Time naught but the unlucky ones.

وَمَن ذا الّذي لَولاي آوى سُروحَكمْ

وأنتمْ لآسادِ الخطوب فرائسُ

Who, had it not been for me, would have given shelter to your dignity

While you are to the misfortunes of war a prey?

وما البِيضُ بيضُ الهند لولا أكفُّها

وما الخيلُ يومَ الرَّوْع إلّا الفوارسُ

The swords are not sword of India were it not for their blades,

And the horses on the day of raid are naught but the horsemen.

وَإنْ أنتَ لم تحرسْكَ نفسُك نَجْدَةً

فليس بحامٍ عن جنابك حارسُ

Even if your own self does not guard you, ready to defend,

There is none to guard your side as a protector.

وما لكَ مِن كلّ الذين تراهُمُ

وَإنْ غضبوا إلّا الطُّلولُ الدّوارسُ

And as for all those whom you see

If they are angry, they are naught but the fickle-minded.