تَبَدَّت عَلى البازي مِن الريشِ لأمَةٌ

فَتحسبهُ مِن حائِرِ الطَّير يَتَّقي

A coat of mail made of feathers appeared upon the falcon;

you would think it wore it to guard against bewildered birds.

وَتَدريقَةٌ فَوقَ البَياضِ كَأَنَّما

تُصبُّ عَلَيهِ دِرعهُ فَوقَ يَلمَقِ

And over the white plumage lay a little shield, as though

its armor had been poured upon it over a yalmaq tunic.

غَدا أَحمَرَ العَينين تَحسبُ أَنَّهُ

لَهُ عَينُ غَضبانٍ عَلى الطَّير مُحنَقِ

It went forth red-eyed, so that you would think

it bore the eye of an angry man, enraged at the birds.

وَقَد وُرِّسَت ساقاه حَتَّى كَأَنَّما

لَهُ بِالثُّريا خاضبٌ لَم يُحَقَّقِ

Its two shanks had been stained with saffron until it seemed

a dyer among the Pleiades had colored them without perfecting the work.

كَأَنَّ بنانَ الكَفِّ كُلَّ بنانة

بِها طُرِّفَت مِنها بنون مُعَرَّقِ

Each toe seemed a finger of the hand—every finger

tipped with branching, vein-marked sons of its own.

وَقَد أُلبِسَت لَونَ المِدادِ كَأَنَّها

أَناملُ كتّابٍ تَخُطُّ بِمُهرَقِ

They had been clothed in the color of ink, as though they were

the fingertips of scribes writing upon parchment.

فَإِن كانَ للبازي مِن الريشِ لأمَةٌ

فَللدستبان دِرعُ وَشيٍ مُنَمَّقِ

If the falcon has a coat of mail made of feathers,

then the dastabān gauntlet has an ornate cuirass of brocade.

عَلَيهِ مِن العِقيانِ ساقٌ وَمُقلَةٌ

فَصارَ كَمَكحولٍ بِهِ وَمُسَوَّقِ

Upon it, wrought in pure gold, are a shank and an eye,

making it seem kohl-eyed and adorned about the legs.

جعلتُ لساقيهِ فَخُصلَةِ كَفِّهِ

حُلِي العذارى في نَواصٍ وَأَسوُقِ

I likened its two shanks and the tuft of its foot

to maidens’ jewelry, worn in forelocks and upon legs.

غَدَونا بسرب ضُمَّرٍ مثلِ ضمَّرٍ

إِذا لحقت مِنها الأَياطِلُ تَلحَقِ

At dawn we set out with a flight of lean birds, like lean steeds;

when their hindquarters drew level, they swiftly overtook.

حُمِلنَ عَلى الايسار نَحوَ عجاجها

كَما حَمَلَت خَيلٌ فَوارسَ صُدَّقِ

They were borne on left arms toward the dust cloud of their charge,

as horses bear true and valiant riders.

إِذا اِضطَرَبَت فَوقَ الأَكُفِّ حَسبتَها

لِغيبتها عَن صَيدِها في مُعَلَّقِ

When they beat restlessly above the palms, you would think them

held suspended because they were kept away from their prey.

فَأُرسِلنَ في مَيدانِهنَّ كَأَنَّها

صَواعِقُ ما لاقَت مِن الطَّيرِ تَصعَقِ

Then they were released into their arena, as though they were

thunderbolts—whatever birds they met, they struck down.