هَذا هُوَ السَعيُ لا ما يَدَّعي الواني
وَذي الوَقائِعُ لا أَيام ذبيانِ
This is the quest, not what the cups claim
And reality, not days of delusion
أَدنيتَ حَين تَميم حينَ صُلتَ بِهِ
وَرُعتَ ياقوتاً المُستَكبرِ الجاني
You drew near when you made peace with Tameem
And you restrained the tyrannical ruby
وَحط بأسكَ عَن عَلياهُ مُرتَفِعاً
وَعزَّ جَيشُكَ قَهراً عِزّ طرخان
And your might lowered itself from its height
And your army conquered the pride of Turkhan
ما زِلتَ تُوليهِ احساناً وَتُضمَرهُ
لَهُ وَيُضمِرُ غَدراً تَحتَ اِدهانِ
You still grant him kindness and harbor him
For him while he harbors deceit beneath cosmetics
يَبغي السَماءَ رَجاءً أَن سَيبلغها
جَهلاً بِهِ كانَ قَد ماهَلك هامانِ
He aspires to the sky hoping to reach it
In ignorance that before him Haman had perished
ما خلتُ أَنَّ الأَماني تَخدَعَنَّ فَتىً
بِمَدِّ باعٍ قَصير نَحوَ كِيوان
I have not seen that hopes deceive a knight
With the extended hand of a seller toward Keywan
وَلا مَشى وَيَرى الضَحضاحَ يُغرِقُه
نَحوَ العُبابِ مَجدٌ غير سَكران
Nor walked seeing mirage that would drown him
Toward clouds, glory not intoxicated
وَغَرَّهُ البُعدُ عَن أُسدِ الشَرى فَطَغى
حَتّى رَآها تَبارى فَوقَ عُقبانِ
And distance from the lion of war made him arrogant
Until he saw them above the hills
سَروا مَعَ اللَيلِ يُغنيهم تَهلُّلهم
عَن ضَوءِ بدر وَعَن اِيقاد نيران
They traveled with the night, made merry by their trilling
From the light of the moon and lighting fires
مِن كُلِّ أَبلج مطعام إِذا جَنَحوا
للسلم أَشوسَ يَومَ الرَوع طَعّانِ
With every blizzard when they approached
For peace, the day of panic, most ravenous wolves
ساروا إِلى المَوتِ بَسّامينَ تَحسَبُهُم
ساروا لِوَصلِ حَبيب غِبَّ هُجران
They marched to death smiling, you'd think them
Marching to meet an absent beloved
يَستَعذِبونَ المَنايا نَجدَةً فَلَهُم
إِلى ظُباة المَواضي وَردُ ظَمآنِ
They find death pleasant, so for them belong
The beasts of the meadows and return of the thirsty
لا يَرهبُ المَوتَ أَدناهُم فَهُم بَدَدٌ
في كُلِّ دَهماءَ مِن مثنى وَوحدانِ
Not one of them fears getting close to death, they are scattered
In every fray, some in pairs and some alone
أَبدى هَوى بالعلى لِكِن رأى صَعَداً
مِن دونِها فَسلاها أيَّ سُلوانِ
He harbored love for the exalted, but saw ascent
Beyond it so he let it go, which ladder?
لَو مُدىً في مَداها غَيرُ هيِّنَةٍ
ِذا لَنالَ المَعالي كُلُّ اِنسانِ
If extended in its extension without hardship
Then every human would achieve the heights
أَيُغتَرى فِريةً في ذِكرِ ماريَة
وآلِ جَفنةَ إِلّا عَقل حَيرانِ
Does one become infatuated with the mention of Mariah
And the people of Jafnah except a confused mind?
قَد كانَ يَزأرُ زَأَرَ الأَسَدِ حينَ خَلا
وَمَرَّ لَمّا أَتَتهُ مَرَّ سَرحانِ
He used to roar the lions' roar when alone
And passed when she approached him, like a frolicking colt
كَتائِبٌ سَدَّ عَينَ الشَمسِ عثيَرُها
فَأَشرقَت عُرُبٌ مِن تَحتِ تيجانِ
Regiments that blocked the sun in their great numbers
So Arabs shone beneath the crowns
سَماءُ نَقع تَرى حيث اِتجهتَ بِها
بَدراً يَكُرُّ بِنَجمِ اثر شَيطانِ
The sky of Naqaa you see wherever you turn with it
A moon that wanders with the traces of a devil
فاِستعذَب الذُلَّ خَوفَ المَوتَ مُنهَزِماً
يَستقربُ البُعدَ أَو يَستَبعِدُ الداني
So he found humiliation's taste sweet, fearing death defeated
Seeking distance or excluding the nearer
أَمرانِ مُرّانِ أَطرافُ البِلادِ عَلى
ناجي السَوابِق أَو أَطرافِ مُرّانِ
Two bitter ends, the lands' extremities are
The advisor of precedents or bitter ends
وَلَم يُفتَهَم وَلَكِن فاتَهُم شَرَف الا
قدامِ مِن غبن وَخُسرانِ
And it was not understood, but they missed the glory of
Ranks from injustice and loss
فَوَيلَهُ مِن غَبيٍ بتَّ تطلِبُهُ
وَباتَ نَشوانَ خَمرٍ غَيرَ نشيانِ
Woe to the fool whom ignorance seeks
And who spent the night intoxicated without joy
وَكانَ نَيل المَنايا لَو تُباحُ لَهُ
خَيراً لَهُ مِن حَياةٍ تُشمِتُ الشاني
And meeting death would have been better if allowed
Than a life that gloats over him, the critic
حاطَ اِنتِقامَكَ بأساً قَبلَ باشِرِهِ
فَمذ مَلكتَ رَجا مَعمودَ احسان
You have contained your revenge with might before taking it
So when you ruled, hope returned with kindness
ما أَحسَنَ العَفوَ عَفوٌ بَعدَ مَقدِرَةٍ
عَن أَقبحِ الذَنبِ كُفرٍ بَعدَ إِيمانِ
How excellent is pardon, pardon after ability
For the ugliest sin, blasphemy after faith
هَذي مَصارِعُ شانيكُم يُبَصِّرُها
ذو احنةٍ فيُلاقيكُم بشنان
One with affection, so you meet them with fury
O you who remembers and whose stirrups
يا ذاكِري وَرِكابي عَنهُ نازِحَةٌ
إِذا اللَئيمُ عَلى قُربِ تَناساني
Depart from him when the despicable approaches intimacy
My tears of separation have clouded me with their clouds
مَدامِعُ البُعدَ أَغشَتني سَحائِبُها
عَليَّ يَهمينَ عَن ذي الهيدَبِ الداني
Raining upon me from the owner of the braids, who is close
As redemption even if he has seldom graced me with what
فِدىً وان قَلَّ مَنّانٌ عَليَّ بِما
لَم يعطنيهِ لِمُعطٍ غَيرَ مَنّانٍ
He did not give another graceless patron
He wishes if only the morning donned its hue
يَودُّ لَو كُسيَ الاصباحُ صِبغَتَهُ
أَو زيد في لَيلِهِ مِن عُمرِهِ الفاني
Or the fleeting night gained of its vanishing life
When he saw the wonder his people had for his generosity
إِذا رأى قَومه مِن جودِهِ عَجَباً
قِدماً أَتاكَ بِثَان يَومُه الثاني
He gave them yesterday, today for the second time
Generosity, valor and patience, those are his traits
جُودٌ وَبأسٌ وَحِلمٌ تِلكَ شيمَتُهُ
مَعروفة أَبَداً في آل غَسّانِ
Known forever in the clan of Ghassan
He builds upon your glorious renown, diligent
يَبنى عَلى مَجدِكَ المَعروف مُجتَهِداً
لا مَجدَ حَقاً لِغَيرِ الوارِث الباني
Since no glory in truth belongs to any but the building heir
I have wasted my merit that I made known among the ignorant
أَضاعَ فَضليَ أَنّي بَينَ جاهِلهِ
ذوُ الفَضلِ فيهم بَصيرٌ بَينَ عُميان
The virtuous among them is seeing among the blind
And I do not care if fate ordains that I meet you
وَما أُبالي إِذا ما الدَهرُ قَيّض لي
لقياك مِن بعد ما يَمنى ليَ الماني
After what is wished for me by the patron
Exalting glory and making generosity immortal
اعلاءَ مَجدٍ وَتَخليدٌ لِمكرُمة
لا رَفعُ قَصر وَلا تَخليدُ ايوانِ
Not raising a palace or immortalizing a hall
A quest with seriousness and a quest sometimes the two
سَعيٌ بِجدٍّ وَسَعيٌ رُبَّما اِختلفَ الأ
مرانِ جدّاهُما في الأَمرِ سِيّانِ
Matters differ but in purpose they are equal
