ضَرَبَ الناسُ في العُلاَ الأَمثالا

وسَمِعْنَا بها ولكِنْ كذَا لا

People have coined proverbs about the eminent

We have heard them but not so

جَرَّدَ العاضِدُ الإِمامُ من النَّا

صِرِ عَضْباً فكُنْتَ فيهِ الصِّقالا

The commander stripped the imam of supporters

So be resolute with him and polish him

ملك هَزَّ عَزْمَهُ مُذْ تَوَلَّى

فَعَدُوٌّ وَلَّى وفَتْحٌ توالى

A king who has shaken his determination since assuming authority

An enemy turned away while conquests followed in succession

كُلَّما جَيَّشَ الجيوشَ لحربٍ

أَقبلَتْ وَهْيَ تحمِلُ الإِقبالا

Whenever he mobilized armies for war

They came while bearing resolve

وعوالٍ ذَوَابل تَحْسَبُ النَّقْ

عَ دُخاناً فتستنيرُ ذُبالا

And tall mountains that mistake the dust

For smoke, so they shine at sunset

بظُباً تنكِرُ الكُلولَ ولا يع

رفُ أَيضاً مَنْ يَنْتَضِيها الكلالا

With gazelles that the dusk renders unrecognizable and

The fading light cannot discern what makes them darker

وقِسِيٍّ كأَنَّما الدهرُ عنها

قائمٌ يقذفُ الوبالَ نِبالا

And firm mountains as if fate stands over them

Throwing afflictions as projectiles

وخيولٍ مثل الشَّواهِينِ يقنصْ

نَ فَقُلْ باطلاً وقُلْ أَبْطالا

And horses hunting like Arabian stallions

Say they are useless and say they are heroes

كلمّا حَوَّمَتْ أَدارَتْ جناحاً

عَدَّ في ريشهِ الصَّبا والشَّمالا

Whenever they circle and wheel about

The breeze counts their feathers and the north wind too

أَقبلَتْ كلُّها صدوراً فَمَرَّتْ

خَيْلُ مُرِّيِّ كلُّها أَكْفَالا

They charged with their chests so the cavalry

Of Murr passed by completely armed

وأَقامَتْ لثَغْرِ دِمْيَاطَ ثغراً

ضاحكاً عن كُمَاتِها يَتَلالا

And they set up for the siege of Damietta a laughing

Encampment freed from its bindings and shackles

ببروج من الرجالِ وما يُنْ

كَبُ مَنْ يجعلُ البروجَ رِجالا

With towers made of men - and who can

Make towers out of men but heroes?

وفيولٍ من المَجَانيقِِ لا بَلْ

هيَ في الحربِ تقذِفُ الأَفْيالا

And mangonels that in war hurl elephants

Behind a wall made of gazelles and tall mountains

خَلْفَ سورٍ من الظُّبا والعوالي

قد تغالَى بناؤهُ وَتَعَالى

Whose construction has surpassed itself and transcended

With lions that you, O son of heroes, would think

وليوثٍ يُظَنُّ يا بْنَ مَصَالٍ

أَنَّ يُمْنَاكَ عَلَّمَتْها المَصَالا

Your support has trained to wield cudgels

The accursed turned away from you and you met him

حادَ عنك اللَّعينُ فاستقبلَتْه

بِمِحالِ يُرِى اللَّعِينَ مُحالا

With positions that make the accursed appear in impossible straits

You shone like a star in Rashid's bright sky

لُحْتَ نجماً على ظسمَاءِ رَشيدٍ

فاجْتَلَى منكَ للهلالِ هلالا

So you attained a crescent moon over the crescent moon

And he consulted the troops about you, and whoever

واستشارَ الجموعَ فيكَ وما أَخ

طَأَ مَنْ قالَ في قتالِكَ آلَى

Said you would perish in battle was wrong

So they went without fighting you, and before

فَمَضَوْا لم يُقاتِلُوكَ وَمِنْ قَبْ

لُ القِتالُ الذي كفاكَ القتالا

Fighting you, fighting itself spared fighting

They recognized your valiant face - so did you consider them

عَرَفُوا وجهَكَ الشُّجاعَ فهَلْ أَن

كَرْتَ منهُمْ لمَّا تَوَلَّوْا قَذَالا

Cowardly when they turned away?

And providence made light of them until

واسْتَخَفَّتْهُمُ المقاديرُ حتَّى

زُلْزِلُوا حيثُ يَمَّمُوا زِلْزالا

They were shaken wherever they turned

They set up their towers opposite a flame

نصبوا بُرْجَهُمْ إِزاءَ شِهابٍ

كادَ أَنْ يُحْرِقَ البُروجَ اشتعالا

That almost set the towers aflame

And they incited the tribes of the Romans - foreigners against him

واستجاشُوا قبائِلَ الرُّومِ أَجنا

ساً عليه فلم يساوُوا قَبَالا

But they did not equal steadfastness

They deemed settling unlawful with him, but they did not

حَرَّموا عندَهُ النُّزولَ وما حَرَّ

مَ إِذْ حَرَّمُوا النُّزولَ النِّزالا

Deem unlawful when they deemed fighting unlawful

They wanted to humiliate him, but they were repulsed

وأَرادوا به صِيالاً فَرُدُّوا

وله الفضلُ يرغبونَ سُؤالا

While he deserved favor, they desired asking

They drew him with feigned meekness, and a trait

واستمالوهُ بالخضوع ومن شر

طِ الشُّجاعِ الكريمِ أَن يُسْتَمالا

Of the generous, valiant man is to be drawn in

They sought safe passage from him - how strange

واستماحوا منه النّوى وعجيبٌ

أَنْ يُعَدَّ النَّوى لقوم نوالا

That passage is granted to a people seeking booty

So they went, traversing miles on miles faster

فمضَوْا يقطعونَ بالرَكْضِ أَميا

لاَ رَأَوْها من مثله أَمْوالا

Than they had ever seen possessions travel

They left only lightly wounded, and if they left

لم يَرُوحوا إِلا خِفاقاً وإِن كا

نَ لِحَمْلِ الجِراحِ راحُوا ثِقالا

Heavy laden from their injuries, they traveled lightly

They mentioned him as one firm in judgment against them

ذكَرُوا منه صارماً صارِمَ الحَدِّ

عليهِمْ وعامِلاً عَمَّالا

And as one fair in action

And the distinguished one swore

وانتقاماً لأَجله صمَّمَ الشا

مُ على عَوْدَةٍ إِلَيْهِ انْتِقَالا

To return to take vengeance for his sake

He renewed the religion with a flame and a star

ريَّنَ الدِّينَ من شهابٍ ونَجْمٍ

بمنيرَيْن أَلبساهُ الجمالا

With two illuminations that adorned it with beauty

He protected it for a time from diminishment until

حمياهُ طوراً من النَّقْصِ حتَّى

أَلَّفا شَمْلَهُ فنالَ الكمالا

They reconciled its disunity, attaining perfection

He scattered the transgressing Romans while this one

فَرَّق الرُّوم ذا اعْتِداءٍ وهذا

جَمَّعَ العُرْبَ أُلْفَةً واعتدالا

United the Arabs in harmony and moderation

With exertion that made the family an ocean

بكفاحٍ قد صيَّر الآلَ بحراً

وسماح قد صيَّرَ البحرَ آلا

And generosity that made the ocean a family

The land took on its adornments and vegetation

أَخذَتْ بالنَّباتِ زينَتَها الأَر

ضُ وكانَتْ من حَلْيِهِ مِعْطالا

And ceased needing any jewelry

It danced beneath the silk of the meadows when

رَقَصَتْ تحتَ سُنْدُسِ الرَّوْضِ لَمَّا

شرِبَتْ كأْسَ جودِهِ سَلْسالا

It sipped the cup of his bounty in channels

It curled into tresses plaited by vegetation

وانثنَتْ في غلائلٍ حاكَها الخِصْ

بُ وكانَتْ بجدبِها أَغلالا

While it had been barren with drought

The delight of our lives became healthy through him

واعتلَتْ ثَغْرَنَا بهِ صِحَّةُ العَيْ

شِ فَلَمْ يَشْكُ بعدَ ذاك اعْتِلالا

So after that it suffered no unhealthiness

The return of the swords to the scabbards occurred through him

عادَ فيه عَوْدَ الحُسامِ إِلى الغِمْ

دِ وقد صالَ في المُهِمِّ وَسالا

After they hadloosened in fray and pulled out in haste

Vanquishing the enemy by breaking and capturing

أَمُبيدَ العدوِّ كَسْراً وأَسْراً

ومُفِيدَ الوَليِّ مالاً وآلا

And benefiting the loyalist with property and family

So if the verse of my poetry is good or long

فإِذا طابَ نظمُ شعرِي أَو طا

لَ فمن راحَتَيْكَ طابَ وطالا

It is from your tranquility that it is good and long

You inspired it while it was condemned

أَنْتَ أوْجَدْتَهُ وقد كانَ مَعْدُو

ماً وأَوْجَدْتَهُ المقالَ فقالا

And you inspired speech about it, so it spoke