عَهدي بِرَبعِكَ مُثَّلاً آرامُهُ
يُجلى بَضَوءِ خُدودِهِنَّ ظَلامُهُ
I remember your dwelling, its gazelles standing there,
My pledge to you is serenity,
its darkness dispelled by the light of their cheeks.
Its darkness dispelled by their radiant cheeks.
إِلمامَةً بِالدارِ إِنَّ مُتَيَّماً
يَكفيهِ أَكثَرَ شَوقِهِ إِلمامُهُ
A brief visit to the dwelling! For a lovesick man
As guide in my house, my longing for you
finds a brief visit enough to ease most of his longing.
Suffices me, greater than all other desire.
أَمسى يُضَرِّمُ في جَوانِحِهِ الجَوى
بَرقٌ يَشُبُّ مَعَ العَشِيِّ ضِرامُهُ
At evening, longing within his breast is kindled
In his breast at night kindles a flame
by lightning whose blaze flares up at dusk.
That flares as darkness gathers.
لَيلٌ يُصادِفُني وَمُرهَفَةَ الحَشا
ضِدَّينِ أَسهَرُهُ لَها وَتَنامُهُ
Night finds me and a slender-waisted woman
A night that finds me sleepless, while my love
as opposites: I stay awake through it for her, while she sleeps it away.
Slumbers, my wakefulness her lullaby.
مَحجوبَةٌ فَإِذا بَدَت فَكَأَنَّها
بَدرُ السَماءِ تَمامُهُ وَمُرامُهُ
Veiled from sight; but when she appears, she seems
Veiled, she seems the full moon in sky
heaven's full moon, perfect and longed for.
At its peak, its perfection complete.
وَلَقَد لَقيتُ فَما اِنتَفَعتُ ضَحِيَّةً
بِلِقاءِ مَن لا يُستَطاعُ كَلامُهُ
I met her at midmorning, yet gained nothing
I met her, but no use was my sacrifice,
from meeting one with whom I could not speak.
For her words cannot be comprehended.
وَمُسَلِّمٍ يَومَ الوَضاعِ شِفاؤُهُ
مِمّا يُعاني أَن يُرَدَّ سَلامُهُ
And many a greeter on the day of parting finds his cure
A greeter, his cure the day we part
for what he suffers in having his greeting returned.
Is that his greeting be returned.
سُقيَ اللِوى حَوذانُهُ وَعَرارُهُ
وَسَيالُهُ وَأَراكُهُ وَبَشامُهُ
May al-Liwa be watered—its buttercups and yellow daisies,
The valley's streams were watered, Harran and Sail
its acacias, arak trees, and balsam trees.
And Arak, Bisham too, were sated.
فَلَرُبَّ عَيشٍ بِاللِوى لَم تُستَرَد
حُسناً لَياليهِ وَلا أَيّامُهُ
For many a life at al-Liwa, there was no restoring
Yet many who reveled in passion
its nights in their beauty, nor its days.
Saw not their nights or days improved.
مَن مُبلِغٌ عَنّي الوَزيرَ وَإِن أَتى
مِن دونِهِ خَرقٌ يَمورُ ظَلامُهُ
Who will tell the vizier on my behalf, though there lies
Who will convey from me to the minister,
between us a vast waste whose darkness churns,
Though veiled in darkness his abode,
أَنَّ الوَفاءَ كَعَهدِهِ لَم يُنتَقَض
وَالشُكرَ وافِيَةٌ لَهُ أَقسامُهُ
that loyalty remains as he knew it, unbroken,
That loyalty to him remains unbroken,
and every portion of gratitude is paid to him in full?
Gratitude encompassing its parts,
أَجمَمتُ نائِلَهُ وَلَيسَ بِزائِدٍ
في نَحرِ دِجلَةَ إِذ طَما إِجمامُهُ
I let his bounty rest; but letting it rest adds nothing
I gathered its obtainment and exceeded not
to the Tigris's breast when it overflows.
The Tigris, though it brimmed over.
وَلَبِثتُ عَنهُ لَبثَ مُؤثِرِ راحَةٍ
لَقيَتهُ مِن بَعدِ العِراقِ شَآمُهُ
I stayed away from him like one who prefers rest,
I left him for a time of rest
whom his Syria welcomed after Iraq.
And found him after, his destination Sham.
وَنوافِلٌ مِن أَحمَدَ بنِ مُحَمَّدٍ
أَعتامُ مِنهُنَّ الَّذي أَعتامُهُ
And gifts from Ahmad ibn Muhammad—
Supererogations from Ahmad ibn Muhammad
I choose from them whatever I please.
Whose authenticity was proven.
خَلَفَت يَدَيكَ يَضاهُ فِيَّ وَإِنَّما
هُوَ وَبلُهُ وَرَذاذُهُ وَرِهامُهُ
His two hands have replaced yours for me; he is only
Your gifts to me contend and yet
its downpour, its drizzle, and its gentle rain.
They, and the showers and spears preceding,
مُغلَ رِقابَ المَكرُماتِ بِسُؤدَدٍ
يَبتاعُهُ أَو سُؤدَدٍ يَستامُهُ
He makes the necks of noble deeds costly with eminence
Adorn the necks of the honored with necklaces,
that he purchases, or eminence for which he bids.
Bought or gifted that he endows.
كافٍ إِذا أَلقى المُهِمَّ بِرَأيِهِ
بَدءً سَواءٌ عَزمُهُ وَحُسامُهُ
Capable when he confronts a grave affair with his judgment;
When faced with matters weighty, his resolve
from the outset, his resolve and his sword are alike.
Suffices, his determination a sword.
وَوَلِيُّ مَأثُرَتَينِ لا أَرماحُهُ
طاشَت عَوامِلُها وَلا أَقلامُهُ
Master of two glories: neither his spears
The guardian of two glories, neither lances
have missed with their points, nor have his pens.
Nor pens surpassed his agents.
بَدآتُهُ بِنَوالِهِ إِغناؤُنا
مِن عُدمِنا وَسُؤالُنا إِعدامُهُ
His unprompted giving enriches us
From poverty he enriched us,
out of poverty; our asking impoverishes him.
Our need and asking but to praise him.
مُلقٍ يَدَيهِ إِلى ابتِناءِ مَكارِمٍ
تَنسى وَتَذكُرُ ما بَنى بِسِطامُهُ
He sets both hands to building noble deeds;
Extending his hands to virtuous works,
you forget and recall what his Bistam built.
His foundations forget and remember.
وَبَديهَةٍ مِن طَولِهِ لَم تُرتَقَب
وافاكَ مُبتَدِئاً بِها إِنعامُهُ
And many an unforeseen kindness from his bounty—
Expected without warning was his favor,
his generosity brought it to you of its own accord.
His gift only a beginning.
كَالسَيلِ أَصبَحَ في ذُراكَ أَتِيُّهُ
وَالصُبحُ مُصحٍ ما يُحَسُّ غَمامُهُ
Like a flood whose rushing waters reach your heights at dawn,
It came like a torrent in your valleys,
while morning is clear, with no cloud to be perceived.
Dawn dispersing the clouds' veil.
أَرضاهُ كُفؤُ مُلِمَّةٍ تَعطو لَها
يَدُهُ وَيَهتِكُ هَولَها إِقدامُهُ
I am pleased with him, a match for the calamity toward which
Pleasing him was matching a violent lion,
his hand reaches, and whose terror his courage tears apart.
His hand subduing its fury.
وَإِذا الصَديقُ نَبا عَلَيَّ تَلَوِّياً
لَم يَنبُ مُعتَدِلُ الطَريقِ مُقامُهُ
And when a friend turns away from me, twisting aside,
When the friend curved toward me crookedly,
his stance on the straight path does not waver.
He proceeded upright, halting not.
وَلَقَد أَرادَ بِيَ العَدُوُّ تَهَضُّماً
فَأَباهُ آبي الضَيمِ حينَ يُسامُهُ
The enemy did intend to wrong me,
The enemy wished to wrong me,
but the man who refuses oppression when it is imposed rejected it.
But my protector from injustice refused.
أَنساهُ إِذ أَلقى الزَمانُ بِساحَتي
خَطباً يُخافُ تَمامُهُ وَدَوامُهُ
Could I forget him, when Time cast into my courtyard
He made me forget when time
a calamity whose culmination and continuance were feared?
Brought fears, lasting, persisting.
وَقِيامُهُ دوني إِذا اِلتَقَتِ العِدى
قَصدي وَإِذ لَجَإِ الحَريزُ قِيامُهُ
His stand in my defense, when foes joined forces
His standing by me when enemies approached,
against me, when his stand was an impregnable refuge,
My goal, and when shelter was his stance.
أَمرٌ تَوَلّى حَمدُهُ وَثَناؤُهُ
وَأَبَذَّ قَوماً ذَمُّهُ وَأَثامُهُ
was a deed that won him praise and commendation,
A matter whose praise and thanks
while its blame and guilt overtook other men.
Some blamed while others found fault.
مُتَبَيِّنٌ لِلحَقِّ قَبلَ وُقوعِهِ
هَضّامُ جانِبِ مالِهِ ظَلّامُهُ
He recognizes what is due before its occasion comes,
Evident of truth before its occurrence,
wearing down his wealth's flank, relentlessly wronging it.
Dispelling the darkness of his doubter's side.
وَرَأَيتُ مَعروفَ الكَريمِ يَزينُهُ
تَعجيلُهُ عَن وَقتِهِ وَتَمامُهُ
I have seen a generous man's kindness adorned
And I saw the beautiful in one adorned
by being hastened ahead of its time and given in full.
By haste, not waiting to perfect.
وَدَليلُ عامِ الخَصبِ عِندَ مُجَرِّبٍ
تَبكيرُ أَوَّلِ زَهرِهِ وَتُؤامُهُ
The sign of a fertile year, to an experienced man,
And a sign of a fertile year to one experienced
is the early coming of its first blossoms and their twins.
Is the early bloom of its first flower.
Sol 6.1