يَكادُ يُبدي لِسُعدى غَيبَ ما أَجِدُ
تَحَدُّرٌ مِن دِراكِ الدَمعِ مُطَّرِدُ
With joy, he almost reveals to Sa'da the unseen that I find,
A constant flow of tears descends from my eyes.
خَبلٌ مِنَ الحُبِّ لَم يَزجُر سَفاهَتَهُ
حِلمٌ وَلَم يَتَدارَك غَيَّهُ رَشَدُ
The folly of love that did not deter the insanity,
Wisdom that did not mend its waywardness.
ما أَنفَقَ الدَمعَ إِسرافاً كَذي كَلَفٍ
تَرفَضُّ عَبرَتُهُ مِن لَوعَةٍ تَقِدُ
He did not shed tears wastefully like a heavy burden,
His crying is rejected by intense agony.
إِن أَخلَقَت حُرُقاتٌ مِن صَبابَتِهِ
تَرادَفَت حُرُقاتٌ بَعدَها جُدُدُ
If yearnings were created by his youth,
Yearnings followed them renewed.
أَضحَت مَعاهِدُ ذاكَ الحَزنِ مُقوِيَةً
وَأَقفَرَت مِنهُمُ العَلياءُ فَالسَنَدُ
The covenants of that sadness became strengthened,
While the eminent abandoned him, he lost all support.
وَحشٌ تَأَبَّدَ في تِلكَ الطُلولِ وَقَد
تَكونُ أُنّاسَهُنَّ الأُنَّسُ الخُرُدُ
Solitude persisted in those hills, though
Its people could have been intimate company.
لَقَد كَفانا اِعتِسافَ البيدِ أَوبُ فَتىً
جاءَت مَطاياهُ أَرسالاً بِهِ تَخِدُ
The confession of the perishing of the hero was enough for us,
His swift steeds brought him exhausted.
زارَ العِراقَ فَقالَ الآهِلونَ لَهُ
أَهلاً وَرَحَّبَ مِن أُنسٍ بِهِ البَلَدُ
He visited Iraq, so its inhabitants told him:
"Welcome," and the country greeted him affectionately.
زِيارَةٌ مِن عَميدٍ لَم يَزَل رَغَباً
يُزدارُ في شَرقِهِ الأَقصى وَيُعتَمَدُ
A visit from a dignitary who was always desirable
In its farthest east, and relied upon.
إِن ساحَ فَيضُ يَدَيهِ لَم يَكُن عَجَباً
أَن يُسرِفَ الظَنُّ فيهِ وَهوَ مُقتَصِدُ
If he was generous, it would be no wonder
That he would exceed hopes, though he is moderate.
أَو ضَمِنَ اليَومُ مِن جَدواهُ مَرغَبَةً
كانَ الكَفيلَ عَلَيها بِالوَفاءِ غَدُ
Or if the day promised through his generosity a gift,
The guarantor to fulfill it would be tomorrow.
يَميلُ وَزنُ القَوافي بِالنَوالِ وَلَو
راحَ النَوالُ وَفي ميزانِهِ أُحُدُ
The weight of rhymes inclines to gift even if
The gift departed while the scale contains only one.
وَالشُكرُ أَن يُخبِرَ الوُرّادُ سائِلَهُم
عَن فَضلِ مُختَبَرِ العِدِّ الَّذي وَردوا
Gratitude is for the hosts to inform their guest
Of the merits of the one they visited.
يَبينُ بِالفَضلِ أَقوامٌ وَيَفضُلُهُم
مُوَحَّدٌ بِغَريبِ الذِكرِ مُنفَرِدُ
Through merit, some people excel and surpass them,
The unique one with the strange mention, singled out.
تَوَحَّدَ القَمَرُ الساري بِشُهرَتِهِ
وَأَنجُمُ اللَيلِ نَثرٌ حَولَهُ بَدَدُ
The passing moon monopolized its fame,
While the night stars are scattered around it.
أَحيَت خِلالَ أَبي لَيلى أَبا دُلَفٍ
وَمِثلُهُ أَوجَدَ الأَقوامَ ما اِفتَقَدوا
It revived through my Abi Layla, Abi Dulaf,
And its like brought what people longed for.
ما اِنفَكَّ صائِبُ غُزرٍ مِن سَحائِبِهِ
تُضامُ فيهِ الغَوادي ثُمَّ تُضطَهَدُ
The clouds of Sāʾib Ghadhban did not cease,
Where the valleys gather, then are crushed.
نِعمَ المُفَرِّقُ مِن أَعناقِ مَأسَدَةٍ
قَد اِلتَقَت بِصَفيحِ الهِندِ تَجتَلِدُ
What a separator between the necks of a disobedient people
That clashed with Indian steel, subdued.
وَشاغِلُ الدَهرِ حينَ الدَهرُ مِن كَلَبٍ
خَصمٌ لَنا مَعَهُ الإِلطاطُ وَاللَدَدُ
The preoccupier of fate when fate is but a dog,
An opponent to us, with wounding and contention.
مُستَكرِهٌ لِعُروضِ البيضِ إِن قَصُرَت
أَطوالُ خَطِّيَّةٍ خِرصانُها قَصَدُ
Disliking the meter of poems if they fell short;
The long lines of the Khaṭīyah, its purpose lean.
لَم يُحصَ عِدَّةُ ما أَولاهُ مِن حَسَنٍ
وَسَيِّدُ النَيلِ ما لَم يُحصِهِ العَدَدُ
The number of favors he gave was never counted,
The lord of the Nile, what number did not encompass.
مَواهِبٌ قُسِمَت في الخابِطينَ فَما
تَخلو الرِفاقُ إِلى جَمّاتِها تَفِدُ
Gifts were distributed among the stingy, but
The friends did not lack any share allocated.
يُطالِبُ الأَرحَبِيُّ العَودُ سُهمَتَهُ
فيها وَتُرزَؤُها العَيرانَةُ الأُجُدُ
The Arḥabī asks the lute for its portion in it,
While the censorious refutes it, most generous.
عَفوٌ مِنَ الجودِ لَم تَكذِب مَخيلَتُهُ
يُقَصِّرُ القَطرُ عَنهُ وَهوَ مُجتَهِدُ
A pardon from generosity, its imagination did not lie,
The rain falls short of it though it is diligent.
إِن قَصَّرَت هِمَمُ العافينَ جاشَ لَهُم
جِحافُ أَغلَبَ في حافاتِهِ الزَبَدُ
If the ambitions of the healthy fell short, the disadvantage
Overcomes its edges, the foam rises.
لا تَحقِرَنَّ صَغيرَ العُرفِ تَبذُلُهُ
فَقَد يُرَوّي غَليلِ الهائِمِ الثَمَدُ
Do not belittle the lowly gift you give away,
It may slake the thirst of the roaming thirsty.
وَيَرخَصُ الحَمدُ حَتّى أَنَّ عارِفَةً
بَذلُ السَلامِ فَكَيفَ الرِفدُ وَالصَفَدُ
Greetings are cheap, even an acquaintance
Giving greetings, so what about gifts and presents!
ما اِستَغرَبَ الناسُ إِفضالاً وَلا اِشتَهَروا
مِن حاتِمٍ غَيرَ جودٍ بِالَّذي يَجِدُ
People never wondered at generosity, nor gained fame
From a Ḥātim other than his generosity.
كَم قَد عَجِلتَ إِلى النَعماءِ تَصنَعُها
مُبادِراً وَبَخيلُ القَومِ مُتَّئِدُ
How quickly you raced to kindness, initiating it,
While the people's stingy one delays.
وَكَم وَعَدتَ وَأَنتَ الغَيثُ نَعرِفُهُ
مُذ حالَفَ الجودَ يُعطي فَوقَ ما يَعِدُ
How often you promised, and you are the rain we know
Ever since it swore to be generous, to give beyond promises.
إِن لَم تُعِنّي عَلى رَجعِ الحَبيبِ فَلَن
يُرجى لِعَوني عَلَيهِ مِنهُمُ أَحَدُ
If you do not help me regain the beloved, then
None of them are hoped to help me gain him.
وَإِن مَلَكتَ اِعتِبادي بِاِرتِجاعَتِهِ
فَالحُرُّ يُملَكُ بِالنُعمى وَيُعتَبَدُ
If you enabled my devotion by regaining him,
The free are ruled by blessing, and devote themselves.
وَخَيرُ وَأيَيكَ إِن مَيَّلتَ بَينَهُما
ما قيدَ عَنهُ وَوافانا الوَأى العَتِدُ
The best thing, by God, if you waver between them,
Is what did not hinder him, and remoteness grasped us.
وَالبَغلُ يَنتَزِفُ الغادي عُلالَتَهُ
خِيارُ ما يُمتَطى مِنها وَيُقتَعَدُ
The mule drips the departure of the traveler,
The best of what is ridden from it and resided on.
إِن أَنتَ أَفقَرتَني ظَهرَيهِما ظَهَرَت
نَفاسَةٌ مِن قُلوبِ القَومِ أَو حَسَدُ
If you impoverished me from both of them, then appeared
Nobility from the hearts of the people, or envy.
