عَزَمتُ عَلى المَنازِلِ أَن تُبينا
وَإِن دِمَنٌ بَلينَ كَما بَلينا
I am determined that the stages reveal
Whether a land is fertile as we were fertile
نُمَتَّعُ مِن تَداني مَن قَلينا
وَنُمنَعُ مِن تَداني مَن هَوينا
We enjoy the nearness of those we held little
And forbid the nearness of those we loved
فَكَم مِن مُنتَوىً لَهُمُ لَوَ أَنّا
نُعاني مُرَّهُ حيناً فَحينا
How many places of rest for them, if only
We shared its bitterness for a while
جَمَعنا مِن لَياليهِ شُهوراً
وَمِن أَعدادِ أَشهُرِهِ سِنينا
We gathered from its nights months
And from the count of its months years
نُليحُ مِنَ الغَرامِ إِذا اِعتَرانا
وَأَبرَحُ مِنهُ أَلّا يَعتَرينا
We fall sick with love when it afflicts us
And recover from it before it afflicts us
وَمِن سَقَمٍ مَبيتُ المَرءِ خِلواً
بِلا سَقَمٍ يَبيتُ لَهُ رَهينا
And of an illness, the person spends night alone
While he spends night held hostage without illness
شَرَكنا العيسَ ما نَدَعُ التَصابي
لِواحِدَةٍ وَما تَدَعُ الحَنينا
We shared love, we don't leave yearning
For one, and she doesn't leave yearning
إِذا بَدَأَت لَنا أُسلوبَ شَوقٍ
رَأَينا في التَصابي ما تُرينا
When she started a way of longing for us
We saw in the tryst what you show us
بِعَمرِكَ كَيفَ نَرضى ما أَبانا
مِنَ الدُنيا وَنَسخَطُ ما يَجينا
By your life, how can we accept what enriched us
From the world and resent what impoverished us
عَنانا ما عَساهُ يُزالُ عَنّا
وَأَنصَبَنا تَكَلُّفُ ما كُفينا
What we couldn't remove from ourselves
And the pretense of what sufficed us burdened us
يُقَيَّضُ لِلحَريصِ الغَيظُ بَحتاً
وَتَتَّجِهُ الحُظوظُ لِمَن قُضينا
Frustration is destined for the greedy openly
And fortunes turn to those we were destined
وَما هُوَ كائِنٌ وَإِنِ اِستَطَلنا
إِلَيهِ النَهجَ يوشِكُ أَن يَكونا
What will happen, even if we pave
A way to it, is about to be
فَلا تُغرَر مِنَ الأَيّامِ وَاِنظُر
إِلى أَقسامِها عَمَّن زُوينا
So don't be fooled by days, and look
To its types from those who were favored
كَفَلتُ بِنُجحِ سارِيَةِ المَطايا
إِذا أَسرَت إِلى أَذكوتِكينا
I guaranteed the success of the riding beasts
If they sneak to your firewood
إِلى خَوفِ العِدى حَتّى يَبيتوا
عَلى ضِغنٍ وَأَمنِ الخائِفينا
To the fear of enemies until they spend night
Restless and secure from fear
فَتى الفِتيانِ عارِفَةً وَبَأساً
وَخَيرُ خِيارِهِم دُنيا وَدينا
The best of the best in world and religion
The young man of young men, knowledgeable and courageous
أَباحَ حِمى الدَيالِمِ في حُروبٍ
سَقَت هيمَ القَنا حَتّى رَوينا
He permitted protected lands in wars
That quenched the thirst of spears until we watered
إِذا طَلَبوا لَها الأَشباهَ كانَت
غَرائِبَ ما سُمِعنَ وَلا رُؤينا
When they wanted his equals, they were
Wonders never heard or seen
وَأَعهَدُ أَرضَهُم أَعدى سِباعاً
وَآشَبَ دونَ عادِيَةٍ عَرينا
And I entrust his land to be inhabited by fiercer beasts
And roofed less than a ground squirrel’s den
فَتِلكَ جِبالُها عادَت سُهولاً
وَكانَت قَبلَ مَغزاهُ حُزونا
So those mountains became plains
And they were sad before his conquests
وَكانوا جَمعَ مَملَكَةِ فَآلوا
طَوائِفَ في مَخابيهِم عَزينا
And they were all one kingdom so they ended up
Scattered tribes in their burrows, saddened
وَلَم يَنجُ اِبنُ جَستانٍ لِشَيءٍ
سِوى الأَقدارِ غالَبَتِ المَنونا
And the son of Jashtan escaped nothing
Except the predestined laws that conquered mortality
وَكَم مِن وَقعَةٍ قَد رامَ فيها
ظُهورَ الأَرضِ يَجعَلُها بُطونا
And how many events in which he intended
To make the ground’s backs its bellies
يَصُدُّ عَنِ الفَوارِسِ صَدَّ قالٍ
عَنِ العَشَراتِ يَحسِبُها مِئينا
He drives away ten horsemen with the drive of one
As if they were two hundred
يُلاوِذُ وَالأَسِنَّةُ تَدَّريهِ
شِمالاً حَيثُ وَجَّهَ أَو يَمينا
Seeking refuge now left, now right
As the swords point him
سَما لِبَوارِهِ خِرقٌ إِذا ما
سَما لِلصَعبِ أَوجَبَ أَن يَهونا
Glory to his insight, if the formidable presented itself
He would make it trivial
أَبو حَسَنٍ وَما لِلدَهرِ حَليٌ
سِوى آثارِهِ الحَسَناتِ فينا
Except for his lasting generosity to us
Generosity would be the most stingy thing we were given
يَقِلُّ الناسُ أَن يَتَقَيَّلوهُ
وَأَن يَدنوا إِلَيهِ مُشاكِلينا
He was supported in scheming against enemies
By the son of Shalmighan with what we supported
وَظَنُّكَ بِالضَرائِبِ أَن تَكافا
كَظَنِّكَ بِالأَصابِعِ يَستَوينا
With the most splendid of the Sasanians whom
Recipients meet with their precious
وَلَم أَرَ مِثلَهُ حَشَدَت عَلَيهِ
صُروفُ الدَهرِ أَبكاراً وَعونا
You underestimate his hands’ example in knowledge
So you underestimate by doubting
أَقَرَّ عَلى نُزولِ الخَطبِ جَأشاً
وَأَوضَحَ تَحتَ حادِثَةٍ جَبينا
Which is no more than plunging into doubt
To it, where you do not find certainty
نَسينا ما عَهِدنا غَيرَ أَنّا
يُذَكِّرُنا نَداهُ ما نَسينا
And the channels of adversaries were hardened
To the belief they would never soften
وَلَولا جودُهُ الباقي عَلَينا
لَكانَ الجودُ أَنفَسَ ما رُزينا
And when war uncovered him, it sparked for it
A blaze that terrifies the kindlers
أُعينَ عَلى مُكايَدَةِ الأَعادي
مِنِ اِبنِ الشَلمَغانِ بِما أُعينا
You see his awe-inspiring sword subdued
Yet protected from exposing its reality
بِأَزهَرَ مِن بَني ساسانَ يَلقى
بِهِ اللّاقونَ عِلقَهُمُ الثَمينا
Confirming a blessing and removing another
If his rebels disobeyed
تُقَصِّرُ عَن مِثالِ يَدَيهِ عِلماً
فَقَصرُكَ أَن تَظُنَّ بِهِ الظُنونا
It pursues the fleeting good things until
We publish what was hidden from us
وَما هُوَ غَيرُ خَوضِ الشَكِّ يوما
إِلَيهِ حَيثُ لا تَجِدُ اليَقينا
He sees the cycles of prosperity with the eye of one aware
He almost returns them as they began
وَقَد صَلُبَت عَلى ظَنِّ المُناوي
قَناةٌ آيَسَت مِن أَن تَلينا
Whenever the habit doesn’t prove right in Arabs
It descends to the level of non-Arabs
وَلَمّا كَشَّفَتهُ الحَربُ أَعلى
لَها لَهَباً يَهولُ الموقِدينا
We befriend a group who drew near us
And exclude those who kept their distance
تُريكَ السَيفَ هَيبَتُهُ مُذالاً
وَيَكني عَن حَقيقَتِها مَصونا
The kinship of the furthest, for what they attained
Distinguishes you over the kinship of the nearest
مُثَبِّتُ نِعمَةٍ وَمُزيلُ أُخرى
إِذا أَمَرَت عَواذِلَهُ عُصينا
The tribe of our paternal uncles are closer to us
And the giver of bounty, the tribe of our father
تَتَبَّعَ فائِتاتِ الخَيرِ حَتّى
نُشِرنَ رَواجِعاً عَمّا طُوينا
يَرى دُوَلَ الصَلاحِ بِعَينِ راعٍ
يَكادُ يُعيدُهُنَّ كَما بُدينا
مَتى لَم يَزكُ في العَرَبِ اِرتِيادي
حَطَتُ إِلى رِباعِ الأَعجَمينا
نُوالي مَعشَراً قَرُبوا إِلَينا
وَنُثري مِن تَطَوُّلِ آخَرينا
وَقُربى الأَبعَدينَ بِما أَنالوا
تَخُصُّكَ دونَ قُربى الأَقرَبينا
بَنو أَعمامِنا الدانونَ مِنّا
وَواهِبَةُ النَوالِ بَنو أَبينا
