سَمِعْتُ نَعِيّها صَمّا صَمَامِ

وإنْ قالَ العَوَاذِلُ لا هَمَامِ

I heard news of her death, deafening deafness,

Though the vile say it's no calamity.

وأمَتْني إلى الأجْداثِ أُمٌّ

يَعِزّ عَلَيّ أنْ سارَتْ أمامي

My mother led me to graves young,

It's hard for me that she went ahead of me,

وأُكْبِرُ أنْ يُرَثّيها لِساني

بلَفْظٍ سالِكٍ طُرُقَ الطّعامِ

And I feel too old for my tongue to eulogize her

With words threading the path of food,

يُقالُ فَيَهْتِمُ الأنْيابَ قَوْلٌ

يُباشِرُها بأنْبَاءٍ عِظَامِ

It's said so fangs are aroused, a saying

That tells her news of bones,

كأنّ نَواجِذي رُدِيَتْ بصَخْرٍ

ولم يَمْرُرْ بهِنَّ سِوَى كلامِ

As if my molars were returned with a boulder

And nothing went through them but words,

ومَنْ لي أن أصُوغَ الشُّهْبَ شِعْراً

فأُلْبِسُ قَبْرَهَا سِمْطَيْ نِظامِ

And who am I to shape the meteors into verse

And dress her grave in an orderly composition,

مَضَتْ وقد اكتَهَلتُ فخِلتُ أنّي

رَضِيعٌ ما بَلَغْتُ مَدى الفِطامِ

She passed and I had just been weaned so I feel

Like an infant not yet weaned from suckling,

فيا رَكْبَ المَنُونِ أمَا رَسُولٌ

يُبَلّغُ رُوحَها أرَجَ السّلامِ

So O caravan of the deceased, is there no messenger

To pass her spirit the fairest greetings,

ذَكِيّاً يُصْحَبُ الكافُورُ مِنْهُ

بِمِثْلِ المِسْكِ مَفضُوضَ الخِتامِ

A perceptive one, camphor emanates from him

Like sealed musk at its finest,

ألا نَبِّهْنَني قُيْنَاتِ بَثٍّ

بَشَمْنَ غَضىً فمِلْنَ إلى بَشامِ

Won't the turtle-doves wake me, companions of distance,

If they smell blossoms so I incline towards basil,

وَحَمّاءَ العِلاطِ يَضيقُ فُوهَا

بما في الصّدرِ من صِفَةِ الغَرامِ

And ring-necked doves narrow their beaks

With what's in the breast of passion's disposition,

تَداعَى مُصْعِداً في الجيدِ وَجْدٌ

فغالَ الطَوْقَ منها بانْفِصَامِ

Yearning came over her necklace so it came undone

And its collar came loose with that separation,

أشاعَتْ قِيلَها وبكَتْ أخاهَا

فأضْحتْ وهْيَ خنْساءُ الحَمامِ

She spread her tale and wept over her brother

So she became like the secluded dove,

شَجَتْكَ بظَاهِرٍ كقَريضِ ليْلى

وباطِنُهُ عَوِيصُ أبي حِزامِ

She enticed you openly like Layla's token

And inside she is unyielding like Abu Hizam,

سألتِ مَتَى اللّقاء فقيل حتى

يَقُومَ الهامِدُونَ مِنَ الرِّجامِ

You asked when is our meeting, and it was said, until

The fallen rise from the graves,

ولو حَدّوا الفِراقَ بعُمْرِ نَسْرٍ

طَفِقْتُ أعُدّ أعْمَارَ السِّمامِ

And if they limited the separation by the life of an eagle

I would start counting the lives of vultures,

فلَيْتَ أذِينَ يَوْم الحَشْرِ نادى

فأجْهَشَتِ الرِّمامُ إلى الرّمامِ

If only the caller on the day of judgement would call out

So the ruins roar back to the ruins,

ونَحْنُ السَّفْرُ في عُمْرٍ كمَرْتٍ

تَصَافَنَ أهْلُه جُرُعَ الحِمامِ

While we travel in a lethal life

Where its people have shared the drink of death,

فصَرَّفَني فَغَيّرَني زَمَانٌ

سيُعْقِبُني بِحَذْفٍ وادّغامِ

So time made me change and substituted me

With omission and assimilation,

ولا يُشْوي حِسابَ الدّهْرِ وَرْدٌ

له وِرْدٌ مِنَ الدّمِ كالمُدامِ

No roses diminish the account of time

It has roses of blood like wine,

يُعَنّيهِ البَعُوضُ بكُلّ غابٍ

فَريشٍ بالجَماجِمِ واللِّمامِ

It busies itself with every thicket

With feathers over skulls and turbans,

بَدَا فَدَعا الفَرَاشَ بناظِرَيْهِ

كما تَدْعوهُ مُوقِدَتَا ظَلامِ

It appeared calling the butterfly with its eyes

As she calls them, kindlers of darkness,

بنَارَيّ قادِحَيْنِ قد اسْتَظَلاّ

إلى صَرْحَيْنِ أوْ قَدَحَيْ مُدامِ

With two fiery ones, having taken shade

Towards two goblets or two bottles of wine,

كأنّ اللّحْظَ يَصْدُرُ عن سُهَيْلٍ

وآخَرَ مِثْلِهِ ذاكي الضّرَامِ

As if the glance comes from Suhayl

And another like it, bright in the darkness,

تَطُوفُ بأرضِهِ الأُسْدُ العَوادي

طَوَافَ الجَيْشَ بالملكِ الهُمامِ

It circles its land, the lions, the refugees,

Circling around the courageous king,

وقالَ لِعِرْسِهِ بِيني ثَلاثاً

فما لَكِ في العَرِينَةِ مِنْ مُقامِ

And it said to its wedding party, distance yourself three times,

For you have no staying in the burrow,

وقد وطِئَ الحَصى ببَني بُدورٍ

صِغارٍ ما قَرُبْنَ من التّمامِ

The pebbles have been tread upon by the pups of ostriches,

Young ones not yet fully grown,

أمُحْتَذِيَ الأهِلّةِ غَيْرَ زَهْوٍ

سَلَبْتَ مِن الحُلِيّ شهورَ عامِ

You have taken the ornaments except for beauty,

You have seized the months of the year from the adorned bride,

ولا مُبْقٍ إذا يسعى صُدُوعاً

غَوَائِرَ في الدّكادِكِ والإكامِ

No trace remains when he runs barefoot

Secretly in the roughness and prickliness,

حُبابٌ تَحْسَبُ النَّفَيَانَ منه

حَبَاباً طارَ عن جنَبَات جامِ

Beloveds you reckon the banishment from them

Is beloveds that flew off the sides of the cup,

تَطَلَّعَ من جِدارِ الكاسِ كَيْما

يُحَيّيَ أوْجُهَ الشَّرْبِ الكِرامِ

It peeked from the side of the goblet as if

To greet the faces of the generous drinks,

يَهُمّ شَمَامُ أنْ يُدْعَى كَثيباً

إذا نَفَثَ السَّمَامَ على شَمَامِ

Thirsty, it almost wishes to be called athirst

When it breathes thirst onto Thirsty itself,

مَشَى للوَجْهِ مُجْتَاباً قَمِيصاً

كلامَةِ فارِسٍ يُرْمَى بلامِ

It walked to the horizon wearing a shirt

Like the cheek-piece of a knight pelted with blame,

كدِرْعِ أُحَيْحَة الأوْسيّ طالتْ

عليه فهْيَ تُسْحَبُ في الرَّغامِ

Like Uhayha Al-Ausi’s coat of mail that dragged over him

So it is pulled through the coarseness,

نَسِيبُ مَعاشِرٍ وُلِدَتْ عليهِمْ

دُرُوعُهمُ فصارتْ كاللِّزامِ

He is associated with a people whose armours

Were born on them so they became like a burden,

كدَعْوَى مُسْلِمٍ ليَزيدَ حَمْل السْ

سَوابغِ في التّغاوُرِ والسلامِ

Like a Muslim’s claim to increase the load

Of the long shirts in the visits and greetings,

وتُلقى عنهُمُ لكَمالِ حَوْلٍ

كثِيراتِ الخُرُوقِ مِنَ السِّمامِ

And they are shed from them for maturation

Numerous in breaches from the arrows,

على أرْجائِها نُقَطُ المَنايا

مُلَمَّعَةً بها تَلْيمعَ شامِ

On its edges are the spots of demise

Adorning it, shimmering with thirst,

إلى مَن جُبْتُ والحِدْثانُ طاوٍ

قبائلَ عامرٍ لا كُنْتَ عامِ

To whom shall I come when the calamities are burning

The tribes of Aamir - if only you were a year!

وقد ألِفوا القَنا فغدَتْ عليهِمْ

رِماحُهمُ أخَفّ منَ السّهامِ

And they had become accustomed to the spear so it became

Their spears lighter than arrows on them,

كأنّ بَنَانَةً في الكفّ زِيدَتْ

قناةٌ غيرُ جاذِيَةِ القَوَامِ

As if a thin spear was increased in the palm

Other than one with an unstable stature,

وتَبْيَضّ البلادُ إذا أراحوا

بما نَضَحَتْه أخْلافُ السَّوامِ

The lands whiten when they rest

From what the remainder of arrows spilled forth,

ولَيْلاً تُلْحِقُ الأهْوالُ فيه

بفَوْدِ الشّيْخِ ناصِيَةَ الغُلامِ

And at night, terrors catch up to it

To the old man's leadership of the youth.

إذا سَئمُوا الرّحالَ فكُلّ غِرّ

يَرَى صَرَعَاتِه خُلَسَ اغْتِنامِ

When they grow weary of travelling, every young man

Sees its prey when chance presents itself,

كأنّ جُفونَهُ عُقِدتْ برَضْوَى

فما يُرْفَعْنَ مِنْ سُكْرِ المَنامِ

As if its eyelids are closed in pleasure

So they are not lifted from the slumber of sleep.

لو أنّ حَصَى المُناخِ مُدىً حِدادٌ

أزَارَتْها النّحُورَ مِنَ السّآمِ

If only the stones of the resting-place lasted for a period of grief

Their sides would be girded by sorrow,

وجازَ إليَّ أبرادي هَجيرٌ

يَجوزُ من القِرابِ إلى الحُسامِ

And its roaring torrent came to me, Hajir,

Crossing over from near to far,

يَرُدّ مَعَاطِسَ الفِتْيانِ سُفْعاً

وإنْ ثُنِيَ اللّثامُ على اللّثامِ

Repelling the sneezes of young men arrogantly

Even if the turban is folded over the turban,

إذا الحِرْباءُ أظْهَرَ دينَ كِسْرَى

فصَلّى والنّهارُ أخُو الصّيامِ

When the partridge showed the religion of Chosroes

And prayed while day is the brother of fasting,

وأذّنَتِ الجَنادِبُ في ضُحاها

أذَاناً غيرَ مُنْتَظَرِ الإمامِ

And the starlings called the dawn prayer in their morning

A call to prayer without an expected imam.

وغاضَ مِياهُنا إلاّ فِرِنْداً

إذا نَكَزَ المَوارِدُ جاشَ طامي

Our waters receded except for tumult

When the watering places were gouged, chaos spilled forth,

فأفْلَتَ سالِماً إلاّ بَقَايا

على أثْرَيْةِ مِنْ أَثَرِ القَتامِ

So it escaped safely except for remnants

Upon the trace of darkness’ trace.

له ثِقَلُ الحَدائدِ فهْوَ رَاسٍ

وإصْعادُ التّلَهّبِ فهْو نامِ

It has the heaviness of iron chains so it is steady

And the rising of flames so it is sleeping,

كأنّ الضّبّ كان له سُجَيْراً

فحالَفَهُ على فَقْدِ الأُوَامِ

As if the hyena was a dormitory for it

So it swore to it over the loss of dens,

أقَلَّ عَمُودُهُ شَهْرَيْ رَبيعٍ

وقَيْظاً للمَنِيةِ في احْتِدَامِ

Its pillar lasted two months of spring

And summer’s heat in fervour,

خِضَمٌّ لُجُّهُ سِيفُ الرّزايا

وصَفْحَتُه منَ المَوْتِ الزّؤامِ

A firebrand whose flame is the sword of afflictions

And its blade from the death of adversities,

وشَفْرَتُه حَذامِ فلا ارْتِيابٌ

بأنّ القَوْلَ ما قالتْ حَذامِ

And its edge is the sword of Hudham so there is no doubt

That the saying did not say the sword of Hudham,

تَوَارَثَهُ بَنُو سَامِ بْنِ نُوحٍ

ثَقِيلَ الغِمْدِ مِنْ دُرٍّ وَسَامِ

The descendants of Shem, son of Noah, inherited it

Heavy in its sheath of pearl and mark,

ولوْ أنّ النّخِيلَ شَكِيرُ جِسمي

ثَنَاهُ حَمْلُ أنْعُمِكِ الجِسامِ

And if only the lofty palm trees were as pliant as my body

Its load of your perfect, plump bodies would bend it!

كَفاني رِيُّها مِنْ كُلّ رِيّ

إلى أن كِدْتُ أُحْسَبُ في النّعامِ

Its irrigation from any irrigation suffices me

Until I almost consider myself among the ostriches,

وكمْ لكِ مِنْ أبٍ وَسَمَ اللّيالي

على جَبَهَاتِها سِمَةَ اللئامِ

And how many fathers you have who the nights

Marked the foreheads with the brand of the vile!

مَضَى وتَعَرُّفُ الأعْلامِ فيهِ

غَنِيَّ الوَسْمِ عن ألِفٍ ولامِ

One passed and the banners are recognizable in him

Rich in branding without need for any lam-alif,

سقَتْكِ الغادياتُ فما جَهَامٌ

أطَلّ على محَلّكِ بالجَهامِ

The departed quenched your thirst so no rushing warriors

Lengthened towards your abode with warriors,

وقَطْرٌ كالبِحارِ فلسْتُ أرْضَى

بقَطْرٍ صابَ مِن خَلَلِ الغَمامِ

While a drop like the seas, I am not pleased

With a drop that fell through the clouds,