ألاحَ وقد رأى بَرْقاً مُلِيحاً

سَرَى فأتَى الحِمى نِضْواً طَليحا

Behold, when he saw a beautiful lightning

He walked and came to the valley briskly

كما أغْضَى الفَتى ليَذوقَ غُمْضاً

فصادَفَ جَفْنُه جَفْناً قَريحا

Like a young man who tastes bitterness

So his eyelid met an ailing eyelid

إذا ما اهْتَاجَ أحمَرَ مُستَطِيراً

حَسِبْتَ اللّيلَ زَنْجيّاً جرِيحا

When the red one was aroused, wandering

You'd think the night was a wounded Abyssinian

أقُولُ لصاحِبي إذْ هامَ وَجْداً

ببَرْقٍ ليسَ يُثْبِتُه نُزُوحا

I say to my friend when he is lovesick

With lightning that no ebbing diminishes

وهاجَتْهُ الجَنُوبُ لوَصْلِ حَيّ

أقامَ ويَمّموا داراً طَرُوحا

And the south winds stirred him to meet a loved one

They stayed and pitched a shaken tent

سِفَاهٌ لَوْعَةُ النّجْدِيّ لمّا

تَنَسّمَ من حِيالِ الشأمِ رِيحا

Foolish is the passion of the Najdi when

He sniffed the winds from the direction of Syria

وَغَيٌّ لَمْحُ عينكَ شَطْرَ نجْدٍ

إذا ما آنسَتْ بَرْقاً لَمُوحا

And the glance of your eye towards Najd is misguidance

When it glimpsed lightning waving

وأمْرَاضُ المَواعِدِ أعْلَمَتْني

بأنّ وَرَاءها سَقَماً صَحيحا

And the diseases of trysts have taught me

That behind them is definite sickness

متى نُصْبحْ وقد فُتْنا الأعَادي

نُقِمْ حتى تقُولَ الشّمسُ رُوحا

When do we wake and we've been tempted by enemies

Stay until the sun says, "Go!"

بأرْضٍ للحَمامَةِ أنْ تُغَنّي

بها ولِمَنْ تأسَفَ أن يَنُوحا

To a land where the dove sings

In it and he who laments can wail

أعُبّادَ المَسيحِ يَخافُ صَحْبي

ونحنُ عَبيدُ مَنْ خَلَقَ المَسيحا

Christ's worshippers, my companions fear

While we are the servants of Christ's Creator

رأيْتُكَ واحداً أبْرَحْتَ عَزْماً

ومثْلُكَ مَن رَأى الرّأيَ النّجيحا

I saw you alone and you were determined

And the like of you who sees right, proper insight

فلم تُؤْثِرْ على مُهْرٍ فَصيلاً

ولم تَخْتَرْ على حِجْرٍ لَقُوحا

So you did not prefer a mare over a foal

Nor did you choose a barren over a fertile land

رَكبْتَ الليْلَ في كَيدِ الأعادي

وأعْدَدْتَ الصّباحَ له صَبوحا

You rode the night against the enemy's deceit

And you made the dawn for it a first light

وأعْظَمُ حادثٍ فَرَسٌ كَريمٌ

يكُونُ مَلِيكُهُ رجُلاً شَحيحا

And the greatest event is a generous horse

Whose owner is a miserly man

تُريكَ له سماءً فوْقَ أرْضٍ

فَرُوجُ قَوائِمٍ يُعْدَدْنَ لُوحا

It shows you a sky above a land

Whose poles are counted tablets

أصِيلُ الجَدّ سابقهُ تَراه

على الأَيْنِ المُكَرَّرِ مُسْتَريحا

A horse of noble lineage you see it

Resting on the repeated lap

كَأنّ غَبوقَهُ مِن فَرْطِ رِيّ

أباهُ جِسمُه فغَدا مَسِيحا

As if its neighing from an excess of saliva

Its body refused so it became smeared

كأنّ الرّكضَ أبْدى المحْضَ منه

فمَجّ لَبانُه لَبَناً صَريحَا

As if the galloping produced pure sweat from it

So its milk overflowed fresh milk

وأرْبابُ الجِيادِ بَنو عليّ

مُزِيرُوهَا الذّوابِلَ والصّفيحا

And the lords of steeds, the sons of Ali

Saddling them, the mail and armor

وخيرُ الخيْلِ ما ركبوا فجَنّبْ

غُراباً والنّعامةَ والجَموحا

And the best horses are those they rode, avoiding

The crow, ostrich, and unruly

وأحْمَى العالَمينَ ذِمارَ مجْدٍ

بَنو إسْحاقَ إنْ مَجْدٌ أُبِيحا

And the protector of both worlds, the glory

Of the sons of Isaac - if glory is allowed

ومَعْرِفَةُ ابنِ أحمَدَ أمّنَتْني

فما أخْشَى الحَقيبَ ولا النّطيحَا

And the knowledge of Ibn Ahmad has secured me

So I fear neither the purse nor the piercing

إذا استبَقَتْ خُيولُ المجدِ يوْماً

جرَيْنَ بَوَارِحاً وجرى سَنيحا

When the steeds of glory race one day

They race blithely and race freely

ولو كَتَبَ اسمَه مَلِكٌ هَزيمٌ

على راياتِهِ وَا لى الفُتوحا

And if a defeated king wrote his name

On his banners by the conquests

فيا ابْنَ محَمّدٍ والمَجْدُ رِزْقٌ

بقَدْرِكَ سُدْتَ لا قَدَراً أُتيحا

So O son of Muhammad, and glory is sustenance

With your worth, you have been given without asking

وما فَقَدَ الحُسَينَ ولا عَلِيّاً

وَلِيُّ هُدىً رآكَ له نَصيحا

And neither missed Al-Husayn nor Ali

A guardian of guidance who saw you as loyal

إليكَ ابْنَ الرّسولِ حُثِثْنَ شَوْقاً

ولم يُحْذَيْنَ من عَجَلٍ سَريحا

To you, son of the Messenger, we hurried in yearning

And were not hurried by a swift riding beast

همَمْنَ بدُلْجَةٍ وخَشِينَ جُنْحاً

فبِتْنا فوقَ أرجُلِها جُنوحَا

We were determined with an armored coat

So we spent the night above its high haunts

أشَحْنَ وقد أقَمْنَ على وَفَازٍ

ثلاثَ حَنادِسٍ يَرْعَينَ شِيحا

Complaining while we stayed in the lowlands

Three storage pits holding barley

دُجًى تتشابَهُ الأشْباحُ فيه

فيُجْهَلُ جِنسُها حتى يَصيحا

Darkness in which forms become similar

So their essence is unknown until they scream

فمَرّ العامُ لم تَطْرُقْ أنِيساً

بدارِهِمُ ولم تَسْمَعْ نُبوحا

The year passed, no companion visited

Their abode, nor did you hear lamenting

ولا عَبَثَتْ بعُشْبٍ في ربيعٍ

ولا وَرَدَتْ على ظَمَإٍ نَضِيحا

Nor did it disturb any pasture in spring

Nor did it flow to any thirst, overflowing

فأُقْسِمُ ما طُيورُ الجَوّ سُحْماً

كَهُنّ ولا نَعامُ الدّو رُوحا

So I swear, the birds of the air are not priests

Nor are ostriches of the wilderness, monks

ودُونَ لِقائِكَ الهَضْباتُ شُمّاً

تَفُوتُ الطَّرْفَ والفَلَواتُ فِيحا

And without meeting you, the plateaus are desolate

Eluding the eyes, and the deserts are empty

فجاءَكَ كلّها بالرّوحِ فَرْداً

وقد سِرْنا به جَسَداً ورُوحا

So they all came to you in spirit together

And we were pleased with it, body and soul

تَبُوحُ بفَضْلِكَ الدّنيا لتَحظى

بذاكَ وأنتَ تَكْرَهُ أنْ تَبُوحا

Creation laments your favor to gain

That, while you hate to lament

وما للمِسْكِ في أنْ فاحَ حَظّ

ولكنْ حظّنَا في أنْ يَفوحَا

And musk has no right that it smelled pleasant

But our right is that it smells

وقد بَلَغَ الضُّراحَ وساكِنيهِ

نَشَاكَ وزارَ مَن سَكَنَ الضَّريحا

And it reached Adh-Dhuraah and its inhabitants

Your qualities, and visited who resides in the tomb

يَفيضُ إليْكَ غَوْرُ الماءِ شَوْقاً

ويُظْهِرُ نَفْسَهُ حتى يَسيحا

The valley's abyss surges to you in yearning

And shows itself until it flows

ولو مَرّتْ بخَيْلِكَ هُجْنُ خيلٍ

وهَبْنَ لعُجْمِها نسَباً صريحا

And if mares of horses passed your stallions

And they deemed their non-Arabic lineage clear

ولو رُفعَتْ سُرُوجُكَ في ظَلامٍ

على بُهُمٍ جَعَلْنَ لها وُضُوحا

And if your saddles were raised in darkness

Upon camels, they would illuminate for them

ولو سَمِعَتْ كلامَكَ بُزْلُ شَوْلٍ

لعادَ هَديرُ بازِلِها فَحيحا

And if an Uzbek horse heard your words

The neighing of its mispronunciation would be articulated

وقد شَرّفْتَني وَرَفَعْتَ إِسْمي

به وأنَلْتَني الحَظّ الرّبيحا

And you have honored me and raised my name

With it and granted me the most profitable fortune

أجَلْ ولو أنّ عِلْمَ الغيبِ عندي

لقُلتُ أفَدْتَني أجَلاً فَسيحا

Yes, even if knowledge of the unseen were with me

I would say you have given me a generous lifetime

وكَوْنُ جَوابِهِ في الوَزْنِ ذَنْبٌ

ولكِنْ لم تَزَلْ مَوْلىً صَفُوحا

That its response be in rhyme is a sin

But you have always been forgiving

وذلكَ أنّ شِعْرَكَ طالَ شِعْري

فما نِلْتُ النّسِيبَ ولا المَديحا

That is because your poetry surpassed my poetry

So I did not get the attribution or the praise

ومَنْ لم يَسْتَطِعْ أعْلامَ رَضْوَى

ليَنزِلَ بعضَها نَزَلَ السُّفوحا

And whoever cannot attain the flags of acceptance

Descends to some of its slopes

شقَقْتَ البحرَ مِن أدبٍ وفَهْمٍ

وغَرّقَ فكرُكَ الفِكْرَ الطّموحا

You split the sea with manners and understanding

And your thoughts drowned the ambitious thought

لعِبْتَ بسِحْرِنَا والشّعْرُ سِحْرٌ

فتُبْنا منه تَوْبَتَنا النّصوحا

You toyed with our sorcery - and poetry is sorcery -

So we repent from it, sincere repentance

فلو صَحّ التّناسُخُ كنْتَ موسى

وكان أبوكَ إسحقَ الذّبيحَا

So if reincarnation were true, you would be Moses

And your father would be Isaac the sacrifice

ويُوشَعُ رَدّ يُوحى بعضَ يومٍ

وأنتَ متى سفَرتَ رَدَدْتَ يُوحى

And Joshua returns inspired one day

While you, when you traveled, re-inspired

فنالَ مُحِبُّك الدّارَيْنِ فَوْزاً

وذاقَ عدُوُّك المَوْتَ المُريحا

So your lover attained the two abodes in victory

And your enemy tasted peaceful death

ومَنْ لم يَأتِ دارَكَ مُسْتَفِيداً

أتاها في عُفاتِكَ مُسْتَميحا

And whoever does not come to your abode benefiting

Comes to it in your chastity repenting

فكُنْ في المُلْكِ يا خيرَ البَرايا

سُليْماناً وكُنْ في العُمْرِ نوحا

So be in the kingdom, O best of creations

Solomon, and be in age, Noah