ما عَنْ فَعالِ القبيحِ يَحْجِزُهُ

مَنِ الفَعالُ الجميلُ يُعْجِزُهُ

He is not deterred from vile deeds,

Nor is he unable to perform good deeds.

أعْرِزْ على قومه الأعزَّةِ أن

يُضحي على جُلِّهم تَعزُّزه

He sacrifices himself for his honored people,

Giving up all his honor for their sake.

قومٌ همُ مركزُ الفخارِ إِذا

ما يُسْألُ الفخرُ أَين مركزه

They are the pinnacle of pride, so

When pride is sought, its pinnacle is them.

إِنْ يتَّسِعْ حَيِّزُ السَّناءِ فإ

نَّ عَنْهُ يضيقُ حَيِّزه

If the realm of glory expands,

Its realm will still be too narrow for it.

تهونُ في دورهمْ عداوته

حَسْبُكَ خيرُ الكلامِ أوجزُه

Their enmity is slight in their homes -

Sufficient for you is the best of speech, so summarize it!

وقلَّ جاني عِذْقٍ يُزهِّدُه

في العِذْقِ سُلاَّءَةٌ تُعزّزُهُ

And say to the critic of the vine branch that

Its luscious fruits make it only more precious.

ما لسعيدِ بنِ مُحرزٍ أَترى

يُحرزه مِنْ أَذايَ مُحْرزُه

What will protect Sa’id ibn Muhariz

From the pains that assail his refuge?

أبي السريِّ المغيِّبِ السَّرْو إِذ

أبرزَ سَرْوَ السريِّ مُبرزُه

Abu Al-Sarī concealed among the pines -

When his pines were uncovered, so was he!

كم قد تأَنَّيْتُهُ لأُصْلِحَهُ

وكان كالشنِّ حينَ تَخْرِزهُ

I tried to fix him but he was stubborn

As a rock from which carvings cannot be made.

وفي صريحِ الإبريزِ لي شُغُلٌ

عن طلبي بَهْرَجاً أُبَرِّزُه

On the shores of the Euphrates, I am busy

With a mule I show off but cannot ride.

ها أنا ذا موعزٌ إليه بما

يُشفى به مَنْ إليه يُوعزُه

What will heal one who accepts advice.

If he stubbornly rages, the easiest thing

إن يتميّزْ غيظاً فأيسرُ ما

يعرضُ في غيظه تميُّزُه

To present to his rage is compromise.

So do not blame him for pretentiousness -

فلا تَلُمْهُ على التحفُّزِ في

ثلبي فلؤمُ الطباعِ يَحْفِزُه

The faults of nature spur him on.

As for satirizing me, if it gives him pride,

أما هجائي فإنْ تَفَزَّزه

فليس مستنكراً تَفَزُّزُه

His pride in satire should not be condemned.

He who stores within him what he inhaled

مَنْ كنزُ فيهِ لمن تَنَسَّمَهُ

نظيرُ ما في الكنيفِ يكنزُهُ

Is like a hidden treasure chest.

He has the ferocity of the son of Yazan

لهُ بهِ صولةُ ابنِ ذي يَزَنٍ

بوهزٍ يومَ صالَ وَهْرَزُهُ

On a day of fighting when empty threats were made.

If he meets an army he will defeat it,

إِنْ لقي الجيشَ فهو يَهْزِمُه

أو حاول النهبَ فهو يُحْرزُه

Or if he attempts plunder he will gain it.

I provoke his satire to elevate it -

أُغري هجائي به لأَرْفَعَهُ

وَبَخْتُهُ في الهجاءِ يَلْكُزُه

I rebuked him in satire and he recoiled!

I pretend to admire him, though I

أَجَدُّ ما كنتُ عنده فأنا

أعبثُ شيءٍ به وأَطْنَزُه

Am merely toying with him, mocking him.

With obstinacy his love grows cold -

أَسْمِجْ به عاشقاً سماجُتُهُ

تبرَّد العشقَ بل تُتَرِّزُه

Rather, his love is ossified.

The star's rising is difficult -

مستثقلُ النجمِ لا تشمُّرُهُ

يُجدي عليه ولا تَعَلُّزُه

He cannot aid it or propel it.

So his share of it is like one whose hand

فحظُّه منه حظُّ مَنْ يدُه

في الماء مشغولةٌ تُجَرِّزه

Is busy in the water, unable to grasp it.

The elephant has tusks and bulk -

للفيلِ أنيابه وَجُثَّتُه

فأيُّ شيءٍ في الفيل يُعْوِزُه

What thing does the elephant lack?

He walks as though he has

يَمْشي إذا ما مشى كأنَّ له

قُدَّامَةُ مَنْ يريدُ يَشْكُزُه

A leader who wants to guide him.

I will not name him - you can discern

لستُ أُسمِّيه أنت تبصرُ ما

وصفتُ من فرسخٍ فَتَفْرِزُه

What I described from a mile away.

He shows a face so ugly to behold

يبرزُ وجهاً يروعُ منظرُه

نواظرَ الخلقِ حينَ يُبْرِزُه

That all who see it curse its features.

I almost mentioned his blemishes but

وجهٌ لبيسٌ أَديمُه خَلَقٌ

يُلْعَنُ مَرْفُوُّهُ وَمُدْرَزُه

When I saw him, I refrained from naming them.

In the musk gland of a billy goat, in its stink,

أومي إلى لمزه فأقذَرُه

حين أَراهُ فلستُ أَلْمزه

I detect a wild billy goat and nip it in the bud.

With sagging nostrils, broken teeth,

في خَنَزِ التيسِ في سهوكتهِ

أَسهكُ تيسٍ بُري وأَخْنَزُه

His mouth split or contorted.

Belittled by one who would realize, if he knew,

ذو نَغَفٍ ما يني مُذَرَّقُهُ

على سِبَالَيْهِ أو مُلَوَّزُه

That he magnifies one he belittles.

Leave me be. If I do not provoke him,

مُنَبَّزٌ كالذي يُصَغِّرُه

مكبَّرٌ لو درى مُنَبِّزُه

I will toss him, though he is difficult to toss.

The masters of satire inform him,

دعني فإن كنت لا أُطَيِّرُه

من ثِقلٍ إِنّني أُقَفِّزه

So how can he become too proud afterwards?

When the rage in his heart is tested,

أَضحى خَبَارُ الهجاءِ يُطْلِعُهُ

فكيف إِنَّ عَزَّ بعدُ أَمْعَزُه

It is like embers that burn within him.

Not one who dwells near fermented rum, dirtied

إذا حزازاتُ قلِبه امتحنتْ

كانت شِفاراٍ فيه تُحَزِّزُه

By its vapors with his nose upturned.

Nor one who milks dry udders without knots

ما قاطنٌ جانبَ السماقِ تَغَ

شّاه شُوَيهاتُه وأَعنُزُه

To shape his curds and soft cheese.

Nor one from Mu’ān who suffered drought in Hejaz,

ولا مُسِيمُ اللقاحِ مِنْ عَقَدٍ

يصوغُ جَرْجَارُه وَعنُقَزه

Seeing salvation in his prayer beads and amulets.

I cease poetry which he recites,

ولا مُعانٍ قحطَ بالحجازِ يرى

أن العُلا قِدُّه وعِلْهِزه

Wanting to explain it but unable to untie its knots.

If I said “Count me when you fulfill,” he would not

أَكفُ بالشعرِ ينشده

يريدُ إِيضاحَه فَليُلغزه

Fulfill my promise, nor know how to fulfill it.

A master of ignorance - or rather, it mastered him -

لو قلتُ عِدْني متى تُصيب لما

أَنجزَ وعدي وكيفَ يُنجزه

Assailing him since he was but a pup.

Then a fledgling, with none who’d

مُحنَّكُ الجهلِ بل محكَّكه

قارحُه منذ كان كُرَّزُه

Knead him gently or bake him well.

He pecks out of frailty, and you’d think

ثم فطيرٌ فليس من أَحدِ

يَعْجِنه آنفاً ويخبزه

A worm in his rear was pecking him.

If offal were called out in the street,

ينقُر من خفّةٍ فتحسبُه

في دُبره دودةٌ تُنقِّزه

Hands would reach out to grab it.

Bent over, crooked, his neck wrinkled,

لو نُودي الرأز في السَّبيلِ إِذاً

حَجَّتْ إليه الأيدي ترئزه

Swollen, meaty, totally flaccid.

If he pardons one who slapped him,

شَثْنُ القفا عَبْلُه مُضَبَّرُه

ممكورُه ضخمُه مُلزَّزه

His nape would still wink at him.

High-minded, with no shame adhering to him

إن عفَّ عن صفعةِ مُصَافِعُه

كان قَفاه عليهِ يَغْمِزه

Since he rose high, and no honor clothing him.

Like a coin, if you threw it to pass,

عاليهِ خِزيٌ لم يُنضَ مُعلَمُه

منذ علاه ولا مطرَّزه

You’d find no meaning in it to validate it.

Less significant than a speck of dust -

كالفَلسِ لو رمتَ أن يجوزَ لما

وجدتَ فيه معنىً يُجَوِّزه

If you wink at it, it is easy to wink back.

How he fell from the slick of oil, until

أَقلُّ قدراً من الهباءِ فإن

تغمزْه يَسْهُلْ عليك مَغْمَزُه

A edge like a needle's probed him!

The dog inclines when humiliated,

كم راغَ من روغةِ فأدركَه

حدٌّ كحدِّ المهمازِ يهمزه

As though its inclining is useful.

He thinks I have no worse estimation -

تحيُّزَ الكلبِ حين أخسَأه

كأَنَّه نافِعٌ تحيُّزُه

Yet this is his rags and tatters!

My words will not distinguish him,

يظنُّ هذا لا ظنَّ أخشنَ ما

عندي وذا خزُّه وَقِرمِزُه

For he has nothing with which to distinguish them.

فلِنْ تراهُ مميّزاً كَلمِي

وهل له ما به يًمَيِّزه