لي غَريمٌ لازِمٌ وَهوَ الغَرامُ
وَحَبيبٌ نامَ عَمَّن لا يَنامُ
I have an unrelenting creditor: passionate love,
I have a constant beloved, and he is passion,
and a beloved who fell asleep, heedless of one who never sleeps.
And a lover who remains awake while the slumberers sleep.
مُقلَتاهُ نَرجِسي وَالخَدُّ وَردي
وَالأَقاحُ الثَغرُ وَالريقُ المُدامُ
His eyes are my narcissi, and his cheek my rose;
His eyes are narcissi, his cheek a rose,
and his mouth is daisies, and his saliva wine.
His mouth a pomegranate, his saliva wine.
بابِلِيُّ الطَّرفِ تُركِيُّ المُحَيّا
حاجِباهُ القَوسُ وَاللَحظُ السِهامُ
Babylonian of gaze, Turkish of countenance,
His gaze is Babylonian, his coquetry Turkish,
his brows are the bow, and his glance the arrows.
His eyebrows bows, his glances arrows.
حُسنُهُ يَستَوقِفُ الناسَ وَما
فيهِمُ إِلا المُحِبُّ المُستَهامُ
His beauty stops people in their tracks, and none
His beauty makes people stop, and among them
among them is anything but a love-distraught lover.
Is none but the fervent lover, lost in him.
لامَ فيهِ عاذِلي حَتّى إِذا
ما رَآهُ قالَ في ذا ما تُلامُ
My reproacher blamed me over him, until, when
No faultfinder blames him, until when
he saw him, he said, 'You are not to blame for this.
He sees him, he says: “For this, there is no blame!”
عِشقُ هَذا لَكَ يا صاحِ مُباحٌ
وَمَلامي فيهِ مِن بَعدُ حَرامُ
Loving this one is lawful for you, my friend,
Love for him, O censurer, is permitted;
and my reproaching you over him is henceforth forbidden.'
Blaming me later is forbidden.
يا أُصَيحابي أَمِن عَدلِ الهَوى
أَنَّني أَحمِلُ جوراً وَأُضامُ
O my dear companions, is it love's justice
O friends! Is it just, the tyranny of love,
that I bear injustice and am wronged?
That I bear wrongdoing and oppression?
وَلَئِن فارَقتُكُم لا عَن قِلىً
فَلأَمرٍ فارَقَ الغِمدَ الحُسامُ
And if I have parted from you, it was not from aversion:
If I leave you, it is not out of weariness;
for a purpose the keen sword has left its sheath.
It is for a matter that has unsheathed the sword from its scabbard.
بَعدَها لا حَلَّ لَومي عُروَةً
لا وَلا لي شُدَّ في العَذلِ حِزامُ
After that, may reproaching me undo no bond,
After this, blaming my passion for him is not allowed,
no, nor may a belt be buckled to reproach me.
Nor is it allowed for me to fasten the belt of censure.
بَل لِمَدحِ المَلِكِ الظاهِرِ غازي
عُروَةٌ لَيسَ لَها مِنّي اِنفِصامُ
Rather, for praising King al-Zahir Ghazi,
Rather, praising the victorious king provides me
there is a bond that I shall never break.
A bond that cannot be severed from me.
مَلِكٌ خَيرُ مُلوكِ الأَرضِ في ال
دَهرِ ما يُنكِرُ ما قُلتُ الأَنامُ
A king, the best of earth's kings throughout the
A king, the best of earth’s kings in the epochs,
ages; mankind does not deny what I have said.
Whose excellences people do not deny.
كُلُّ وَقتٍ مِنهُ تَبدو مِنَنٌ
ما اِهتَدَت قِدماً إِلَيهِنَّ الكِرامُ
At every moment, favors come forth from him
At every moment, his favors appear
that generous men of old never conceived.
That honorable feet have never attained.
لِلمُلوكِ الشوسِ في السِّلمِ عَلى
قَصدِها تَقبيلَ يُمناهُ اِزدحامُ
In peacetime, the fierce kings, in their
Kings rush to meet him in peace,
wish to kiss his right hand, throng together.
Crowding to kiss his right hand.
وَلِيُمناهُ اِستِلامٌ مِثلُ ما
لِحَجيجِ البَيتِ بِالرُكنِ اِستِلامُ
And his right hand is touched, just as
And kissing his right hand is like
pilgrims to the House touch the Corner.
The way pilgrims touch the Black Stone.
هُوَ كَالغَيثِ لَدى السِلمِ سَماحاً
وَغَداةَ الحَربِ لَيثٌ لا يُرامُ
In peace he is like rain in generosity,
He is rain in time of peace, gentle,
and on the morning of war, a lion none can assail.
And on the day of war a lion that cannot be confronted.
ما رَأَينا قَمَراً مِن قَبلِهِ
وَلَهُ مِن نَسجِ داوودَ لِثامُ
Never before him have we seen a moon
We have seen no full moon before him,
wearing a veil of David's weaving.
And he wears a wrapping woven by David.
لا وَلا الشَمسُ اِنجَلَت يَومَ الوَغى
تَحتَ لَيلٍ حالِكٍ وَهوَ القَتامُ
No, nor has the sun shone forth on battle's day
Neither did the sun rise on the day of battle
beneath a pitch-black night: the dust of battle.
Beneath a dark, annihilating night.
جَيشُهُ المَأمومُ في الحَربِ مُشيحاً
هازِمٌ وَالمَلِكُ الغازي الإِمامُ
His army, following its imam and resolute in war,
His inspired army wages holy war, vanquishing,
routs the foe, and the warrior king is the imam.
With the king as imam leading them.
سَيفُهُ الراكِعُ في هامِ العِدا
تَحتَهُ ساجِدَةٌ في التُربِ هامُ
His sword, bowing into the heads of foes—
His compliant sword in the necks of foes
beneath it, heads lie prostrate in the dust.
Bows down beneath him, prostrate in the dust.
باسِطُ الكَفِّ فَما يَثنيهِ لل
قَبضِ إِلّا سَمهَرِيٌّ وَحُسامُ
His hand is open; nothing turns him toward
He is open-handed, so his palm is not closed
grasping, save a stout spear and a keen sword.
Except around a Samuel or a swift blade.
حينَ سامٌ مُنكِرٌ أَبناءهُ
يَدَّعيهِم لاسوِدادِ اللَّونِ حامُ
When Shem disowns his sons,
When the complexions of people darkened,
Ham claims them because of the blackness of their color.
An imposter claimed them, alleging blackness of hue.
وَخَياشيمُ العَوالي راعِفاتٌ
وَلَها بِالعَلَقِ القاني زُكامُ
And the nostrils of the tall spears are bleeding,
The snouts of high fortresses wheeze
and they have a head-cold from crimson clotted blood.
And their throats are choked with thick phlegm.
وَالخُيولُ الشُهبُ دُهمٌ وَالظُبى ال
بيضُ حُمرٌ وَبَنو المَوتِ قِيامُ
And the gray horses are black, and the blades—
The gray horses have become black, the white antelopes red,
white—are red, and the sons of death stand upright.
And the sons of death are resurrected.
وَيُرى كُلُّ عَبوسِ الوَجهِ وَال
مَلِكُ الظاهِرُ في فيهِ اِبتِسامُ
And everyone is seen grim-faced, while the
Yet in the face of every frowner appears
King al-Zahir has a smile upon his lips.
The smile of the victorious king.
قَسَماً لَو لَم يَذُد عَن قَصدِهِ
لَم يَكُن لِلشِركِ بِالشامِ مُقامُ
I swear, were he not kept from his aim,
By God! Had he not been diverted from his aim,
polytheism would have no abode in the Levant;
Idolatry would have had no foothold in Damascus!
وَلَرَدَّى الأَونِيَّ الكَلبَ طَوقاً
مِن حِمامٍ فَهوَ بِالطَوقِ حَمامُ
and he would fit al-Awni, the dog, with a collar
He would have put a collar on the heretic dog
of death; with that collar he would be a dove.
So he becomes a dove wearing a collar.
وَغِياثُ الدينِ لِلدُنيا غِياثٌ
حينَ لا يَسمَحُ بِالغَيثِ الغَمامُ
And Ghiyath al-Din is succor to the world
When the clouds do not give rain, he is salvation for religion,
when the clouds withhold rain.
Salvation for the world.
ما رَأى الإِسلامُ يَوماً مَلِكاً
مِثلَهُ إِلّا أَباهُ وَالسَلامُ
Never has Islam seen a king
Islam has never seen a king like him
like him, save his father—and that is all.
Except his father – may God grant him peace!
فاتِحُ الأَمصارِ مُردي عُصَبِ ال
كُفرِ كَالبَحرِ عَطاياهُ الجِسامُ
Conqueror of cities, destroyer of the bands of
Opener of cities, destroyer of infidel strongholds,
unbelief; his mighty gifts are like the sea.
His formidable gifts are like the sea.
شاعَ في الناسِ لَهُ الذِكرُ جَميلاً
وَهوَ في الأُخرى لَهُ نِعمَ المقامُ
His fair renown has spread among the people,
Goodly mention of him has spread among people
and in the hereafter his abode is excellent.
And in the hereafter, his dwelling is most excellent.
فَاِبقَ في المُلكِ غِياثَ الدينِ ما
مَرَّ عامٌ وَأَتى مِن بَعد عامُ
So remain in kingship, Ghiyath al-Din, as long as
So remain eternal in kingship, salvation of religion,
one year passes and another year follows.
As year passes and is followed by another year.
Sol 6.1