حُبُّ العُلى شُغلُ قَلبٍ ما لَهُ شُغُلُ
وَآفَةُ الصَبِّ فيهِ اللَومُ وَالعَذَلُ
The love of the exalted preoccupies a heart that has no preoccupation,
And the affliction of passion in it is blame and separation.
قالَت ضَنيتَ فَقُلتُ الشَوقُ يَجمَعُنا
وَيَعرُقُ الوَجدُ ما لا تَعرُقُ العِلَلُ
She said you're stingy, so I said longing brings us together,
And fervor perspires what illnesses do not perspire.
وَإِن تَحَوَّنَ جِسمي ما عَلِمتُ بِهِ
فَالرُمحُ يَنآدُ طَوراً ثُمَّ يَعتَدِلُ
And if my body leans, though I did not know it,
The spear calls out for a while, then straightens.
كَيفَ التَخَلُّصُ مِن عَينٍ لَها عَلَقٌ
بِالظاعِنينَ وَمِن قَلبٍ بِهِ خَبَلُ
How to get rid of an eye that is attracted to the slender ones,
And of a heart in which there is madness?
وَمَن لِوَجدِيَ أَن يَقتادَني طَمَعٌ
إِلى الحَبيبِ وَأَن يَعتاقَني طَلَلُ
And who will rein my fervor, so that greed leads me
To the beloved, and the ruins free me?
لا تَبعَدَنَّ مَطايانا الَّتي حَمَلَت
تِلكَ الظَعائِنَ مُرخاةً لَها الجُدُلُ
Do not distance our camels that carried
Those slender beauties, their plaits untied.
سَيرُ الدُموعِ على آثارِها عَنَقٌ
وَسَيرُها الوَخدُ وَالتَبغيلُ وَالرَمَلُ
Under the domes is chastity in their robes,
And propriety preserves what anklets do not preserve.
دونَ القِبابِ عَفافٌ في جَلابِبِها
وَالصَونُ يَحفَظُ ما لا تَحفَظُ الكِلَلُ
So neither the sedan nor the face of its occupant is seen,
Nor do the slender she-camels sense the voice of the lover.
فَلا الحُدوجُ يُرى وَجهُ المُقيمِ بِها
وَلا تُحِسُّ بِصَوتِ الظاعِنِ الإِبِلُ
And in the veils are gazelles bred
Who glance at us with eyes whose starch is kohl.
وَفي البَراقِعِ غِزلانٌ مُرَبَّبَةٌ
يَرمينَنا بِعُيونٍ نَبلُها الكَحَلُ
When the beautiful carry ornaments as weapons,
Their ornaments are generosity and amulets.
إِذا الحِسانُ حَمَلنَ الحَليَ أَسلِحَةً
فَإِنَّما حَليُها الأَجيادُ وَالمُقَلُ
But union is naught but a specter that keeps me awake,
And no messages but white paper and night.
أَلا وِصالٌ سِوى طَيفٍ يُؤَرِّقُني
وَلا رَسائِلَ إِلّا البيضُ وَالأَسَلُ
And the habit of yearning is constant with me,
A frightened heart, a weeping eye pouring down.
وَعادَةُ الشَوقِ عِندي غَيرُ غافِلَةٍ
قَلبٌ مَروعٌ وَدَمعٌ واكِفٌ هَطِلُ
The most anguished of people is he whose loved ones turned away,
With no embrace, no hug, no kiss.
وَأَفجَعُ الناسِ مَن وَلّى حَبائِبُهُ
وَلا عِناقٌ وَلا ضَمٌّ وَلا قُبَلُ
I have no supporter if they are unjust but my tears,
And tears are an aid to him who is at the end of his wits.
لا ناصِرٌ غَيرَ دَمعي إِن هُمُ ظَلَموا
وَالدَمعُ عَونٌ لِمَن ضاقَت بِهِ الحِيَلُ
Blame is the heaviest burden on an ear,
Yet it is light for the blamer if he blames.
وَالعَذلُ أَثقَلُ مَحمولٍ عَلى أُذُنٍ
وَهوَ الخَفيفُ عَلى العُذّالِ إِن عَذَلوا
Who will bring me good news followed by rain?
And how can I have reproach after which is embarrassment?
مَن لي بِبارِقِ وَعدٍ خَلفَهُ مَطَرٌ
وَكَيفَ لي بِعِتابٍ بَعدَهُ خَجَلُ
The soul is the nearest enemy you must beware,
And the heart is the greatest that wears out the man.
النَفسُ أَدنى عَدوٍّ أَنتَ حاذِرُهُ
وَالقَلبُ أَعظَمُ ما يُبلى بِهِ الرَجُلُ
Love is what its pleasures are free of,
Not what worries and illnesses embitter.
وَالحُبُّ ما خَلَصَت مِنهِ لَذاذَتُهُ
لا ما تُكَدِّرُهُ الأَوجاعُ وَالعِلَلُ
Sleep has accustomed my eye to leave it,
And the gentle, easy pace has eased my journey.
قَد عَوَّدَ النَومُ عَيني أَن تُفارِقَهُ
وَهَوَّنَ السَيرَ عِندي الأَينُقُ الذُلُلُ
So no abode or country has allured me,
I am the sword, and the sword has no scabbard.
فَما تَشَبَّت بي دارٌ وَلا بَلَدٌ
أَنا الحُسامُ وَما تَحظى بِهِ الخِلَلُ
The night carries my back that you ride,
Surely the morn is a wink, and the darkness a camel.
اللَيلُ أَحمَلُ ظَهرٍ أَنتَ راكِبُهُ
إِنَّ الصَباحَ لَطِرفٌ وَالدُجى جَمَلُ
Youth has passed, and this white hair chases it away,
The fugitive ransoms the stringent pursuer.
وَلّى الشَبابُ وَهَذا الشَيبُ يَطرُدُهُ
يَفدي الطَريدَةَ ذاكَ الطارِدُ العَجِلُ
White hair settles on my head not as a guest
Leaving me, though I know I am leaving it.
ما نازِلُ الشَيبِ في رَأسي بِمُرتَحِلٍ
عَنّي وَأَعلَمُ أَنّي عَنهُ مُرتَحِلُ
He who is not warned by the whiteness of hair will overtake him,
In folly, his fate and term catch him.
مَن لَم يَعِظهُ بَياضُ الشَعرِ أَدرَكَهُ
في غِرَّةٍ حَتفُهُ المَقدورُ وَالأَجَلُ
He who has missed the arrows of death, long years fetter him,
So he has no frivolity or youth.
مَن أَخطَأَتهُ سِهامُ المَوتِ قَيَّدَهُ
طولُ السِنينَ فَلا لَهوٌ وَلا جَذَلُ
And from himself has narrowed what was capacious,
Even hope, resolve, and aspiration.
وَضاقَ مِن نَفسِهِ ما كانَ مُتَّسِعاً
حَتّى الرَجاءُ وَحَتّى العَزمُ وَالأَمَلُ
Never did my chastity prevent me from passion one day,
That my palm would be chaste from the bending staff.
ما عِفَّتي في الهَوى يَوماً بِمانِعَتي
أَن لا تَعِفَّ بِكَفِّيَ القَنا الذُبُلُ
And men have sayings, and the best of them
Is what spending refines, not what stinginess refines.
وَلِلرِجالِ أَحاديثٌ فَأَحسَنُها
ما نَمَّقَ الجودُ لا ما نَمَّقَ البَخَلُ
Nor did plunging into raids save me from death,
Neither caution nor haste.
وَلا اِقتِحامي عَلى الغاراتِ يَعصِمُني
مِنَ المَنونِ وَلا رَيثٌ وَلا عَجَلُ
And my death in determination and kinship is one,
When destinations and paths are equal.
وَميتَتي في النَوى وَالقُربِ واحِدَةٌ
إِذا تَكافَأَتِ الغاياتُ وَالسُبُلُ
My sight feels delighted the day I mount it,
As if it is wearing the stars of the night.
يَستَشعِرُ الطِرفُ زَهواً يَومَ أَركَبُهُ
كَأَنَّهُ بِنُجومِ اللَيلِ مُنتَعِلُ
And horses hint what is above their backs
Of men, whether coward or hero.
وَالخَيلُ عالِمَةٌ ما فَوقَ أَظهُرِها
مِنَ الرِجالِ جَبانٌ كانَ أَو بَطَلُ
Deepest dark the color of night is his color,
Glances and gazes go astray in his creation.
أَغَرُّ أَدهَمُ صِبغُ اللَيلِ صِبغَتُهُ
تَضَلُّ في خَلقِهِ الأَلحاظُ وَالمُقَلُ
Galloping with the wind holding his rein,
As if he is an ember or lightning flash.
مُناقِلٌ في عِنانِ الريحِ جَريَتُهُ
كَأَنَّهُ قَبَسٌ أَو بارِقٌ عَمِلُ
Brief is what is between his beginning and his end,
As if his neck is tied with a knot to his throat.
قَصيرُ ما بَينَ أولاهُ وَآخِرِهِ
كَأَنَّما العُنقُ مَعقودٌ بِها الكَفَلُ
When the spring clothes the white land with its robe,
My stirrups and the earth’s expanse and hills narrow.
إِذا الرَبيعُ كَسا البَيداءَ بُردَتَهُ
ضاقَت رِكابي وِهادُ الأَرضِ وَالقُلَلُ
And the waters of the valley flowing abundantly,
On its banks foxgloves and droplets.
وَالوارِداتُ مِياهَ القاعِ سانِحَةٌ
عَلى جَوانِبِها الحَوذانُ وَالنَفَلُ
And its plains when the sun of day sets
And sheds its color, like frontiers.
وَكَالثُغورِ أَقاحيها إِذا غَرَبَت
شَمسُ النَهارِ وَأَلقَت صِبغَها الأُصُلُ
A meadow and pasture, if his hooves desire,
Brought together, with no trouble or toil.
وِردٌ وَمَرعىً إِذا شاءَت مَشافِرُها
مُستَجمِعانِ وَلا كَدٌّ وَلا عَمَلُ
Oblivious to the supreme, their leader
In every valley a rash youth made drunk.
وَغافِلينَ عَنِ العَلياءِ قائِدُهُم
في كُلِّ غَيٍّ فَتيُّ العَقلِ مُكتَهِلُ
They eschewed gray hair fearing its reproof,
Or its alienating them from youth.
شَنّوا الخِضابَ حِذاراً أَن يُطالِبَهُم
بِحِلمِهِ الشَيبُ أَو يُقصيهِمُ الغَزَلُ
Bare except for indecency, their garb of ignorance shrouds them,
No robes or gowns cover them.
عارينَ إِلّا مِنَ الفَحشاءِ يَستُرُهُم
ثَوبُ الخُمولِ وَتَنبو عَنهُمُ الحُلَلُ
A people deaf to my words, on them is deafness,
And blind to my sight, on them is blindness.
قَومٌ بِأَسماعِهِم عَن مَنطِقي صَمَمٌ
وَفي لَواحِظِهِم عَن مَنظَري قَبَلُ
They scatter when I come near their glances
Like the startled, confused and perplexed.
يُبَدِّدونَ إِذا أَقبَلتُ لَحظَهُمُ
شُربَ المُرَوَّعِ لا عَلٌّ وَلا نَهَلُ
They show me affection and guard me with their wealth,
If it were true, fortune would be equal between us.
يُبدونَ وُدّي وَيَحموني ثَراءَهُمُ
لَو كانَ حَقّاً تَساوَت بَينَنا الدُوَلُ
It's enough for my envious enemies that he is a man
Whom anxiety has tempted since contention tempted me.
كَفى حَسودِيَ كَبتاً أَنَّهُ رَجُلٌ
أَغرى بِهِ الهَمُّ مُذ أَغرى بِيَ الجَدَلُ
Why is my poetry blamed, it does not neglect
All that words and deeds require?
ما بالُ شِعري مَلوماً لا يُجانِبُهُ
عَن كُلِّ ما يَقتَضيهِ القَولُ وَالعَمَلُ
I have no need of wealth to worship it,
For it hope and work weary me.
لا حاجَةٌ بي إِلى مالٍ يُعَبِّدُني
لَهُ الرَجاءُ وَيُضنيني بِهِ الشَغَلُ
Enough is the wealth of my enduring soul, and all wealth
From spoils and possessions passes on.
حَسبي غِنى نَفسِيَ الباقي وَكُلُّ غِنىً
مِنَ المَغانِمِ وَالأَموالِ يَنتَقِلُ
People changed in hearing and in sight,
And betrayal was deemed good until loyalty was deemed defective.
تَغَيَّرَ الناسُ في سَمعٍ وَفي نَظَرٍ
وَاِستُحسِنَ الغَدرُ حَتّى اِستُقبِحَ الخِلَلُ
So do not seek out a man to befriend
Whom all people do not desire any more than a fool.
فَما طِلابُكَ إِنساناً تُصاحِبُهُ
كُلُّ الأَنامِ كَما لا تَشتَهي هَمَلُ
They are gladdened when their bodies are healthy,
And if you examine their minds, defects.
يَستَبشِرونَ إِذا صَحَّت جُسومُهُمُ
وَبِالعُقولِ إِذا فَتَّشتَها عِلَلُ
Only enmity rouses me, and I am to it
The heaven whose ground is the hills.
ما هَيَّجَتني العِدا إِلّا وَكُنتُ لَها
سَماءَ كُلِّ جَوادٍ أَرضُهُ القُلَلُ
My sword walks in their heads,
And my spear pierces what coats of mail protect.
يَمشي الحُسامُ بِكَفّي في رُؤوسِهِمُ
وَيَخرُقُ الرُمحُ ما تَعيا بِهِ الفُتُلُ
My people are people, not an equal generation,
Generosity with them is shameful if they are asked.
قَومي هُمُ الناسُ لا جيلٌ سَواسِيَةٌ
الجودُ عِندَهُمُ عارٌ إِذا سُئِلوا
My father is the executor, and my mother the best mother,
The daughter of the Messenger, after whom there were no messengers.
أَبي الوَصيُّ وَأُمّي خَيرُ والِدَةٍ
بِنتُ الرَسولِ الَّذي ما بَعدَهُ رُسُلُ
And where is a people like my people, if you ask them
About the racers on the day of battle, they descend,
وَأَينَ قَومٌ كَقَومي إِن سَأَلتَهُمُ
سَوابِقَ الخَيلِ في يَومِ الوَغى نَزَلوا
Like the rock, if they are forbearing, and the fire, if enraged,
And the lion, if they ride, and affliction, if they give.
كَالصَخرِ إِن حَلُموا وَالنارِ إِن غَضِبوا
وَالأُسدِ إِن رَكِبوا وَالوَبلِ إِن بَذَلوا
The assailants of the tyrant, his death
Their lowered spear points trailing.
الطاعِنينَ مِنَ الجَبّارِ مَقتَلَهُ
وَالضارِبينَ وَذَيلُ النَقعِ مُنسَدِلُ
And the riders of horses and steeds together,
Neither figure restrains them one day, nor mind.
وَالراكِبينَ المَطايا وَالجِيادَ مَعاً
لا الشَكلُ تَحبِسُها يَوماً وَلا العُقُلُ
The eyes of enemies are blinded by their spears,
And for tongues among them eyes of youths.
تُغضي عُيونُ الأَعادي عَن رِماحِهِمُ
وَلِلأَسِنَّةِ فيهِم أَعيُنٌ نُجُلُ
There is no return to the world by agreement,
Nor return for him who passes away with his term.
لَيسَ المَعادُ إِلى الدُنيا بِمُتَّفِقٍ
وَلا رُجوعٌ لِمَن يَمضي بِهِ الأَجَلُ
And God is the most gracious Master I hope for
One day, and the Greatest Giver and Asked.
وَاللَهُ أَكرَمُ مَولَىً أَنتَ آمِلُهُ
يَوماً وَأَعظَمُ مَن يُعطي ومَن يَسَلُ
Pardoning, Forbearing, Benevolent, Capable,
Answering prayers, Giving, Forbearing.
عَفوٌ وَحِلمٌ وَنَعماءٌ وَمَقدِرَةٌ
وَمُستَجيبٌ وَمِعطاءٌ وَمُحتَمِلُ
And how can we hope that life remains for us
When our early days do not come back?
وَكَيفَ نَأمُلُ أَن تَبقى الحَياةُ لَنا
وَغَيرُ راجِعَةٍ أَيّامُنا الأُوَلُ
