بَيني وَبَينَ الصَوارِمِ الهِمَمُ
لا ساعِدٌ في الوَغى وَلا قَدَمُ
Between me and the swords of ambition
No helper in the fray, no foot
لا تَسبِريني بِغَربِ عَذلِكِ لي
فَما لِجُرحي مِنَ النَدى أَلَمُ
Reproach me not for your westerly estrangement
For my wound feels no dew of healing
وَخائِفٍ في حِمايَ قُلتُ لَهُ
كُلُّ دِيارٍ وَطِئتُها حَرَمُ
In shelter's dread I said to him
Every abode I trod is forbidden
يُعجِبُني كُلُّ حازِمِ الرَأيِ لا
يَطمَعُ في قَرعِ سِنِّهِ النَدَمُ
I admire each one steadfast of will
Who covets not the fruit of gray hairs' regret
إِن قامَ خَفَّت بِهِ شَمائِلُهُ
أَو سارَ خَفَّت بِوَطئِهِ القَدَمُ
If he stands, graces veil his features
If he walks, graces veil his tread
وَلا أُحِبُّ الغُلامَ مُتَّهَماً
يَشُقُّ جِلبابَ سِرِّهِ الكَلِمُ
I love not the boy of ill repute
Who rends his cloak of secret words
صَدرٌ كَصَدرِ الحُسامِ لَيسَ لَهُ
سِرٌّ بِنَضحِ الدِماءِ مُنكَتِمُ
A breast like the scabbards of swords has not
A secret bleeding from the shedding of bloods
صُفَّت نِطافُ المُنى فَقُلتُ لَها
ما أَجنَت في دِيارِنا النِعَمُ
The stars of fortune ranked up so I said to them
What blessings have you brought to our lands?
تَجري اللَيالي عَلى حُكومَتِنا
وَفي الزَمانِ النَعيمُ وَالنِقَمُ
The nights race on our dominion
And in time are boons and banes
تَلعَبُ بِالنائِباتِ أَنفُسُنا
كَأَنَّها في أَكُفِّنا زَلَمُ
Our souls toy with the vicissitudes
As if they are in our palms a plaything
وَلَيلَةٍ خُضتُها عَلى عَجَلٍ
وَصُبحُها بِالظَلامِ مُعتَصِمُ
By night I plunged in hurriedly
Its morn embraced in darkness clinging
تَطَلَّعَ الفَجرُ مِن جَوانِبِها
وَاِنفَلَتَت مِن عِقالِها الظُلَمُ
The dawn peeped out from its fringes
And night slipped out of its fetters darkening
كَأَنَّما الدَجنُ في تَزاحُمِهِ
خَيلٌ لَها مِن بُروقِهِ لُجُمُ
As if the darkness in its jostling
Were steeds whose lightning flashed bright glows
ما زالَتِ العيسُ تَستَهِلُّ بِنا
وَاللَيلُ في غُرَّةِ الضُحى غَمَمُ
The Pleiades cease not to rise over us
As the night in the prime of dawn glooms
فاضَ عَلى صِبغَةِ الظَلامِ بِنا
شَيبٌ مِنَ الصُبحِ وَالرُبى لِمَمُ
So there poured on night's hue upon us
A grey of morn and pasture's verdure dimming
يا زَهرَةَ الغَوطَتَينِ تَبخُلُ بِالبِش
رِ وَما مَسَّ أَرضَكِ العَدَمُ
O flower of the valley, you're stingy with glad tidings
And ruin has not touched your soil
كَم فيكِ مِن مُهجَةٍ مُعَذَّبَةٍ
هَجيرُها بِالنَسيمِ يَلتَطِمُ
In you, how many tormented gazelles
Whose yearning with the breeze collides
وَمِن غُصونٍ عَلى ذَوائِبِها
يَزلَقُ طَلُّ الرِياضِ وَالدِيَمُ
Branches whose pendant drops
Slide on the garden floors and blood
وَفِتيَةٍ عَلَّموا القَنا كَرَماً
فَأَصبَحَت مِن ضُيوفِها الرَخَمُ
Youth who taught wine ferment
So of your guests is the relaxed and bold
تَكادُ إِن أَشرَفَت جِباهُهُمُ
تُضيءُ مِنها الشُعورُ وَاللِمَمُ
Were their brows to rise lofty
Their hair would shine and glitter
وَكَيفَ يُخفيهِمُ الظَلامُ وَفي
جَحافِلِ اللَيلِ مِنهُمُ رَثَمُ
How can darkness hide them when
Among night hosts are their piercing blades?
إِنَّ يَمينَ الحُسَينِ تُنصِفُني
إِن جارَ أَعداؤُها وَإِن ظَلَموا
Al-Husayn's right hand brings me justice
If his enemies oppress and do wrong
لا يَطمَعُ الذُلُّ في جِوارِ فَتىً
تَلمَعُ فيهِ الصَوارِمُ الخُذُمُ
Degradation covets not the adjacency of a man
In whom sharp swords flash bright
يَثبُتُ في كَفِّهِ الحُسامُ كَما
يَعثُرُ في غَيرِ كَفِّهِ الكَرَمُ
In his grip the sword stands fixed
As in others' the staff trips
إِذا تَخَطّى عَجاجَةً زَحَفاً
آراؤُهُ وَالرِماحُ تَنهَزِمُ
When a bump he grandly surmounted
His judgments and the spears took flight
تَضحَكُ عَن وَجهِهِ غَياهِبُها
كَأَنَّهُ بِالهِلالِ مُلتَثِمُ
From his face darkness' misfortunes smile
As if a new moon he wore beaming
فَشَقَّها وَالحَديدُ مُطَّرِدٌ
وَخاضَها وَالضِرابُ مُضطَرِمُ
He rent it as the iron charges forth
And plunged as the strikes spread flaming
وَاِستَلَّ أَسيافَهُ مُحَرَّشَةً
فَاِستَلَبَتها الرِقابُ وَالقِمَمُ
When the withering of lips persevered
The retainers and endurance took over
إِذا المَذاكي باحَت مَحازِمُها
وَاِضطَرَمَت في شُدوقِها اللُجُمُ
From his mouth he belittled his smiles
As if in frowning he wore a smile
وَقَرَّها وَالرِماحُ طائِشَةٌ
وَكَفَّها وَالسُيوفُ تَزدَحِمُ
When night's veil kissed him
His garment's folds fell from his shoulders
إِذا ذُبولُ الشِفاهِ شَمَّرَها
في الغَمَراتِ الحِفاظُ وَالسَأَمُ
As if from the joy of his watchful waking
Good tidings of praise the dreams brought him
قَلَّصَ عَن ثَغرِهِ مَضاحِكَهُ
كَأَنَّهُ في العُبوسِ مُبتَسِمُ
When his concerns stretched long
The whites of his hands sobered and the pen frolicked
إِذا خِمارُ الظَلامِ لَثَّمَهُ
تَساقَطَت عَن قَميصِهِ التُهَمُ
If he walked, his swords shone bare
And the anklets round his feet clamored
كَأَنَّهُ مِن سُرورِ يَقظَتِهِ
بَشَّرَهُ بِالمَدائِحِ الحُلُمُ
No hopes grew restless from his gaze's length
Nor did the cycles and covenants complain
إِذا اِستَطالَت هُمومُهُ سَكِرَت
في كَفِّهِ البيضُ وَاِنتَشى القَلَمُ
Had the beasts sensed his horses
No cattle would walk beneath his delegation
وَإِن سَرى أَسفَرَت صَوارِمُهُ
وَاِلتَثَمَت بِالحَوافِرِ الأَكَمُ
He rivals horses in their chestnut hues
An old camel seeking to rend their meat aged
ما ضَجَّ مِن طولِ مَطلِهِ أَمَلٌ
وَلا اِشتَكَتهُ العُهودُ وَالذِمَمُ
Spacious is the rending of his conscience wherein desires flowed
As if his open palms were lanterns
لَو فَطَنَت بِالقِرى سَوائِمُهُ
لَما مَشَت تَحتَ وَفدِهِ النَعَمُ
Whose flames in the dark thickets flared
He would not have sipped the wine and it poured from him
يُعارِضُ الخَيلَ في عَرَضنَتِها
قَرمٌ إِلى نَهبِ لَحمِها قَرِمُ
Had what the cups concealed been blood
Lo! The foes at his setting did rise
واسِعُ خَرقِ الضَميرِ حَيثُ سَرى
تَبَحبَحَت في مُرادِهِ الهِمَمُ
And after his sword darkened they flourished
They hurt not in you the threats of spears
كَأَنَّما بيضُهُ ضَراغِمَةٌ
غُمودُها في الكَتائِبِ الأَحَمُ
And after tribulations, no pains
O silent one of time, from its discourse
لَاِرتَشَفَ الخَمرَ وَهوَ يَلفِظُها
لَوَ اِنَّ ما تُضمِرُ الكُؤوسُ دَمُ
Every era towards you stands accused
You are a symbol in the face of every conqueror
إِنَّ العِدا عَن غُروبِهِ طَلَعوا
وَبَعدَما غارَ سَيفُهُ نَجَموا
A dawn, and in every unknown, a flag
Unto Ahmad's father I unfurled it
ما أَلِموا لِلوَعيدِ فيكَ شَبا ال
طَعنِ وَبَعدَ المَصائِبِ الأَلَمُ
As the darkness and the soul kindled
I surpassed Zuhair in my poetry, and here I am
يا مُخرِسَ الدَهرِ عَن مَقالَتِهِ
كُلُّ زَمانٍ عَلَيكَ مُتَّهَمُ
I am not pleased that it is aged
شَخصُكَ في وَجهِ كُلِّ داجِيَةٍ
ضُحىً وَفي كُلِّ مَجهَلٍ عَلَمُ
إِلى أَبي أَحمَدٍ صَدَعتُ بِها
قَلبَ الدُجى وَالضَميرُ يَضطَرِمُ
بَزَّ زُهَيراً شِعري وَها أَنا ذا
لَم أَرضَ في المَجدِ أَنَّهُ هَرِمُ
