أَرى لي كُلَّ يَومٍ مَع زَماني

عِتاباً في البِعادِ وَفي التَداني

I see every day as time passes

Reproach in distance and in nearness

يُريدُ مَذَلَّتي وَيَدورُ هَولي

بِجَيشِ النائِباتِ إِذا رَآني

It wants my humiliation and makes me anxious

With the army of misfortunes when it sees me

كَأَنّي قَد كَبِرتُ وَشابَ رَأسي

وَقَلَّ تَجَلُّدي وَوَهى جَناني

As if I had grown old and my hair turned white

And my patience weakened and my resolve faded

أَلا يا دَهرُ يَومي مِثلُ أَمسي

وَأَعظَمُ هَيبَةً لِمَنِ اِلتَقاني

Oh fate, my day is like my yesterday

And I am most revered by those who know me

وَمَكروبٍ كَشَفتُ الكَربَ عَنهُ

بِضَربَةِ فَيصَلٍ لَمّا دَعاني

And the distressed whose hardship I removed

With a stroke of my swift sword when he called me

دَعاني دَعوَةً وَالخَيلُ تَردي

فَما أَدري أَبِاِسمي أَم كَناني

He called me in a call and the horses bolted

So I did not know if he called me or Kanani

فَلَم أُمسِك بِسَمعي إِذ دَعاني

وَلَكِن قَد أَبانَ لَهُ لِساني

So I did not restrain my hearing when he called me

But my tongue made clear to him

فَفَرَّقتُ المَواكِبَ عَنهُ قَهراً

بِطَعنٍ يَسبُقُ البَرقَ اليَماني

So I scattered the processions away from him by force

With a stab faster than Yemeni lightning

وَما لَبَّيتُهُ إِلّا وَسَيفي

وَرُمحي في الوَغى فَرَسا رِهانِ

And I only answered him with my sword

And my spear amidst the fray as ransom

وَكانَ إِجابَتي إِيّاهُ أَنّي

عَطَفتُ عَلَيهِ خَوّارَ العِنانِ

And my answering him was that

I turned the obedient steed toward him

بِأَسمَرَ مِن رِماحِ الخَطِّ لَدنٍ

وَأَبيَضَ صارِمٍ ذَكَرٍ يَمانِ

With a dark spear of soft iron from Hadan

And a white sharp sword of Yemeni make

وَقِرنٍ قَد تَرَكتُ لَدى مَكَرٍّ

عَلَيهِ سَبائِبا كَالأُرجُوانِ

And a spear which I left in the hands of Makir

Upon it purple straps like crimson

تَرَكتُ الطَيرَ عاكِفَةً عَلَيهِ

كَما تَردي إِلى العُرسِ البَواني

I left the birds hovering over it

As the entertained swoop down to the courtyard

وَتَمنَعُهُنَّ أَن يَأكُلنَ مِنهُ

حَياةُ يَدٍ وَرِجلٍ تَركُضانِ

And the life of hands and feet that run

Prevent them from eating it

فَما أَوهى مِراسُ الحَربِ رُكني

وَلَكِن ما تَقادَمَ مِن زَمانِ

So the pillars of war did not weaken me

But the passage of time

وَما دانَيتُ شَخصَ المَوتِ إِلّاً

كَما يَدنو الشُجاعُ مِنَ الجَبانِ

And I never came near the specter of death

Except as the brave approaches the coward

وَقَد عَلِمَت بَنو عَبسٍ بِأَنّي

أَهُشُّ إِذا دُعيتُ إِلى الطَعانِ

And the tribe of Abs knew that I

Charge when called to thrust

وَأَنَّ المَوتَ طَوعُ يَدي إِذا ما

وَصَلتُ بَنانَها بِالهِندُواني

And that death is submissive to my hand when

My fingers reach the Indian sword

وَنِعمَ فَوارِسُ الهَيجاءِ قَومي

إِذا عَلِقوا الأَعِنَّةَ بِالبَنانِ

And excellent are the horsemen of my ferocious people

When they hang the swords from the waistbands

هُمُ قَتَلوا لَقيطاً وَاِبنَ حُجرٍ

وَأَردَوا حاجِباً وَاِبني أَبانِ

They killed Liqit and Ibn Hujr

And they felled Hajib and the two sons of Aban