مُصابٌ أَسال سوادَ المُقَل
وأَدمى القلوبَ غداةَ نَزل
A calamity made the dark pupils of eyes stream,
and bloodied hearts on the morning it struck.
فما أَبصرتَ مصرُ من مثلهِ
وقد فُجعَت في العصور الأُوَل
Egypt has never beheld his like,
though she suffered bereavements in bygone ages.
أَلا ودعي يا نفوسُ المنى
فقد غار بعد الفقيد الأمل
Ah, bid farewell, O souls of hope:
after the departed, hope itself has set.
هوى من سماهُ فكان دويٌّ
كما لو هوى في خضم جبل
He plunged from his heaven, and a thunderous crash arose,
as though a mountain had fallen into the deep.
لقد ثكلتهُ الكنانةُ فذاً
كما ثكلتهُ جميعُ النَحَل
The Quiver—Egypt—has lost him, a peerless man,
as all creeds and communities have lost him.
فيا لهفَ نفسي على راحلٍ
بعيدِ المراد قصير الأجل
Alas for my soul's grief over one departed,
far-reaching in purpose, short in life.
فقدناه بحراً وفقدُ البحار
عزيزٌ ولم يبقَ إِلاَّ الوشَل
We lost an ocean in him; and the loss of oceans
is grievous when nothing but a scant trickle remains.
لقد كان أصفى من الفجر ذهناً
وقد ضربوا بذكاهُ المثَل
His mind was clearer than the dawn,
and his brilliance became proverbial.
ولو لم يكن كوكباً نيراً
لما أَلبس الشرقَ أَبهى الحُلَل
Had he not been a radiant star,
he could not have clothed the East in its fairest robes.
فكيف ثوى في ضريحٍ صغيرٍ
وقد كان دون مداهُ زُحَل
How, then, can he lie in a little tomb,
when even Saturn fell short of his reach?
وكيف حوى التُربُ صدراً رحيباً
تضيق بهِ شامخاتُ القلَل
How can the earth contain so spacious a breast,
when the loftiest peaks were too narrow for it?
لقد أَلِف الرُّشدَ منذ الصبا
وما عرفت قدماهُ الزَّلل
From childhood he was intimate with right guidance,
and his feet never knew a stumble.
وقد كان في عصره أَوحداً
فريدَ الخصال جليلَ العمَل
He was peerless in his age,
singular in qualities, magnificent in deeds.
إذا أنت عاشرتهُ خلتهُ
اخا الليثِ حيناً وحيناً حمَل
If you kept his company, you would take him for
the lion's brother at one moment, at another a lamb.
يُدير عليكَ الحديثَ سُلافاً
ويُنسيكَ وقت الحديث العسَل
He served you conversation like vintage wine,
and in converse made you forget honey.
عزيمتهُ ما نبا غربُها
وهمتهُ ما اعتراها ملل
The edge of his resolve never turned or blunted,
and weariness never overtook his aspiration.
قضى العمرَ وهو جريء الجنان
فما شعرت نفسهُ بالوجل
He spent his life bold-hearted,
and his soul never felt fear.
وقد كان حرَّ الضمير ابيا
نزيهَ الفؤاد بدون دخل
He was free in conscience, too proud to yield,
pure of heart, without a stain.
وقد كان في نفسهِ دولةً
تدين له في النضال الدول
He was a state unto himself,
before which nations bowed in struggle.
وقد كان في رأيه جحفلاً
يفل الجيوش بدون أَسل
In counsel he was a mighty host,
routing armies without spears.
وخيرُ الورى عالمٌ لا يُبارى
وأَجدرهم بالثنا من بذل
The best of humankind is a scholar none can rival,
and most deserving of praise is one who gives.
فهل عرف الرمسُ ايَّ حكيمٍ
طوى في ثراهُ وايَّ بطل
Does the grave know what a sage
it has enfolded in its earth—and what a hero?
وهل عرفت مصرُ ما نابها
وهل شعرت بالمصاب الجلل
And has Egypt grasped what has befallen her?
Has she felt the immensity of the calamity?
يحقُّ لها ان تنوح عليه
بدمعٍ سخينٍ يُذيب المُقل
She has every right to mourn him
with scalding tears that melt the eyes.
فمن للحصافةِ من بعدهِ
ومن ذا يُعالج منَّا العلل
Who will tend the press after him?
Who now will treat its maladies?
ومن للجلال ومَن للمعالي
ومَن للبيان ومَن للجدل
Who will uphold grandeur and lofty ideals?
Who will uphold eloquence and debate?
سيرثيه لبناننا كلما
أُصيب ما تفشَّى وباءُ الخطلُ
Our Lebanon will mourn him whenever
it is afflicted, so long as folly's plague spreads.
أيوسف من ذا يُعيدُ الرجاءَ
الينا ومن ذا يَقينا الفشل
O Yusuf, who now will restore hope
to us, and who will shield us from failure?
ومَن ذا يسدُّ الفراغ الذي
تركتَ ومَن ذا يسد الخلل
Who now will fill the void that
you left, and who now will mend the breach?
Sol 5.6