أَعجَمِيٌّ كادَ يَعلو نَجمُهُ
في سَماءِ الشِعرِ نَجمَ العَرَبي
A foreigner whose star was nearly rising
in poetry’s sky above the Arab’s star.
صافَحَ العَلياءَ فيها وَاِلتَقى
بِالمَعَرّي فَوقَ هامِ الشُهُبِ
Its star clasped the heights there and met
al-Ma'arri above the crests of the shooting stars.
ما ثُغورُ الزَهرِ في أَكمامِها
ضاحِكاتٍ مِن بُكاءِ السُحُبِ
The flower-mouths within their calyxes,
smiling from the weeping of the clouds,
نَظَمَ الوَسمِيُّ فيها لُؤلُؤاً
كَثَنايا الغيدِ أَو كَالحَبَبِ
where the seasonal rain has strung pearls
like maidens’ teeth or glistening bubbles,
عِندَ مَن يَقضي بِأَبهى مَنظَراً
مِن مَعانيهِ الَّتي تَلعَبُ بي
are not, to one who judges, fairer to behold
than his meanings, which play upon me.
بَسَمَت لِلذِهنِ فَاِستَهوَت نُهى
مُغرَمِ الفَضلِ وَصَبِّ الأَدَبِ
They smiled upon the mind, captivating the understanding
of the lover of excellence, the devotee of letters.
وَجَلَتها حِكمَةً بالِغَةً
أَعجَزَت أَطواقَ أَهلِ المَغرِبِ
They shone forth as consummate wisdom,
beyond the powers of the people of the West.
سائِلوا الطَيرَ إِذا ما هاجَكُم
شَدوُها بَينَ الهَوى وَالطَرَبِ
Ask the birds, whenever you are stirred
by their song between longing and rapture:
هَل تَغَنَّت أَو أَرَنَّت بِسِوى
شِعرِ هوغو بَعدَ عَهدِ العَرَبِ
have they sung or warbled anything but
Hugo’s poetry since the age of the Arabs?
كانَ مُرَّ النَفسِ أَو تَرضى العُلا
تَظمَأُ الأَفلاكُ إِن لَم يَشرَبِ
His soul was embittered—would the heights accept
that the spheres go thirsty if he does not drink?
عافَ في مَنفاهُ أَن يَدنو بِهِ
عَفوُ ذاكَ القاهِرِ المُغتَصِبِ
In exile, he disdained being brought near
by the pardon of that overpowering usurper.
بَشَّروهُ بِالتَداني وَنَسوا
أَنَّهُ ذاكَ العِصامِيُّ الأَبي
They brought him news that return was near, forgetting
that he was that self-made, unbowed man.
كَتَبَ المَنفِيُّ سَطراً لِلَّذي
جاءَهُ بِالعَفوِ فَاِقرَأ وَاِعجَبِ
The exile wrote a line to the man
who came to him with pardon: read and marvel—
أَبَريءٌ عَنهُ يَعفو مُذنِبٌ
كَيفَ تُسدي العَفوَ كَفُّ المُذنِبِ
“Shall a guiltless man be pardoned by a sinner?
How can the culprit’s hand bestow pardon?”
جاءَ وَالأَحلامُ في أَصفادِها
ما لَها في سِجنِها مِن مَذهَبِ
He came while dreams were shackled,
with nowhere to go inside their prison.
طَبَعَ الظُلمُ عَلى أَقفالِها
بِلَظاهُ خاتَماً مِن رَهَبِ
Tyranny stamped their locks,
branding them with a seal of dread from its blaze.
أَمعَنَ التَقليدُ فيها فَغَدَت
لا تَرى إِلّا بِعَينِ الكُتُبِ
Imitation went so far in them that they came
to see only through the eyes of books.
أَمَرَ التَقليدُ فيها وَنَهى
بِجُيوشٍ مِن ظَلامِ الحُجُبِ
Imitation commanded and forbade among them
with armies drawn from the darkness of veils.
جاءَها هوغو بِعَزمٍ دونَهُ
عِزَّةُ التاجِ وَزَهوُ المَوكِبِ
Hugo came to them with a resolve
before which the crown’s might and the procession’s pomp were as nothing.
وَاِنبَرى يَصدَعُ مِن أَغلالِها
بِاليَراعِ الحُرِّ لا بِالقُضُبِ
He rose to cleave away their shackles
with the free pen, not with swords.
هالَهُ أَلّا يَراها حُرَّةً
تَمتَطي في البَحثِ مَتنَ الكَوكَبِ
It appalled him not to see them free,
mounting the back of a star in their inquiry.
ساءَهُ أَلّا يَرى في قَومِهِ
سيرَةَ الإِسلامِ في عَهدِ النَبي
It grieved him not to see among his people
the way of Islam in the Prophet’s age.
قُلتَ عَن نَفسِكَ قَولاً صادِقاً
لَم تَشُبهُ شائِباتُ الكَذِبِ
You spoke truly about yourself,
untainted by any admixture of lies:
أَنا كَالمَنجَمِ تِبرٌ وَثَرىً
فَاِطرَحوا تُربي وَصونوا ذَهَبي
“I am like a mine—gold ore and earth;
cast away my soil and preserve my gold.”
