وليثٍ مقيم في غياضٍ منيعَةٍ

أميرٍ على الوَحشِ المقيمةِ في القَفْرِ

A powerful lion residing in impregnable thickets

A prince over the beasts dwelling in the desert

يُوَسِّدُ شبليه لحومَ فَوَارسٍ

ويقطعُ كاللّصّ السبيلَ على السَّفْرِ

Who pillows his cubs with the meat of horsemen

And blocks the road like a brigand on the highway

هزبْرٌ له في فيه نارٌ وَشَفْرَةٌ

فما يَشتَوي لحم القتيلِ على الجمرِ

He has a growl in his throat like fire and claws

So roasted meat does not satisfy his hunger

سراجاه عيناهُ إذا أظلمَ الدّجى

فإن باتَ يسري باتتِ الوحش لا تسري

His eyes are lanterns when the night grows dark

If he travels at night, the beasts do not travel

له جبهةٌ مثل المجنّ ومعطسٌ

كأنّ على أرجائه صبغةَ الحبرِ

He has a forehead like an anvil and a mouth

As if dyed with ink around its edges

يصلصلُ رعدٌ من عظيمِ زئيره

ويلمع برقٌ من حماليقهِ الحمرِ

Thunder rumbles from his great roaring

And lightning flashes from his red paws

له ذَنَبٌ مُسْتَنْبَطٌ منه سَوْطُهُ

ترَى الأرض منه وهي مضروبة الظهرِ

He has a tail he uses as a whip

You'd think the earth was struck on its back

ويضربُ جنبيه به فَكَأنّما

له فيهما طَبْلٌ يَحُضّ على الكرِّ

He strikes his sides with it as though

He had a drum urging him on to battle

ويُضْحك في التعبيس فكّيه عن مدى

نيوبٍ صلابٍ ليس تُهتَمُ بالفِهْرِ

He grins, baring teeth not concerned with decay

Steel fangs that cannot be challenged

يصولُ بكفّ عرْض شبرين عرْضُها

خناجرُها أمضى من القُضُبِ البترِ

He charges with a paw two handspans wide

Its daggers sharper than severed spearheads

يجرّدُ منها كلّ ظُفْرٍ كأنّهُ

هلالٌ بدا للعين في أوّلِ الشهرِ

He unsheathes each claw like a crescent moon

Newly appeared to the eye at the start of the month