بلى جرّ أذيالَ الصِّبَا وتصابَى

وأوجفَ خيلاً في الهوى ورِكابا

Yes, pull the tails of youth and be bold,

And spur horses in passion and ride,

وهزّ قناةً تحت برديْه لدنةً

تلينُ وتندى نضرةً وشبابا

And shake the slender, gentle palm tree,

Soft, dewy, fresh and youthful.

وجاوَلَهُ قِدْح الهوى إذ أجالَهُ

من الرّبربِ الساجي العيونِ وثابا

Passion handed him the wine cup when it brought it near,

From the agitation of the eyes and their darting glance.

قطعتُ زماني بالشَّمول مُسِنّةً

وبالروضِ كهلاً والفتاةِ كعابا

I spent my time in inclusiveness in senility,

And in the garden as an old man and a frolicking girl.

وكنتُ أعيبُ اللهوَ فيها ولا أرى

عليّ هواها في التعفف عابا

And I would blame amusement in it but not see

Any fault in its passion for chastity.

وأركبُ عزّاً صهوتي وهي مهرةٌ

أُساور منها بالشبابِ شبابا

And I ride the glory of my clamor while it is a mare

That I wrist with youth, youthfulness.

وغيْداءَ رُؤدٍ قادني نحوها هوىً

تنسّمتُ منهُ في الهواء ملابا

The warbling of a gazelle led me by passion toward it,

I sniffed from it in the air a robe.

مضيِّعَةٍ للطّيبِ تحسبُ أنّها

تُطَيّبُ من مسك التريب ترابا

A squanderer of perfume who thinks she

Perfumes with the musk of sand, dust.

وما صابني إلا مريجٌ بضربةٍ

تكون سؤالاً للرّضى وجوابا

And nothing hit me but a fragrance with a blow

That would be a question for consent and an answer.

فبتّ كسرٍّ في حشا الليل داخلٍ

على حبّة القلب المَصون حجابا

So I spent a night with a broken heart inside

Over the hidden heart's seed, veiled.

كأنّ الدّجى من طوله كان جامداً

فلّما تنازعنا التحية ذابا

As if the darkness from its length was frozen

But when we exchanged greetings, it melted.

فقلْ في ظلامٍ طالَ ثم بدا له

فقد أبْصَرَت منهُ العيونُ عُجابا

So say in a darkness that lasted long but

Eyes from it saw wonders.

كأنّي بشطرٍ منه ثوّرت باركاً

كسيراً وشطراً قد أطرتُ غرابا

As if I, with part of it, stirred up a crying sea

Broken, and part I harnessed as a raven.

رعيتُ الصّبا حتى ذوى وَرقُ الصِّبا

ولم يُبْقِ في عمري المشيبُ شبابا

I shepherded youth until the leaves of youth faded

And my graying did not leave any youthfulness.

وحتى اغتدَى زَنْدي شحاحاً بقادحٍ

وأضحى جناحي في النّهوض ذُبابا

Until my blade became smooth from the scraping of a goblet

And my wings became in rising mere flies.

وقاطعِ أجوازِ الفيافي مُرَوّعٍ

بدَهرٍ رماه بالخُطوبِ وَرابا

Terrifying the gallant steeds with a time

That pelted him with calamities and misfortunes.

يناجي بها في الليل سيداً عملّساً

ويَصحَب هَيْقا بالنّهار وجابا

Whispering to a glorious master at night

And accompanying the wailing at day and wandering.

بريحٍ جنوحِ الرحل يُمْسي هبوبها

نجاءً لها ملءَ الدجى وهَبابا

With a wind whose blowing at the departure of voyagers

Filled the darkness with crying and gusts.

أبنتَ الجديلَ القاطعِ البيد جدّ لي

سباسبَ من غَوْلِ الفلا وظرابا

You built a dam, impassable, cutting off palms

Encircling me from the twisting of separation.

إذا ما النّوى ألقتْ عَصايَ محبّةً

تجنّب ليَ صرفُ الزمان جنابا

When intentions cast my staff of love aside,

The flow of time avoided separation from me.

وسُرْبِلْتُ إحساناً من الحسَنِ الذي

هَمَى الجودُ من كلتا يديه وطابا

And I was clad in kindness from the beauty that

Generosity overflowed from both his hands and was good.

هو الملكُ الحامي الهُدى من ضلالةٍ

ففلّ لها ظفراً وهَتّمَ نابا

He is the protecting king, guiding away from misguidance.

So good tidings to him and a dependent came to him.

غدا كعبهُ في كفّة الملك عالياً

ومُلّكَ من أهل الزّمان رقابا

Tomorrow, his heels became high in the scale of kings,

And he empowered over people’s necks.

وأضحى لقومٍ مذعنينَ بعدلهِ

نعيماً وقومٍ مجرمين عذابا

And he became for submissive people, after his justice,

Bliss, and for criminal people, punishment.

إذا عُدّتِ الأحسابُ عُدّ نجارُهُ

له حسباً بين الملوك لبابا

When accounts are counted, his carpenter is counted

For him sufficiently between kings as a gate.

توَقّدَ إقداماً وفاض سماحةً

وهُذّبَ أخلاقاً وطاب نصابا

He ignited courage and overflowed generosity,

And was cultivated in morals and his standard was good.

من السادة الغُرّ الألى ملكوا الورى

وأعطاهمُ الدّهرُ الأبِيُّ جنابا

From the noble houses that ruled the world

And time, the everlasting, gave them glory.

غطارفةٌ مثل الجبال حُلومُهُمْ

تكونُ لهم شمُ الجبال هضابا

Ghaṭārifah, like mountains their dreams

Would be for them the scent of mountains, plateaus.

إذا غضِبوا للَّه أرضاكَ فَتكهُمْ

وأَفتكُ ما تلقى الأُسودُ غِضابا

If they get angry for God, their attack is deadly,

And more deadly than lions in their rage.

وإِن جَزموا الأعمارَ في الحربِ صَيّروا

عواملهم في الدّارِعينَ حِرابا

And if they determine lifespans in war, they make

Their agents among armored men wars.

وتَحسَبهم تَحتَ السَوابِغ والقَنا

ضراغمَ شقّتْ في العَرينِ سَرابا

And you would think them under the coats of mail and helmets

Illusions that cut through the dens, miragelike.

مفيدٌ مبيدٌ في سبيليه جاعلٌ

مذاقة شهدٍ للأَنامِ وصَابا

An annihilator, destroyer in his path, making

The taste of honey for people, and correct.

كأنّ زماناً تائباً من ذنوبهِ

رَأَى عَدلَه أَو خافَ منهُ فَتابا

As if a time, repentant of its sins,

Saw his justice or feared him, so repented.

إِذا مَنعَ الأَملاكُ نائِلَهُمْ سخا

وإنْ أخْطَؤوا وجهَ الصّوابِ أصابا

If hopes deprive them of attaining what they want, lavishly,

And if they miss the path of righteousness, they hit it.

كثيرُ وفودِ القصْدِ لم تكفِ دجلةٌ

بِسَاحَتِهِ لِلآكِلينَ شَرابا

The many seeking his true goal did not stop, Tigris

Was not enough with its plain for the eaters’ drinking.

تُفيضُ العَطايا بالأَماني يَمينُهُ

فَتَحسِب فيهِنّ البحورَ ثغابا

His right hand pours out gifts with wishes

So you would think in them the seas shallow.

وجيشٍ تخالُ الشَدْوَ في جنَبَاته

إِذا صَاهَلتْ فيه العِرابُ عرابا

And an army you would think the ferocity in its flanks,

When the Arabs yell in it, Arabian.

إذا أسفرتْ من نقعهِ الشهب في دجىً

رَأَيت لوَجهِ الشمسِ منهُ نِقابا

If the sparkles of its striking shone at night,

You would see for the face of the sun from it a veil.

تحطّمُ مُرّانَ الرّماحِ كماتُهُ

طعاناً وأوراقَ الصِفاح ضرابا

Its swoops break the butts of spears, stabbing,

And the leaves of interwoven mail, slashing.

وتحسبُ أنهاءً مُلئْنَ عليهمُ

حَبائكَ من نَسجِ الصّبا وحبابا

And you would think them to be seas foaming over them,

Webs woven by the youth and infatuation.

أرونيَ منكم راجياً رَدّ قاصداً

إلى قصده وجه الرّجاءِ فخابا

Show me from you someone hopeful, seeking to return

To his goal, but the face of hope betrayed him.

ولا تعتبوهُ في الشفاعة والنّدى

فلن تجعلوا نقلَ الطباعِ عتابا

And do not blame him for intercession and affection,

For you will not make changing nature a reproach.

ولو خضبَ الأيدي نداهُ رأيتمُ

لكلّ يدٍ بالتّبرِ منْه خضابا

And if his aid dyed hands red, you would see

For each hand with the repentance from it dye.

يردّ لِسانُ العضبِ عندَ سُكوتِه

إِلى هامَةِ المِقدامِ عنه خِطابا

His tongue returns upon his silence

To the zeal of courage, addressing it a sermon.

فيا ابن عليّ أنت شبلٌ حَمَى الهدى

وأنبتَ حوليه الذوابلَ غابا

So O son of Ali, you are a lion cub who protected guidance

And grew around it twisting paths.

جَعَلت نيوبَ الثّغرِ زُرْقَ أسِنّةٍ

فَلَم تَجنِ زرقُ الرّوم مِنهُ رضابا

You made the fangs of the mouth the blueness of Indian swords

So the blueness of the Romans did not withdraw slashes from it.

ولَو نَظَم الديماسُ مَنثورَ هامِهم

لَقلّدَ جيدَ القَصرِ منهُ سَخابا

And if the scattered pearls of their skulls were threaded,

It would string the necklace of the palace from it beads.

فَلِلدينِ عيدانٌ منَ النبع جُرّبَتْ

بِعَجْمٍ فألفاها الصليبُ صِلابا

So for the religion there are spears from the spring tried

With non-Arabs, but the cross made them pliant.

طلعتَ لَنا بدراً شموسَ طلاقةٍ

تلفّ عَلَيها راحَتاهُ سَحابا

You rose for us like a full moon, dawning suns of splendor,

Around which its hands wrap clouds.

فحالفك النّصرُ العزيزُ الّذي به

تغادرُ آسادَ الحُروبِ ذِئابا

So victory, mighty, which with it,

The lions of war are appeased, allied with you.

ولا زلتَ عيداً للورى غيرَ ذاهبٍ

إذا العيدُ ولّى بالزمانِ ذهابا

And you still are a holiday for the world, not passing,

When the holiday turns in time passing.