أَخبروني عَنْ مُرْهَفِ الْقَدِّ مَطْبُو
عٍ حَبِيبٍ إِلى القُلُوبِ مكرَّمْ
Tell me about the elegant-legged, beloved one
Whose heart is cherished and honored
أَسْودٍ أَبْيضٍ بَليدٍ ذَكِيٍّ
طَائِرٍ وَاقعٍ شَقيٍّ مُنَعَّم
Black, white, slow, intelligent
Flying, falling, wretched, blessed
وهو طوراً مركَّب وَبَسيطٌ
وهُوَ طوراً مفارقٌ ومُجَسَّم
He is sometimes composite, sometimes simple
Sometimes separate, sometimes compound
وهو ممَّا في البَحْرِ يُلْقَى وَفي البَرِّ
وممَّا في جِسْمِه اللَّحْم والدَّم
He is of the sea's flotsam, of the land's fauna
With flesh and blood his body's made
وهو عندَ الملوكِ يُبْتَاع بالآ
لاف تبراً وقد يُبَاع بِدِرهَم
Kings buy him for thousands of coins
Yet he could be sold for a single dirham
وهو لا يَلْبَسُ الحُليَّ ولكِن
ربَّما كان في اليَمينِ مختَّم
No jewelry he wears, but sometimes
A seal on his hand bears his name
وهو طفل شَيْخُ وهذا عجيبٌ
وهو فردٌ زوجٌ وهذا مسلَّم
A child, an elder- strange!
Individual, pair - agreed!
وهو بالنَّفس طاب أَصلاً وفرْعاً
وهو بالقلب حلَّ فيه المحرّم
Noble by nature, branch and root
Forbidden in heart, though it took roost
وهو فِعْل إِن غيروا منه حرفاً
وهو اسم مَعْنَاه في الحال يُعْلَم
Change but a letter, the verb's new meaning is clear
Its name, its meaning- instantly known!
وعلى نفسه يُنادِي جهاراً
وإِذا كلَّموه مَا يَتَكلَّم
He calls out loudly to himself
Though addressed, mute he stays
وإِذا عاقَبوه في الدَّارِ قد فرّ
إِلى سَطْحِها على غير سُلَّم
Disciplined at home, he readily flees
Up the wall, no ladder or stairs does he need!
بعضُه مُعْجَمٌ فإِن عَكَسُوه
عَلِمُوا أَنَّ بعضه غيرُ مُعْجَمَ
Some is lexicon- inverse it, you'll see
That some of it lexicon isn't, easily.
أَنا أَوضحته وبينته جدّاً
وأَفهمته لِمَن كان يَفْهمَ
I have elucidated and explicated it plainly
For those with the intellect to glean
وكأَني بهم وقد عَلِمُوه
وقت أَن يَقْرَءُوه والله أَعْلم
As though I see them- now they know it well
When recited- God knows best!
