أَخٌ لي كُنْتُ أُغْبَطْ بِاعْتِقَادِهْ

وَلاَ أَخْشَى التَنَكُّرَ مِنْ وِدَادِهْ

A brother to me, I was envied for believing in him

And I did not fear estrangement from his affection

هِلاَلٌ فِي إِضَاءِتِهِ حَياً في

سَمَاحَتِهِ شِهَابٌ في اتِّقَادِهْ

A crescent in its illumination, alive in

His generosity, a shooting star in its flaming

أُهَادِيْهِ القَوَافِيَ مُسْرعَاتٍ

إِلَيْهِ فَلَيْتَ أَنّي لَمْ أُهَادِهْ

I send him rhyming verses hastily

To him, if only I did not send to him

وَأَقْبِسُهُ فَيُوْرِي مِنْ زِنَادِي

وَيَقْبِسُنِي فَأُوْرِي مِنْ زِنَادِهْ

And I take from his flint

And he takes from my flint

وَأُعْضُدُهُ بَرَأْيٍ مِنْ سَدَادٍ

وَيَعْضُدُني بِرَأْي مِنْ سَدَادَهْ

I support him with sincere opinion

And he supports me with his sincere opinion

وَأُسْعِدُهُ فَأَقْبَلُ مَا دَعَانِي

إِلَيْهِ غَيُّهِ أَوْ مِنْ رَشَادِهْ

And I make him happy, so I accept what

His confusion or guidance calls me to

وَكَانَ وَكُنْتُ بِالإِخْلاَصِ مِنْهُ

بِحَيْثُ يَرَى ابْنَ صَخْرٍ مِنْ زيَادِة

And he was and I was sincere to him

Where the son of Sakhir sees excess

صَلَحْتُ لَهُ فَأَدْرَكَهُ نُبُوٌّ

فَأَظْهَرُهُ التَّنَافُسُ مِنْ فَسَادِهْ

I was good to him but prominence reached him

So competition exposes his corruption

وَكَان قِيَادُهُ بِيَدِي ذَلِيْلاً

فَصَعَّبَتِ الحَوَادِثُ مِنْ قِيَادِهْ

And I weakly led him

But events made leading him difficult

فَأَصْبَحَ قَدْ تَبَرَّأَ مِنْ وِدَادِي

كَمَا بَرِئَ المُتَيَّمُ مِنْ فُؤَادِهْ

So he disavowed his affection for me

As the orphan disavows his innermost feelings

وَعَانَدَنِي وَلَمْ أَعْلَمْ بِأَنَّي

سَأُنْقَلُ مِنْ هَوَاهُ إِلَى عِنَادِهِ

And he opposed me and I did not know that

I would move from his love to his opposition

وَمَالَ إِلَى البَعَادِ وَلَسْتُ أَخْشَى

حِمَامُ المَوْتِ إِلاَّ فِي بِعادِهِ

And he inclined away and I do not fear

The pigeons of death except in his distance

وَكَايّدَني وَلَمْ يُرَقَطُّ أَحْلَى

مِنَ المَعْشُوْقِ لُطْفاً فِي كِيَادِهْ

And he plotted against me, no lover being

Sweeter in his plot than the beloved

وَمُعْتَدٍّ عَلَيَّ وَلَسْتُ مِمَّنْ

يُكَدِّرُ صَفْوَ وُدٍّ بِاعْتِدَادِهْ

And he transgresses against me, and I am not one

Who disturbs the purity of love with his transgression

مُعَنيٍّ بِانْتِقَادِ حُلِيّ شِعْرِي

وَفَضْلُ الْحلي يَظْهَرُ فِي انتِقَادِهْ

Concerned with criticizing the adornment of my poetry

Yet the excellence of adornment appears in its critique

وَلَوْ حَاوِلْتَ أَنْ تُزْرِي بِبَدْرِ

طَلَبْتَ لَهُ الْمَعَايِبَ مِنْ سَوَادِهْ

And if you tried to find fault in the full moon

You would look for defects in its darkness

وَمَا كُلُّ الكَوَاكِبِ مَسْتَنِيْرٌ

فَيُغِني بِالإِضَاءَةِ فِي انْفِرَادِهْ

Not all stars shine brightly

To illuminate in their isolation

وَقَدْ يَنْهَلُّ بَعْدَ الطَّلِّ وَبْلٌ

وَغَمْرَ الْمَاءِ يَظْهَرُ فِي ثِمَادِهْ

And clouds may spill after brilliance and rain

Whose abundance appears in its collection

جَفَا فَأَبَانَ عَنْ طَرْفِي لَذِيْذَ الْ

كَرَى وَأَزَالَ خَدِّي عَنْ وِسَادَهْ

He was harsh, revealing my sweet memories

And removed my cheek from his pillow

كأنّي قد عذلْتُ له حَبيباً

فصارَمَهُ وشَرّدَ عن رُقَادِهْ

As if I had burdened a lover for him

Who then rebelled and wandered from his rest

ولو سَفَكَتْ يداهُ دَمَ ابن عمِيِّ

أو إنني لم أتِرْهُ ولم أُعَادِهْ

And if his hands had shed the blood of my cousin

Or if I had not left him and restored him

ولو قتْلي أراد قتلتُ نَفْسي

له عمداً ليبلُغَ من مرادِهْ

And if he wanted to kill me, I would kill myself

Willingly for him to achieve his purpose

أواصِلُ إنْ جَفَا وأغُضُّ إِمَّا

هَفَا وأَلِيْنُ في وقتِ احْتِدَادِهْ

I remain gentle when he is harsh

And soften at the time of his anger

وكُنْتُ عليه مُعْتَمِداً فلمّا

تغيّر لي أقمتُ على اعتِمَادِهْ

And I relied on him but when

He changed for me I relied on his change

وتُبْتُ إِلَيْهِ من ذنبٍ

جناهُ ولم أفقِدْهُ شَخْصِي بافتقادِهْ

And I repented to him from a mistake

He blamed me for but did not lose him by his blame

أبا بكرٍ بمجدِكَ حين تسمو

بطارفِهِ وتضحَكُ عن تِلادِهْ

Abu Bakr, with your glory when you transcend

Jesting, and smile about your burdens

ونظمُكَ دُرَّ لَفْظٍ في قريضٍ

كَنَظْمِ العَقْدِ يُزْهَى بانعِقَادِهْ

And your rhymed prose is a string of words

Like a necklace adorned by its threading

أَقِلْني إن عَثَرْتُ وخُذْ بِكَفّي

أخيْكَ وفُكَّ طَرْفي من سهادِهْ

Carry me if I stumble, and take my hand

My brother, and release my gaze from its slumber

فَمَا كتَبَتْ يدي الأبياتَ حتى

جرى قلمي بدمْعي في مدادِهْ

No sooner had I written the verses

Than my pen flowed with my tears as its ink

وإن أَكُ مُذْنِباً وَعَفوْتَ عنَّي

فإن اللَّهَ يعفو عن عبادِهْ

If I am guilty and you pardon me

Then God pardons His servants