أراكَ الحمى هل قبَّلتكَ ثُغورها
فمَالتْ بأعطافِ الغُصونِ خُمُورًها
I saw you had fever, did its flames kiss you,
So it leaned to the branches of willows intoxicated,
وحنَّت إلى سَجَعِ الحَمامِ كأنَّه
رنينُ الحُلى إذ لاعبتْها صُدورها
And cooed to the turtledoves' song as if
It were the tinkle of anklets when bosoms toyed with them.
عذيْرِيَّ من تَلكَ الحبيبةِ ما لها
تقولُ عُذيري والمًحِبُّ عذيرها
My excuse, from that sweetheart, what ails her?
She says "my excuse" while the lover is her excuse.
يقلِّبُ عينيه إليها ضَميرهُ
ويلفِتُ عينيها إليهِ ضَميرُها
He turns his eyes to her, his conscience,
And turns her eyes to him, her conscience.
وما كلُّ ما يخشاه منها يضيرُهُ
ولا كلُّ ما تخشاهُ منهُ يُضيرها
Not all that he fears of her harms him,
Nor all that she fears of him harms her.
وقام إليَّ العاذلاتُ يلمْنَنِي
فقلنَ ألا تَنْفكَّ قُلتُ أسيرُها
The censurers rose against me and blamed me,
I said "I'm her captive," they said "Do you not relent?"
لئِن لم يكُن للظبيِ سِحرُ عيونها
فما شيمةُ الغزلانِ إلا نُفورها
If the gazelle's eyes have no magic,
Then what is the trait of gazelles but shyness?
وما شفني إلا النَّسيم وتيهُهُ
عليَّ إذا ما لاعبتُه خُدُوروها
Nothing cured me but the breeze and its wanderings
Upon me when her necklaces toyed with it.
ألا فاعذلوا قد مرَّ ما كنتُ حاذراً
وعادتْ ليالي الدَّهرِ يحلو مرورُها
Come now, refrain, what I had feared has passed
And the nights of fate became sweet when they passed.
وأصبحتِ الدنيا تضاحكُ أهلها
ويُبْسُمُ فيهم بِشْرُها وبَشيرُها
The world smiled at its people in the morning
And its good news and herald smiled at them.
وتتيهُ بأعيادِ الملوكِ وكيفَ لا
وعيدُ أميرِ المُؤمنينَ أميرُها
It wandered at the feasts of kings, and how could it not
When the feast of the Commander of the Faithful is its feast?
أعادَ بهِ روحَ الخلافةِ ربُّها
وجاءتْ لها بالنَصْرِ فيه نصيرها
With it, its Lord restored the spirit of the Caliphate,
And its victory came to it with Him as its champion.
فراعتْ صناديدُ الملوكِ وما سوى
مليكِ البرايا قد أقلَّ سريرها
The lords of nations were confounded, and nothing besides
The King of the Wilds whose throne has grown small.
وجارَ عليها الدهر شعثاً خُطوبُه
فهبَّ لها عبد الحميدِ يُجيرُها
Fate assaulted it tattered in its afflictions
So Abdülhamid came to its aid and gave it refuge.
بَصيرٌ بنورِ اللهِ في كلِّ أزمةِ
تردُّ عيونَ الصَّيدِ حسرى ستورها
--With the light of God discerning in every crisis,
The eyes of the hunted creatures glance woefully behind its veil.
وطارَ بها لا يَرتَضي النَّجمَ غايةً
تمدُّ جناحَيهَا عليهِ طُيورُها
And it flew with him, not content with the stars as its limit,
Spreading its wings over him as its birds.
يظنُّ عِداهُ أنَّ في النَّاس مثلهُ
فيا وَيْحَهُم شمسُ الضُّحى ما نَظيرها
His enemies think there are others like him among the people--
Woe to them! The sun at dawn has no equal.
وغرَّ فرنسا أن ترى الليثَ باسمِاً
فلم تدرِ حتّى لجَّ فيها سفيرها
France was deluded to see the lion with a fleabite
And knew not until its envoy plunged into it.
أيجلوكَ يا عضبَ الشبا ما هذت بهِ
وقبلكَ ما ضرَِّ النبيُّ هريرها
Would that you live long, O lion cub! It did not quiver
From what the Prophet scolded its zeal.
وكم دولةٍ جالت أمامكَ جولةً
وسيقَت كما ساقَ الشياهُ غرورها
How many a state marched before you in its prime
And was led like the stars in their orbits their pride!
ملأتَ عليها الأرض أُسْداً عوابِساً
يردِّدُ بينَ الخَافِقَينِ زئيرها
You have filled the earth against them with angry lions
Who echo their roar between the two hills.
فمالتْ بهم إن شئتَ يوماً قِفارُها
وماجتْ بهم إن شئتَ يوماً بُحورها
At your gesture it leaned with its wastes,
And at your gesture it surged with its seas.
وقد صفتِ الآجالُ في حومةِ الوغى
وحامتْ على القومِ العُداةِ نُسورُها
When the emissaries of death were arrayed in the fury of battle,
Their armies faltered and their graves made haste for them.
إذا انتضلتْ رُسلُ المنيَّاتِ أحجمتْ
جيوشُهم فاستعجلتْها قبورُها
The swords of the Turks--how little their enemies know them!
When their necks knew them well before that day.
وما لسيوفِ التُركِ يجهَلُها العِدى
وقد عَرَفتها قبلَ ذاك نُحورُها
Their gleam shakes the Muslims toward you
Though the wall of China joins their ranks.
يهزُّ إليكَ المسلمينَ صليلُها
وإنْ ضمَّ منهمْ جانِبُ الصِينِ سُورُها
May the Caliph be honored dwelling on his throne
And the wilderness delighted in its joys!
ليهنَ أمير المؤمنين جلوسه
على العرش وليهنَ البرايا سرورها
The Bosphorus sends up fireworks in tribute to Egypt
And its palaces shine on both shores.
فقد طارح البوسفورُ مصر تحيةً
أضاءتْ لها في جانبَيها قصورها
Its people saw His light in the horizon
And for His family His light rose from the horizon.
وشاهدَ أهلها من الأفقِ نورهُ
ولاحَ لأهليهِ منَ الأفقِ نُورها
Its gallant youth speaks, the paper fluttering with his verse,
And he gestures to it, roaring his ode,
وقامَ فتاها ينطقُ الورقَ سَجْعهُ
وقد هزَّ عِطفيهِ إليها هَديرُها
With a voice that enchants none but them,
And am I for poetry but its puppet?
بصادحةِ لا يُطربُ القومَ غيرُها
وهل أنا للأشعارِ إلا جَريرُها
When its rhymes draw near they are coy
And its meanings parade to you in its lines.
ترفُّ قوافيها إذا هيَ أقبَلتْ
تزفُّ معانِيها إليكَ سُطورُها
No time of those past surpassed when their time
Excelled if its steeds were left behind in the dust.
وما قدمَ الماضينَ أن زمانهم
تقدَّم إنْ بذَّ الجيادَ أخيرها
