لا راجَعَ الطَرفُ بِاللِقا وَسَنَه
إِن ذاقَ غُمضاً مِن بَعدِكُم وَسِنَه
His glance returned not to the meeting, though his tooth decayed,
If, after you, he tasted blindness, even his age was decayed.
طالَ عَلى الصَبِّ عُمرُ جَفوَتِكُم
فَكُلُّ يَومٍ مِنَ الفِراقِ سَنَه
Long has the tender youth been your austere disdain,
So every day without you is as an age inordinate.
صَبٌّ أَجابَ الغَرامَ حينَ دَعا
طَوعاً وَأَلقى إِلى الهَوى رَسَنَه
A pliant lover submitted to love when love called him,
Obediently casting himself into passion decrepit.
لَم يَقضِ مِن وَصلِكُم لُبانَتَهُ
وَإِن قَضى في هَواكُمُ زَمَنَه
From your union he realized not his wish,
And if he spent his time in passion for you, he wasted his life.
ما عَرَفَ الشِركَ في هَواهُ وَلا
خالَفَ دينَ الهَوى وَلا سُنَنَه
He knew no idolatry in his love, nor went against
The religion and ways of love in anything.
وَلَو غَدا وَهوَ عابِدٌ وَثَناً
لَما غَدا غَيرُ شَخصِكُم وَثَنَه
And if he worshiped an idol in the morn,
He would worship none but your image, no other.
إِن كَرَّرَ العاذِلونَ ذِكرَكُمُ
صَغا وَأَصغى إِلَيهِمُ أُذُنَه
When the slanderers mention you frequently,
He listens, straining his ear to them.
ما لامَهُ لائِمٌ لِيُحزِنَهُ
إِلّا وَسَلّى بِذِكرِكُم حَزَنَه
No blamer saddens him with blame,
Save to console his grief with your memory.
لَولاكُمُ لَم تَبِت جَوانِحُهُ
حَرّى وَلا أَنحَلَ الضَنى بِدَنَه
Without you, his wings had not been hot,
Nor would anxiety have wasted his body.
كَم ضَمَّنَ الدَمعَ رَيَّ غُلَّتِهِ
فَما وَفى بَعدَكُم بِما ضَمِنَه
How many tears he hid in the corner of his eye!
After you he was not faithful to what he hid.
لا تودِعوا سِرَّكُم نَواظِرَهُ
فَهيَ عَلى السِرِّ غَيرُ مُؤتَمَنَه
Trust not your secrets to his eyes,
Which cannot keep a secret.
نَواظِرٌ بِالدُموعِ وافِيَةٌ
وَهيَ لِإِظهارِ سِرِّكُم خَوَنَه
Eyes that shed tears in abundance,
Yet they are perfidious in revealing your secrets.
ورُبَّ لَفظٍ فَصَّلتُ مُجمَلَهُ
وَاللَيلُ قَد فَصَّلَ الضُحى كَفَنَه
How many words I detailed in this ode,
While night detailed dawn in its winding sheet!
سَأَت ظُنونُ الحُسّادِ فيَّ بِهِ
لَمّا غَدا الجُفنُ جافِياً وَسَنَه
The suspicions of enviers attacked me through it,
When my eyelids were withered and my age decayed.
لَم يَبسُطوا العُذرَ لي وَلا عَلِموا
أَنَّ يَدي بِالصَنيعِ مُرتَهَنَه
They did not excuse me nor know
That my hand in generosity was a hostage.
وَلَو بِمَدحِ المُؤَيَّدِ اِعتَبَروا
لَبُدِّلَت سَيِّئاتُهُم حَسَنَه
And if they had considered my praise of the Supported King,
My sins would be changed into good deeds.
المَلِكُ الجامِعُ الفَضائِلَ وَال
باذِلُ في الصالِحاتِ ما خَزَنَه
The Universal King, depository of all merits,
Lavishes his stored bounty liberally on the righteous,
يَمتَنُّ لِلقابِلي عَطاهُ وَلا
يُقَلِّدُ الوَفدَ في النَدى مِنَنَه
Desirous of receiving the tribute of all kings,
He loads the envoys with gifts galore.
مَلكٌ لَوَ اَنَّ البِحارَ تُشبِهُهُ
لَأَصبَحَ البَحرُ باذِلاً سُفُنَه
A king, if the oceans vied with him,
The ocean would be left bereft of its ships.
وَلَو أَتى الأَصمَعِيُّ يُنشِدُهُ
شِعراً لَأَصبَحَ مِن خَوفٍ لَحَنَه
If al-Asma’i came to recite his poetry to him,
He would err in his verse from awe.
وَلَو رَعى أَلكَنٌ عِبارَتَهُ
أَزالَ مِن سِحرِ لَفظِهِ لَكنَه
If a mispronouncer attended to his expression,
He would remove the charm of his utterance.
مُهَذَّبُ اللَفظِ في الفَصاحَةِ لا
كَسائِلِ المازِنِيِّ مَن خَتَنَه
Eloquent in speech without
The affectation of al-Mazini's client.
مِن آلِ أَيّوبٍ الَّذينَ لَهُم
حَماسَةٌ بِالسَماحِ مُقتَرِنَه
Of the House of Ayyub, whose qualities
Valour linked with generosity.
ذَوي بُيوتٍ في المَجدِ سالِمَةٍ
كُلُّ أَفاعيلِهِنَّ مُتَّزِنَه
A family whose glory in renown is perfect,
Its deeds all straight and direct.
هُمُ اِشتَروا المُلكَ غالِباً خَطَراً
وَصَيَّروا أَنفُسَ العِدى ثَمَنَه
They bought the kingdom by daring and danger
And made souls of foes their price.
طَوراً سِلاحَ المُلكِ العَقيمَ تَرى
تِلكَ المَساعي وَتارَةً جُنَنَه
Now you see the weapon of barren kingdom,
At times their exploits, at others their madness.
يا مالِكاً دانَتِ المُلوكُ لَهُ
وَاِتَّبَعَت في اِعِتِمادِها سُنَنَه
O king, to whom kings are subjected,
And in their dependence follow his ways.
وَمَن سَنا بِشرِهِ وَنائِلُهُ
رَفَّهَ سَعيِ الحُجّابِ وَالخَزَنَه
Happy he who gained his love and favour!
It relieved him from chamberlains and treasury.
وَالصادِقَ الوَعدِ في الكِتابِ وَمَن
فَداهُ ذو العَرشِ بَعدَما اِمتَحَنَه
The sincere in his promise in the Book, he whom
The Lord of the Throne ransomed after trying him.
أَوسَعتَ لِلعَبدِ مِن هِباتِكَ ما
أَضاقَ عَن حَملِ بَعضِهِ عَطَنَه
You have bestowed on Your servant from Your bounty what
His capacity falls short of bearing any part of it.
أَتعَبتَ بِالشُكرِ جُهدَ مُهجَتِهِ
كَأَنَّها بِالنَعيمِ مُمتَحَنَه
You have wearied, with thanking, his endeavor
As though You were trying him with blessings.
آنَسَهُ فَضلُكُم فَما طَلَبَت
مَسكَنَهُ نَفسُهُ وَلا سَكَنَه
Your bounty has made him familiar so his soul sought
No dwelling nor rest but Yours.
أَسلاهُ عَن أَهلِهِ صَنيعُكُمُ
بِهِ وَأَنساهُ ظِلُّكُم وَطَنَه
Your favour distracted him from his family
And Your shade and land made him forget his home.
يُعلِنُ بِالمَدحِ وَالثَناءِ وَقَد
أَشبَهَ في الوُدِّ سِرُّهُ عَلَنَه
He declares praise and eulogy openly though
In affection his secret is like his overt.
ما ساءَهُ غَيرُ فَوتِ مُدَّتِهِ
وَما قَضى تَحتَ ظِلِّكُم زَمَنَه
Nothing saddened him but the termination of his term,
And the time he spent under Your shade.
فَلا أَرَتنا الأَيّامُ فيكَ رَدىً
وَلا أَماطَت عَن حاسِدٍ حَزَنَه
So may You never show inconsistency,
Nor remove the sorrow of any envier!
وَعَمَّرَ اللَهُ حاسِديكَ لِكَي
تَعيشَ في الذُلِّ عيشَةً خَشِنَه
And prolong the life of those who envy you so that
They may live in humiliation, a life of misery!
