أَتُرى تَعودُ لَنا كَما

سَلَفَت لَيالي الأَبرَقينِ

Will the nights with lightning come back to us,

Bringing affection with connection and intimacy?

فَتَكُرَّ عاطِفَةً بِوَص

لٍ وَاِجتِماعٍ مِن لُبَينِ

And gather us after resolution in a house for them, with palm trees.

Alas, the raven of your neighborhood cried out, “Reunite the whole group!”

وَتَضُمُّنا بَعدَ النَوى

دارٌ لَهُم بِالرَقمَتَينِ

A nation split, so your heart accommodated the two factions.

O religion of your heart, from a wolf that does not see the expiration of debt!

هَيهاتَ صاحَ بِشَملِ جيرَ

تِكَ الجَميعِ غُرابُ بَينِ

The promises were as if created from a promise and bending.

They were brazen with indifference when they saw the frowners.

شَعبٌ تَصَدَّعَ فاّستَطا

رَ لَهُ فُؤادُكَ شُعبَتَينِ

Wait! My whitening hair is not the first of a coward or of two braids.

And the sweetness of contentment sang for me, the song of the two gardens.

يا دينَ قَلبِكَ مِن ظِبا

ءٍ لا يَرَينَ قَضاءَ دَينِ

It brought me to life at night while the watcher was heedless with two cups.

They are drunk from the wine of his eyes, and from the wine of the top of the eye.

المُخلِفاتُ كَأَنَّهُنَّ

خُلِقنَ مِن وَعدٍ وَمَينِ

So it is a magical drunkard who throws reason with two intoxications.

And a drunkard like ash that laughs in the vessels of thickened wine.

صَرَّحنَ بِالأَعراضِ حي

نَ رَأَينَ وَخطَ العارِضينِ

So today he may distinguish, if he sees the separation in me,

I am from the love of Lubna* and my devotion, I am prisoner to two gazelles.

مَهلاً فَما شَيبي بِأَو

وَلِ غادِرٍ بِغَديرَتَينِ

And youthfulness had certainly ripened, which was the best of two dyes,

So it watered life the era of childhood, and its covenants with two spears.

وَأَغَنَّ مَعسولِ الرُضا

بِ جِنِيِّ وَردِ الوَجنَتَينِ

If the days come between what is against me and against it,

And turn the chests of my she-camels, and twist my religion over the high place,

أَمسى يُحَيِيّني وَقَد

غَفَلَ الرَقيبُ بِقَهوَتَينِ

And it went covered in clothes that were of fine fabric and two widths,

Or time turned away from me with erased lettering, soft of two leaves,

والاهُما مِن خَمرِ عَي

نَيهِ وَخَمرَةِ رَأسِ عَينِ

And casts the black misfortunes of my destiny from aging with evil,

And I am hurt in the eye of her who was the world in my eye,

فَمُدامَةٌ سِحرِيَّةٌ

تَرمي العُقولَ بِسَكرَتَينِ

An eye which I gained through its light, the light of knowledge and what an eye!

Two conditions touched me from them with two tribulations,

وَمُدامَةٌ كَالتَبرِ تَض

حَكُ في قَواريرِ اللُجَينِ

Darkening of an eye in the light of whitened venerable hair,

Morning and evening together with no difference, so wonder at that!

فَاليَومَ يَفرَقُ إِن رَأى

مِنّي بَياضَ المَفرِقَينِ

Or I went in life with bare tranquility, empty of the two palms,

In a isthmus between them, an eternal curve, companion of two sorrows,

أَنا مِن هَوى لُبنى وَمِن

فودي أَسيرُ لُبانَتَينِ

Like the sound between two sounds, not alive and not dead,

So it is as if I did not hear from it on the path two times,

وَلَقَد نَضا صِبغُ الشَبا

بِ وَكانَ خَيرَ الصِبغَتَينِ

And as if I glanced at it a glance or two glances,

It turned away so I have no trace of it after the eye,

فَسَقى الحَيا عَهدَ الصِبى

وَعُهودَهُنَّ بِرَمَتَينِ

Or I spend my days chewing the woes with what they chewed me,

And time with blessings and tribulations, hands outstretched,

إِن حالَتِ الأَيّامُ بَي

نَ مَآرِبي مِنها وَبَيني

It settled on Ghumdan and the palace from it with two fetters,

And destroyed those with glory, and wanted those with starvation and shepherding,

وَثَنَت صُدورَ رَكائِبي

وَلَوَت عَلى العَلياءِ دَيني

It repelled them with the spears of a hidden evil not attributed to two hands,

And it transgressed upon Bahram Jor* and Azdashir the just two!

وَمَضَت بِوَفرٍ كانَ مِن

أَرَبِ الحِسانِ وَوَفرَتَينِ

The two events did not deflect what they gathered of paper and eye,

And it anchored in the house of the Prophet openly with two evils,

أَو فَلَّ مِنّي الدَهرُ ذا

شُطبٍ رَقيقَِ الشَفرَتَين

So it appeared with meanness in my father Hasan*, and doubled with Hussein*!

The two good, the two pure, the two virtuous,

وَرَمى عَذائِرَ لِمَّتي ال

سَوداءِ مِن شَيبٍ بِشَينِ

The two leading back to the Prophet Muhammad in two relations,

And how the smooth-tongued attacker from a hidden wolf of two canines transgressed,

وَأُصبِتُ في عَيني الَّتي كانَت

هِيَ الدُنيا بِعَينِ

Changing the face, distasteful palm, and forearms disable,

His incidents and signs of a purpose came to ruin and end,

عَينٍ جَنَيتُ بِنورِها

نورَ العُلومِ وَأَيِّ عَينِ

And how much he threw altogether alive, though his connection was with purpose and separation!

And his plot will rise up and extend the connection of the two noble ones,

حالانِ مَسَّتني الحَوا

دِثُ مِنهُما بِفَجيعَتَينِ

And perhaps his disasters will take the course of the two brilliant ones,

And he will go with the firewood of Shi'ra* and the contents of Mizmam*!

إِظلامُ عَينٍ في ضَيا

ءِ مَشيبِ رَأسٍ سَرمَدَينِ

And he will pulverize Hira* and Hudb* of glorious views and the two wooden swords!

And he will throw upon the pillar of his strength, and upon Khunain*,

صُبحٌ وَإِمساءٌ مَعاً

لا خِلفَةً فَاِعجَب لِذَينِ

So carry his difficulties upon a back, strong of the two shoulders,

And discard worries - you are from them in tiredness and deprivation,

أَو رُحتُ في الدُنيا مِنَ ال

سَرّاءِ صِفرَ الراحَتَينِ

For people in the palm of events are as motes in the palm of a builder,

And be patient for what events strikes with of hardship and ease,

في بَرزَخٍ مِنها أَخا

كَمَدٍ حَليفِ كَآبَتَينِ

And know that you will experience tomorrow unlike the two conditions,

My attempt to translate while preserving the poetic nature. *Names left in Arabic as they are proper names.

أَسوانُ لا حَيُّ وَلا

مَيتٌ كَهَمزَةِ بَينَ بَينِ

فَكَأَنَّني لَم أَسعَ مِن

ها في طَريقِ مَرَّتَينِ

وَكَأَنَّني مُتِّعتُ مِن

ها نَظرَةً أَو نَظرَتَينِ

وَلَّت فَما لي طالِباً

أَثَراً لَها مِن بَعدِ عَينِ

أَو بِتُّ شِلوَ الهَمِّ تَم

ضَغُني الخَطوب بِما ضَغينِ

وَالدَهرُ بِالإِرزاءِ وَال

نَكَباتِ مَبسوطُ اليَدَينِ

أَرسى عَلى غُمدانَ وَال

إيوانِ مِنهُ بِكَلكَلينِ

وَأَبادَ ذا يَزَنٍ وَأَر

دى ذا الكُلاعِ وذا رُعَينِ

أَرداهُمُ بِرِماحِ خَط

بٍ ما نُسِبنَ إِلى رُدَينِ

وَسَطا عَلى بَهرامَ جو

رَوَأَزدَشيرَ العادِلَينِ

لَم يَدفَعِ الحَدَثانَ ما

جَمَعوهُ مِن وَرَقٍ وَعَينِ

وَأَناخَ في آلِ النَبي

يِ مُجاهِراً بِرَزيئَتَينِ

فَبَدا بِرُزءٍ في أَبي

حَسَنٍ وَثَنّى بِالحُسَينِ

الطَيِبَينِ الطاهِرَينِ

الخَيرَينِ الفاضِلَينِ

المُدلِيَينِ إِلى النَبِي

يِ مُحَمَّدٍ بِقَرابَتَينِ

وَلَرُبَّ أَذلَبَ مِن أُسو

دِ خَفيَّةٍ ذي لِبدَتَينِ

غَيرانَ جَهمِ الوَجهِ شَتنِ

الكَفِّ عَبلِ الساعِدَينِ

طَرَقَت حَوادِثُهُ وَأَي

يَةُ غايَةٍ تُردي وَحَينِ

وَلَكَم رَمى حَيّاً جَمي

عاً شَملُهُ بِنَوَىً وَبَينِ

وَلَسَوفَ يَرقى كَيدُهُ

فيُشِتُّ شَملَ الفَرقَدَينِ

وَلَرُبَّما نالَت دَوا

ثِرُهُ مَدارَ النَيّرَينِ

وَلَيَذهَبَنَّ بِوَقدَةِ ال

شِعرى وَوَدقِ المِرزَمَينِ

وَلَيَنسِفَنَّ حَرىً وَهَض

بَ مَتالِعٍ وَالأَخشَبَينِ

وَلَيُلَقينَّ عَلى أَبانٍ

رُكنَهُ وَعَلى حُنَينِ

فَاِحمِل شَدائِدَهُ عَلى

ظَهرٍ شَديدِ المَنكِبَينِ

وَاِطرَح هُموماً أَنتَ مِن

ها الدَهرَ في تَعَبٍ وَأَينِ

فَالناسُ في كَفِّ الحَوا

دِثِ زُبرَةٌ في كَفِّ قَينِ

وَاِصبِر لِما طَرَقَت بِهِ ا

لأَحداثُ مِن صَعبٍ وَهَينِ

وَاِعلَم بِأَنَّكَ تَستَجِد

دُ غَداً خِلافَ الحالَتَينِ