Poems
- أأبا الحسين مصغرا ومكبراO Abu al-Husayn, in diminutive and full form,
- أبرز من وجنته وردةA rose emerged from his cheek
- أحبتنا نزحنا عن ذراكمOur beloved ones, we have departed from your heights,
- أحمى الهوى قلبه وأوقدLove inflamed his heart and set it ablaze
- إذا جادت دموعي في انتحابWhen my tears flow in lamentation
- إذا ما رأت عيناه يوما وليمةIf his eyes ever catch sight of a feast,
- أسمي من سن القرى رفقا بمنO namesake of him who instituted hospitality, be gentle with one
- أعذاره رفقا عليه فقدO his cheek-down, be gentle with him, for
- ألا سمح الزمان به كتاباLo, time has been generous with this letter;
- إلى مثل لقياكم تزم الركائبFor a meeting such as yours, the riding camels are haltered,
- إلى مثل لقياكم تزم الركائبTo meet the likes of you, the travelers hasten
- إليها فلا انجرت ذيول ظلالهاTo her—may the skirts of her shadows never trail,
- أم براعيم سندسٍ قد أحاطتOr have buds of fine silk encircled
- إنا إلى الله من أناسWe return to God from a people
- أنت مع العين والفؤادYou are with the eye and the heart,
- اندب الطف وسبط المصطفىMourn al-Taff and the Chosen One’s grandson
- أومض ببرق الأضلعFlash with the lightning of the ribs,
- أومى إلى خده بسوسنةHe gestured toward his cheek with a lily,
- أي المكارم والعلى لم أحرزWhich noble deeds and heights have I not attained?
- أين أيامنا اللواتي تقضتWhere are our days that have passed away,
- أين أيامنا اللواتي تقضتWhere are our days that have passed away,
- بيني وبين أبي جمرةBetween me and Abu Jamra
- تأمل على مجرى المياه حلى الزهرContemplate the flowers’ adornments along the watercourse,
- تحية الله وطيب السلامGod's greeting and the sweetness of peace
- تذكرت عهدا بالجزيرة ماضياI remembered a bygone time in al-Jazira,
- جاد الربى من بانة الجرعاءThe hills by the ban-tree of al-Jarʿa were watered abundantly
- خليلي بل أجل فأنت عنديMy dear friend—nay, greater still—for to me you are
- خليلي ولا أدعو سواك بمثلهاMy dear friend—and I call no one else by such a name,
- سأنفث والمصدور لا شك نافثI will vent though my breast is surely venting
- سقى مضرب الخيمات من علمي نجدMay the tenting-ground at Najd's two landmarks be watered
- سقيته من دموعيI gave him my tears to drink,
- سل البان عنهم كيف بعدهم البانAsk the ban-tree about them: how fares the ban-tree after their departure?
- سل البدر عني إن قدمت على البدرAsk the full moon about me, if you come to the full moon;
- سلام كأزهار الربى يتنسمPeace, breathed in like the blossoms of the hills,
- سلطان حسن والملاح جنودهBeauty is a sovereign, and the fair are his soldiers;
- سلم إذ مر بنا شادنA young gazelle greeted us as he passed by.
- صرمت من أنسي حبل الأملI severed the cord of hope from my solace.
- عجبا لها لم تذوها يدهHow astonishing that his hand has not withered it,
- غازلته وبكفه تفاحةI flirted with him while an apple lay in his palm,
- غيري يروع بسيفهHe frightens others, not me, with his sword—
- قالوا وقد طال بي مدى خطئيThey said, as my wrongdoing had long continued,
- قد كان لي قلب فلما فارقواI once had a heart; but when they departed,
- قدست يا بيت في البيوتMay you be hallowed, O house among houses,
- قلنا وقد شام الحسام مخوفاWe said, as he drew the keen sword, striking fear—
- كأن أعطافها سقتهاAs though its boughs had been given
- كأن بكاها من سرور فدمعهاAs though her weeping came from joy, for her tears
- كتطريف كف قد أحاطت بنانهLike the henna-tipping of a palm whose fingertips have encircled
- لعل رسول البرق يغتنم الأجراPerhaps lightning's messenger will win the reward,
- لعمري وما عمري بحلفة فاجرBy my life, and my life is no oath of a licentious one,
- لله أشقر لو تجاريه الصباBy God—what a chestnut horse! Should the east wind race him
- لم تر عيني ولا وضعت أذنيMy eye has not seen, nor has my ear set down,
- لو أنه كان جزء فقهIf he were a volume of jurisprudence,
- لوشاحه قلق بلا ألمHis cloak is restless without pain
- ما للقوافي عرفت أغفالهاWhat ails the rhymes, that their unbranded ones are made known,
- من أظهر الكتب أقتنيهاFrom the pages of books I acquire them;
- نعم وترى الهلال كما أراهYes, and you see the crescent moon as I see it.
- هب النسيم وماء النهر يطردThe breeze blew, and the river’s water flows on,
- وديار تشكو الزمان وتشكيHomes complaining of time and lamenting
- وراء ضلوع الغيم قلب مشوقBehind the clouds' ribs is the heart of one who longs
- وشادن ذي غنج دلهAnd a coquettish young gazelle, whose coy charm
- وصاحب لي لا كانت طبائعهAnd I have a friend whose nature
- وفتيان كما انتقيت لآلAnd lads like pearls that were picked for finery
- وقطيع كان أفقا للطلاAnd a goblet that was a horizon for wine—
- وكم لي بالجزيرة من خليلAnd how many a dear friend I have in al-Jazira,
- وكم لي بالجزيرة من خليل أحبAnd many a close friend have I in al-Jazira,
- ولم أر فيما تشتهي العين منظراNever, among all the sights the eye longs for, have I seen
- ومذ خيمت بالخضراء داراAnd since I pitched camp in al-Khadra, making it my home,
- ومذ خيمت بالخضراء داراAnd since I made my home in al-Khadra,
- ومعندم الوجنات تحسب أنهAnd one with crimson cheeks—you would think that
- ونهار أنس لو سألنا دهرناAnd what a day of fellowship! Had we asked our Time
- يا أرض تدمير هل حديثO land of Tudmir, is there any news
- يا حسنه والحسن بعض صفاتهOh, his beauty—and beauty is but part of his qualities!
- يا عين سحي ولا تشحيO eye, pour freely, and do not be sparing,
- يا قمرا مطلعه أضلعيO moon whose rising-place is my ribs,
- يا محل الملوك أين ملوكO abode of kings, where are the kings
- يا مصنعا قد تردى حلة الهرمO edifice that has donned the robe of decrepitude,
- يقول إذا رآني ما دهاهHe says, when he sees me, “What has befallen him?”
- يقولون لي لما ركبت بطالتيThey say to me, when I rode my wantonness,
No poems found.