بلغت نفسي مناها — Sahib Ibn Abbad

بَلَغت نَفسي مُناها

بِالمَوالي آلِ طه

My soul has attained its desires

through the masters, the family of Taha;

بِرَسولِ اللَهِ مَن حا

زَ المَعالي وَحَواها

through God's Messenger, who attained

the highest honors and embraced them;

وَأَخيهِ خَيرِ نَفسٍ

شَرَّفَ اللَهُ بناها

and his brother, the finest soul,

whose form God ennobled;

وَبِبنتِ المُصطَفى مَن

أَشبَهَت فَضلاً أَباها

and through the Chosen One's daughter, who

resembled her father in excellence;

وَبِحُبِّ الحَسَنِ البا

لِغِ في العليا مَداها

and through love of al-Hasan, who reached

the utmost heights of eminence;

وَالحسينِ المُرتَضى يَو

مَ المَساعي اِذ حَواها

and al-Husayn, the approved one, on the day

of noble endeavors, when he attained them.

لَيسَ فيهِم غَيرُ نَجمٍ

قَد تَمالى وَتَناهى

There is none among them but a star

that has attained fullness and perfection.

عَترَةٌ أَصبَحَت الدُن

يا جَميعاً في ذُراها

A family: the world has come

entirely within their lofty heights.

لا تُغَرُّوا حينَ صارَت

بِاِغتِصابٍ لِعداها

Do not be deceived when it passed

by usurpation to their enemies.

أَيُّها الحاسِدُ تَعساً

لَكَ اِذ رمتَ قلاها

O envier, ruin

upon you for seeking to hate them!

هَل سَناً مِثل سناها

هَل عُلىً مِثل علاها

Is there radiance like their radiance?

Is there eminence like their eminence?

أَوَ لَست صَفوةَ اللَ

هِ عَلى الخَلقِ اِصطَفاها

And are you not God's elect,

whom He chose above creation?

وَبَراها اِذ بَراها

وَعَلى النَجمِ ثَراها

And He fashioned them—when He fashioned them,

their very soil lay above the star.

شَجراتُ العِلمِ طوبى

لِلَّذي نالَ جناها

Trees of knowledge—blessed is

whoever attains their fruit!

أَيُّها الناصِبُ سَمعاً

أَخذ القوسَ فَتاها

O hostile one, give ear:

its young champion has taken up the bow.

استَمِع غُرَّ معالٍ

في قَريضي مُجتَلاها

Listen to radiant honors,

whose splendor is displayed in my verse.

مَن كَمَولايَ عَلِيٍّ

في الوَغى يَحمي لِظاها

Who is like my master Ali,

who stokes war's blaze in battle,

وَخُصى الأَبطالِ قَد لا

صَقنَ لِلخَوفِ كُلاها

while the warriors' testicles have

clung to their kidneys in fear?

مَن يصيدُ الصَيدَ فيها

بِالظُبى حينَ اِنتَضاها

Who hunts down the quarry there

with sword-edges when he unsheathes them?

اِنتَضاها ثُمَّ اَمضا

ها عَلَيهِم فَاِرتَضاها

He unsheathed them, then drove

them against his foes, and was pleased with them.

مَن لَهُ في كُلِّ يَومٍ

وَقَفاتٌ لا تُضاهى

Who has, every day,

stands that none can match?

كَم وَكَم حَربٍ عُقامٍ

قَدَّ بِالصَمامِ فاها

How many, how many a barren, ruthless war

whose mouth he split with his keen sword!

يا عَذولِيَّ عَلَيهِ

رُمتُما مِنّي سَفاها

O you two who chide me for him,

you sought folly from me.

اِذكُر أَفعالَ بَدرٍ

لَستُ أَبغي ما سِواها

Recall the deeds of Badr;

I seek nothing beyond them.

اِذكُروا غَزوَةَ أُحدٍ

اِنَّهُ شَمسُ ضحاها

Recall the battle of Uhud:

he is the sun of its forenoon.

اِذكُرا حَربَ حنينٍ

اِنَّهُ بَدرُ دُجاها

You two, recall the battle of Hunayn:

he is the full moon in its darkness.

اِذكُروا الأَحزابَ تُعلِم

اِنَّهُ لَيثُ شَراها

Recall the Confederates: it shows

that he is the lion of their thicket.

اِذكُروا مُهجَةَ عَمروٍ

كَيفَ أَفناها تِجاها

Recall Amr's lifeblood,

how he extinguished it face to face.

اِذكُرا أَمرَ بَراةٍ

وَاصدِقاني مَن تَلاها

You two, recall the matter of Bara'ah,

and tell me truly: who recited it?

اِذكُرا من زُوِّجَ الزَه

راءَ كَيما يَتَباهى

You two, recall who was wed to al-Zahra,

that he might take pride.

اِذكُرا لي بُكرَةَ الطَي

رِ فَقَد طارَ سناها

You two, recall for me the morning of the bird:

its radiance has taken flight.

اِذكرا لي قُلَلَ العل

مِ وَمَن حَلَّ ذَراها

You two, recall for me knowledge's summits,

and who dwelt upon their peaks.

كَم امورٍ ذَكَراها

وَاِمورٍ نَسِياها

How many matters they both recalled,

and other matters they both forgot!

حالُهُ حالَةُ هارو

نَ لِموسى فَاِفهَماها

His standing is that of Aaron

with Moses: you two, understand it.

ذِكرُهُ في كُتُبِ اللَ

هِ دَراها مَن دَراها

He is mentioned in God's scriptures;

whoever knows them knows it.

أُمَّتا موسى وَعيسى

قَد بِلَتهُ فَاِسأَلاها

The two communities of Moses and Jesus

have tested him; you two, ask them.

أَعلى حبٍّ عَليٍّ

لامَني القَومُ سَفاها

Is it for loving Ali

that the people foolishly reproached me?

لَم يلج آذانَهُم شع

ريَ لا صُمَّ صَداها

My verse never entered their ears—

may their echo not be deafened!

أَهملوا قُرباهُ جَهلاً

وَتَخَطّوا مقتَضاها

They neglected his kinship ignorantly

and disregarded what it required.

نَكَثوهُ بَعدَ أَيما

نٍ أَغاروا مِن قُواها

They betrayed him after oaths,

stripping them of their strength.

لَعَنوهُ لَعَناتٍ

لَزمَتهُم بِعُراها

They cursed him with curses

whose bonds clung to them.

وَعَشوا في يَومِ خُمٍ

لا جَلا اللَهُ عَشاها

They were blind on the day of Khumm—

may God never clear their blindness!

طَلَبوا الدُنيا وَقَد أَع

رَضَ عَنها وَجَفاها

They sought this world, while he had turned

away from it and shunned it.

وَهوَ لَولا الدينُ لَم يَأ

سَف عَلى مَن قَد نَفاها

And, were it not for religion, he would not

have grieved over one who cast it away.

وَاِحتَمى عَنها وَلَو قَد

قامَ كَلبٌ فَاِدَّعاها

And he kept aloof from it, even if

a dog had risen and claimed it.

يا قَسيمَ النارِ وَالجَن

نَةِ لا تَخشى اِشتِباها

O apportioner of the Fire and Paradise,

you fear no confusion.

رُدَّت الشَمسُ عَلَيهِ

بَعدَما فاتَ سَناها

The sun was returned for him

after its radiance had departed.

وَلَهُ كَأسُ رَسولِ ال

لهِ مَن شاءَ سَقاها

And his is the cup of God's Messenger;

he gives drink from it to whomever he wills.

أَوَّلُ الناسِ صَلاةً

جَعَلَ التَقوى حُلاها

The first among people in prayer,

he made piety its adornment.

عَرَفَ التَأويل لَمّا

أَن جَهلتُهم ما طَحاها

He knew the interpretation when

'what spread it out' confounded them.

لَيسَ يُحصي مأثرات

قَد حَماها وَاِعتَماها

None can count the noble deeds

he guarded and chose,

غَيرُ مَن قَد وَطَّأَ الأَر

ضَ وَمن أَحصى حَصاها

save the One who leveled the earth

and the One who counted its pebbles.

ما يحرب عصبُ البَغ

يِ بِأَنواعِ بَلاها

What warfare the bands of rebellion wage

with their many kinds of affliction!

قَتَلتهُ ثُمَّ لَم تَق

نَع بِما كانَ شَقاها

It killed him, then was not

content with the misery it had wrought.

فَتَصَدَّت لِبَنيهِ

بِظُباها وَمداها

So it turned upon his sons

with its sword-edges and knives.

أَردَتِ الأَكبَرِ بِالسَم

م وَما كانَ كَفاها

It felled the elder with poison,

yet that had not sufficed it.

وَاِنبَرَت تَبغي حُسَيناً

وَعَرَتهُ وَعَراها

And it set out in pursuit of Husayn;

it beset him, and he beset it.

وَهيَ دنياً لَيسَ تَصفو

لاِبنِ دينٍ مَشرعاها

It is a world whose two watering places

never run clear for a son of faith.

ناوَشَتهُ عَطَّشَتهُ

جُرأَةً في مُلتَقاها

It harried him and left him thirsty,

brazen in its encounter with him.

مَنَعَتهُ شربَةً وَالط

طيرُ قَد أَروَت صَداها

It denied him a drink, though the birds

had already quenched their thirst.

وَأَفاتَت نَفسَهُ يا

لَيتَ روحي قَد فداها

And it took his life—oh,

would that my soul had ransomed it!

بِنتُهُ تَدعو أَباها

أُختُهُ تَبكي أَخاها

His daughter calls to her father;

his sister weeps for her brother.

لَو رَأى أَحمَدُ ما كا

نَ دَهاهُ وَدَهاها

Had Ahmad seen what had

befallen him and befallen her,

وَرَأى زَينَبَ وَلهى

وَرَأى شَمراً سَباها

and seen Zaynab distraught,

and seen Shimr take her captive,

أَلشكا الحال إِلى اللَ

ه وَقَد كانَ شكاها

would he have complained of the plight to God,

as he had already complained of it?

وَإِلى اللَهِ سَيَأتي

وَهوَ أَولى من جَزاها

And he shall come before God,

who is most entitled to requite it.

لَعَنَ اللَهُ اِبنَ حَربٍ

لَعنَةً تَكوي الجِباها

May God curse Ibn Harb

with a curse that sears foreheads!

أَيُّها الشيعَةُ لا أَع

ني بِقَولي مَن عَداها

O Shi'a, I do not mean

by my words anyone outside your ranks.

كُنتُ في حالِ شَكاةٍ

أَزعَجَتني بِأَذاها

I was in a state of illness

that tormented me with its harm.

كَأسُ حماها سَقَتني

عن حُمَيّاها حُماها

The cup of its fever gave me drink

from its fever's burning heat.

فَتَشَفَّيتُ بِهذا ال

مَدحِ في الوَقتِ اِبتَداها

So I sought healing through this

praise, at its very beginning.

فَوَحَقِّ اللَه انَّ ال

لهَ لَم يَثبت أَذاها

By God's truth, surely

God did not let its harm endure,

وَكَفى نَفسِيَ لَمّا

تَمَّ شعري ما عَراها

and shielded my soul, when

my verse was complete, from what had afflicted it.

أَحمَدُ اللَهَ كَثيراً

عَزَّ ذو العَرشِ الها

I praise God abundantly—

mighty is the Lord of the Throne, as God—

ثُمَّ ساداتي فَاِنَّ ال

قَولُ يُلقى في ذَراها

then my masters, for this

speech is offered at their lofty heights.

أَيُّها الكوفِيُّ أَنشد

هذِهِ وَاِحلُل حِباها

O Kufan, recite

this poem, and undo its bindings.

وَاِبنُ عَبّادٍ أَبوها

وَاِلَيهِ مُنتَماها

Ibn Abbad is its father,

and to him it traces its lineage.

طلبَ الجَنَّةَ فيها

لَم يُرِد مالاً وَجاها

He sought Paradise through it;

he desired neither wealth nor prestige.