أدر للعاشق الصب — Salah Magdy

أَدِر لِلعاشق الصَبِّ

كُؤسَ القرقفِ الصَبِّ

Pass round, for the lovesick lover,

cups of poured wine.

وأَحيي رُوحَ راحِكَ بال

لَمى مِن ثَغرِك العَذبِ

And revive the spirit of your wine with

the dusky tint of your sweet mouth,

لِتُطفِئَ نارَ أَشواقٍ

لِمَجبولٍ عَلى الحُبِ

to quench the fire of yearnings

for one fashioned for love.

فَقَد جادَ الزَمانُ لَنا

بِحُسن الوَصل وَالقُرب

For time has granted us

lovely union and closeness,

وَسالم بَعد أَن هُزِمَت

كَتائِبُه مِن الحَرب

and made peace after the defeat

of its battalions in war.

وَأَتحَفَ رَوضَ بَهجَتنا

بِدرِّ القَطر مِن هَضب

And it graced the garden of our joy

with pearls of rain from heavy rainclouds.

وَأَثمرَ نَبتُهُ إِذ حا

ل بِالإِمحالِ وَالجَدب

And its plants bore fruit, having once turned

barren and drought-stricken.

وَأَزهر كُلُّ مُنتَزه

بِأَثواب الجَنى القُشبِ

And every pleasure-garden blossomed

in fresh robes of fruit,

وَأَهدى كُلَّ مَرغوب

وَمَألوفٍ مِن الخِصبِ

and offered everything desired

and cherished from its abundance:

فَمن وَردٍ وَمِن وِردٍ

وَفاكِهَة وَمِن أَبِّ

roses, and water to drink,

fruit, and pasture grass,

وَنَسرينٍ وَمَرسين

عَلى الأَفنانِ وَالعَذب

and wild roses and myrtle

upon boughs and twig-tips.

وَياسمين يَقول اليَأ

سُ مَينٌ في الحِمى الرَحب

And jasmine says, 'Despair

is a lie in this spacious sanctuary.'

وَمِن لَونٍ شَقيقيٍّ

شَقيق الخَدّ في الخَضب

And an anemone-red hue,

a sibling to the cheek in coloring;

وَمِن نُورٍ كَبَلَّورِ

لَهُ نُورٌ عَلى الشُهب

and blossoms like crystal,

whose radiance outshines the meteors:

هُوَ المَنثورُ مَنثورٌ

عَلى الأَتراب وَالتُرب

it is the stock-flower, scattered

over companions and the earth.

وَمِن زَهر عَلا قَدراً

عَلى زُهرٍ السَما القُهب

And flowers whose rank rises

above the sky's pale, shining stars:

أَقاحٍ ثَغرُهُ يَزهُو

وَيَضحك مِن بُكا السُحب

daisies whose mouths gleam

and laugh at the weeping clouds,

كَعِقدِ فَوق جِيدِ الغُص

نِ لُؤلؤُه بِلا ثَقب

like a necklace about a bough's neck,

its pearls unpierced.

فَهات الراحَ في الأَفرا

ح بِالأَقداح لِلشُرب

So bring wine amid the festivities,

in goblets, for drinking.

وَخَلّيني بِكاسي في

رِياض حُسنُها يَسبي

And leave me with my cup in

gardens whose beauty captivates.

وَغَنيني عَلى أُنسي

بنُدماني مِن السِرب

And sing to me amid my merriment

with my boon-companions of the company.

فَما رُوحي وَرَيحاني

سِوى النَغَمات وَالشُرب

For my spirit and my sweet basil are

nothing but melodies and drinking.

وَدَعني مِن مَلام خَلٍ

عَديم الفكر وَاللُبِّ

And spare me the rebukes of a friend

devoid of thought and sense.

وَقابل مَن يَلوم شَجٍ

عَلى الأَلحانِ بِالضَرب

And meet whoever blames a lovelorn man

for melodies with a beating.

وَناوله مُعَتَّقةً

بِكَأسِ الصَفع وَالسَبِّ

And hand him well-aged wine

in a cup of slaps and insults.

عَذول قَد تَعامى عَن

مَعاني الأُنس بِالحِب

A censurer who has turned a blind eye to

the meanings of delight with the beloved;

غَبيّ قَد أَبى حَسَداً

سُعُودَ الوَصل لِلصَحب

a fool who, out of envy, has denied

the joys of union to the companions.

فَأَصبَح نجمُهُ المَنحو

سُ عَنا في ذَرى الحُجبِ

So his ill-starred star is now

far from us, atop the veils.

وَلَما كانَ سِرحاناً

بَعثناه إِلى الذِئب

And since he was a wolf,

we sent him to the wolf.

وَلَكن بَعدَهُ وافى

مريدُ السوء وَالشَغب

But after him there arrived

a seeker of evil and strife.

فَكنا مثلَ مَن أَعطا

ه إِردبّاً بِإردَبّ

So we were like one who gave

him an ardabb for an ardabb.

وَلَستُ أَرى بِهم حَسَناً

وَهُم بِالبُغضِ كَالجُرب

And I see nothing good in them,

and they are as hateful as scabies.

أَساءَتني إِشاعَتُهُ

بِما يُعزى إِلى الكِذبِ

The rumor he spread distressed me

through what is attributable to falsehood.

وَلولا ذو المَودّة قَد

تَلافى لانقَضى نَحبي

And had a loving man not

remedied matters, my life would have ended:

صَديقٌ كانَ كَالدُريا

قِ فيما جاءَ مِن حَضب

a friend who was like an antidote

against the missiles that came.

أَزال الوَهمَ عَن قَلب

دَعاه الوَهمُ لِلجَذب

He removed suspicion from a heart

that suspicion had summoned to derangement,

لما يَرويهِ ضعفُ الرَأ

ي في الإِسناد عَن ضَبِّ

because of what feeble judgment recounts

on the authority of a lizard:

عَدُوٌّ قَد تَستَّر في

تَمَلُّقِه مِن الأَشْبِ

an enemy who concealed himself

in his flattery, to escape reproach.

فَإِن لَم يَأتِ بِالإِصلا

ح يَذهب وَهُوَ في رُهب

And if he does not come to make amends,

he will depart in dread,

وَلا يَنجو مِن التَغي

ير بالإِيعاد وَالجَلب

nor escape correction

through threats and the mustering of forces,

كَما وَلّى أَبو التَنحي

س وَالتَفنيدِ وَالخَلب

just as the father of ill luck departed,

of disparagement and deceit,

إِلى قَوم أَزالوا عَق

لَهُ بِالعَقل وَالصَلب

to folk who stripped him of his mind

by shackling and crucifixion.

هُوَ العَوّا البُطَينُ مَضى

بِطِينِ الرَأي لِلعَطب

He is al-‘Awwa, al-Butayn; he went

with muddy judgment to destruction.

لَهُ بُلَعٌ بِلا سَعدٍ

وَفَرعٌ جاءَ كَالدُبِ

He has Bula‘, but no Sa‘d,

and a branch that came like the Bear;

أَشَلٌّ لا ذراع لَهُ

وَأَعمى الطَرفِ وَالقلبِ

a cripple without an arm,

and blind in eye and heart.

ذَبَحناه بِسَعدٍ ذا

بح لِلغُمر وَالخَبِّ

We slaughtered him with Sa‘d,

the Slaughterer of the fool and the knave.

فَوَلّى وَهوَ في خِزيٍ

طَريدَ اللَيثِ وَالقُطب

So he fled in disgrace,

driven out by the Lion and the Pole.

وَلَيسَ لِعَقرب أَبَداً

خِلافُ النَعل مِن طِبِّ

And for a scorpion there is never

any remedy but a shoe.

وَقَد أَضحى بِحَمد اللَ

هِ في حُزنٍ وَفي كَرب

And now, praise be to God,

he is in sorrow and distress.

وَشَرَّقَ جَفنَه بِالدَم

ع حَتّى صارَ كَالغَرب

And he choked his eyelid with tears

until it became like a great water-bucket.

قَبيحٌ فُحشُ إِبنته

لَهُ التَعريضُ كَالعَسب

His daughter's obscenity is vile;

to him, insinuation is like a palm-switch.

وَقيح قَد تَكوَّن مِن

سِفاح الزِنج وَالعُرب

A shameless man, formed from

the illicit union of the Zanj and the Arabs.

لَهُ وَجهٌ بِلحيته

كَمثلِ جَريدة الشَطب

His face, with its beard,

is like the bare stalk of a palm frond:

بَهيمٍ في بَهيم قَد

أَتى للذَّم كَالهُلب

black upon black, he has

come for censure, like coarse tail-hair.

وَأَثوابٌ بِها الحَشرا

تُ كَالتَنزيل في خُشب

And garments with insects in them

like inlay in wood;

كَخِنزير بِجَنزيرٍ

أَتى لِلطَرح وَالضَرب

like a pig on a chain,

he came to be cast out and beaten.

تَرى الجَنزير قَد أَضحى

بِعاتِقِهِ عَلى القَبِّ

You see the chain now lying

on his shoulder, across his back.

وَعَقلٌ مِن بَني ذُهلٍ

وَشَكلٌ مِن بَني كَلب

And a mind from Banu Dhuhl,

and a form from Banu Kalb.

وَلا وَاللَهِ ما يَسمو

وَلا يَعلُوا إِلى كَعب

And no, by God, he does not rise,

nor ascend as far as an ankle.

جَزمتُ بِخفضه لَما

أَرادَ الرَفعَ بِالنَصب

I resolved on lowering him when

he sought elevation through fraud.

كَم اِغتَصَبَ الحُقوقَ لِكَي

يَنالَ السَعدَ بِالغَصب

How often he usurped rights to

gain good fortune by force!

بِلا حَسَب وَلا نَسَب

فَأَسقِطه مِن الحَسْب

Without honor or lineage,

so strike him from the reckoning.

وَأَمزجْ لِلنَدامى بِال

ندى ما صُنتَ في الحُقب

And mix, for the drinking-companions, with

dew what you kept through the ages.

وَحَييني بِما أَهوى

وَفي تِلكَ الرُبا سِر بي

And greet me with what I love,

and walk with me upon those hills.

فَقَد جادَ السُرورُ لَنا

بِما نَرجوه مِن إِرْب

For joy has lavished on us

the desires we hoped to attain.

وَأَولاني الَّذي أَهوا

ه مِن بِشرٍ بِلا سَلب

And the one I love bestowed on me

good cheer, without withdrawing it,

وَقالَ اِغنم لَذيذ الأُن

سِ واشكر مصطفى وَهبي

and said, 'Enjoy sweet companionship,

and thank Mustafa Wahbi.'

أَميرٌ حُسنُ سيرَتِه

سَرى لِلشَرق وَالغَرب

An emir whose fine conduct

has reached East and West;

هُمام كَم بَلى حُسّا

دَه بِالرَدع في الوَثب

a gallant man who often tried his enviers

by checking their assaults.

مَجيدٌ فِكرُهُ السامي

مُجيدُ الحَسْبِ وَالكَتْب

Illustrious, his lofty mind

excels in reckoning and writing.

أَتى إِن شاءَ إِنشاءً

بِما يُزري عَلى الكُتْب

He produces, if he wishes, prose

that puts books to shame.

يراعٌ بِالخِطاب يَرُو

ع بَأسَ الرَوع في الخَطب

A pen whose address strikes fear

into the might of terror amid calamity,

بِلَفظ في بَراعته

كَسِحر اللَحظ في الهُدب

with words whose artistry

is like the magic of a glance through lashes.

رَئيسٌ قَدرُهُ قَد جَل

لَ عَن تِيهٍ وَعَن عُجب

A chief whose stature has risen

above pride and self-admiration.

يَقول المَدحُ لِلمنشى

إِلى عَليائِهِ عُج بي

Praise says to the writer,

'Turn with me toward his heights.'

لَهُ فكرٌ يَرى آرا

ءَهُ في المَوطِن الصَعب

He has a mind whose judgments one sees

in difficult situations.

تَراهُ إن تَحَدَّثَ يَق

نصُ الأَلبابَ بِالجَذب

You see him, when he speaks, capture

minds through attraction.

وَيَهزِم بِالكِتاب قُوى ال

كتائبِ في وَغَى الرُعب

And with writing he defeats the might of

the battalions in terror's battle,

وَيُغني عَن مُشاجَرة

وَعَن رُمح وَعَن عَضب

and makes fighting unnecessary,

as well as spears and keen swords,

بِتَدبيرٍ وَتَحريرٍ

رَقيقٍ يَسمُو بِالغَلْب

through planning and writing,

refined, through which he rises victorious.

لَهُ عَزمٌ يُبيدُ المش

كلاتِ بِأَحسَن الجَبِّ

He has resolve that eradicates

problems by the finest excision;

وَذِكرٌ سارَ لِلأَقطا

رِ بِالأَمداح في رَكبِ

and renown that traveled to the regions

in a caravan of praises.

تَشَعَّبَ فَضلُه فيها

وَلَم يَقصُر عَلى شِعب

His bounty branched out among them

and was not limited to one valley.

لَقَد أَولى مَكارمه

بِما لَم يَأتِ في الحَسْبِ

He has indeed bestowed his favors

beyond anything one could reckon,

بِسَعيٍ لَيسَ يَرغَبُ في

خِلافِ الحَمدِ مِن كَسبِ

through effort that seeks no

gain other than praise;

وَبَذلِ مُروءَةٍ أَضحى

لِشُكرِ ذَوي النُهى يَجبي

and through generous acts of honor he now

gathers thanks from men of wisdom.

وَكانَ القَلبُ يَقنَعُ في

وِصالِ الحُبِ بِالغِبِّ

And the heart used to be content

with love's union at intervals.

لَئن قَصَّرتَ يا شُكري

فَحَمدي لَم يَزَل دَأبي

Even if you fall short, O my gratitude,

my praise remains my constant practice.

وَأَرجُو لا يُؤاخِذُني

بِتَقصِيرٍ وَلا ذَنب

And I hope he will not hold me to account

for shortcomings or offense.

يَقيني في مَوَدَّته

يَقيني مِن أَسى العَتب

My certainty of his affection

protects me from the pain of reproach.

وَعَجزي في مَديحي عَن

قِيامي بِالثَنا حَسبي

And my inability, in praising him, to

fulfill his praise suffices me.

فَفي التاريخ كُلُّ شا

كِرٌ يُثني عَلى وَهبي

For in history, every grateful

person praises Wahbi.