كما قلتم والله ليس له ند — Shair Al Hamra

كما قُلتمُ والله ليس لَه نِدُّ

فإنَّ التهامي في الورَى علَمٌ فردُ

As you have said—and by God—he has no equal.

For al-Tihami is a peerless beacon among mankind.

به قَرَّطَرفُ المجدِ والجُودِ في الدُّنَى

فهزَّ به أعطافَه الجودُ والمجدُ

Through him, the gaze of glory and generosity grew glad in the worlds;

and through him generosity and glory swayed their flanks.

إذا ذُكِرَ الباشا التِّهامي بمَحفِلٍ

تَساءلَ ذاك الحَفلُ هل عَبِقَ النَّدُّ

When Pasha al-Tihami is mentioned at a gathering,

that gathering asks, 'Has incense perfumed the air?'

هُمامٌ له في كلِّ قلبٍ مكانةٌ

رفيعةُ شأنٍ ملؤُها الحُبُّ والوُدُّ

A magnanimous man, with a place in every heart,

lofty in standing, filled with love and affection.

إذا قيلَ من فَردُ المكارِم والندَى

تُشيرُ أكُفٌّ للتهامي ولا تعدُو

If asked, 'Who is peerless in noble deeds and bounty?'

hands point to al-Tihami and go no farther.

هو البحرُ لكِن ماؤه العذبُ سائغٌ

وليسَ له جَزرٌ وليس له مَدُّ

He is the sea, yet his fresh water is pleasant to drink,

and he has neither ebb nor flood tide.

وتستَعِذِبُ الأفواهُ تكرارَ وصفِه

ولا عَجَبٌ من ذَا فأوصَافُه شَهدُ

And mouths savor repeated descriptions of him;

there is no wonder in that, for his qualities are honey.

ورَبعُه للقُصَّادِ ما زال كَعبةً

فمِن طارقٍ يُمسِى ومِن طارقٍ يَغدُو

And his abode has remained a Kaaba for those who seek him:

one caller comes in the evening, another in the morning.

يعجُّ براجٍ نيلَه وبمُختَشٍ

جَنَى إذ لهم مِنه وَعيدُه والوَعدُ

It teems with those hoping for his bounty, and with the fearful

who have done wrong—for from him they have both threat and promise.

فما الأسدُ الوَردُ الذي تعرِفونَه

بغابٍ بلَى هَذا هوَ الأسدُ الوَردُ

For the tawny lion you know is not

in a thicket—nay, this is the tawny lion.

توابضُعُه قد زادَ جاهَه رفعةً

كما ضَاء بدرُ الشُّهبِ ليسَ به بُعُد

His humility has raised his prestige still higher,

as the full moon among the stars shines, yet is not distant.

صفاتُه قد أفنَى قريضِىَ عَدُّهَا

فليسَ لِشعرٍ أو لِنثرٍ لها عَدُّ

Counting his qualities has exhausted my verse;

for neither verse nor prose can number them.

تبارك مولًَى جادَ عنه بِأنعُمٍ

وألهمَهُ ترديدَ ربِّ لكَ الحمدُ

Blessed is the Lord who bestowed blessings on his behalf,

and inspired him to repeat, 'My Lord, all praise is Yours.'

يُلاقيك بالتَّرحَاب قبلَ نَوالِه

كشَمسٍ لدَى الإشراقِ يَقدمُها السعدُ

He greets you warmly before bestowing his bounty,

like the sun at sunrise, with good fortune preceding it.

تُسَلِّي فُؤادِيَ طَلقَةٌ مِن جَبينِه

وتمتَدُّ أفراحِي مَتى هي تمتَدُّ

A cheerful gleam from his brow comforts my heart,

and my joys spread whenever that gleam spreads.

لكَ الله يَا قلبي غداةَ فِراقِه

فلستَ تطيقُ الصبرَ عن قُربِه بُعدُ

God help you, my heart, on the morning of parting from him!

For you cannot patiently bear distance from his presence.

ولستُ أُطيقُ الصَّبرَ عن سيِدٍ إذا

بَدَا لي فكلُّ ما أرومُه لي يَبدُو

Nor can I bear being apart from a master: whenever

he appears to me, all that I desire appears before me.

ولكن تمَّهل يا فؤادي فإنَّ لِي

أكارِم وَعدٍ منه يعرفُها نَجدُ

But be patient, my heart, for I have

the noblest promises from him, which Najd knows.

لِذاك نجَاحي في مُنانئِي محقَّقٌ

إذا رَضيَ المولَى فقَد نجَح العَبدُ

Thus my success in attaining my wishes is assured;

if the master is pleased, the servant has succeeded.

أُكرِّرُ ما قد قلتُه له سابِقا

وقد يَعذب التَّكرَارُ إِن عذُبَ الوردُ

I repeat what I have said to him before;

and repetition may be sweet, if the draught is sweet.

كَفاني فخرا أنَّنِي شاعرٌ لِمَن

مآثرُهُ بينَ الورَى ما لها حَدُّ

It is glory enough for me to be the poet of one

whose glorious deeds among mankind have no limit.

إذا ما عظيمٌ صالَ يوما بشاعِر

فَصُل بابنِ إبراهيمَ من لا له نِدُّ

If a great man should one day boast of a poet,

then boast of Ibn Ibrahim, who has no equal.

هُو الشاعرُ الفردُ الذي شهِدَت لهُ

عدُولُ المعَاني أنهُ الشاعرُ الفردُ

He is the peerless poet, for whom testimony has been borne

by the upright witnesses of meaning: he is the peerless poet.