غنى صبيا عاقبو الدهر بِالنيا — Shibli Al Atrash

غَنى صَبياً عاقبو الدَهر بِالنيا

وَدُموع عَيني عَالخود سكيب

A youth sang, whom fate had punished with separation,

And tears from my eyes streamed down my cheeks.

وَدُموع عَيني الدم خالط مزونها

عَلى عارضي اللي قَد غَشاه الشيب

And blood mingled with the rain clouds of my eyes' tears,

Upon my cheek, already covered with gray hair.

يانار قَلبي كُل ما قول تنطفي

يَهب لَها جوا الضُلوع لَهيب

O fire of my heart, whenever I say it will die out,

A blaze rises for it within my ribs.

يَهب بِقَلب المُستهام الَّذي توا

مِن البُعد وَالتَشتيت وَالتَغريب

It flares in the heart of the lovesick man who wasted away

From separation, dispersal, and exile.

خان الدَهر غرار غدار بِالفتى

وَحالوا عَلى اللي عاشروه عَجيب

Time betrayed the youth—beguiling, treacherous time;

And strange are its ways with those who have lived with it.

يَعلى الفَتى حَتّى يَحطو عَلى الشفا

وَيَنكس عليه يَحدرو بترتيب

It raises the youth until it sets him on the brink,

Then turns against him, sending him down by design.

يا مؤامنين الدَهر كُونوا عَلى حَذر

الدَهر يا مابو مرار وطيب

O you who trust in time, be on your guard:

Time—how much bitterness and sweetness it holds!

من قبل نُوح وَعقب دور الصحابة

ساس الدَهر قال الجَميع معيب

From before Noah and after the age of the Companions,

All have said that time's very foundation is flawed.

من آمن بِالدُنيا تذيقو غبونها

وَلا بُد فكرو وَالظنون تَخيب

Whoever trusts the world, it makes him taste its wrongs,

And his hopes and expectations are bound to fail.

لا بُد فكرو لَو صَفا الدَهر يَخلفو

الأَيام ما ليهن صديق حَبيب

Even if time turns fair, it must belie his hopes;

The days have no beloved friend.

الأَيام فيهن مثل صَبر السقطري

وَالأَيام فيهن سكر مع حليب

Some days are like bitter Socotran aloes,

And some hold sugar mixed with milk.

الأَيام فيهن شر يعمي الياهما

عَالمرء يَدعونو عليل هكيب

The days hold blinding evil; when it descends

Upon a man, it leaves him sick and spent.

بَعض اللَيالي تَنام نَومة هَنية

وَبَعض اللَيالي تَنام عَالشنديب

Some nights you sleep a pleasant sleep,

And some nights you sleep on a bed of thorns.

الأَيام تَصفو لِلفَتى ثم تنعكر

يا ما بهم رجلاً مَداه قَريب

Days grow clear for a young man, then turn murky;

How many a man's span within them is short!

الأَيام يَحبلن وَالأَيام يولدن

وَعيال مِن غير الفُحول تُجيب

The days conceive, and the days give birth,

And bear children without any sires.

يَلدن العجايب للمخاليق وَالمَلا

لَو يَفهموا مِنها الطفال تَشيب

They bring forth wonders for creatures and humankind;

If children understood any of them, they would turn gray.

كَم طايلاً عَن الحُكم يقصرونه

وَكَم قاصراً بِالناس صار حَسيب

How many a lofty man they keep from power,

And how many a lesser man becomes esteemed among people.

وَينفه بَعد ما هوَ در يفي مِن الوَرى

وَقالوا فلان اليَوم صار نَجيب

And he grows puffed up, after being [unclear] among men,

And they say, 'So-and-so has become distinguished today.'

هَذي تَصاريف الزَمان وَعجايبو

عَالناس تمضي حُكم رَغم غَصيب

These are time's vicissitudes and its wonders,

Imposing their rule upon people against their will.

قايست في فكري الرجاجيل كُلَها

نَوبات تخطي وَبِهِ أَوقات تُصيب

I weighed all men in my mind;

Sometimes you miss, and sometimes you hit the mark.

مِنهُم نَداوي يُعجبك في فعايلو

وَمِنهُم لزيزي ان هد عاد مخيب

Among them is a noble falcon whose deeds delight you;

And among them a lazizi falcon who, when loosed, returns disappointing.

وَمِنهُم أسد ريبال حاملي شواته

وَفيهم ضباع وَبَعد فيهم ذيب

And among them a fierce lion, holding his head high;

Among them are hyenas, and among them also a wolf.

وَفيهم هديفي ذبخ هامل من المَلا

اليا شبع قال الأمور تسيب

And among them a worthless, witless stray among men;

When he has eaten his fill, he says, 'Let things drift.'

وَفيهم هدبي يشيل حملو بظليمتو

وَفيهُم رعاع يثقلوا القَضيب

And among them a hulking fellow, bearing his load under injustice;

And among them are rabble who weigh down the rod.

وَفيهم سَراب بزيزتاً سمهداني

وَلا هوَ بِحال مسبتو وَالعيب

And among them a mirage, imposing in his finery,

Yet heedless of his disgrace and shame.

وَمِنهُم فرز شوار عاقل مهذب

إِن خاطبك يَحكي كَلام لَبيب

And among them a distinguished counselor, wise and refined;

If he addresses you, he speaks the words of a wise man.

وَمِنهُم كَريم النَفس ما يثقل العَطا

يُعطي وَلَو أَن السِنين جَديب

And among them a generous soul who finds no burden in giving;

He gives even when the years are barren.

وَمِنهُم بَخيل يُطالب الجار بِالفلس

وَبيهم يَعزك لانزلت طَليب

And among them a miser who pursues his neighbor for a penny;

And among them one who honors you when you come seeking help.

وَمِنهُم شَقاوي يكسر الخَيل بِالقَنا

مثل الزناتي وَأَفرس مِن شَبيب

And among them a daredevil who breaks cavalry with lances,

Like al-Zanati, and a finer horseman than Shabib.

وَمِنهُم مثل هيج النعام بشرا يدو

وَلا لَو بِمَدح الغانمين نَصيب

And among them one who flees like a startled ostrich,

With no share in the praise of worthy men.

وَمِنهُم حِمار معمعم الراس صورتو

وَمِنهُم لحوح وَأَوقَح مِن الشيب

And among them a donkey in appearance, his head turbaned;

And among them a persistent pest, more shameless than gray hair.

وَمِنهُم كَذوب أَصحا تصدق كَلامه

وَمِنهُم نطول مِن الرِجال عَضيب

And among them a liar: beware of believing his words;

And among them a tiresome fellow, a scourge among men.

وَمِنهُم عليه المَوت أَهون مِن العَطا

عِندو البُخل وَالشح ما في عيب

And among them one for whom death is easier than giving;

To him, miserliness and greed hold no shame.

إِن قلتلو يا فلان وَدها دراهم

يَقول الدراهم ما تفك طَليب

If you tell him, 'So-and-so, it calls for money,'

He says, 'Money cannot free a wanted man.'

بيهم سماوي بعبد اللَه دايم

قاري الكُتب سَيد شَريف نَقيب

Among them is a godly man, always worshiping God,

A reader of books, a master, honorable, a chief.

من هذه الأَيام مكثر شكالها

ربك عَلى الدُنيا حَسيب رَقيب

How many complaints are raised against these days!

Your Lord is the world's reckoner and watcher.

مِن بَعد ذا يا هيه خذ لي رِسالَتي

يا بو رَشيد وَكون فَرز لَبيب

After this, you there, take my message for me,

O Abu Rashid, and be distinguished and wise.

عالتيل أَوصلها وَافهم كَلامها

رُوح البَرق عِندو البَعيد قَريب

Deliver it over the telegraph wire, and understand its words.

Go to the telegraph: for it, the faraway is near.

تَرى راس خَط التيل دار السويده

سلم عليهم وَأَكثر التَرحيب

The telegraph line's head, you see, is the town of al-Suwayda.

Greet them, and offer abundant welcome.

سلم عَلى ربعي الدروز جَميعهم

مِن بُراق سند لا ملح تَغريب

Greet all my people, the Druze,

From Buraq, uphill as far as Malah, then westward.

مِن دامة العَليا لذيبين سلم

مِن المرد وَاللي بعارضيه الشيب

From Upper Dama to Dhibin, give greetings,

From the beardless youths to those whose cheeks are gray.

وسلم عَلى ماضب حوران مِنهُم

بدو وَحضر واللي نزيل غَريب

And greet all of them gathered in Hauran,

Bedouin, townspeople, and any stranger staying there.

سَلام مِن مُشتاق اليكم جَميعكم

مِن اللي غَدا بين التراك قَضيب

Greetings from one who longs for you, every one of you,

From one become a slender twig among the Turks.

عَسى اللَه يَرحَمَكُم وَيلطف بِحالكم

وَيفككم مِن أُمة التَعذيب

May God have mercy on you and be gentle with your plight,

And free you from a people who inflict torment.

بِجاه النَبي المُختار وَالبَيت وَالحَرم

يَجعل معاديكم يَروح ذَهيب

By the honor of the chosen Prophet, the House, and the Sanctuary,

May He make your enemies vanish for good.

إِصحوا الوحا مِن غدرهم يا رِفاقي

أَهل الذكا قالوا كَلام عَجيب

Be alert at once to their treachery, my companions;

The wise have spoken wondrous words:

لا الصل يَتربى وَلا الرمل يَنعجن

وَلا المجرب عاوز التَجريب

An asp cannot be tamed, nor can sand be kneaded,

Nor does one already tried need testing again.

وَاختم كَلامي في صِلاتي عَلى النَبي

حَبيب وَمن صَلى عَلَيهِ حَبيب

And I close my words with blessings upon the Prophet:

Beloved is he, and beloved is whoever blesses him.

يختم لَنا بِالخَير وَيلم شَملنا

وَيَجعل خَلاص الغايبين قَريب

May He grant us a good ending and reunite us,

And bring near the deliverance of those absent.