نعت بالبين غربان — Tamim Al Fatimi

نَعَتْ بالبينِ غِرْبانُ

فأحبابُكَ أَظْعانُ

Crows announced parting,

and your loved ones are a departing caravan.

نَأَوا وضَمائِرُ الأحدا

جِ آرامٌ وغِزْلانُ

They went far away; the howdahs' hidden occupants

were white antelopes and gazelles.

وسِربٌ تُشِرق الأقما

رُ فِيهِ وينثني البانُ

And a bevy where moons shine

and moringa trees bend,

وتعبَث بالخُصورِ الهي

فِ والأَغصان كُثْبانُ

and with slender waists

and boughs, sand dunes play.

ولمَا سارتِ البُزْلُ

بِهمْ والليلُ نَوْمانُ

And when the full-grown camels set out

with them, while night lay asleep,

وحَثَّ بهنّ سَوّاقٌ

وحَفَّ بِهنّ غيرانُ

a driver urged them onward,

and a jealous guardian hovered around them.

وقد برزَتْ مُخالِسةً

لنا باللّحظِ أجفانُ

And there appeared, stealing

glances at us, those eyelids.

فلمّا لَمْ يساعِد

هنّ لِلتودِيعِ إِمكان

But when no chance would grant

them leave to bid farewell,

بكَيْن فجالَ في وَرْدِ الْ

خدودِ لهنّ عِقْيان

they wept, and over the roses

of their cheeks flowed pure gold.

سَقَى صَبْرةَ فالقَصْرَ

فرَقّادةَ تَهْتانُ

May Sabra, then al-Qasr,

then Raqqada be watered by pouring rain.

ولا زال الحِمَى وقرا

م والرّمْلُ ووَدّانُ

And may al-Hima and Qaram,

al-Raml and Waddan, forever

بمحْمَرٍّ ومصفَرٍّ

مِن الأنوار تَزْدانُ

with red and yellow

blossoms be adorned.

مَنازلُ لم تزل فيهنْ

نَ آياتٌ وبُرهانُ

Dwellings where there have always been

signs and proof,

ولِلْمُلكِ تعايذٌ

ولِلمَنْعمةِ سُلطانُ

and talismans for kingship,

and dominion for prosperity;

وأرضٌ لِلهُدى فيها

ولِلمعروف أعوانُ

and a land where guidance

and goodness have their helpers,

ولِلمهديّ والقائِ

مِ والمنصورِ أوطانُ

and where al-Mahdi and al-Qa'im

and al-Mansur have their homelands.

وأوّلُ مَوْضِعٍ أَضحَى

لِلَهْوى فِيه مَيْدانُ

And the first place that became

a playing field for love.

به طابت من الّلذّا

تِ لي والعَيْش ألوانُ

There, many kinds of pleasure

and of life grew sweet to me.

وأصْفَى لي بِه الدهرُ

هوىً ما فيه أضْغانُ

And there Time bestowed on me

a love untouched by rancor.

ورفّت ليَ مِنْ ماء

شَبابي فِيهِ أغصان

And boughs fluttered for me, fed by the water

of my youth there.

بلادٌ يقتضي قلبي

لها شوقٌ وتحْنانُ

A land to which my heart is summoned

by longing and tender yearning;

كريمُ الأهلِ ما فِيه

من الإخوانِ خَوّانُ

noble in its people, with no

traitor among its brethren.

وشرّ الأرِض أرضٌ لي

س فِيها لك إِخْوانُ

And the worst of lands is one

where you have no brethren.

عسى الأيّامُ أن تَر

جِلي صَحْبي كما كانوا

May the days restore

my companions to me as they once were,

فيَستشفي من اللِّوْعا

تِ أحبابٌ وجِيرانُ

so that there may be healing from longing's pangs

for loved ones and neighbors.

وراحٍ طَعْمُها شَهْدٌ

ورَيَّا رِيحها بانُ

And wine whose taste is honey,

whose wafting fragrance is moringa blossom.

كأنّ إِناءها منها

خَلاَءٌ وهوَ مَلآنُ

As though its vessel were

empty of it, though it is full.

لها رُوح وليس لها

كما لِلرُّوحِ جُثْمان

It has a spirit, but no

body, like the spirit itself.

إذا شُجّتْ بدت في رأ

سِها للنَّمْلِ كِرْعانُ

When diluted, upon its head appear

the legs of ants.

يطوف بها عليك أغنْ

نُ ساجي الطَّرْفِ مَيسانُ

A soft-voiced one carries it round to you,

languid-eyed, swaying in his gait.

إذا ما الليلُ لاقاه

تبدَّى وهو عُرْيان

When night encounters him,

it shows itself stripped bare.

لنا مِن وجهِه قمرٌ

ومِن نَجواه نَدْمان

From his face we have a moon,

and from his intimate talk, a drinking companion;

ومِنْ رِيقَتِهِ خَمْرٌ

ومِن خَدَّيهِ رَيْحان

from his saliva, wine,

and from his cheeks, sweet basil.

سقاني والهِلالُ كما

بدا وكأنّه جانُ

He gave me drink as the crescent

first appeared, like a slender snake.

وجُنحُ الّليل قد مُدّتْ

له في الأُفْقِ سِيجان

And for the wing of night were spread

mantles across the horizon.

كأنّ نجومَه دُرَرٌ

تُشِير بِهِنّ سُودان

As though its stars were pearls

with which dark-skinned men gesture.

فما زالت مصلّيةً

على الأَذْقان أذقانُ

And chins kept bowing, as in prayer,

upon other chins,

إلى أن مال للَمغرِ

بِ جَدْيٌ ثم مِيزانُ

until toward the west there leaned

Capricorn, and then Libra.

ولاحت غُرّة الفجرِ

كما بَصْبَصَ سرْحان

And dawn's bright brow shone

like a wolf wagging its tail.

ومُغْبَرّ تَشابَهُ من

ه أعلامٌ وقِيعانُ

And a dust-gray waste, whose

heights and plains looked alike—

يَباب تَفْرَقُ الظُّلما

ن منه وتَرْهَب الجانُ

a desolation that male ostriches fear,

and which the jinn dread.

كأنّ رءوسَ يَرْمَعِهِ

ِ لِواطِئِهنّ نِيرانُ

As though the tops of its white pebbles

were fires to one who treads them.

تِئطُّ به من القَيْظِ الْ

حَصَى وتئِنّ غِيطان

There, under summer's heat, the

pebbles creak and the hollows groan.

كأنّ الماءَ فِيه إلى

وُرودِ الماءِ ظَمْآن

As though the water there thirsted

to come to water.

ترامت فِيه بي قَوْدا

ءُ تحت الرَّحْلِ مِذْعان

A long-necked she-camel sped with me through it,

obedient beneath the saddle.

إذا أمستْ بعسْفانٍ

فمَغْداها سِجِسْتانُ

When she spends the evening at Usfan,

her morning finds her in Sijistan.

نؤمُّ أعزَّ من عزّت

به دُوَلٌ وأَدْيانُ

We seek the mightiest of those through whom

dynasties and faiths have gained might:

إمامٌ حُبُّه فَرْضٌ

مِن اللهِ وإِيمانُ

an imam whom to love is a duty

ordained by God, and an act of faith.

قليلُ النَّومِ في نُصْر

ةِ دِينِ اللهِ يَقْظانُ

Little given to sleep, in the defense

of God's religion ever wakeful;

مقيمٌ قي حِمى الإِسلا

مِ والحقِّ وظَعّانُ

he abides in the sanctuary of Islam

and truth, and journeys forth.

بَدَا لِنَداه في صفح

ةِ وجهِ الدهرِ عُنوانُ

His bounty's inscription appeared upon the page

of the face of Time.

وأَضحَى سيفُه ولَهُ

على الأَسيافِ سلطان

And his sword has come to hold

sovereignty over swords.

ونُزِّل فِيه بالتفضِي

لِ والتعظِيم قرآن

And about him the Qur'an was revealed,

proclaiming distinction and exaltation.

من النفرِ الَّذين هُم

ضحىً والناسُ أَدْجان

One of those men who are

morning brightness, while mankind is darkness.

وهمْ لِلعِزّ أَلوِيَةٌ

وهم لِلمُلك أَشْطان

They are banners of glory,

and the cords of kingship.

وهم شَرَحوا الهدى وهُدُوا

بِهِ والناسُ عميان

They expounded guidance, and were guided

by it, while mankind was blind.

وهم في السَّلم أجوادٌ

وهم في الحربِ فُرْسان

In peace they are generous men,

and in war they are horsemen.

ولولاهمْ لكان الخَل

قُ ضُلاّلا كما كانوا

But for them, humankind would be

astray, as they once were.

رَسَتْ لهمُ بأَرض الوَحْ

ي أَعْراقٌ وعِيدان

In the land of revelation are firmly planted

their roots and stems.

وحازوا الفضل أَجمعَه

وهم شِيبٌ وشُبّان

They attained every excellence,

gray-haired and youthful alike.

فهم لمَنارِ دينِ اللّ

هِ أَعلامٌ وأَركان

They are, for the beacon of God's faith,

guiding signs and pillars.

أبا المنصورِ إِنّ النا

س طُرّاً لك قد دانوا

Abu al-Mansur, truly all the people

have submitted wholly to you.

وقد ناداك بالطاع

ةِ والإِخلاص بغْدانُ

And Baghdad has called to you in obedience

and sincere devotion.

ولو مَلَكَ المُنَى بَلَدٌ

لطَاعَتْكَ خُراسانُ

Had any land power over its wishes,

Khurasan would obey you.

وناداك الصَّفا والحْجِ

رُ شَوْقاً وهْوَ لَهفْان

Al-Safa and al-Hijr have called to you

in longing, filled with yearning.

يُرَجَّى مِنك بَذَّالٌ

ويُخْشَى منك غَضْبانُ

In you the lavish giver is hoped for,

and the wrathful one is feared.

وَيَعْفُو منك وَهّاب

بما تَحوِيه مَنّان

A bountiful giver in you grants pardon,

generous with all you possess.

وما أَصبحَ في قدر

ةِ عاصٍ لك عِصيان

And rebellion lies beyond the power

of anyone who defies you.

لأنّك في الوَغَى بالمو

تِ ضَرَّابٌ وطَعّان

For in battle, dealing death,

you strike and thrust relentlessly.

ولولا سَعَةُ الأَزما

نِ ضاقت بِك أَزمان

But for the vast expanse of the ages,

the ages would be too cramped for you.

لأَنَّك مالِكٌ عَظُمتْ

بِك الأَفعال والشان

For you are a sovereign through whom

deeds and stature have grown great.

وأنّك للعلا حُسْنٌ

ولِلعافِين إحسان

And you are glory's beauty,

and bounty for petitioners;

وللرِّزقِ مَفاتيحٌ

وللرّحمان قُربْانُ

keys to sustenance,

and an offering to the All-Merciful.

أَرَى مالَكَ للجَدْوَى

مُبَاحاً ليس يَنْصان

I see your wealth, for bounty,

freely offered, never kept in reserve.

كأنّ البَذْل والجُودَ

على مالكَ أَعوان

As though lavish giving and generosity

were allies against your wealth.

فيا أكرَمَ من أمَّتْ

ه لِلمعروفِ رُكْبانُ

O most generous of those whom

riders have sought for bounty;

ويا أحلمَ مَن يُرجى

لدَيَهِ منه غُفْران

and O most forbearing of those from whom

one hopes for pardon in their presence.

بقاؤك لِلندى عُمْرٌ

وللأيّامِ عُمْران

Your continued life is life to generosity,

and prosperity to the days.

وحُبُّك للعُلاَ طَبْعٌ

وسِرُّك فِيه إعلان

Your love of glory is inborn,

and your secret concerning it is an open declaration.

وحظُّ جميعِ من عادا

ك تنكيلٌ وخُسْران

And the lot of all who oppose

you is exemplary punishment and loss.

فعِش ما شئتَ مسرورا

ومجدُكَ منك جَذْلان

So live in joy as long as you wish,

while your glory rejoices in you.

فيوسُفُ أنتَ في الحُسْنِ

وفي المُلْكِ سليمان

For in beauty you are Joseph,

and in kingship, Solomon.

عليك صلاةُ ربّك ما

رسا وأقامَ ثَهْلان

May your Lord's blessing be upon you as long

as Thahlan stands firm and endures.