منع النوم طارقات الهموم — Uday Bin Al Rqaa

مَنَعَ النَومَ طارِقاتُ الهُمومِ

وَأَسىً وَاِدِّكارُ خَطبٍ قَديمِ

Sleep was denied by night-visiting cares,

And grief, and remembrance of an old calamity,

مِن لَدُن أَن أَجَنَّني اللَيلُ حَتّى

فَضَحَ الصُبحُ واضِحاتُ النُجومِ

From the moment night enveloped me, until

Dawn put the brilliant stars to shame,

بِمُنيرٍ يُعَصفِرُ الأُفقَ مِنهُ

لاحَ في أُخرَياتِ جُونٍ بَهيمِ

With its light dyeing the horizon safflower-yellow,

Shining in the last reaches of pitch-black darkness.

أَخبِرِ النَفسَ إِنَّما الناسُ كَالعي

دانِ بَينَ نابِتٍ وَهَشيمِ

Tell your soul: people are only like sticks,

Some growing, some dry and broken.

مِن دِيارٍ غَشيتُها ذُكرَةً ما

بَينَ قاراتِ ضاحِكٍ فَالهَزيمِ

Of dwellings I visited, stirred by remembrance,

Between the knolls of Dahik and al-Hazim.

نَسَجَت ظَهرَها الرَياحاتُ حَتّى

بَرِئَ القاعُ مِن جَميعِ الرُسومِ

The winds wove across their surface, until

The level ground was clear of every trace,

مِثلُ ما بُرِّئَ الحيرَةَ جُروحَ ال

جِلدِ حَتّى يُصَحَّ بَعدَ كُلومِ

Like the healing of wounds [wording unclear]

Of the skin, until it is sound again after gashes.

وَاِختِلافُ الأَيّامِ حَتّى مَحاها

سالِفُ الدَهرِ بَعدَ سَكنٍ مُقيمِ

And the succession of days, until they were erased by

Time gone by, after long-established habitation.

دارُ مَكتومَةَ الَّتي فَتَنَتني

بِخَبالٍ فَمَن لِقَلبٍ سَقيمِ

The dwelling of Maktumah, who bewitched me

Into madness—who, then, will tend a sick heart?

جَمَعَتنا بِها نَوى الحَيِّ حَولاً

نَتَلَهّى بِسِرِّنا المَكتومِ

The tribe's journey brought us together there for a year,

Dallying with our concealed secret.

دائِباً لاهِياً تُخَوِّنُ حِلمي

بِثَنايا غُرٍّ وَوَجهٍ وَسيمِ

Tirelessly I dallied; she undid my self-restraint

With white front teeth and a lovely face,

وَبِأَنَّ النَصيفَ أَسفَلَ مِنهُ

رَجُلٌ وارِدٌ مُبينُ النَعيمِ

And because below her veil lay

Softly waving, flowing hair that showed her luxury;

وَسَموطُ تَستَنُّ فَوقَ التَرافي

مِن جُمانٍ وَلُؤلُؤٍ مَنظومِ

And necklace-strands coursing over her collarbones,

Of silver beads and strung pearls.

تَجتَلي ظُلمَةَ الحِباءِ كَما

يَنكَشِفُ الصُبحُ عَن مَهاةِ الصَريمِ

She dispels the tent's darkness, as

Dawn reveals an oryx of the sandy waste.

فَنَعَ القَلبَ أَن تَلَمَّ نَواها

فَرَحَ النَفسِ بِالغِنى المَغنومِ

The heart rejoiced that her journey drew near [reading uncertain],

Like the soul's joy in riches won.

فَتَناسى الصِبا بِذاتِ هَبّاتٍ

تَفتَدي بَعدَ اِبنِها بِالرَسيمِ

Then youthful love was forgotten, with a she-camel of sudden spurts,

Who, after losing her calf, ransoms herself by swift trotting.

طَرَحَت آخِرَ الثَلاثَةِ نَسأً

غَيرَ مُستَلبِئٍ وَلا مَرؤومِ

She cast the last of her three calves unborn,

Neither fed colostrum nor tenderly nursed.

فَهيَ كَالقارِحِ الصُهابي أَضحى

عاسِفاً لِلتَنوفَةِ الدَيمومِ

She is like a full-grown tawny wild ass, now

Wandering through the vast, trackless desert.

لاحَهُ الجُزءُ مِن عُنازَةَ حَتّى

لَم يَجِد ثَوبَ شِربِهِ بِاليَتيمِ

Living on Unazah's herbage alone had wasted him, until

He found no renewed draught at al-Yatim.

فَعَدا يَعرِفُ المَخارِمَ حَتّى

آبَ عَيناً تَرمي بِأَجنٍ جَمومِ

Then he ran, knowing the mountain passes, until

He returned to a spring pouring out plentiful, stale water,

مُهَيَّعٌ تُذعِرُ الغَليلَ بِرَيٍّ

مُنكَرٍ لِلسِنانِ وَالحَلقومِ

Wide and open, driving away burning thirst with a drink

Repugnant to the tongue and throat [reading uncertain].

وَلَقَد حالَ دونَ ذَلِكَ هَمٌّ

مِثلُهُ فَليَزَع فُؤادَ الحَليمِ

And indeed a grief has stood in the way of all that,

Such as should check the heart of a forbearing man.

إِن قَومي تَفَرَّقوا بَعدَما كا

نوا هُمُ القَوم فَاِبكِ غَيرَ مَلومِ

If my people have scattered, after they once

Were the people indeed, then weep without blame.

وَلَقَد يَخفِضُ المُجاوِرُ فيهِم

غَيرُ مُستَشرِفٍ وَلا مَذمومِ

And indeed the neighbor among them lives at ease,

Neither anxiously watching nor reviled.

تَدفَعُ القَرحُ الصَلادِمُ عَنهُمُ

كَلَّ جَمعٍ مُكابِرٍ لِهُمومِ

Full-grown, sturdy horses repel from them

Every overbearing, mighty host.

أَثبَتوا رَبطَهُنَّ مُذ يَبِسَ البا

رِضُ يَنثُرنَ في مَخالي القَصيمِ

They secured their tethers since the fresh herbage dried,

Tossing chopped fodder about in their feedbags.

فَتَرَبَّعنَ كَالأَنابيبِ يَحمِلنَ إِلى ال

رَوعِ كُلَّ خِرقٍ كَريمِ

Then they grazed through spring like reed-shafts, bearing into

Battle every resourceful, generous man.

عارِفاتٍ إِذا التَقى أَسَلُ المَوتِ

بِكَرِّ الكُماةِ وَالتَقديمِ

Knowing, when the spearpoints of death meet,

The charge of armored warriors and the advance.

مُمسِكاتٍ بِكُلِّ ثَغرٍ مَخوفِ

آزَماتٍ عَلى فُؤوسِ الشَكيمِ

Holding firm at every dangerous frontier,

Biting fast on the axe-heads of their bits.

هُنَّ عُجمٌ وَقَد فَهِمنَ مِنَ القَولِ

هَبي وَاِجدَمي وَهابي وَقَومي

They are speechless, yet they have understood these words:

'Move! Advance! Go on! Stand!'

كُلَّ خَيفانَةٍ وَأَجرَدَ نَهدٍ

حَبَشِيِّ الشَوى كُمَيتِ الأَديمِ

Every slender, locust-like mare and sleek, powerful stallion,

With Abyssinian-black legs and a dark bay hide,

ذابِلٍ شاخِصٍ لَهُ مَتنُ ظَبيٍ

وَنَداتا عيرٍ وَساقا ظَليمِ

Lean and tall, with a gazelle's back,

A wild ass's two shoulder-muscles and a male ostrich's legs,

وَذناباً تَزينُ دُبراً لَهُ ذا

كَفَلٍ مُشرِفٍ كَصَمدِ الجُثومِ

And a tail adorning his hindquarters, with a

High rump, like a mass of crouching rock,

وَفِقارٌ مُوَثَّقٌ وَضُلوعٌ

نافِجاتُ الحِجابِ وَالحَيزومِ

A firmly knit backbone, and ribs

Swelling out the diaphragm and chest,

وَتَليلٍ كَالجِذعِ شَذَّبَ عَنهُ

جارِمُ النَخلِ ليفَهُ بِالقُدومِ

And a neck like a tree-trunk from which

A date-harvester has shaved the fiber with an adze;

وَتَوَلّى الحَصا ذواتِ نُسورٍ

مُجَمَّراتٍ يَؤُدنَ صُمَّ الرَضيمِ

And hooves with frogs turn the gravel aside,

Compact and rounded, bearing down on solid, piled stones.