عما يا ابنتي قيس صباحا ومظلما — Uday Bin Al Rqaa

عِما يا اِبنَتي قَيسَ صَباحاً وَمَظلَما

وَإِن كُنتُما أَجمَعتُما البَينَ فَاِسلَما

May you both fare well, daughters of Qays, in morning and darkness.

And if you have both resolved to part, may you both be safe.

وَإِن قالَ حُسناً أو أقَرَّ بِنَعمَةٍ

ثِنىً شَكَما الغَادي لَقَد كانَ مُكرَما

And if he speaks kindly or acknowledges a favor,

reward the morning visitor twice over: he was indeed honored.

تَحِيَّةَ مَن جِئتُما تَسأَلانِهِ

رَأى الحَقَّ في مَملوكِهِ إِن تَحَكَّما

A greeting from the one you both came to petition,

who saw his right over his slave, should he dictate terms.

فَقَضى بِإِحدى حاجَتَيهِ وَلَم يَجِد

لِحاجَتِهِ الأُخرى بِحَقٍّ تَصَرَّما

So he fulfilled one of his two needs, but found no

rightful release from his other need.

فَلَمّا تَجاوَزنَ الآداماءَ أَقصَرَت

بَطالَةَ قَلبٍ كانَ رَهناً مُتَيَّما

When they passed beyond al-Ādāmāʾ, there ceased

the folly of a heart held hostage, enslaved by love.

فَأَبرَزَ قِرنُ الشَمسِ حينَ طُلوعِها

لَنا مِن عَرانين النَحيزَةِ مَحزِما

Then the sun's horn, at its rising, revealed

to us a belt-like stretch among the ridges of al-Naḥīzah.

أُحَرِّجُ مالي يا جُوَينَ بنَ مَعبَدٍ

عَلَيكَ بِذاتِ اللَهِ إِن كُنتَ مُسلِما

I declare my property forbidden, O Juwayn son of Maʿbad,

to you, by God Himself, if you are a Muslim.

وَأَنشُدُكَ الرَحمَ الَّتي لَم تَكُن لَها

وَصولاً إِذا نابَت وَلا مُتَقَدِّما

And I adjure you by the kinship for which you have not been

a keeper of ties when need arose, nor one who stepped forward.

وَأَنهي بِجاداً أَن يَرومَ ظُلامَتي

بِجادِ بنِ سَعدٍ لَم أَكُن لَكَ مُحرَما

And I forbid Bijād to seek to wrong me:

Bijād son of Saʿd, I have not been an offender against you.

فَإِن تَأَخُذا مالي بِغَيرِ جِنايَةٍ

جَنَتها يَدي تَستَرحِما وَتَنَدَّما

If you two take my property without any offense

committed by my hand, you will both seek mercy and repent.

نَسيتُم مَساعينا الصَوالِحَ فيكُم

وَما تَذكُرونَ الفَضلَ إِلّا تَوَهُّما

You have forgotten our worthy deeds on your behalf,

and remember our generosity only dimly.

فَإِن تَعدَوَنّا الجاهِلَيَّةُ أَنَّنا

لَنُحدِثُ في الأَقوامِ بُؤسى وَأَنعُما

If ignorant arrogance assails us, surely we

will bring hardship and blessings among the peoples.

بَلا ذاكَ مِنّا اِبنُ المُعَذَّلِ مَرَّةً

وَعَمرُو بنُ هِندٍ عامَ أَصعَدَ موشِما

Ibn al-Muʿadhdhal once experienced that from us,

and ʿAmr son of Hind, the year he marched upland, showing his intent,

يَقودُ إِلَينا اِبنَي نِزارٍ مِنَ المَلا

وَأَهلَ العِراقِ سامِياً مُتَعَظِّما

leading against us the two sons of Nizār from al-Malā,

and the people of Iraq, lofty and haughty.

فَلَمّا ظَنَنّا أَنَّهُ نازِلٌ بِنا

ضَرَبنا وَوَلَّيناهُ جَمعاً عَرَمرَما

When we thought he was descending upon us,

we struck and confronted him with a mighty host.

وَإِنّا إِذا زارَ العَدُوُّ دِريارَنا

سَقَيناهُ شُرباً ذا سَمامٍ وَعَلقَما

And whenever the enemy visits our homes,

we give him a draught laden with poison and colocynth.

وَرَأسُ خَميسٍ قَد رَمانا فَغادَرَت

سِلاحُ كَماتي لَحمُهُ مُتَقَسَّما

An army's commander once attacked us; then

my champions' weapons left his flesh cut apart.

وَكَم مِن كَمِيٍّ قَد رَمانا بِجَمعِهِ

فَكانَ لَنا ذِكراً طَويلاً وَمَغنَما

How many an armored champion attacked us with his host,

and became for us enduring renown and spoils!

وَنَحنُ جَنَينا الخَيلَ سِتينَ لَيلَةً

يُنازِعَن في السَيرِ المَطِيَّ المُخَزَّما

We gathered in the horses for sixty nights,

as they vied on the march with nose-ringed riding camels,

شَوازِبَ كَالعُقبانِ تَدمى نُحورُها

نَرُدُّ بِها عَنّا الخَميسَ العَرَمرَما

lean as eagles, their upper chests bleeding;

with them we repel the mighty army from us.

وَكُلُّ رُدَينِيٍّ تَخالُ سِنانَهُ

شِهاباً بَدا في ظُلمَةِ اللَيلِ مُعلَما

And every Rudaynī spear—you would think its point

a meteor appearing clearly in the darkness of night.

وَنَحنُ فَكَكنا لِاِمرِئِ القَيسِ خالَهُ

فَلَم نَستَثِبهُ مُذ فَكَكناهُ دِرهَما

We freed Imruʾ al-Qays's maternal uncle,

and since freeing him have asked him for no dirham in return.

وَنَحنُ دَفَعنا عَن أُنيفٍ وَرَهطِهِ

بِأَرماحِنا يَوماً مِنَ الدَهرِ مُعظَما

We warded off from Unayf and his band,

with our spears, a momentous day in the course of time.

فَكَكنا بَني بَكرٍ وَقَد شَدَّ دونَهُم

أَبو كَربٍ غُلّاً وَأَزهُمَ مُحكَما

We freed the sons of Bakr, though there had been fastened upon them

by Abū Karib a fetter—and Azhum, securely bound.

وِسادَةُ عَتّابِ بنِ بَكرٍ كَأَنَّما

وَهَبنا بِهِ لِلتَغلِبِيينَ أَسهُما

The cushion of ʿAttāb son of Bakr—as though

through him we had bestowed shares upon the Taghlibites.

تَناوَلَ نُعمانَ بنَ عَقفانَ بَأسَنا

فَزارَ القُبورَ إِنَّهُ كانَ مُحرَما

Our might reached Nuʿmān son of ʿAqfān,

so he visited the graves: he was indeed an offender.

وَأَحيا رُواتَ مِن بَني القَينِ تِسعَةً

وَكانَ عَلى تِلكَ الأَلِيَّةِ مُقسِما

And Ruwāt kept nine of the sons of al-Qayn alive,

and he had sworn to that oath.

وَنَحنُ فَكَكنا عَن عَدِيِّ بنِ حاتِمٍ

أَخي طَيِّئِ الأَجيالِ غُلّاً مُحَرَّما

We removed from ʿAdī son of Ḥātim,

kinsman of Ṭayyiʾ's clans, a fetter deemed inviolable.

وَبَيضاءُ يَصطادُ الغُواةُ حَديثُها

تَرى فاحِماً أَحوى وَغَيلاً مُوَشَّما

And a fair woman whose conversation ensnares the wayward—

you see coal-black, dusky hair and a full, tattooed forearm.

رَأَت فَزَعاً في أَهلِها فَاِستَطارَها

صُراخُ يَقينٍ لَيسَ ظَنّاً مُرَجَّما

She saw terror among her kin, and she was startled by

a cry of certainty, not groundless conjecture.

كَمِثلِ مَهاةِ ما تَحِنُّ قِلادَةً

وَلا مُعقِداً في ساقِها مُتَخَذَّما

Like an oryx, with no necklace ringing,

nor a frayed binding around her leg.

فَجاءَت وَما تُدلي بِرَحمٍ قَريبَةٍ

وَلا وَجَدَت جاراً بِها مُتَذَمَّما

She came, pleading no close kinship,

and found no neighbor bound by honor to protect her.

فَلَما تَوَلّى حاجِبُ الشَمسِ لازَمَت

عَلى بَصَرٍ مِن باحَةِ الأَرضِ مَجثَما

When the sun's brow had turned away, she remained

at a crouching-place in full view on the open expanse of land.

مَبيتَ عَمٍ لَم يَدرِ ما حَسَبُ السُرى

بِحَقٍّ وَلَم يَسمَع لَهُ قَبلَهُ سَما

spending the night like a blind man, not knowing the worth of night travel,

in truth, nor having heard its name before.

يُسَهِّدُها الهَمَّ الضَعيفُ كَأَنَّما

تُماطِلُ دون الصُبحِ جَولاً مُجَرَّما

Feeble worry kept her sleepless, as though

she were lingering a whole year before dawn.

إِذا سَئِمَت طولَ الجُلوسِ تَوَسَّدَت

بَناناً كَهُدّابِ الدِمَقسِ وَمِعصَما

When she wearied of sitting long, she pillowed her head on

fingers like the fringes of fine silk, and a wrist.

وَباتَت تَنادي أُمُّ جَعدَةَ زَوجَها

إِلَيها وَما تَدعو حَميماً وَلا حَما

Umm Jaʿdah spent the night calling her husband

to her, though she called neither an intimate nor an in-law.

فَلَمّا اَنجَلى عَنها الصَريمُ وَأَبصَرَت

هِجاناً يُسامي اللَيلَ أَبيَضَ مُعلَما

When the night lifted from her, and she saw

a pure light rising against the night, white and distinct,

غَدَت في قَميصَيها فَضاقَ نَصيفُها

وَما أَلبَسَتهُ الرَأسَ إِلّا تَعَمَّما

she went out in her two tunics; her veil was too narrow,

and she put it on her head only as a turban.

فَوافَت إِلَينا مِثلَها مِن وَلِيِّها

فَقُلنا إِلَينا إِنَّ فينا تَكَرُّما

She came to us, with one like herself from her kin,

and we said, 'Come to us; there is generosity among us.'

فَلَما رَأَيناهُنّ سَبياً يَعُدنَنا

حُفاةً حَذَوناهُنَّ ظَهراً مُزَمَّما

When we saw them, captives coming to visit us,

barefoot, we furnished them with haltered mounts.

جَمَعنا بِسَبيٍ جاءَنا مِن نِسائِهِم

بُروداً وَقَبطِيّاً وَريطاً مُرَقَّما

For the captives who came to us from among their women, we gathered

cloaks, Coptic cloth, and patterned wraps.

فَأُبنَ إِلَيهِم مِن نَدانا بِنِعمَةٍ

وَلم نَستَبِح سوءاً وَلَم نَغشَ مُجرِما

They returned to them with a blessing from our bounty,

and we permitted no wrong, nor approached them as wrongdoers.

إِباؤُهُمُ أَن يَكُروا الفَضلَ إِنَّنا

صَبَحنا الرِماحَ مِن أَبي جابِرٍ دَما

They refuse to return the favor; indeed, we

gave the spears a morning draught of Abū Jābir's blood.