سلام البيانِ وفتيانهِ

سلام البيانِ وفتيانهِ

عليكم معاشرَ اعوانه

عليكم معاشرَ اعوانه

Greetings from Eloquence and its young champions

Greetings of eloquence and its youths

Be upon you, O company of its supporters.

Upon you O company of its supporters

لأنتم مؤمَّل ملهوفه

لأنتم مؤمَّل ملهوفه

وأنتم مؤمنُ فزعانه

وأنتم مؤمنُ فزعانه

You are indeed the hope of its anguished one,

For you are my hopeful longing

And the safeguard of its frightened one.

And you are my anxious believers

ولولا بقية أمثالكم

ولولا بقية أمثالكم

لضاعت بقية قحطانه

لضاعت بقية قحطانه

Were it not for the few remaining men like you,

And were it not for the rest of your likes

The remnant of its Qahtan would have been lost.

The rest of Qahtan's lineage would be lost

ففي الشرق باغٍ على حقه

ففي الشرق باغٍ على حقه

وشانٍ يغير على شانه

وشانٍ يغير على شانه

For in the East is one who encroaches upon its rights,

So in the East there is an unjust garden

And a detractor who assaults its honor.

Whose affairs are changed according to its whims

أصيب البيان بما راعه

أصيب البيان بما راعه

وهز رواسخ أركانه

وهز رواسخ أركانه

Eloquence was struck by what terrified it

Eloquence was stricken by what alarmed it

And shook its deep-rooted pillars,

And shook the pillars of its pillars

بكل دخيلٍ على ثوبه

بكل دخيلٍ على ثوبه

تغلغلَ داخلَ قمصانه

تغلغلَ داخلَ قمصانه

By every intruder upon its robe

With every foreigner to its garb

Who burrowed inside its shirts,

Who infiltrated inside its shirts

فعاثَ ببهجة منثوره

فعاثَ ببهجة منثوره

وفكَّ قلائد عِقيانه

وفكَّ قلائد عِقيانه

Then ravaged the splendor of its prose

So he corrupted the splendor of its scattered pearls

And unstrung the necklaces of its pure gold,

And undid the necklaces of its good youths

واطمع باقلَ من مجده

واطمع باقلَ من مجده

بإرث سلالة سحبانه

بإرث سلالة سحبانه

And made Baqil covet a share of its glory

And coveted from its glory, less than its glory

Through inheriting from the line of its Sahban.

The inheritance of the lineage of Suhban

فبات يثغثغُ في داره

فبات يثغثغُ في داره

دعيٌّ المَّ بديوانه

دعيٌّ المَّ بديوانه

So, in its house, there babbled through the night

So he spent the night twittering in its abode

An impostor who had entered its assembly.

A petitioner with its registry

وحلَّ الغرابُ على روضه

وحلَّ الغرابُ على روضه

محلّ الحمامة من بانه

محلّ الحمامة من بانه

And the crow settled upon its garden,

And crows descended upon its meadow

In the dove's place upon its ban-tree.

In place of the doves of its structure

أرى الشرق يمنع عيني ترى

أرى الشرق يمنع عيني ترى

أديباً عزيزاً باحضانه

أديباً عزيزاً باحضانه

I see the East preventing my eyes from beholding

I see the East preventing my eyes from seeing

A writer honored in its embrace.

A precious literate in its bosom

أراه يهيم بطاغوته

أراه يهيم بطاغوته

ويزري بعترة لقمانه

ويزري بعترة لقمانه

I see it enamored of its tyrant

I see it infatuated with its tyrant

And disparaging the descendants of its Luqman,

And intimate with the honorable family of Luqman

ويشقي الصحافي في ارضه

ويشقي الصحافي في ارضه

لينعم كسرى بإيوانه

لينعم كسرى بإيوانه

And making the journalist wretched on its soil,

And making the journalist miserable in its land

So that Kisra may luxuriate in his vaulted hall,

So that Chosroes may enjoy his palace

ويولي المشانق اعناقنا

ويولي المشانق اعناقنا

فدى للامير وتيجانه

فدى للامير وتيجانه

And giving our necks to the gallows

And putting nooses around our necks

As ransom for the prince and his crowns,

As ransom for the prince and his crown

ويغذي المنايا باكبادنا

ويغذي المنايا باكبادنا

لتسلم مهجةُ سلطانه

لتسلم مهجةُ سلطانه

And feeding death with our livers

And feeding deaths with our livers

So that its sultan's lifeblood may be spared.

So that the beloved of its sultan may be safe

تعدى وصيةَ انجيله

تعدى وصيةَ انجيله

وخالف آية قرآنه

وخالف آية قرآنه

It transgressed the commandment of its Gospel

Transgressing the testament of its Bible

And defied the verse of its Qur'an.

And violating a verse of its Qur’an

فهذا يضج على شيخه

فهذا يضج على شيخه

وذاك يصيح بمطرانه

وذاك يصيح بمطرانه

So this one clamors over his sheikh,

So this one cries out against its sheikh

And that one cries out for his bishop.

And that one shouts at its bishop

هو الشرق يكرم عُماته

هو الشرق يكرم عُماته

ويرعى قلانس رهبانه

ويرعى قلانس رهبانه

Such is the East: it honors its turbans

It is the East that honors its midwives

And cherishes the caps of its monks,

And observes the skullcaps of its monks

ويعنى بكل فتىً آمرٍ

ويعنى بكل فتىً آمرٍ

ولو هو اصغر غلمانه

ولو هو اصغر غلمانه

And attends to every young man who commands,

And is concerned with every commanding lad

Even if he is the youngest of its boys.

Even if he is the youngest of its lads

واما الأديبُ ففيه يذلُّ

واما الأديبُ ففيه يذلُّ

وقد عزَّ خارج أوطانه

وقد عزَّ خارج أوطانه

But the writer is humiliated within it,

As for the literate, it humiliates him in it

Though honored beyond his native lands.

Although he is honored outside its homelands

يروع الصحافة ان لا ترى

يروع الصحافة ان لا ترى

فتاها كثيراً بإخوانه

فتاها كثيراً بإخوانه

It appalls the press not to see

It frightens the press lest it see

Its young champion strengthened by his brothers.

Many of its youths with its brothers

يموت ليسعد لبنانه

يموت ليسعد لبنانه

ويحيا شقياً بلبنانه

ويحيا شقياً بلبنانه

He dies so that his Lebanon may prosper,

He dies so that Lebanon may be happy

And lives wretchedly in his Lebanon.

And he lives miserably in Lebanon

وكم ليلةٍ باتها ساهراً

وكم ليلةٍ باتها ساهراً

يعضُّ اليراع بأسنانه

يعضُّ اليراع بأسنانه

And how many a night he has spent awake,

And how many nights he spent awake

Biting the reed pen with his teeth,

Biting his fingers with his teeth

وذو البغي لاوٍ على ناهدٍ

وذو البغي لاوٍ على ناهدٍ

يُداعب ناضج رمانه

يُداعب ناضج رمانه

While the oppressor bends over a full-breasted woman,

While the unjust is crouching over a sleeping lover

Fondling his ripe pomegranates.

Caressing her ripe pomegranate

يهون عليه تبيد الديارُ

يهون عليه تبيد الديارُ

وتقضي لبانة شيطانه

وتقضي لبانة شيطانه

He cares little if the homes perish,

The ruin of homes is easy for him

So long as his devil's craving is satisfied.

And the perdition of Lebanon's devil

وذو المالِ خالٍ إلى ماله

وذو المالِ خالٍ إلى ماله

يقبل وجنةَ رنانه

يقبل وجنةَ رنانه

And the wealthy man withdraws to his money,

And the moneyed man is intimate with his money

Kissing the cheek of his ringing coin.

Kissing the cheek of his soft singing girl

وقسط الصحافة من كفهِ

وقسط الصحافة من كفهِ

كقسطِ مؤملِ احسانه

كقسطِ مؤملِ احسانه

And the press's share from his hand

And the press's share from his palm

Is like the share of one hoping for his charity.

Is like the share of his wishful generosity

أما في البلاد اخو همةٍ

أما في البلاد اخو همةٍ

يجرُّ العتيَّ بآذانه

يجرُّ العتيَّ بآذانه

Is there no man of resolve in the land

As for in the countries a brother of determination

Who drags the insolent man by his ears,

Dragging the lame with his ears

بردُّ الأديب إلى تخته

بردُّ الأديب إلى تخته

يعيد الغبي إلى خانه

يعيد الغبي إلى خانه

By restoring the writer to his throne,

The return of the literate to his throne

And returns the fool to his inn?

Is the return of the fool to his inn

كفى ما شهدنا من المضحكات

كفى ما شهدنا من المضحكات

لهذا الزمان وصبيانه

لهذا الزمان وصبيانه

Enough of the absurdities we have witnessed

Enough of what we have witnessed of laughters

From this age and its boys.

For this time and its youths

افدوى فديتك لا تجزعي

افدوى فديتك لا تجزعي

لبث الأديب واحزانه

لبث الأديب واحزانه

O Fadwa, may I be your ransom; do not grieve

Heal, my redemption, do not despair

Over the writer's anguish and sorrows.

Of the literate's staying and his sorrows

وغني حمامة غني له

وغني حمامة غني له

فسجعك يمضي بأشجانه

فسجعك يمضي بأشجانه

And sing, O dove, sing for him,

And sing, dove, sing to him

For your cooing carries his sorrows away.

For your twittering makes his passions sober

وخلي الانيس بألحانه

وخلي الانيس بألحانه

يسوق النفوس إلى حانه

يسوق النفوس إلى حانه

And let the companion, with his melodies,

And let the intimate one with his tunes

Lead souls to his tavern.

Lead the souls to the tavern

فنحن بنو دولةٍ نلتقي

فنحن بنو دولةٍ نلتقي

كراحِ الربيعِ وريحانه

كراحِ الربيعِ وريحانه

For we, children of a realm, meet

For we are the children of a state who meet

Like spring's wine and its basil.

Like the winds of spring and its basil

إلى الخلد نعلو بأحلامنا

إلى الخلد نعلو بأحلامنا

ندق نوافذ رضوانه

ندق نوافذ رضوانه

We rise toward eternity on our dreams,

With our dreams we ascend to eternity

Knocking upon the windows of its Ridwan.

Knocking on the windows of its gardens

وهذا يطير بأشعاره

وهذا يطير بأشعاره

وذاك يطير بألحانه

وذاك يطير بألحانه

And this one soars on his poems,

And this one flies with his poems

And that one soars on his melodies.

While that one flies with his tunes

يميناً بديني يمين امرئٍ

يميناً بديني يمين امرئٍ

يفي للمسيح وقربانه

يفي للمسيح وقربانه

I swear by my faith—the oath of a man

By my religion, the oath of a man

Who keeps faith with Christ and his sacrifice:

Who fulfills to Christ and his sacrifice

لو أن النبوغ له وزنه

لو أن النبوغ له وزنه

وفي الشرق منصب ميزانه

وفي الشرق منصب ميزانه

If genius were given its due weight,

If genius had its weight

And its scales had a place in the East,

And scales were erected in the East

لكان فتاناً فتىً راجحاً

لكان فتاناً فتىً راجحاً

وداس معاطس أقرانه

وداس معاطس أقرانه

He would be captivating—a young man of weight—

He would be a superior young man

And would trample the noses of his peers.

And would trample his peers

ولكن للشرق يوماً يجيءُ

ولكن للشرق يوماً يجيءُ

فيا نفس صبراً لا بانه

فيا نفس صبراً لا بانه

But a day will come for the East;

But the East will have a day that comes

So, O soul, patience until its appointed time [probable reading of the unclear ending].

So O soul, patience, do not appear