للشعر في خطرات الفكر آمالُ

للشعر في خطرات الفكر آمالُ

وللقصائد إعراض واقبالُ

وللقصائد إعراض واقبالُ

For poetry, amid the stirrings of thought, there are hopes.

Poetry hopes for epiphanies of thought

And poems meet rejection and welcome.

And poems have indifference and zeal

وللعروض بحارٌ عمَّ طالبَها طوراً

وللعروض بحارٌ عمَّ طالبَها طوراً

نداها وطوراً خاب تسأَلُ

نداها وطوراً خاب تسأَلُ

And prosody has seas: at times, their seeker is suffused

Meters have seas those who long for sail therein for a while

With their bounty; at other times, you ask in vain.

It calls them, and for a while their hopes are dashed

وللمعاني اذا جادت بها درر

وللمعاني اذا جادت بها درر

يزينها النظم لا فعلٌ وفعَّالُ

يزينها النظم لا فعلٌ وفعَّالُ

And meanings, when generously bestowed, have pearls

When meanings are generous with their pearls

That verse adorns, not deed or tireless doer.

Prosody adorns them, not verbs and epithets

بيانها السحر من أسرارهِ انكشفت

بيانها السحر من أسرارهِ انكشفت

غوامضُ الحكم يروي سعدها الفالُ

غوامضُ الحكم يروي سعدها الفالُ

Her eloquence is magic; from its secrets are unveiled

Its eloquence is the magic of its secrets revealed

The mysteries of wisdom; the omen recounts her good fortune.

The subtleties of wisdom its felicity foretells

نطوي وننشر نمن تدبيجها غرراً

نطوي وننشر نمن تدبيجها غرراً

والطبق والجمع والتفريق إِشكالُ

والطبق والجمع والتفريق إِشكالُ

We fold and unfold, bestowing brilliant passages on her embellishment.

We fold and unfold, giving its jewels assortment

And antithesis, combination, and separation are a puzzle.

Convention, collection, separation forms entanglement

حلّت عقود معاليها بتوريةٍ

حلّت عقود معاليها بتوريةٍ

حلت بها الذوق والتشبيه سلسالُ

حلت بها الذوق والتشبيه سلسالُ

She adorned the necklaces of her lofty virtues with double meaning;

It unravels the knots of its lofty ideas with metaphor

She sweetened taste with it; simile is a limpid stream.

Taste and simile adorn it like a chain

عزَّت فلا وصل الاَّ من مكارمها

عزَّت فلا وصل الاَّ من مكارمها

يرجى وبالفضل للآمال آجالُ

يرجى وبالفضل للآمال آجالُ

She is hard to attain; no union except through her noble graces

It is too proud for any to reach it save its nobility

Is hoped for; through merit, hopes have appointed times.

Hopes for it have terms, and grace has none

تلقي المدائح اسناداً بمسندها

تلقي المدائح اسناداً بمسندها

وتُستَقلّ بها في الحمد أقوالُ

وتُستَقلّ بها في الحمد أقوالُ

She offers praises as predications through her predicate;

It receives praise lending its own commendation

And sayings are deemed too slight when she is praised.

And suffices therewith in praise, no words

عن حسنها غرر الاشعار قد قصرت

عن حسنها غرر الاشعار قد قصرت

وصفاً وبالقصر إحسان وإجمال

وصفاً وبالقصر إحسان وإجمال

The finest gems of poetry have fallen short of her beauty

The gems of verse fall short describing its beauty

In description; yet brevity brings excellence and concision.

Curtailment, favor, and summation show compassion

أنعم بها فهي أعراية سفرت

أنعم بها فهي أعراية سفرت

واسعد بطلعتها فالسعد إقبالُ

واسعد بطلعتها فالسعد إقبالُ

How excellent she is—a Bedouin woman [uncertain reading] who has unveiled herself!

It has blessed with an untrodden path, so it thrives

And rejoice at her appearance, for good fortune draws near.

Its rising was felicity, and in felicity, ascent

تفرَّدت بين ابكار اللُّغى وعلت

تفرَّدت بين ابكار اللُّغى وعلت

قدراً وعزَّت بها بالفخر أجيالُ

قدراً وعزَّت بها بالفخر أجيالُ

She stood unrivaled among the maidens of languages, and rose

It surpassed the virgins of language and towered

In rank; through her, generations grew mighty in pride.

In rank, generations boast of its pride

صحت بإِعلالها الأَفهام واعتصمت

صحت بإِعلالها الأَفهام واعتصمت

حكماً وفي صحَّة الاحكام إعلالُ

حكماً وفي صحَّة الاحكام إعلالُ

Minds grew sound through her weakening, and held fast

It enlightened minds with its reasoning and held fast

In judgment; yet in sound judgments lies a weakness.

To wisdom, and correcting wisdoms needs reason’s test

وقد نحت نحوها الافكار وارتفعت

وقد نحت نحوها الافكار وارتفعت

بنصبها منصب التفضيل ابطالُ

بنصبها منصب التفضيل ابطالُ

And thoughts have turned toward her; and there have risen

Thoughts have sculpted its form and risen thereby

Through her appointment to the rank of preeminence, champions.

To preference’s lofty office its heroes

تنازعتها معاني الوصف واشتغلت

تنازعتها معاني الوصف واشتغلت

بنعت عاملها الموصوف اشغالُ

بنعت عاملها الموصوف اشغالُ

Meanings of description contended over her, and labors were occupied

The meanings of description contested it and busied

With qualifying her governing word, itself described.

Themselves describing its subject of inscription

وكم رجال افاض الدهر شهرتهم

وكم رجال افاض الدهر شهرتهم

براية المجد في مضمارها جالوا

براية المجد في مضمارها جالوا

And many are the men whose fame Time has spread;

And how many men did time render renowned

They ranged in her racecourse beneath glory's banner.

With the banner of glory in its racecourse soared

هيهات هيهات ادراكٌ لشوطهمِ

هيهات هيهات ادراكٌ لشوطهمِ

فدون ذلك اخطارٌ وأهوالُ

فدون ذلك اخطارٌ وأهوالُ

Far, far beyond reach is catching up with them in their race!

Alas! Alas! Grasping their feat is arduous

For dangers and terrors bar the way to that.

Beyond that lie hazards and horrors untold

وكل علمٍ وفنٍّ ظلّ ينشدهم

وكل علمٍ وفنٍّ ظلّ ينشدهم

بدائع الشكر تقريظاً لما نالوا

بدائع الشكر تقريظاً لما نالوا

And every field of knowledge and art kept chanting to them

And every science and art continued to praise them

Wondrous thanks, in tribute to what they attained.

With masterpieces of gratitude for what they were given

لا زال يزهو سناهم كلَّما خطرت

لا زال يزهو سناهم كلَّما خطرت

للشعر في خطرات الفكر آمالُ

للشعر في خطرات الفكر آمالُ

May their radiance ever gleam whenever there arise

Still their era thrives whenever brought to mind

For poetry, amid the stirrings of thought, hopes.

Poetry hopes for epiphanies of thought