صحا القلب عن سلمى وقد كاد لا يسلو — Zuhair Bin Abi Salma

صَحا القَلبُ عَن سَلمى وَقَد كادَ لا يَسلو

وَأَقفَرَ مِن سَلمى التَعانيقُ فَالثِقلُ

My heart has recovered from Salma, though it had nearly failed to forget her.

And al-Taʿaniq, then al-Thiql, stand deserted of Salma.

وَقَد كُنتُ مِن سَلمى سِنينَ ثَمانِياً

عَلى صيرِ أَمرٍ ما يَمُرُّ وَما يَحلو

For eight years, where Salma was concerned, I had been

facing an affair whose outcome was neither bitter nor sweet.

وَكُنتُ إِذا ما جِئتُ يَوماً لِحاجَةٍ

مَضَت وَأَجَمَّت حاجَةُ الغَدِ ما تَخلو

Whenever I came one day with a need,

it passed, and tomorrow's need arose anew, never ceasing.

وَكُلُّ مُحِبٍّ أَحدَثَ النَأيُ عِندَهُ

سَلُوَّ فُؤادٍ غَيرَ حُبِّكِ ما يَسلو

And separation has brought every lover

forgetfulness of heart—except love for you, which never forgets.

تَأَوَّبَني ذِكرُ الأَحِبَّةِ بَعدَما

هَجَعتُ وَدوني قُلَّةُ الحَزنِ فَالرَملُ

The memory of loved ones revisited me at night after

I had slept, with al-Hazn's summit, then al-Raml, between us.

فَأَقسَمتُ جَهداً بِالمَنازِلِ مِن مِنىً

وَما سُحِقَت فيهِ المَقادِمُ وَالقَملُ

So I swore earnestly by the encampments at Mina,

and where forelocks and lice were scraped away:

لَأَرتَحِلَن بِالفَجرِ ثُمَّ لَأَدأَبَن

إِلى اللَيلِ إِلّا أَن يُعَرِّجَني طِفلُ

I shall surely depart at dawn, then press tirelessly onward

until night, unless rain detains me,

إِلى مَعشَرٍ لَم يورِثِ اللُؤمَ جَدُّهُم

أَصاغِرَهُم وَكُلُّ فَحلٍ لَهُ نَجلُ

toward a people whose grandfather did not bequeath baseness

to their younger men—and every stallion has offspring.

تَرَبَّص فَإِن تُقوِ المَرَوراةُ مِنهُمُ

وَداراتُها لا تُقوِ مِنهُم إِذاً نَخلُ

Wait: if al-Marawrah stands empty of them,

and its basins, then Nakhl will not stand empty of them.

فَإِن تُقوِيا مِنهُم فَإِنَّ مُحَجِّراً

وَجِزعَ الحِسا مِنهُم إِذاً قَلَّما يَخلو

And if both are empty of them, then Muhajjir

and the valley bend of al-Hisa are seldom empty of them.

بِلادٌ بِها نادَمتُهُم وَأَلِفتُهُم

فَإِن تُقوِيا مِنهُم فَإِنَّهُما بَسلُ

Lands where I drank with them and grew fond of them;

if those two are empty of them, both are forbidden ground.

إِذا فَزِعوا طاروا إِلى مُستَغيثِهِم

طِوالَ الرِماحِ لا ضِعافٌ وَلا عُزلُ

When summoned in alarm, they fly to their caller for help,

bearing long spears, neither weak nor unarmed,

بِخَيلٍ عَلَيها جِنَّةٌ عَبقَرِيَّةٌ

جَديرونَ يَوماً أَن يَنالوا فَيَستَعلوا

on horses bearing jinn of Abqar,

fit to win their aim one day and prevail.

وَإِن يُقتَلوا فَيُشتَفى بِدِمائِهِم

وَكانوا قَديماً مِن مَناياهُمُ القَتلُ

And if they are slain, their blood satisfies vengeance;

being slain has long been among their fated ends.

عَلَيها أُسودٌ ضارِياتٌ لَبوسُهُم

سَوابِغُ بيضٌ لا تُخَرِّقُها النَبلُ

Upon those horses are predatory lions, whose armor is

bright, full-length mail that arrows cannot pierce.

إِذا لَقِحَت حَربٌ عَوانٌ مُضِرَّةٌ

ضَروسٌ تُهِرُّ الناسَ أَنيابُها عُصلُ

When a seasoned, ruinous war conceives,

biting and snarling at men, with crooked fangs,

قُضاعِيَّةٌ أَو أُختُها مُضَرِيَّةٌ

يُحَرَّقُ في حافاتِها الحَطَبُ الجَزلُ

a war of Qudaʿah, or its sister of Mudar,

with heavy logs burned along its edges,

تَجِدهُم عَلى ما خَيَّلَت هُم إِزائَها

وَإِن أَفسَدَ المالَ الجَماعاتُ وَالأَزلُ

you find them, whatever shape it takes, facing it,

even if massed hosts and hardship have ruined wealth.

يَحُشّونَها بِالمَشرَفِيَّةِ وَالقَنا

وَفِتيانِ صِدقٍ لا ضِعافٌ وَلا نُكلُ

They feed its fire with Mashrafi swords and spears,

and trusty young men, neither weak nor shirkers.

تَهامونَ نَجدِيّونَ كَيداً وَنُجعَةً

لِكُلِّ أُناسٍ مِن وَقائِعِهِم سَجلُ

They range through Tihamah and Najd, for stratagems and pasture;

every people has a bucketful from their battles.

هُمُ ضَرَبوا عَن فَرجِها بِكَتيبَةٍ

كَبَيضاءِ حَرسٍ في طَوائِفِها الرَجلُ

They struck in defense of its breach with a battalion

like the white rock of Hars, with footmen along its flanks.

مَتى يَشتَجِر قَومٌ تَقُل سَرَواتُهُم

هُمُ بَينَنا فَهُم رِضاً وَهُمُ عَدلُ

Whenever a people quarrel, their chiefs say,

"They shall stand between us: they are acceptable and just."

هُمُ جَدَّدوا أَحكامَ كُلِّ مُضِلَّةٍ

مِنَ العُقمِ لا يُلفى لِأَمثالِها فَصلُ

They renewed the judgments in every baffling matter,

among intractable cases whose like admits no resolution,

بِعَزمَةِ مَأمورٍ مُطيعٍ وَآمِرٍ

مُطاعٍ فَلا يُلفى لِحَزمِهِمُ مِثلُ

with the resolve of an obedient follower and a commander

who is obeyed; no equal to their prudence is found.

وَلَستُ بِلاقٍ بِالحِجازِ مُجاوِراً

وَلا سَفَراً إِلّا لَهُ مِنهُمُ حَبلُ

Nor do I meet in the Hijaz any resident

or band of travelers without a bond to them.

بِلادٌ بِها عَزّوا مَعَدّاً وَغَيرَها

مَشارِبُها عَذبٌ وَأَعلامُها ثَملُ

Lands where they surpassed Maʿadd and others,

whose drinking places are sweet, whose leading men are refuges.

هُمُ خَيرُ حَيٍّ مِن مَعَدٍّ عَلِمتُهُم

لَهُم نائِلٌ في قَومِهِم وَلَهُم فَضلُ

They are the best tribe of Maʿadd I have known;

among their people they possess bounty and distinction.

فَرِحتُ بِما خُبِّرتُ عَن سَيِّدَيكُمُ

وَكانا اِمرَأَينِ كُلُّ أَمرِهِما يَعلو

I rejoiced at what I was told about your two lords,

two men whose every undertaking rises high.

رَأى اللَهُ بِالإِحسانِ ما فَعَلا بِكُم

فَأَبلاهُما خَيرَ البَلاءِ الَّذي يَبلو

God looked with favor on what they did for you,

and granted them the best favor He grants.

تَدارَكتُما الأَحلافَ قَد ثُلَّ عَرشُها

وَذُبيانَ قَد زَلَّت بِأَقدامِها النَعلُ

You two saved the confederates when their throne was shattered,

and Dhubyan, whose sandal had slipped beneath its feet.

فَأَصبَحتُما مِنها عَلى خَيرِ مَوطِنٍ

سَبيلُكُما فيهِ وَإِن أَحزَنوا سَهلُ

Thus you both attained through it the finest station;

your path there is easy, though they enter rugged ground.

إِذا السَنَةُ الشَهباءُ بِالناسِ أَجحَفَت

وَنالَ كِرامَ المالِ في الجَحرَةِ الأَكلُ

When the ash-gray year ravages people,

and the finest livestock is eaten in the bitter cold,

رَأَيتُ ذَوي الحاجاتِ حَولَ بُيوتِهِم

قَطيناً بِها حَتّى إِذا نَبَتَ البَقلُ

I see those in need around their houses,

dwelling there until the green herbage sprouts.

هُنالِكَ إِن يُستَخبَلوا المالَ يُخبِلوا

وَإِن يُسأَلوا يُعطوا وَإِن يَيسِروا يُغلوا

There, if asked to lend livestock, they lend it;

if asked, they give; if they gamble, they raise the stakes.

وَفيهِم مَقاماتٌ حِسانٌ وُجوهُهُم

وَأَندِيَةٌ يَنتابُها القَولُ وَالفِعلُ

Among them are gatherings of men with handsome faces,

and councils frequented by speech and deed.

عَلى مُكثِريهِم رِزقُ مَن يَعتَريهِمُ

وَعِندَ المُقِلّينَ السَماحَةُ وَالبَذلُ

Their wealthy men provide for whoever comes to them,

and those with little have generosity and openhandedness.

وَإِن جِئتَهُم أَلفَيتَ حَولَ بُيوتِهِم

مَجالِسَ قَد يُشفى بِأَحلامِها الجَهلُ

If you visit them, around their houses you find

assemblies whose wisdom can cure ignorance.

وَإِن قامَ فيهِم حامِلٌ قالَ قاعِدٌ

رَشَدتَ فَلا غُرمٌ عَلَيكَ وَلا خَذلُ

If one among them rises to shoulder a burden, a seated man says,

"You have acted wisely: you face neither loss nor abandonment."

سَعى بَعدَهُم قَومٌ لِكَي يُدرِكوهُمُ

فَلَم يَفعَلوا وَلَم يُليموا وَلَم يَألوا

Others strove after them to catch up with them,

but failed, though they incurred no blame and spared no effort.

فَما يَكُ مِن خَيرٍ أَتَوهُ فَإِنَّما

تَوارَثَهُ آباءُ آبائِهِم قَبلُ

Whatever good they have done is only what

their fathers' fathers inherited in former times.

وَهَل يُنبِتُ الخَطِّيَّ إِلّا وَشيجُهُ

وَتُغرَسُ إِلّا في مَنابِتِها النَخلُ

And does anything produce the Khatti spear but its own reed-stock,

and are palms planted anywhere but in their native ground?