سبقت ففز بعظيم الخطر — Abn Hius

سَبَقتَ فَفُز بِعَظيمِ الخَطَر

وَدَع لِعِداكَ المُنى وَالخَطَر

You have led the way: win lofty eminence,

and leave your enemies their wishes and peril.

فَدَتكَ مُلوكٌ عَلَت بِالجُدودِ

وَأَعلاكَ مَجدُكَ لَمّا ظَهَر

May kings raised high by good fortune ransom you,

while your glory raised you when it appeared.

وَأَينَ المُنيفُ بِحَظٍّ أَعا

نَ مِمَّن أَنافَ بِفَضلٍ بَهَر

How far is one exalted by favoring fortune

from one raised by dazzling merit!

بِطاءٌ إِذا سُؤِلوا نَجدَةً

أَقاموا مَقامَ النُهوضِ العِذَر

Slow when asked for aid,

they put excuses in place of rising to act.

غَدا المالُ مُحتَقَباً عِندَهُم

وَعِندَكَ لَمّا يَزَل مُحتَقَر

Wealth has become hoarded among them,

but with you it has never ceased to be despised.

فَراهِبُ عَدواهُمُ لا يُساءُ

وَطالِبُ جَدواهُمُ لا يُسَرّ

Thus one fearing their hostility comes to no harm,

and one seeking their bounty finds no joy.

لَقَد حَظَرَ اللَهُ هَذا الجَلالَ

عَلى مَن مَضى وَعَلى مَن غَبَر

God has indeed withheld this majesty

from those gone before and those remaining.

أَتَقعُدُ عَن مُرتَقاهُ النُجو

مُ عَجزاً وَيَطمَعُ فيهِ البَخَر

Do the stars fall short of scaling it

through helplessness, while the foul-breathed aspire to it?

وَيَبغي تَناوُلَهُ الحاسِدونَ

عَلى ما بِأَبواعِهِم مِن قِصَر

The envious seek to reach it,

despite the shortness of their reach.

وَإِنَّكَ مِن كَيدِهِم آمِنٌ

كَما أَمِنَ البازُ كَيدَ النُغَر

Yet you are safe from their schemes,

as the hawk is safe from the schemes of small birds.

مَعالٍ بَغَوا حَطَّها فَاِعتَلَت

وَمَجدٌ رَجَوا طَيَّهُ فَاِنتَشَر

High virtues they sought to lower rose higher;

glory they hoped to fold away spread abroad.

وَإِن جَحَدوهُ وَلَن يَقدِروا

فَإِنَّ الإِمامَ بِهِ قَد أَقَرّ

Even if they deny it—and they will never be able to—

the Imam has already acknowledged it.

فَفاهَ بِوَصفِكَ مَن لا يَمينُ

وَخَبَّرَ عَن سُؤدُدٍ مَن خَبَر

One who never lies spoke of your qualities,

and one who knew by experience told of your nobility.

وَرَقّاكَ في قَولِهِ وَالفَعالِ

ذُرى شَرَفٍ لَم يَنَلها بَشَر

In his words and deeds he raised you

to peaks of honor no mortal has reached.

رَأى اللَهَ مُتَّخِذاً في الوَرى

خَليلاً فَكُنتَ الخَليلَ الأَبَرّ

He saw God taking, among mankind,

a friend; so you became the most faithful friend.

عَلى أَلسُنِ الناسِ طُرّاً تُقِرُّ

بِها وَعُيونُ المَعالي تَقَرّ

On all people's tongues these honors are acknowledged,

and in them the eyes of lofty virtues rejoice.

وَوَصفٌ أَحَلَّكَ فَوقَ السَماءِ

فَخاطِب وَكاتِب مِنَ المُستَقَرّ

A description has placed you above the heavens,

so speak and write from that abode.

وَكَم لِعُداتِكَ مِن عَثرَةٍ

تُقالُ وَمِن زَلَّةٍ تُغتَفَر

How many a stumble of your enemies

is pardoned, and how many a slip forgiven

لَدَيكَ وَلَم يُعمِلوا حيلَةً

نَجا الهُرمُزانُ بِها مِن عُمَر

by you, though they devised no stratagem

by which al-Hurmuzan escaped Umar.

لِغَيرِكَ عِندَ اِحتِيالِ الرِجالِ

يُدَبُّ الضَراءُ وَيُمشى الخَمَر

For others, when men resort to guile,

they creep through thickets and walk under cover.

أَزِل ما بِأَعناقِهِم مِن صَغىً

وَما بِخُدودِهِمُ مِن صَعَر

Remove the crookedness in their necks

and the haughty turning of their cheeks.

فَما أُمهِلَ السُمُّ إِلّا وَدَبَّ

وَلا أُهمِلَ الكَلبُ إِلّا عَقَر

Poison is never given time without spreading,

nor a dog neglected without biting.

وَعاتِبهُمُ بِصَليلِ الَّتي

تُفَرِّقُ بَينَ الطُلى وَالقَصَر

Reprove them with the ringing of that blade

which sunders necks from their roots.

فَأَوعَظُ مِن زُبُرِ الأَوَّلينَ

لَدى الكُفرِ مَطبوعَةٌ مِن زُبَر

For more admonishing than the ancients' scriptures,

in the face of unbelief, is a blade forged from iron lumps.

وَإِنَّ الَّذي شايَعَ المُرجِفي

نَ أَعمى البَصيرَةِ أَعمى البَصَر

Indeed, whoever sides with the rumor-mongers

is blind in insight, blind in sight.

حِمى الحَقِّ مِنكَ مَنيعُ الجِوارِ

عَزيزُ النَفيرِ كَريمُ النَفَر

In you, truth has a sanctuary of inviolable protection,

mighty in its muster, noble in its company.

شُجاعٌ إِذا ما قَضى أَو سَطا

مُطاعٌ إِذا ما نَهى أَو أَمَر

Brave when he gives judgment or strikes,

obeyed when he forbids or commands.

غَمامٌ وَما هَدَرَ الرَعدُ فيهِ

أَرانا دَمَ المَحلِ يَمضي هَدَر

A rain cloud: whenever thunder roars within it,

he shows us drought's blood flowing unavenged.

كُنوزُ المَعالي لَدَيهِ تُزارُ

وَثَوبُ الثَناءِ عَلَيهِ يُزَرّ

The treasures of lofty virtues are visited in his presence,

and the robe of praise is buttoned upon him.

وَلِلمَجدِ راحاتُهُ وَاللُغوبُ

وَلِلحَمدِ رَوحاتُهُ وَالبُكَر

For glory are his rests and his weariness;

for praise, his evening departures and early starts.

مَضاءٌ لِكُلِّ عَنيدٍ أَبارَ

وَسَعيٌ عَلى كُلِّ سَعيٍ أَبَرّ

A resolve that destroyed every obstinate foe,

and an endeavor surpassing every endeavor.

وَعَدلٌ بِهِ يُستَدامُ البَقاءُ

وَعَفوٌ بِهِ يُستَتَمُّ الظَفَر

Justice by which survival is sustained,

and pardon by which victory is made complete.

وَتَفعَلُ آلاؤُهُ في المُحو

لِ فِعلَ عَزائِمِهِ في الغِيَر

His favors work upon droughts

as his resolves work upon calamities.

عَزائِمٌ مَن أَمَّنَت لَم يُجَر

عَلَيهِ وَمَن خَوَّفَت لَم يُجَر

Resolves: whoever they assure is not wronged

by anyone; whoever they threaten is given no refuge.

فَيا عَلَمَ المَجدِ لَمّا اِستَطالَ

وَيا ناصِرَ الدينِ لَمّا اِنتَصَر

O banner of glory when it rises tall,

O champion of religion when it triumphs,

وَيا داعِيَ الجَفَلى لِلغِنى

إِذا مَن دَعا لِلطَعامِ اِنتَقَر

O caller who invites everyone to wealth,

when those inviting to food select their guests.

وَيا صاحِبَ السِيَرِ السائِرا

تِ تُتلى وَتَبقى بَقاءَ السُوَر

O master of far-famed histories,

recited and enduring as long as the surahs.

رَأى اللَهُ عَدلَكَ في خَلقِهِ

فَأَجرى عَلى ما تَشاءُ القَدَر

God saw your justice toward His creatures,

and made fate run according to your will.

وَإِنَّ المُغيثَ بِكَ المُسلِمي

نَ أَحسَنَ لِلمُسلِمينَ النَظَر

He who gives the Muslims succor through you

has indeed looked well to the Muslims' welfare.

وَإِنَّكَ مِن مَعشَرٍ جاوَزَت

مَدى الحُسنِ أَفعالُهُم وَالصُوَر

You are of a people whose

deeds and forms surpass the utmost beauty.

وُجوهٌ تَلوحُ فَتَخفى البُدورُ

وَأَيدٍ تَسُحُّ فَتَترى البِدَر

Faces shine, and full moons fade;

hands pour forth, and purses of coin follow in succession.

قُرومٌ مَضَوا في سَبيلِ الرَدى

وَذِكرُهُمُ ماثِلٌ ما دَثَر

Noble chiefs have passed along the road of death,

yet their memory stands, never effaced.

ذَوُو عِتَرٍ نَشرُ أَعراقِها

هُوَ المِسكُ لا ما حَوَتهُ العِتَر

Men of lineages, the fragrance of whose roots

is musk—not what musk-pouches contain.

أُصولُكُمُ شامِخاتُ الفُروعِ

وَأَيّامُكُم شاذِخاتُ الغُرَر

Your roots have towering branches,

and your days bear broad white blazes.

وَمَحضُ الإِباءِ وَحُسنُ الوَفاءِ

غَرائِزُ في بَدوِكُم وَالحَضَر

Pure pride and perfect fidelity

are instincts in your desert life and settled life.

وَمِنكُم رِجالٌ أَقاموا الحُدودَ

بِحَدِّ السُيوفِ عَلى مَن كَفَر

Among you are men who upheld the prescribed laws

with the swords' edge against unbelievers.

وَكانوا لِذا الدينِ لَمّا نَبَت

بِهِ أَرضُ مَكَّةَ نِعمَ الوَزَر

They were for this faith, when

Mecca's land rejected it, an excellent refuge.

مَساعٍ لِقَومِكَ ما غادَرَت

لِمُفتَخَرٍ في الوَرى مُفتَخَر

Achievements of your people have left

no ground for boasting to any boaster among mankind.

تَغُضُّ رَبيعَةَ مِنها العُيونَ

وَلَولا الرَسولُ لَغَضَّت مُضَر

Rabi'a lowers its eyes before these deeds,

and, but for the Messenger, Mudar would lower theirs.

وَإِنَّكَ إِذ جِئتَ مِن بَعدِهِم

سَنا الشَمسِ غَطّى ضِياءَ القَمَر

When you came after them, you were

the sun's radiance eclipsing the moon's light.

يَفيضُ بِوَجهِكَ ماءُ الحَيا

ءِ إِن شِئتَ نَفعاً وَإِن شِئتَ ضَرّ

The water of modesty overflows your face,

whether you choose to benefit or choose to harm.

وَتُغضي عَلى الذَنبِ لا رَهبَةً

كَما اِحمَرَّتِ البيدُ لا مِن خَفَر

You overlook wrongdoing, not from fear,

as the deserts redden, but not from bashfulness.

وَتَهتَزُّ عِندَ اِستِماعِ المَديحِ

كَما اِهتَزَّ في الرَوعِ عَضبٌ ذَكَر

You quiver when you hear praise,

as a keen, hard-tempered sword quivers amid terror.

وَقَد أَيقَنَ اِبناكَ فَليَسلَما

بِأَنَّ العُلى فُرَصٌ تُبتَدَر

Your two sons have understood—may they be kept safe—

that high honors are chances to be seized.

فَكُلٍّ بِها مُستَهامُ الفُؤادِ

قَليلُ الرُقادِ كَثيرُ السَهَر

Each is heartsick with longing for them,

sleeping little, keeping long vigils.

يَعِفُّ إِذ ما خَلا مِثلَما

تَعِفُّ وَيَعفو إِذا ما قَدَر

He remains chaste when alone, just as

you are chaste, and pardons when he has power.

يَفوتانِ فيما أَفادَ الثَنا

ءَ لَمعَ البُروقِ وَلَمحَ البَصَر

In what wins praise, the two outstrip

the flash of lightning and the blink of an eye.

فَهَل مِن مُجيدٍ يُدانيهِما

إِذَ المَجدُ عَن ساعِدَيهِ حَسَر

Is there any accomplished man who can approach them

when glory bares its forearms?

وَما العيدُ إِلّا كَعافٍ أَتا

كَ أَحمَدتَهُ وِردَهُ وَالصَدَر

The feast is only like a supplicant who comes

to you, whose praise you earn at his arrival and departure.

فَلا زِلتَ تَخلُفُهُ ما اِستَقَلَّ

فَغابَ وَتُذهِلُهُ ما حَضَر

May you always replace it whenever it departs

and vanishes, and dazzle it whenever it is present.

لَقَد ضَلَّ فِكري وَضاقَ القَريضُ

بِوَصفِ نَدىً فاضَ حَتّى غَمَر

My thought has wandered, and verse has grown too narrow

to describe a bounty that overflowed until it engulfed all.

وَما خِلتُ قَبلَ بُلوغي إِلَيكَ

أَنَّ الغِنى مِن دَواعِ الحَصَر

Before reaching you, I never thought

that wealth could cause speechlessness.

وَما أَعرِفُ الفَقرَ حَتّى أَقولَ

عَلى أَنَّني رَبُّ بَيتِ الفِقَر

I do not know poverty well enough to speak of it,

though I am master of a house of choice verses.

زَوَتها عَطاياكَ عَن مَعشَرٍ

بِأَجيادِهِم لا تَليقُ الدُرَر

Your gifts have kept them from a people

whose necks are not fit for pearls.

وَحَلَّيتَ حالِيَ بَعدَ العُطولِ

وَأَحلَيتَ مِن عيشَتي ما أَمَر

You adorned my condition after its bareness,

and sweetened what was bitter in my life.

إِذا ما مَضَت زُمَرٌ مِن لُهاكَ

تَلَتها وَأَربَت عَلَيها زُمَر

Whenever companies of your gifts pass,

other companies follow, exceeding them.

فَجودٌ أَنالَ جَميعَ المُنى

وَجودٌ بِبالِ المُنى ما خَطَر

One bounty bestowed every wish;

another never crossed wishes' minds.

أَخو العُدمِ مَن ظَلَّ يَرجو سِواكَ

وَرَبُّ الغِنى مَن إِلَيكَ اِفتَقَر

He who keeps hoping in anyone but you is poverty's brother;

he who needs you is wealth's master.

وَما طالِبُ الدُرِّ مِن بَحرِهِ

كَمَن ظَلَّ يَطلُبُهُ مِن نَهَر

No seeker of pearls from their sea

is like one who keeps seeking them in a river.

وَمُعتاصَةِ المِثلِ في ذا الزَما

نِ مُعتاضَةٍ صُحُفاً مِن فِكَر

And a poem whose equal is hard to find in this age,

taking written pages in exchange for thoughts,

لَها أَرَجٌ كَنَسيمِ الرِياضِ

وافى رَسيلَ نَسيمِ السَحَر

has a fragrance like the gardens' breeze,

arriving in company with the dawn breeze.

تَحَلَّت مَناقِبَ لَم تَستَعِن

عَلَيها سِواها وَلَم تَستَعِر

It adorned itself with virtues, seeking no aid

from any other for them, and borrowing none.

تُطاوِلُ أَعمارَ زُهرِ النُجومِ

وَيَبقى سِواها بَقاءَ الزَهَر

It rivals the lifespans of the shining stars,

while others last only as long as flowers.

وَإِنَّ الَّذي يَبتَغي عَدَّها

لَكَالمُبتَغي عَدَّ قَطرِ المَطَر

Indeed, whoever seeks to count them

is like one seeking to count the raindrops.

لِذاكَ المُبالِغُ في مَدحِها

إِذا هُوَ أَكثَرَ قيلَ اِختَصَر

Thus the most lavish in their praise,

however much he says, is said to have been brief.

وَإِن أَقعَدَتنِيَ عَنكَ الخُطوبُ

فَعِندي ثَناءٌ يُديمُ السَفَر

Though misfortunes keep me from you,

I have praise that travels without ceasing.

وَحَضَّ السَقامِ عَلى ذا المَقامِ

مُشيرٌ لَعَمرُكَ لَم يُستَشَر

And sickness's urging that I stay here

is an adviser, by your life, never consulted.

رَأى هِجرَتي في الزَمانِ البَهيمِ

وَواصَلَني في الزَمانِ الأَغَرّ

It chose to forsake me in dark times,

and kept me company in bright times.

وَلَو أَنَّني أَستَطيعُ النُهوضَ

حَفِظتُ الوَفا وَأَضَعتُ الحَذَر

If I were able to rise,

I would keep faith and cast caution aside.

لَقَد أَظهَرَ الغَدرَ إِذ غِبتُ عَنكَ

زَماني وَلَو لَم أَغِب ما غَدَر

Indeed, when I was absent from you, treachery was shown

by my time; had I not been absent, it would not have betrayed me.

وَإِن أَمهَلَتنِيَ حَتّى أَراكَ

حَوادِثُهُ فَعَلَيها المَكَرّ

And if I am given respite until I see you

by its calamities, I shall charge back against them.