1. ما حُرِّكَتْ سَكَناتُ الأعيُنِ النُجُلِ

    إلّا وقد رشقَتها أسهمُ الأجَلِ

    The stillness of wide eyes was never stirred

    without death's arrows having already struck them.

  2. رَنَتْ إلينا عُيونُ العِينِ من مُضَرٍ

    فاِستهدَفَتنا رُماةُ النَّبْلِ من ثُعَلِ

    The eyes of wide-eyed beauties from Mudar gazed toward us,

    so the archers of Thu'al made us their target.

  3. وهزّتِ الخُرَّدُ الهيفُ الحِسانُ لَنا

    قاماتهِنّ فخِفنا دولةَ الأسَلِ

    The bashful, slender, lovely maidens swayed for us

    their figures, and we feared the ascendancy of spears.

  4. بمُهجتي رَبْرَب السّربِ المُخيّم في

    قلبي هِلالَ نُجومِ الحيّ من ذُهلِ

    My heart's blood would ransom the gazelle herd encamped in

    my heart—the crescent among the stars of Dhuhl's clan.

  5. تاللَّهِ لم أنسَ بالزّوراءِ زَورتَه

    والليلُ خامرَ عينَ الشمس بالكَحَلِ

    By God, I have not forgotten his visit at al-Zawra',

    while night veiled the sun's eye with kohl.

  6. أمَا وزَنْجِ لَيالينا الّتي سلَفتْ

    والسادةِ الغُرِّ من أيّامنا الأُوَلِ

    Ah, by the Zanj of our nights gone by,

    and the bright-faced lords of our earliest days,

  7. لولا هوى ثغرِه الدُرّيّ ما اِنتشرتْ

    تلك اليواقيتُ من عيني على طلَلِ

    but for love of his pearly mouth, there would not have scattered

    those rubies from my eye upon a ruined dwelling;

  8. ولا شجانِيَ برقٌ في تبسُّمه

    ولا جَنَيْتُ بسمعي شهدَةَ الغزَلِ

    nor would the lightning in his smile have grieved me,

    nor would I have gathered through my hearing the honeycomb of love poetry.

  9. إنّا لَقومٌ تقُدُّ البيضَ أنصُلُنا

    وما لَنا في لقاءِ البيضِ من قِبَلِ

    We are indeed a people whose blades cleave bright swords,

    yet we have no strength to face fair women.

  10. نَغشى النِصال من الأجْفانِ إن برزَتْ

    ونَختَشيها إذا اِنسلّت من المُقَلِ

    We brave blades from their scabbards when they emerge,

    yet fear them when they slip from eyes.

  11. ويَصدرُ النّبْلُ عنّا ليس يَنفذُنا

    إلّا إذا كان مطبوعاً من الكحَلِ

    Arrows recoil from us without piercing us,

    unless they are forged from kohl.

  12. وشَمسِ خِدرٍ بأوجِ الحُسنِ مَطلِعُها

    في دارةِ الأسدِ الضّرغامِ لا الحَمَلِ

    And a sun of the bower, whose rising at beauty's zenith

    was in the fierce Lion's circle, not the Ram's;

  13. شمسٍ من الذهب الروميّ قد حُرِست

    بأنجُمٍ من حَديد الهِندِ لم تَحُلِ

    a sun of Roman gold, guarded

    by stars of Indian iron that never shifted;

  14. مخمورةَ الجَفنِ لا تنفكّ مُقلَتُها

    يردّدُ الغُنجُ فيها حيرةَ الثَمِلِ

    wine-drowsy of eyelid, her eye was ever

    where coquetry renewed a drunkard's bewilderment.

  15. تَحولُ من دونِها لجُّ النِصال فلو

    رامَ الوصولَ إليها الطّرْفُ لم يصِلِ

    A sea of blades barred the way to her, so if

    the gaze sought to reach her, it could not.

  16. خَرَقْتُ سَجْفَ الضِيا عنها وجُزتُ إلى

    كِناسِها فوقَ هاماتِ القَنا الذُبُلِ

    I tore the veil of radiance from her and passed into

    her gazelle's covert, above the heads of slender lances,

  17. حتّى إذا ما لَثَمتُ الوردَ واِنفتحَتْ

    من مُقلتَيْها جُفونُ النرجسِ الكَسَلِ

    until, when I kissed the rose and there opened

    from her two eyes the lids of the languid narcissus,

  18. قامتْ فعانَقَني ظبيٌ فقبّلَني

    برقٌ ومال عليّ الغُصنُ في الحُلَلِ

    she rose: a gazelle embraced me, and I was kissed by

    lightning, while the branch in robes leaned over me.

  19. واِستقبلَتني ببِشرٍ وهيَ قائلةٌ

    والذُعرُ يصبُغُ منها وردةَ الخجَلِ

    She greeted me cheerfully, saying,

    while fear tinged her rose of bashfulness,

  20. أمَا خشيتَ المنايا من مَناصلِها

    فقلتُ والقلبُ لا يُطوى على وَجلِ

    “Did you not fear death from their blades?”

    I said, my heart not folded around fear:

  21. لو أتّقي الرّجْمَ من شُهبِ النِصالِ لَما

    في الليلِ نلتُ عِناقَ الشمسِ في الكُلَلِ

    “Had I feared the pelting meteors of blades, I would not

    by night have gained the sun's embrace within the bed-canopies.”

  22. لا يُدرك الأملَ الأسنى سوى رجلٍ

    يشقُّ بحرَ الرّدى عن جوهرِ الأملِ

    None can attain the most splendid hope but a man

    who cleaves the sea of death to uncover hope's jewel.

  23. ولا ينالُ المعالي الغُرَّ غيرُ فتًى

    يدوسُ شوكَ العَوالي غيرَ مُنتعِلِ

    And none reaches radiant heights but a youth

    who treads the thorns of tall spears without shoes,

  24. يولي النُضارَ إذا ضنّ الحيا كرَماً

    ويعصِمُ الرأيَ أن يُفضي إلى الزّلَلِ

    who grants gold generously when the rain is stingy,

    and safeguards judgment from leading into error.

  25. متوَّجُ السُمْر عالي البيضِ مجتمعٌ

    مفرَّقُ الطّعمِ بين الصّابِ والعسلِ

    Crowned with tawny spears, exalted in bright swords, one in himself,

    yet divided in savor between bitter sap and honey;

  26. قِرنٌ إذا ما اِكفهرّ الخطبُ سلَّ له

    رأياً كمُنصُلِ منصورِ اللّوا البطلِ

    a worthy adversary who, when calamity darkens, draws against it

    a judgment like the blade of the hero whose banner triumphs.

  27. قاني الصّوارمِ مُسودُّ الملاحمِ مُبْ

    يَضُّ المَكارمِ مخضَرُّ الندى الخَضلِ

    Crimson in swords, black in battles, white—

    —in noble deeds, green in lush bounty;

  28. قُطبُ الفَخارِ شِهابُ الرّجم يوم وَغىً

    بدرُ الممالك شمسُ الأرضِ والحللِ

    the axis of glory, a pelting meteor on battle's day,

    the full moon of kingdoms, the sun of earth and its encampments;

  29. الخائضُ الغَمراتِ السودِ حيثُ به

    فَوقَ النواصي المواضي البيضُ كالظُّلَلِ

    he who plunges into dark perils, where around him

    above the forelocks, keen white swords are like canopies;

  30. عِقدٌ تقلّدَ جيدُ الدّهرِ جوهرَهُ

    فأصبحَ الدّهرُ فيه حاليَ العَطَلِ

    a necklace whose jewel Time's neck has donned,

    so Time, through him, became adorned after being bare.

  31. قرّتْ به مُقَلُ الأيّامِ واِبتَسمتْ

    به الثّغورُ وزانت أوجُهَ الدولِ

    Through him the eyes of days found joy, and there smiled

    through him the mouths, and the faces of states grew fair.

  32. هو الجوابُ الّذي ردّ السؤالَ به

    لسائلٍ مَن كعبدِ اللَّهِ أو كعَلي

    He is the answer with which the question was answered

    for one who asked, “Who is like 'Abd Allah or like 'Ali?”

  33. معرَّفُ البأسِ لا ينفكّ يبرزُ في

    ضميرِ جَفنٍ بقلبِ القِرن متّصلِ

    Known for valor, he ever emerges in

    a scabbard's hidden depths, joined to his adversary's heart.

  34. يا مَنْ يشبَّهُ بالأمطار نائِلُهُ

    أقصِرْ فما لُججُ الأبحارِ كالوَشَلِ

    O you whose bounty is likened to rain,

    desist: ocean depths are not like a trickle.

  35. اِنظُرْ إليه ترى ليثاً وشمسَ عُلاً

    وبحرَ جودٍ بَراها اللَّهُ في رجلِ

    Look at him: you see a lion and a sun of eminence,

    and a sea of bounty, all fashioned by God in one man.

  36. هيهاتَ يَلقى العُلا قِرناً يماثلُه

    إلّا إذا غضَّ عينيهِ على حوَلِ

    No one will find a rival to equal him in greatness,

    unless he lowers both eyes with a squint.

  37. إذا أعدَّ قِسيُّ الجودِ يومَ ندىً

    رمى بسهمِ العطايا مهجةَ البُخُلِ

    When he readies the bows of bounty on a day of giving,

    he shoots the arrow of gifts into the heart of stinginess.

  38. منَ الألى المُكرِمي الجارِ الملمِّ بهمْ

    والمُنزليهِ هِضابَ العزِّ والجَذَلِ

    He is among those who honor the neighbor who comes to them,

    and lodge him on the heights of honor and joy.

  39. أمَا وبارقِ هنديٍّ وطلعتهِ

    بعارِضٍ من نجيع القومِ منهمِلِ

    Ah, by the flash of an Indian sword and its rising

    in a cloud pouring down the people's blood,

  40. لولاك حلّتْ بأرض الحَوزِ زلزلةٌ

    ترمي دعائمَ دينِ اللّهِ بالخذَلِ

    without you, an earthquake would have struck the land of al-Hawz,

    striking the pillars of God's faith with weakness.

  41. أتيتَها بعد أن كادتْ تَميدُ بنا

    وكاد يُقرعُ سنُّ الأمرِ بالخبَلِ

    You came to it after it had nearly reeled beneath us,

    and the tooth of affairs was nearly struck by disorder.

  42. قرّتْ بحُكمكَ حتّى قال قائلُها

    قُدِّسْتَ يا عرَفات المجدِ من جبَلِ

    It grew steady under your rule, until its spokesman said,

    “Hallowed be you, O 'Arafat of glory—what a mountain!”

  43. ثقّفْتَ ميلَ قناةِ المُلكِ فاِعتدلتْ

    قسراً وقوّمْتَ ما بالحقِّ من مَيَلِ

    You straightened the bend in sovereignty's lance, and it grew straight

    by force, and you set right whatever in justice was bent.

  44. كم قد رمى إِذ نفى الأعرابُ مجدَك في

    قوسِ الخِلاف سِهامَ الغيّ والجدَلِ

    How often, when the Bedouins denied your glory, they shot from

    the bow of dissent arrows of error and dispute!

  45. فلم تُصِبْكَ وما أشوَتْ سهامُهُمُ

    بل أثخنَتهُمْ جِراحُ الخِزْيِ والفشَلِ

    Yet they did not strike you, nor did their arrows even graze you;

    rather, wounds of disgrace and failure laid them low.

  46. سلّوا من البغي سيفاً فانتضَيْتَ لهم

    حِلماً أعادَ حُسامَ البغي في الخلَلِ

    They drew a sword of tyranny, so you unsheathed against them

    forbearance that reduced tyranny's keen blade to disrepair.

  47. ألقيتَ فيهم عصا الرّأي المُسَدَّد إذ

    ألقَوْا إليكَ حِبالَ المَكرِ والحِيَلِ

    You cast among them the staff of well-directed judgment when

    they cast toward you the ropes of cunning and deceit.

  48. تاللّهِ لو لم يُردّوا عن ضَلالَتِهم

    لأصبحَ الجيشُ فيهم أوّلَ السَّفَلِ

    By God, had they not been turned back from their error,

    the army among them would have ranked first among the lowly.

  49. فاِصْلِحْ بتَدبيركَ السامي فسادَهمُ

    واِسْدُدْ برأيكَ ما تَلقى من الخَلَلِ

    So mend their corruption through your lofty governance,

    and close with your judgment whatever breaches you encounter.

  50. أنت الرّجاءُ لرفعِ النازلاتِ بنا

    إذ يَكشِرُ الدهرُ عن أنيابه العُضَلِ

    You are our hope for lifting the calamities that strike us,

    when Time bares its formidable fangs.

  51. قد خصّنا اللَّهُ من تقديس ذاتِك في

    سَمحٍ يجلُّ عنِ الأندادِ والمثَلِ

    God has favored us through the hallowing of your person, in

    a generous man exalted above peers and equals.

  52. مولايَ لا برِحتْ يُمناكَ هاميةً

    على المُوالينَ في غَيثِ الندى الهَطِلِ

    My lord, may your right hand never cease pouring

    upon your loyal followers in a downpour of bounty.

  53. أمطرْتَنا خِلَعاً حتّى ظننْتُ بِها

    قد أمطرَتْنا عُيونُ الوَبْلِ بالبَدَلِ

    You rained robes of honor upon us, until I thought, because of them,

    that the founts of downpour had showered us with changes of raiment.

  54. شُكراً لِصُنعِكَ من غَيثٍ هَمى فَبدا

    روضُ الحرير على الأجسامِ والمُقَلِ

    Thanks for your kindness: from rain that poured, there appeared

    a garden of silk on bodies and before the eyes.

  55. لقد كفى العِيدَ فخراً أن يُقال به

    هُنّيتَ يا سيّدَ الأيّامِ والأزَلِ

    It is glory enough for the feast that on it one says,

    “Congratulations to you, O lord of days and eternity!”

  56. العيدُ في العامِ يومٌ عُمْرُ عودتِه

    وأنت عيدٌ مدى الأيّام لم تزَلِ

    The feast returns each year for a lifetime of one day,

    but you have ever been a feast throughout all days.

  57. إن كان يُدعى بعيدِ الفِطرِ تسميةً

    فأنتَ تُدعى بعيدِ الجود والخَوَلِ

    If by name it is called the Feast of Fast-Breaking,

    then you are called the Feast of Bounty and Bestowed Wealth.

  58. فلتَهْنَ غرّتُهُ من بِشرِ وجهكَ في

    هِلال تِمٍّ بنورِ الفضل مكتَملِ

    May its bright brow rejoice in the gladness of your face, in

    a full crescent, complete in the light of excellence.

  59. واِستَجْلِها حرّة الألفاظِ واحدةً

    بالحُسن تَسمو جمال السّبعةِ الأُوَلِ

    And behold her unveiled, freeborn in diction, peerless,

    surpassing in beauty the loveliness of the seven of old.

  60. فلا بَرحْتَ بأوج العزّ مرتَفِعاً

    تجرّ ذيلَ المعالي من على زُحَلِ

    May you ever remain exalted at the summit of glory,

    trailing the train of high honors from atop Saturn.