Sol 6.1

  1. أَقول رياضٌ إِذْ تُرَصِّعُها زَهْرا

    أَقول سَمَاءٌ إِذ تُلْمِّعُها زُهْرا

    I say: gardens, when you stud them with blossoms.

    I say: a sky, when you make it gleam with stars.

  2. أَقولُ سيوفٌ إِذ تُجَرِّدُها بُتْرَا

    أَقولُ شُفوفٌ إِذ تُرَدِّدُها بُتْرَا

    I say: swords, when you draw them, keen-edged.

    I say: sheer fabrics, when you repeat them in short lengths.

  3. معانٍ بإِمعانٍ هيَ النَّدُّ والنَّدَى

    حريقٌ رحيقٌ سائِلِ الجَمْرَ والخَمْرَا

    Meanings, on deep reflection, are perfume and dew,

    a blaze, pure wine—ask the embers and the wine.

  4. تَعَلَّقَ حظِّي بالحضيضِ فخَلِّه

    وإِخلادَهُ يا مُلْحِقَ الشعرِ بالشِّعْرَى

    My fortune has clung to the depths; leave it be,

    and let it linger, O you who raise poetry to Sirius.

  5. وعندِيَ فكرٌ قَدِّم الكافَ تُلْفِهِ

    بِهِ فَهْوَ فِكْرٌ ما عَدِمْتُ به كُفْرا

    And I have a thought (fikr): put the kāf first, and you will find it

    there; it is a thought through which I have never lacked disbelief (kufr).

  6. تَغيَّرَ مثلَ الدَّهْرِ فاسْمَع حكايَةً

    أَتيتُ بها نَظْماً وإِن عُرفَتْ نثرا

    It has changed like Time; so hear a tale

    that I have brought in verse, though it is known in prose.

  7. أَقولُ له زَيْدٌ فيَسْمَعُ خالِداً

    ويكتُبُه بكراً ويقْرَأَهُ غَمْرا

    I say to it, 'Zayd,' and it hears 'Khalid,'

    and writes it 'Bakr,' and reads it 'Ghamr.'

  8. وأَما الطُّيوُر المُرْسَلاَتُ فإِنَّها

    طوائِرُ مِدْحاتٍ أَبَتْ تَأْلَفُ الوَكْرا

    As for the birds sent forth, they are

    birds of praise that refused to make the nest their home.

  9. نَصَبْتُ لها لو سَاعَدَتْ شَرَكَ النُّهى

    وأَوسَعْتُها من حَبِّ شُغْلِي بها بِذْرَا

    I set for them—had they but cooperated—the snare of reason,

    and scattered ample seed for them from the grain of my concern for them.

  10. وقلتُ عَسَى البَبْغَاءُ يأْتي بِبُغْيَةٍ

    أَو النَّسْرُ يُولِي مثلَ تَصْحِيفهِ بُسْرا

    And I said, 'Perhaps the parrot will bring what I desire,

    or the eagle bestow unripe dates, as its mispointed name suggests.'

  11. فَما كان إلا بلبلٌ لبلابِلِي

    أَتَى أَوْ حُبَارَى كنتُ من قَبْلِها الحَبْرَا

    Yet there was only a nightingale for my sorrows

    that came, or a bustard; before that I had been a scholar.

  12. فَلا خَيْرَ لليَعْقُوبِ منَّا فإِنَّهُ

    عِقابٌ ولا الكُرْكِيِّ من حيثُ ماكَرَّا

    So no good shall the partridge have from us, for it is

    punishment; nor any for the crane, since it never returned.

  13. وَلا رُزِقَتْ مِنِّي خلاصاً وكيفَ لا

    غَلِطْتُ فسامِحْنِي أَلم تُولِها الحَصْرا

    Nor may they be granted escape from me! And why not—

    I misspoke, so forgive me. Did you not confine them?

  14. وكنتُ سُلَيْماناً لفَهْمِ لُغاتِها

    ومذ سَلَبُوني خاتَمِي سَلَبُوا الأَمْرا

    I was a Solomon in understanding their languages,

    and since they robbed me of my signet, they have robbed me of power.

  15. فَدَعْ ذا وَعدِّ الأَمرَ عنه ونُصَّ لِي

    أَحادِيثَ أُخْرَى لا بَرِحْتَ لنا ذُخرا

    So leave that, turn the talk elsewhere, and recount to me

    other tales—may you always remain a treasure for us.

  16. فماذا ترى في ناكحٍ بِنْتَ غيرِهِ

    بلا غَيْرَةٍ منهُ ولم يَدْفَعِ المَهْرا

    What do you think of a man marrying another man's daughter,

    with no jealousy on his part, and without paying the dowry?

  17. وكنتُ أَرَى يوماً ويَوْمَيْنِ مُدَّةً

    وقد زاد حتى كادَ أَنْ يَبْلُغَ الشَّهْرا

    I had reckoned the wait at a day or two,

    but it has lengthened until it nearly reaches a month.

  18. فإِنْ قُلْتَ لِي لا بُدَّ منهُ فعاجِلٌ

    وإِلا فمَنْ هذا الذي يَضْمَنُ العُمْرا

    If you tell me it cannot be avoided, then let it be soon;

    otherwise, who is there to guarantee life?

  19. وقد مَرّ لي في ذا النهارِ عجيبَةٌ

    لو اعتْمَدَتْ كِسْرَى لما أَمِنَ الكَسْرَا

    Something strange happened to me this very day:

    had it struck Kisra, he would not have been safe from being broken.

  20. شَكَتْ لِيَ نَفِسي العُسْرَ ثم تأَلَّمَتْ

    فقلتُ لبعضِ الأَصدقاءِ ادْفَعِ العُسْرا

    My soul complained to me of hardship, then suffered,

    so I told one of my friends, 'Drive hardship away,

  21. وجئني بها عَشْراً ثقالاً فقالَ ها

    وقَبَّل من كَفِّي لأَقْبَلَها العَشْرَا

    and bring me ten heavy ones.' He said, 'Here!'

    and kissed my ten fingers, so that I might accept them.

  22. فيا حُسْنَها صُفْراً ويا قُبْحَ مَوْضِع

    عَدَا بَعْدَها منها ولم أَعْتَرِفْ صِفْرا

    How lovely they are, golden-yellow, and how ugly a place

    left bereft of them afterward, though I did not admit to having nothing.

  23. وكنتُ كَمَنْ عَيْنَاهُ تَرْقُبُ فَجْرَهُ

    فلما تَبَدَّى الفَجْرُ أَوْسَعَنَا الفَجْرا

    I was like one whose eyes watched for his dawn;

    but when dawn appeared, it heaped outrage upon us.

  24. بثَثْتُكَ سِرِّي والحديثُ كما حَكَوْا

    شُجونٌ فيا صَدْرَ الكمالِ احْفَظِ السِّرَّا

    I have confided my secret to you; conversation, as they say,

    has many branches—O Sadr al-Kamal, keep the secret.