أَتاني وَرَحلي بِالعُذَيبِ عَشِيَّةً

أَتاني وَرَحلي بِالعُذَيبِ عَشِيَّةً

وَأَيدي المَطايا قَد قَطَعنَ بِنا نَجدا

وَأَيدي المَطايا قَد قَطَعنَ بِنا نَجدا

It reached me one evening, with my saddle at al-ʿUdhayb,

My mounts arrived at dusk, at al-Udhayb,

and the mounts' forelegs had already carried us across Najd:

And the riding-beasts had traversed the Najd wilderness with us.

نَعِيٌّ أَطارَ القَلبَ عَن مُستَقَرِّهِ

نَعِيٌّ أَطارَ القَلبَ عَن مُستَقَرِّهِ

وَكُنتُ عَلى قَصدٍ فَأَغلَطَني القَصدا

وَكُنتُ عَلى قَصدٍ فَأَغلَطَني القَصدا

a death announcement that sent my heart flying from its resting place.

Tidings that made my heart fly from its place;

And I had been on a straight course, but it made me lose my way.

I had resolved, but my resolve led me astray.

فَلَيتَ نَعى الرَكبُ العِراقيُّ غَيرُهُ

فَلَيتَ نَعى الرَكبُ العِراقيُّ غَيرُهُ

فَما كُلُّ مَفقودٍ وَجِعتَ لَهُ فَقدا

فَما كُلُّ مَفقودٍ وَجِعتَ لَهُ فَقدا

If only the Iraqi caravan had announced someone else's death!

Would that the messenger from Iraq had brought news of another;

For not every person lost is one whose loss pains you.

Not all who are missed cause such pain when lost.

وَيا ناعِيَيهِ اليَومَ غُضّا عَلى قَذىً

وَيا ناعِيَيهِ اليَومَ غُضّا عَلى قَذىً

فَقَد زِدتُما قَلبي عَلى وَجدِهِ وَجدا

فَقَد زِدتُما قَلبي عَلى وَجدِهِ وَجدا

And O you two announcing his death today, close your eyes upon the grit;

You who lament him today, be gentle with my wounds;

for you have added grief to my heart's grief.

You have increased the anguish of my heart.

فَبِئسَ عَلى بُعدِ اللِقاءِ تَحِيَّةٌ

فَبِئسَ عَلى بُعدِ اللِقاءِ تَحِيَّةٌ

أُحَيّا بِها تُذكي عَلى كَبِدي وَقدا

أُحَيّا بِها تُذكي عَلى كَبِدي وَقدا

What a wretched greeting, when reunion is so far away—

How wretched is a greeting from afar

one I am greeted with, that kindles a blaze upon my liver!

With which I am greeted, kindling sorrow in my breast.

بِرُغمِيَ أَن أورِدتَ قَبلي بِمَورِدٍ

بِرُغمِيَ أَن أورِدتَ قَبلي بِمَورِدٍ

تَبَرَّضتَ مِنهُ لا زُلالاً وَلا بَردا

تَبَرَّضتَ مِنهُ لا زُلالاً وَلا بَردا

Against my wish, you were led before me to a watering place

Despite me, you have arrived at a place

from which you sipped neither clear water nor coolness.

From which you have turned back, finding neither fresh water nor cold.

جَزَتكَ الجَوازي عَن عِمادٍ أَقَمتَها

جَزَتكَ الجَوازي عَن عِمادٍ أَقَمتَها

وَعَن عُقَدٍ لِلدينِ أَحكَمتَها شَدّا

وَعَن عُقَدٍ لِلدينِ أَحكَمتَها شَدّا

May those who requite reward you for the pillars you raised,

May you be rewarded for the pillars of religion you erected

and for the knots of faith you bound securely,

And the treaties to strengthen religion you concluded.

وَذي جَدَلٍ أَلجَمتَ فاهُ بِغُصَّةٍ

وَذي جَدَلٍ أَلجَمتَ فاهُ بِغُصَّةٍ

تَلَجلَجُ فيهِ لا مَساغاً وَلا رَدّا

تَلَجلَجُ فيهِ لا مَساغاً وَلا رَدّا

and for a disputant whose mouth you bridled with a choking lump

And for silencing with an argument a controversialist

that keeps catching there, with no passage down and no way back.

Whose mouth choked on lumps, with no escape or rebuttal.

قَعَستُ لَهُ حَتّى التَقيتَ سِهامَهُ

قَعَستُ لَهُ حَتّى التَقيتَ سِهامَهُ

وَأَثبَتَّ في تامورِهِ الحُجَجَ اللُدّا

وَأَثبَتَّ في تامورِهِ الحُجَجَ اللُدّا

I stood firm against him until you met his arrows,

I waited in ambush until I encountered his arrows,

and you embedded unyielding arguments in his heart.

And in his quiver he fixed the sharpest arrows.

وَمَزلَقَةٍ لِلقَولِ ما شِئتَ دَحضَها

وَمَزلَقَةٍ لِلقَولِ ما شِئتَ دَحضَها

وَقَد زَلَّ عَنها مَن أَعادَ وَمَن أَبدى

وَقَد زَلَّ عَنها مَن أَعادَ وَمَن أَبدى

And many a slippery place for speech, as treacherous as you could wish,

And a slippery argument—however you wished to refute it,

from which those who spoke again and those who spoke first had slipped.

Those who reiterated it and those who fabricated it have slipped.

وَإِنّي لَأَستَسقي لَكَ اللَهَ عَفوَهُ

وَإِنّي لَأَستَسقي لَكَ اللَهَ عَفوَهُ

وَيا لَكَ غَيثاً ما أَعَمَّ وَما أَندى

وَيا لَكَ غَيثاً ما أَعَمَّ وَما أَندى

And I indeed ask God to rain His pardon upon you,

I pray God grant you His pardon,

and what rain for you—how all-embracing, how refreshing!

O, may abundant rain come to you, far-reaching and fertilizing!

وَإِنّي لَأَستَسقي لَكَ اللَهَ عَفوَهُ

وَإِنّي لَأَستَسقي لَكَ اللَهَ عَفوَهُ

مُحامينَ عَنهُ أَن يَفوزَ وَلا يَردى

مُحامينَ عَنهُ أَن يَفوزَ وَلا يَردى

And I indeed ask God to rain His pardon upon you,

I pray God grant you His pardon,

defending him, so that he may triumph and not perish.

Defending you, that you may succeed and not regress.

بَكَيتُكَ حَتّى اِستَنفَدَ الدَمعَ ناظِري

بَكَيتُكَ حَتّى اِستَنفَدَ الدَمعَ ناظِري

وَلَو مَدَّني دَمعي عَليكَ لَما أَجدى

وَلَو مَدَّني دَمعي عَليكَ لَما أَجدى

I wept for you until my eye exhausted its tears,

I wept for you until my watcher's tears were exhausted,

and even had my tears sustained my weeping for you, they would have availed nothing.

If my tears for you had continued, they would not have helped.