1. قَد نابَتِ الجِزعَ مِن أُروِيَّةَ النُوَبُ

    وَاِستَحقَبَت جِدَّةً مِن رَبعِها الحِقَبُ

    Misfortunes have struck the valley bend of Urwiyya,

    and the ages have packed away the freshness of her encampment.

  2. أَلوى بِصَبرِكَ إِخلاقُ اللِوى وَهَفا

    بِلُبِّكَ الشَوقُ لَمّا أَقفَرَ اللَبَبُ

    The decay of the winding dunes undid your patience; there fluttered

    through your mind a longing, when the sandy slope lay deserted.

  3. خَفَّت دُموعُكَ في إِثرِ الحَبيبِ لَدُن

    خَفَّت مِنَ الكُثُبِ القُضبانُ وَالكُثُبُ

    Your tears hastened in the beloved's wake, ever since

    the boughs and dunes departed from the dunes.

  4. مِن كُلِّ مَمكورَةٍ ذابَ النَعيمُ لَها

    ذَوبَ الغَمامِ فَمُنهَلٌّ وَمُنسَكِبُ

    Each shapely woman had delight melt for her

    as clouds melt, streaming and pouring down.

  5. أَطاعَها الحُسنُ وَاِنحَطَّ الشَبابُ عَلى

    فُؤادِها وَجَرَت في روحِها النِسَبُ

    Beauty obeyed her, and youth settled upon

    her heart, while ancestral qualities coursed through her soul.

  6. لَم أَنسَها وَصُروفُ البَينِ تَظلِمُها

    وَلا مُعَوَّلَ إِلّا الواكِفُ السَرِبُ

    I have not forgotten her, as separation's reversals wronged her,

    with no recourse but dripping, flowing tears.

  7. أَدنَت نِقاباً عَلى الخَدَّينِ وَاِنتَسَبَت

    لِلناظِرينَ بِقَدٍّ لَيسَ يَنتَسِبُ

    She drew a veil over her cheeks and proclaimed her lineage

    to onlookers through a figure claiming kinship with none.

  8. وَلَو تَبَسَّمُ عُجنا الطَرفَ في بَرَدٍ

    وَفي أَقاحٍ سَقَتها الخَمرُ وَالضَرَبُ

    And if she smiled, we turned our gaze upon hailstones

    and daisies watered by wine and white honey.

  9. مِن شَكلِهِ الدُرُّ في رَصفِ النِظامِ وَمِن

    صِفاتِهِ الفِتنَتانِ الظَلمُ وَالشَنَبُ

    Pearls arrayed upon a string share its form, and among

    its qualities are two enchantments: lustrous moisture and sweet coolness.

  10. كانَت لَنا مَلعَباً نَلهو بِزُخرُفِهِ

    وَقَد يُنَفِّسُ عَن جِدِّ الفَتى اللَعِبُ

    She was our playground, where we reveled in its splendor;

    play can relieve a young man's earnest cares.

  11. لَمّا أَطالَ اِرتِجالَ العَذلِ قُلتُ لَهُ

    الحَزمُ يَثني خُطوبَ الدَهرِ لا الخُطَبُ

    When he prolonged his impromptu reproaches, I said to him:

    Resolve turns back the calamities of time, not speeches.

  12. لَم يَجتَمِع قَطُّ في مِصرٍ وَلا طَرَفٍ

    مُحَمَّدُ بنُ أَبي مَروانَ وَالنُوَبُ

    Never, in a city or on a frontier, have there met

    Muhammad ibn Abi Marwan and misfortunes.

  13. لي مِن أَبي جَعفَرٍ آخِيَّةٌ سَبَبٌ

    إِن تَبقَ يُطلَب إِلى مَعروفِيَ السَبَبُ

    I have from Abu Ja'far a tethering bond, a link;

    if it endures, people will seek a link to my bounty.

  14. صَحَّت فَما يَتَمارى مَن تَأَمَّلَها

    مِن نَحوِ نائِلِهِ في أَنَّها نَسَبُ

    It is sound: whoever considers it does not doubt,

    in view of his gifts, that it is kinship.

  15. أَمَّت نَداهُ بِيَ العيسُ الَّتي شَهِدَت

    لَها السُرى وَالفَيافي أَنَّها نُجُبُ

    The pale camels bore me toward his bounty; there testified

    to their nobility the night journeys and the wastes.

  16. هَمٌّ سَرى ثُمَّ أَضحى هِمَّةً أَمَماً

    أَضحَت رَجاءً وَأَمسَت وَهيَ لي نَشَبُ

    A worry traveled by night, then became a purpose within reach;

    it dawned as hope, and by evening was wealth for me.

  17. أَعطى وَنُطفَةُ وَجهي في قَرارَتِها

    تَصونُها الوَجَناتُ الغَضَّةُ القُشُبُ

    He gave while the moisture of my face remained in its resting place,

    guarded by cheeks fresh and unblemished.

  18. لَن يَكرُمَ الظَفَرُ المُعطى وَإِن أُخِذَت

    بِهِ الرَغائِبُ حَتّى يَكرُمَ الطَلَبُ

    A bestowed success will never be honorable, even if it secures

    the things one covets, until the asking is honorable.

  19. إِذا تَباعَدَتِ الدُنيا فَمَطلَبُها

    إِذا تَوَرَّدتَهُ مِن شِعبِهِ كَثَبُ

    When worldly fortune grows distant, the quest for it

    is close if you approach it through his ravine.

  20. رِدءُ الخِلافَةِ في الجُلّى إِذا نَزَلَت

    وَقَيِّمُ المُلكِ لا الواني وَلا النَصِبُ

    The caliphate's support when great calamity descends,

    and the guardian of sovereignty, neither slack nor weary.

  21. جَفنٌ يَعافُ لَذيذَ النَومِ ناظِرُهُ

    شُحّاً عَلَيها وَقَلبٌ حَولَها يَجِبُ

    An eyelid whose eye refuses the sweetness of sleep

    from jealous care for it, and a heart that throbs around it.

  22. طَليعَةٌ رَأيُهُ مِن دونِ بَيضَتِها

    كَما اِنتَمى رَابِئٌ في الغَزوِ مُنتَصِبُ

    His counsel is an advance guard before its innermost stronghold,

    like a lookout rising erect during a raid.

  23. حَتّى إِذا ما اِنتَضى التَدبيرَ ثابَ لَهُ

    جَيشٌ يُصارِعُ عَنهُ ما لَهُ لَجَبُ

    Until, when he unsheathes strategy, there rallies to him

    an army that fights on his behalf yet makes no clamor.

  24. شِعارُها اِسمُكَ إِن عُدَّت مَحاسِنُها

    إِذِ اِسمُ حاسِدِكَ الأَدنى لَها لَقَبُ

    Your name is its watchword whenever its merits are counted,

    whereas your inferior envier's name is merely its byname.

  25. وَزيرُ حَقٍّ وَوالي شُرطَةٍ وَرَحى

    ديوانِ مُلكٍ وَشيعِيٌّ وَمُحتَسِبُ

    A true vizier, a chief of police, and the millstone

    of the royal bureau, a partisan and an overseer of public morals.

  26. كَالأَرحَبِيِّ المَذَكّى سَيرُهُ المَرَطى

    وَالوَخدُ وَالمَلعُ وَالتَقريبُ وَالخَبَبُ

    Like a mature Arhabi camel, whose gait is swift coursing,

    brisk striding, swift running, the short gallop, and the trot.

  27. عَودٌ تُساجِلُهُ أَيّامُهُ فَبِها

    مِن مَسِّهِ وَبِهِ مِن مَسِّها جُلَبُ

    A veteran whose days contend with him; upon them

    lie scabs from his touch, and on him scabs from theirs.

  28. ثَبتُ الجَنانِ إِذا اِصطَكَّت بِمُظلِمَةٍ

    في رَحلِهِ أَلسُنُ الأَقوامِ وَالرُكَبُ

    Steadfast of heart when, over a grievance, there clash

    in his dwelling the people's tongues and knees.

  29. لا المَنطِقُ اللَغوُ يَزكو في مَقاوِمِهِ

    يَوماً وَلا حُجَّةُ المَلهوفِ تُستَلَبُ

    No idle talk flourishes in his assemblies

    on any day, nor is a distressed man's plea taken away.

  30. كَأَنَّما هُوَ في نادي قَبيلَتِهِ

    لا القَلبُ يَهفو وَلا الأَحشاءُ تَضطَرِبُ

    As though he were in his tribe's meeting place,

    his heart does not flutter, nor do his innards tremble.

  31. وَتَحتَ ذاكَ قَضاءٌ حَزُّ شَفرَتِهِ

    كَما يَعَضُّ بِأَعلى الغارِبِ القَتَبُ

    Yet beneath that lies a judgment whose blade cuts

    as a pack saddle bites the top of a camel's withers.

  32. لا سورَةٌ تُتَّقى مِنهُ وَلا بَلَهٌ

    وَلا يَحيفُ رِضاً مِنهُ وَلا غَضَبُ

    No fury need be feared from him, nor foolishness,

    and neither his pleasure nor his anger brings injustice.

  33. أَلقى إِلَيكَ عُرى الأَمرِ الإِمامُ فَقَد

    شُدَّ العِناجُ مِنَ السُلطانِ وَالكَرَبُ

    The Imam has handed you the loops of command; thus

    sovereignty's bottom-rope and rim-rope have been fastened.

  34. يَعشو إِلَيكَ وَضَوءُ الرَأيِ قائِدُهُ

    خَليفَةٌ إِنَّما آراؤُهُ شُهُبُ

    He seeks your light, guided by the radiance of judgment—

    a caliph whose counsels are nothing but shooting stars.

  35. إِن تَمتَنِع مِنهُ في الأَوقاتِ رُؤيَتُهُ

    فَكُلُّ لَيثٍ هَصورٍ غيلُهُ أَشِبُ

    If at times you cannot obtain a sight of him,

    every crushing lion has a tangled thicket for his lair.

  36. أَو تَلقَ مِن دونِهِ حُجبٌ مُكَرَّمَةٌ

    يَوماً فَقَد أُلقِيَت مِن دونِكَ الحُجُبُ

    Or if you encounter honored screens before him

    one day, the screens before you have been cast aside.

  37. وَالصُبحُ تَخلُفُ نورَ الشَمسِ غُرَّتُهُ

    وَقَرنُها مِن وَراءِ الأُفقِ مُحتَجِبُ

    And dawn's bright brow stands in for the sun's light,

    while the sun's rim is veiled behind the horizon.

  38. أَما القَوافي فَقَد حَصَّنتَ عُذرَتَها

    فَما يُصابُ دَمٌ مِنها وَلا سَلَبُ

    As for the rhymes, you have guarded their virginity,

    so none of their blood is shed, nor any spoil taken.

  39. مَنَعتَ إِلّا مِنَ الأَكفاءِ ناكِحَها

    وَكانَ مِنكَ عَلَيها العَطفُ وَالحَدَبُ

    You barred anyone but their equals from wedding them,

    and you showed them tenderness and care.

  40. وَلَو عَضَلتَ عَنِ الأَكفاءِ أَيِّمَها

    وَلَم يَكُن لَكَ في أَطهارِها أَرَبُ

    Had you kept their unwed women from worthy matches,

    and taken no interest in their marriage alliances,

  41. كانَت بَناتِ نُصَيبٍ حينَ ضَنَّ بِها

    عَنِ المَوالي وَلَم تَحفَل بِها العَرَبُ

    they would have been Nusayb's daughters, when he withheld them

    from the clients, while the Arabs cared nothing for them.

  42. أَمّا وَحَوضُكَ مَملوءٌ فَلا سُقِيَت

    خَوامِسي إِن كَفى أَرسالَها الغَرَبُ

    But while your watering trough is full, may no water be given

    to my fifth-day camels if a great bucket suffices their herds.

  43. لَو أَنَّ دِجلَةَ لَم تُحوِج وَصاحِبَها

    أَرضَ العِراقَينِ لَم تُحفَر بِها القُلُبُ

    Had the Tigris and its companion not left in need

    the land of the two Iraqs, no wells would have been dug there.

  44. لَم يَنتَدِب عُمَرٌ لِلإِبلِ يَجعَلُ مِن

    جُلودِها النَقدَ حَتّى عَزَّهُ الذَهَبُ

    Umar did not turn to the camels to make from

    their hides currency until gold proved beyond his reach.

  45. لا شَربَ أَجهَلُ مِن شَربٍ إِذا وَجَدوا

    هَذا اللُجَينِ فَدارَت فيهِمُ الغُلَبُ

    No drinking company is more foolish than those who, on finding

    this silver, have the bulky bowls passed around among them.

  46. إِنَّ الأَسِنَّةَ وَالماذِيَّ مُذ كَثُرا

    فَلا الصَياصي لَها قَدرٌ وَلا اليَلَبُ

    Since spearheads and fine steel mail have become abundant,

    neither horns nor hide armor count for anything against them.

  47. لا نَجمَ مِن مَعشَرٍ إِلّا وَهِمَّتُهُ

    عَلَيكَ دائِرَةٌ يا أَيُّها القُطُبُ

    No star among any people but has its ambition

    circling around you, O pole star.

  48. وَما ضَميرِيَ في ذِكراكَ مُشتَرَكٌ

    وَلا طَريقي إِلى جَدواكَ مُنشَعِبُ

    My inward thought of you is shared with no other,

    nor does my road toward your bounty branch.

  49. لي حُرمَةٌ بِكَ لَولا ما رَعَيتَ وَما

    أَوجَبتَ مِن حِفظِها ما خِلتُها تَجِبُ

    I have a claim to your regard; but for what you respected and

    made obligatory in guarding it, I would not have deemed it due.

  50. بَلى لَقَد سَلَفَت في جاهِلِيَّتِهِم

    لِلحَقِّ لَيسَ كَحَقّي نُصرَةٌ عَجَبُ

    Indeed, in their days of Ignorance there was already

    wondrous support for a claim, though not one like mine:

  51. أَن تَعلَقَ الدَلوُ بِالدَلوِ الغَريبَةِ أَو

    يُلابِسَ الطُنُبَ المُستَحصِدَ الطُنُبُ

    a bucket catching on an unfamiliar bucket, or

    one tent rope entwining a firmly twisted tent rope.

  52. إِنَّ الخَليفَةَ قَد عَزَّت بِدَولَتِهِ

    دَعائِمُ الدينِ فَليَعزِز بِكَ الأَدَبُ

    The caliph's reign has made strong

    the pillars of religion; let literature be strengthened through you.

  53. مالي أَرى جَلَباً فَعماً وَلَستُ أَرى

    سوقاً وَمالي أَرى سوقاً وَلا جَلَبُ

    Why do I see a brimming load of wares, yet see no

    market, and why do I see a market with no wares?

  54. أَرضٌ بِها عُشُبٌ جَرفٌ وَلَيسَ بِها

    ماءٌ وَأُخرى بِها ماءٌ وَلا عُشُبُ

    One land has luxuriant grass, but no

    water; another has water, but no grass.

  55. خُذها مُغَرِّبَةً في الأَرضِ آنِسَةً

    بِكُلِّ فَهمٍ غَريبٍ حينَ تَغتَرِبُ

    Take it, ranging far across the earth, finding companionship

    with every uncommon mind whenever it travels abroad.

  56. مِن كُلِّ قافِيَةٍ فيها إِذا اِجتُنِيَت

    مِن كُلِّ ما يَجتَنيهِ المُدنَفُ الوَصِبُ

    In every rhyme within it, when harvested, there is

    something of all that the wasting, ailing man gathers:

  57. الجِدُّ وَالهَزلُ في تَوشيعِ لُحمَتِها

    وَالنُبلُ وَالسُخفُ وَالأَشجانُ وَالطَرَبُ

    earnestness and jest are woven into its weft,

    and nobility, folly, sorrows, and rapture.

  58. لا يُستَقى مِن جَفيرِ الكُتبِ رَونَقُها

    وَلَم تَزَل تَستَقي مِن بَحرِها الكُتُبُ

    Its luster is not drawn from the quiver of books;

    and books have never ceased drawing from its sea.

  59. حَسيبَةٌ في صَميمِ المَدحِ مَنصِبُها

    إِذ أَكثَرُ الشِعرِ مُلقىً مالَهُ حَسَبُ

    Of noble lineage, its station is in the very heart of praise,

    while most poetry is cast out, with no pedigree.