بركبك تعتز القرى والمدائن — أحمد الكاشف

بركبك تعتز القرى والمدائنُ

وتستبق السبلَ المنى والميامنُ

Villages and cities take pride in your cavalcade,

And hopes and blessings race ahead along the roads.

ربيع تلقاه الربيع مباركاً

يسايره مستبشراً ويقارن

A spring whom springtime welcomed with blessings,

Accompanying him joyfully and keeping him company.

تنقلت مرجواً وأشرقت منعماً

لواؤك خفاق ودهرك ساكن

You traveled, awaited in hope, and shone forth bestowing favors;

Your banner flutters, and your days are tranquil.

مظاهر إخلاص براهين طاعة

تشاهدها مجلوة وتعاين

Displays of devotion, proofs of obedience,

You witness them unveiled and see them firsthand.

وما لبني النيلين غيرك مالك

وما لحمى القطرين غيرك صائن

And the sons of the two Niles have no sovereign but you,

And the protected domain of the two lands has no guardian but you.

وما لقضاء أنت مجريه غالب

وما لمطيع أنت مغنيه فاتن

And no one can override a decree you enact,

And no tempter can sway an obedient man whom you enrich.

غضبت على من صال في زمن الرضى

وفي مصر أنياب له وبراثن

You grew angry with one who lorded it in the days of favor,

And in Egypt he had fangs and claws.

وخاشنت حزماً بعدما كان يدعي

سريرك في ديوانه من تلاين

And you dealt sternly, with resolve, after he had been claiming

Your throne in his office—he whom you treated gently.

وبدلت حالاً ملَّه الملك مثلما

تعاف النفوس الماء والماء آسن

And changed a state of affairs the realm had tired of, just as

Souls loathe water when the water is stagnant.

ودبرت أمراً بعد أمر مجرباً

عسى تخلف اليوم العيوبَ المحاسن

And devised measure after measure, putting them to the test:

May virtues replace faults today.

مضى زمن والحكم يخرجه هوى

ويعرضه شاد ويمضيه شادن

Gone is an age when whim issued a decree,

And a singer presented it, and a young gazelle ratified it.

ويبغي على الأحرار جند مدجج

ويعبث بالأبرار واش مشاحن

And heavily armed troops oppressed free men,

And a spiteful informer toyed with the righteous.

تنكر صحب واتقى الجار جاره

وكُذِّبَ صدِّيقٌ وروع آمن

Friends grew estranged, and neighbor feared neighbor,

And a truthful man was called a liar, and a man at peace was terrified.

وخاف المناجي سرَّه فكأنما

على كلِّ خفّاق رقيبٌ وخازن

And the whisperer feared for his secret, as though

Over every beating heart stood a watcher and a keeper.

مناصب جاءتهم جزافاً فأمطلت

مفاخرها أعراقهم والمعادن

Offices came to them haphazardly, and were denied

Their due honors by those men's lineage and stock.

إذا هان عرض المرء في طلب الغنى

فكل كريم ضيّع فيه هائن

If a man's honor is held cheap in the pursuit of wealth,

Then every precious thing squandered for it is held cheap.

أليس الأذى أن يخذلوا متطوعاً

إذا كان ظلماً أن يسخَّر ماهن

Is it not harm that they abandon a volunteer,

If it is injustice to force a servant into service?

هم أمنوا شري ولو شئت كان لي

مضارب في آثارهم ومطاحن

They were safe from my harm; had I wished, I would have had

Battlegrounds on their trail, and grinding mills.

أيعصيك من أطعمته ورفعته

فأمسى على علاته وهو بادن

Does one whom you fed and raised defy you—

One who grew stout despite all his flaws—

ويأبى الذي ترضاه لي من مرافق

ومظهره واهي المروءة واهن

And refuse the benefits you approve for me,

Though his outward bearing is frail, his manly virtue weak,

ويحرمني ظل الذي أنا غارس

ويمنعني مرأى الذي أنا زائن

And deprive me of the shade of what I planted,

And deny me the sight of what I adorn?

وكان جزاء المانع الخير عزله

ولست بمستشف بما هو كائن

And dismissal was the penalty for the man who withheld good,

And I seek no healing in what is happening.

ولم يجن أعدائي على كل ما جنى

زماني وأحبابي وهذي المواطن

And my enemies never wronged me as much as did

My times, my loved ones, and these places.

أبيعهمُ الدر الثمين بنظرة

تجاوز مغبون ولم يرض غابن

I sell them precious pearls for a glance;

The cheated one forgave, yet the cheat remained unsatisfied.

ويجري دمي شعراً أمام عيونهم

فلا الدم شاجيهم ولا الشعر شاجن

And my blood flows as poetry before their eyes,

Yet neither the blood grieves them nor the poetry stirs sorrow.

وأشفق من حقّي عليهم وطالما

تقاضاهمُ زور المغارم دائن

And I shrink from claiming my due from them, though often

A creditor has demanded spurious debts from them.

وكم مرَّ بي في ملتقى السيل معرض

وما بيَ ذل غير أني مهادن

And many a man passed me at the torrent's confluence, turning away,

And there is no abasement in me—I merely keep the peace.

ومن نكد الأيام أن أشكوَ الجوى

فيحكم خصمٌ أو خليع مماجن

And among the miseries of the days is that I lament heartache,

Only for an adversary or a shameless libertine to judge.

ويأكل أحشائي سدىً وتجمّلي

ويكرم مفتون ويؤجر شائن

And my entrails and my composure are devoured in vain,

While the deluded are honored and the disgraceful rewarded.

فكيف يجول العزم وهو مقيد

وتنتجع الآمال وهي رهائن

How, then, can resolve roam when it is bound,

And hopes seek pasture when they are hostages?

شكاية مظلوم فكل مقرب

إذا لم يبلّغها رجاءك خائن

A wronged man's complaint; every court intimate

Is a traitor if he fails to convey it, looking to you in hope.

فمر يدك البيضاء تصبح حدائقاً

مضاءة مثلي نضرة والمكامن

Then command your white hand: they will become gardens,

Radiant and verdant—one like me and hidden recesses.

لئن أخذت منك الأقاليم حظها

ففي الثغر ترجو حظهن السفائن

If the provinces have taken their share from you,

Then in the port the ships hope for their share.

تقلك محمود الوسائل والمدى

إلى بلد فيه الخليفة قاطن

They bear you, praiseworthy in your means and ends,

To a land where the caliph dwells.

تسر إليه ما يسر ضميره

وتنصر جهراً ملكه وتعاون

You confide to him what gladdens his heart,

And openly uphold his rule and lend aid.

تحيي القلاع الشم ركبك مقبلاً

وترفع مقبول الدعاء المآذن

The lofty fortresses salute your approaching cavalcade,

And the minarets raise prayers that are accepted.

أسلّم تسليم الوداع إلى غد

وأبقى وقلبي أينما سرت ظاعن

I offer a farewell greeting until tomorrow,

And stay behind, while my heart journeys wherever you go.

وما لي سوى نفسي إليك وسيلة

وما لي سوى الإخلاص عندك ضامن

And I have no means of reaching you but myself,

And no guarantor before you but sincerity.