ثِقي بِجَميل الصَبر مِنّي عَلى الدَهر

ثِقي بِجَميل الصَبر مِنّي عَلى الدَهر

وَلا تَثقي بِالصَبر مِنّي عَلى الهَجر

وَلا تَثقي بِالصَبر مِنّي عَلى الهَجر

Trust in my noble patience in the face of time,

Trust in the beauty of my patience against time,

Trust in my graceful patience against the turns of Time,

But do not trust in my patience in the face of separation.

And do not trust in my patience against separation.

But do not trust my patience when it comes to separation.

أَصابَت فُؤادي بَعدَ خَمسين حِجّةً

أَصابَت فُؤادي بَعدَ خَمسين حِجّةً

عُيونُ الظِباء العُفر بالبلد القَفر

عُيونُ الظِباء العُفر بالبلد القَفر

After fifty years, my heart was struck

After fifty proofs, eyes of wild deer

My heart was struck, after fifty years had passed,

By the eyes of pale gazelles in the barren land.

Struck my heart in the barren, rugged land.

By the eyes of white gazelles in the desolate wasteland.

وَلست بنظّار إِلى جانِب الغِني

وَلست بنظّار إِلى جانِب الغِني

إِذا كانَت العَلياء في جانِب الفَقرِ

إِذا كانَت العَلياء في جانِب الفَقرِ

And I am not one to gaze toward wealth's side,

I do not look to the rich man's side

I am not one to gaze toward the side of wealth,

When high honor lies on poverty's side.

If poverty lies on the noble's side.

If high honor is found on the side of poverty.

وَلَكِنَّني مرُّ العَداوة واتِرٌ

وَلَكِنَّني مرُّ العَداوة واتِرٌ

كَثير ذُنوب الشِعر وَالأسَل السُمر

كَثير ذُنوب الشِعر وَالأسَل السُمر

But I am bitter in enmity, an inflicter of wrongs,

But I pass by enmities,

Yet I am bitter in enmity, exacting vengeance,

With many offenses committed through verse and dusky spears.

My poetry full of sins and spears with reddish points.

Burdened with the many sins of verse and tawny spears.

رَميتُ بِها أَركان قيسِ بن جحدَرٍ

رَميتُ بِها أَركان قيسِ بن جحدَرٍ

فَطَحطحتُها قَذفَ المَجانيق بالصَخر

فَطَحطحتُها قَذفَ المَجانيق بالصَخر

I hurled them at the pillars of Qays ibn Jahdar,

I cast them at the pillars of Qays ibn Jadara

With them I struck the pillars of Qays bin Jahdar,

And crushed them as catapults do with hurled rocks.

And made them crumble as catapults do rocks.

Crushing them like rocks hurled from catapults.

وَما ظلم الغوثيُّ بَل أَنا ظالِم

وَما ظلم الغوثيُّ بَل أَنا ظالِم

وَهَل كانَ فَرخُ الماءِ يُثبِت للصقر

وَهَل كانَ فَرخُ الماءِ يُثبِت للصقر

Al-Ghawthi did no wrong; rather, I am the wrongdoer.

The Gauthi was not unjust; rather, I was unjust.

The Ghawthi was not unjust; nay, I am the oppressor,

And could a waterbird's chick ever stand firm against a falcon?

Could the chick of water establish the falcon?

For can a water-chick stand firm against a hawk?

أَلا إِنَّما أَبكي عَلى الشِعر أَنَّني

أَلا إِنَّما أَبكي عَلى الشِعر أَنَّني

أَرى كل وَطواط يُزاحِم في الشعر

أَرى كل وَطواط يُزاحِم في الشعر

Indeed, I weep for poetry only because I

Oh how I weep for poetry! For I see

Truly, I only weep for the state of poetry because

See every bat jostling for a place in poetry.

Every lizard vying in poetry,

I see every bat crowding into the realm of verse.

ومن دونه بحر وَلَيل يَلُفّه

ومن دونه بحر وَلَيل يَلُفّه

فَما ظَنُّه بِاللَيل في لُجّة البَحر

فَما ظَنُّه بِاللَيل في لُجّة البَحر

And before him lies a sea, and night enfolds him.

With an ocean below him and night enfolding him.

Before it lies a sea, and a night that enshrouds it;

So what does he expect of night in the depths of the sea?

What does he think of night in the ocean's darkness?

How will he fare with the night in the depths of the sea?

إِلَيكم إِلَيكم عَن لُؤيّ بن غالِب

إِلَيكم إِلَيكم عَن لُؤيّ بن غالِب

فَإِنَّ لُؤيّاً لا تَبيت عَلى الوِتر

فَإِنَّ لُؤيّاً لا تَبيت عَلى الوِتر

Back! Back from Lu'ayy ibn Ghalib!

To you, to you about Lu'ayy ibn Ghalib -

Away, keep away from Lu'ayy bin Ghalib!

For Lu'ayy does not sleep with a wrong unavenged.

Lu'ayy does not spend the night frustrated!

For Lu'ayy does not sleep while vengeance remains unpaid.

دَعوا الحَيَّة النَضناض لا تَعرِضوا لَها

دَعوا الحَيَّة النَضناض لا تَعرِضوا لَها

فَإِنَّ المَنايا بَينَ أَنيابها الخضر

فَإِنَّ المَنايا بَينَ أَنيابها الخضر

Leave the tongue-flicking serpent alone; do not interfere with her,

Leave the hissing snake alone, do not expose it -

Leave the hissing serpent be; do not cross its path,

For death lies between her green fangs.

For death lies between its green fangs.

For surely death lies between its dark fangs.