بملتقى لحظنا البرق الذي ومضا — Alarjani

بمُلتقَى لَحظِنا البرقُ الّذي وَمضا

اِستوقَفَ الطَّرفَ في آثارِه ومَضى

At the meeting-point of our gaze was the lightning that flashed;

It arrested the eye along its traces, then passed on.

لمّا تناعَس ساريهِ أرِقتُ له

تُراه أودَع جَفْني عندَه الغُمُضا

When its night-traveler grew drowsy, I stayed awake for it.

Had my eyelid, I wonder, entrusted its sleep to it?

أبدَى كشاكلِة البلقاء صَفْحتَه

وَمرَّ يتركُ صِبْغَ اللّيلِ مُنتفِضا

It showed its side like the flank of a piebald mare,

And passed, leaving the night's dye shaken off.

وعاد ثانيَ عِطفَيْهِ على عجَلٍ

يُجِدُّ دَرْسَ خَضابٍ للظّلامِ نَضا

It returned, bending its two flanks in haste,

Renewing the erasure of the dye it stripped from darkness.

ما إن عَلِمْتُ له وادي الغضا وطَناً

إلاّ لِما امتار منه القلْبُ جَمْرَ غَضا

I did not recognize the Valley of al-Ghada as its home

Except because the heart gathered from it embers of saxaul.

كم ذا بمَسْراهُ من عَينٍ مُؤرّقَةٍ

وأيُّ صَبٍّ عناهُ الشَّوقُ فاغتَمضا

How many an eye lies sleepless along its nightly course!

And what lover, tormented by longing, has closed his eyes?

ومن ذوائبِ أنفاسٍ وصَلْتُ بها

ُحشاشةَ اللّمْعِ جُنْحَ اللّيلِ فانتَهضا

And with the trailing wisps of sighs I sustained

The flash's last breath in night's darkness, and it sprang up.

أدنَى اليمانينَ منّا البرقُ إذ رَحلوا

فبات يُسرِعُ خلْفَ الرَّكْبِ مُرتكضا

The lightning brought the Yemenis nearer to us when they departed,

And sped all night behind the caravan, galloping.

فما الّذي يتَلاقَى الظّاعنينَ بنا

وقد ونَى البرقُ عنهمْ وانثَنى غَرضا

What, then, can reunite those departing travelers with us,

When the lightning has lagged behind them and turned back weary?

في ذمّةِ اللّهِ من أحبابِنا زُمَرٌ

ساروا وما اعتاضَ قلبي عنهمُ عِوَضا

In God's keeping are bands of our beloveds;

They departed, and my heart found no substitute for them.

وكيف ساروا وروحي بَعضُ مَن معهم

وما أَرى عُمُري للبَيْنِ مُنقَرِضا

How could they depart, when my soul is among those with them,

Yet I do not see my life extinguished by separation?

لأنّه بعدُ في قلبي وأيُّ فتىً

لم تَنقطعْ روحُه من قَلْبِه وقَضى

For it is still within my heart; and what young man

Ever died without his soul being severed from his heart?

فعَرِّجا بي على أَدْنَى مَعاهدِهم

يا حاديَيْنا وشَرّ العَهدِ ما نُقِضا

So you two, turn aside with me to the nearest of their haunts,

O our two camel-drivers—the worst covenant is one broken.

واستَبْقِ يا صاحِ فالوجناءُ رازِحةٌ

وَخْدَ المطايا فقد تَرمِي بها غَرَضا

And spare, my friend—for the stout-cheeked she-camel is exhausted—

The mounts' swift stride; you may yet send her toward a goal.

أما تَرى ظِلَّها والشَّمسُ تَسرِقُه

تُحَيْتَ أَخفافِها بالقاعِ منقَبِضا

Do you not see her shadow, which the sun steals,

Shrinking just beneath her hoof-pads on the plain?

وتَمَّ مَن كَرَّ ما روَّيتُه عَلقاً

في حَيِّ قيسٍ وكان الثّأرُ مُفتَرضا

And whoever charged was finished; I did not drench him with blood,

In the clan of Qays, and vengeance was obligatory.

سُقْ بالأسنّةِ مالَ العامريَ غداً

إذا أَديمُ الحصَى مِن عالجٍ رَبِضا

Drive off al-'Amiri's herds with spearheads tomorrow,

When the gravel's skin at 'Alij lies prone.

وقَرِّطِ الخيلَ من نجدٍ أَعِنتَّها

من كلِّ أَعيطَ ملْءَ العَين مُعتَرضا

And drape the Najd horses' reins behind their ears,

Each tall-necked steed filling the eye as it stands broadside,

وخاطفاتٌ فُويقَ الأرضِ أَربَعُه

لا يَعلَقُ الطَّرفُ عِطفَيْهِ إذا ركضا

And its four legs darting just above the earth;

The eye cannot fasten on its flanks when it gallops.

وقد يُنزّقُها الفُرسانُ صائحةً

إذا الوشيجُ على أَكتافِها عَرَضا

And horsemen may goad them into neighing,

When spear-shafts are laid across their shoulders.

وتَتَّقي بهواديها أَعاليَها

إذا العِنانُ لتصريفِ القنا خُفِضا

They shield their upper bodies with their necks,

When the reins are lowered to maneuver the lances.

واللاّبسونَ عليها كُلَّ سابغةٍ

تَدَرُّجُ الرِّيحِ دَبَّتْ في مُتونِ إضا

And those wearing, upon them, every ample coat of mail

Are wind-ripples creeping across the backs of pools.

يَحِنُّ نِضْوي إلى ماء العُذَيْبِ ضُحىً

وما بهِ البُعدُ لولا أَنّه أُبِضا

My worn mount yearns at midmorning for the water of al-'Udhayb,

Distance would not trouble it, were it not hobbled.

يَظْما إليه وأَهْوَى بعضَ ساكنهِ

ويَحتوي من جُنوبِ الحَزْنِ مُنخَفِضا

It thirsts for it, while I love one of its inhabitants,

And it occupies a hollow along the sides of al-Hazn.

ودونَ لَيلَى وإنْ طافَ الخيالُ بنا

سيوفُ رَوْعٍ إذا شاء الغَيورُ نَضا

Between us and Layla, though her phantom visits us,

Are swords of terror that the jealous one draws at will.

وفي الخيامِ بواديهمْ عيونُ مَهاً

مَرْضَى على أَنّني عُلِّقْتُها عَرَضا

And in the tents in their valley are eyes of oryx,

Languishing, though I fell in love with her by chance.

وإِنّما ملَكتْ قلبي وإن سحرَتْ

لأنّها اقتسمَت عن جِسميَ المَرضا

And she possessed my heart, despite her enchantment,

Only because she took a share of sickness from my body.

لكنّها استأْثَرَتْ منّا بحِلْيتِه

لطرْفِها وحبَتْ عُشّاقَها المَضَضا

But from our share she claimed its beauty for herself

For her gaze, and granted her lovers the anguish.

فلو تأمّلْتَ حالَينْا عَلِمْتَ إذنْ

أنّا فَديْناكَ من مَكْروهِ ما عَرَضا

Had you considered our two conditions, you would then have known

That we ransomed you from the evil that befell you.

فاسلَمْ سَلِمتَ على الأيّام ما بَقيتْ

لنا جميعاً بأن نَفْدي عُلاك رِضا

So remain safe—may you be safe through all the days that remain;

We all take delight in ransoming your exalted rank.

ولا تَزَلْ أنتَ بالإقبالِ مُبتهِجاً

ومَن يُعاديكَ بالبَلْبالِ مُرْتَمِضا

May you ever rejoice in good fortune,

And may whoever opposes you burn with turmoil.

أنت الهُمامُ الّذي دانَتْ له هِمَمٌ

إذا سواهُ ارتقَى عَلْياءها دَحَضا

You are the valiant man to whom lofty ambitions bow,

While anyone else who climbs their summit slips.

له تُصاغُ عيونُ القولِ إن نُطِقَتْ

وفي عُلاهُ فصيحُ الشِّعرِ إن قُرِضا

For him the gems of speech are fashioned when uttered,

And eloquent poetry, when composed, celebrates his greatness.

يَخُطُّ سُوداً على بِيضٍ كَفى بهما

فَخْراً وما الدَّهرُ إلاّ ما دَجا وأضا

He writes black upon white—the two suffice

As glory; time is nothing but what darkens and shines.

فالمُلْكُ لا يَكْتفي إلاّ بهِ شَرَفاً

والدِّينُ لا يَقْتضي إلاّ بهِ غَرَضا

Kingship finds sufficient honor only through him,

And religion achieves its purpose only through him.

مَن لا يَمَلُّ من العلياء إن صَعُبَتْ

ولا يَضِلُّ صوابَ الرّأي إن غَمُضا

One who never tires of lofty heights, however difficult,

Nor misses sound judgment when it is obscure.

ولا تَعاظَمُه أقطارُ مملكةٍ

عنَّتْ وإن طالَ مَتْناها وإن عرضا

Nor do the reaches of a kingdom overwhelm him

When it appears, however long or broad its two expanses.

مستأْسِدٌ بين عينَيْهِ عَزيمتُه

إذا تَراءتْ له أُكرومةٌ نَهَضا

Lionlike, with his resolve set between his eyes,

He rises whenever a noble deed appears before him.

يُهابُ وهْو عنِ الأقوام مُعتَزلٌ

كذلكَ الّليثُ مَرهوبٌ وإنْ رَبضا

He is feared even apart from the people;

So too the lion is dreaded even when it lies at rest.

يَفديكَ كُلُّ لئيمٍ سِيطَ من دَمِه

بُخْلٌ فلو جَسَّه الرّاجي لَما نَبَضا

May every base man ransom you, from whose blood is blended

Miserliness: if a hopeful petitioner felt it, it would not pulse.

وعاجِزٌ أنْ يُسامي غايتَيْكَ عُلاً

والقَرْمُ يُعجِزُ عن غاياتِه الحُفُضا

And anyone unable to rival your two summits of glory;

The noble stud-camel puts his goals beyond the pack camels' reach.

كانتْ شَكاتُك بُشرَى غيرَ خافيةٍ

أهدَتْ إلى مَضْجعَيْ حسّادِك القَضَضا

Your illness was glad tidings, plain to see,

That gifted your enviers' two beds with sharp pebbles.

مُلمِّةٌ تَقتفي بالّلهوِ مُعقبَةً

وزُبدةٌ تُجتنَى للعيشِ إذ مُخِضا

An affliction that brings delight in its aftermath,

And butter gathered for living when life is churned.

إنّ النّسيمَ الّذي تَحيا النُّفوسُ به

أَصحُّ ما كان أنفاساً إذا مَرِضا

The breeze through which souls live

Is most wholesome to breathe when it grows languid.

يا مَن عدَتْني عَوادٍ عن زيارتِه

لا أنّ ما بيننا حاشا العُلا رُفِضا

O you whom hindrances kept me from visiting,

Not that what binds us—nobility forbid!—was forsaken.

قَبضْتُ عنك الخُطا حَولاً لغيرِ قِلىً

إنّ الكريمَ إذا لم يُبْسَطِ انقَبضا

I withheld my steps from you for a year, not out of aversion;

The noble man draws back when he is not put at ease.

وعُدْتُ لمّا تناهَى الصّبرُ عنك هوىً

إنّ المُحبَّ إذا لم يُطلَبِ اعتَرضا

And I returned in love when patience away from you reached its limit;

The lover, if not summoned, presents himself.

وكُلُّ مَن جاورَ البيتَ الحرامَ يُرَى

لقاؤه مَرّةً في العامِ مُفتَرَضا

And for whoever dwells beside the Sacred House, it is held

That meeting him once a year is obligatory.

فاشْدُدْ يدَيك أدام اللّهُ جودَهما

بمُطْلَقِ الغَرْبِ ما أَمضَيْتَ منه مضَى

So hold fast with both hands—may God perpetuate their generosity—

To one of unfettered keenness: what you set him to, he carries through.

لا يَزْدهي بمديحٍ فيكَ يُبدِعُه

وإن أَدَلَّ فبالوُدِّ الّذي مَحَضا

He does not vaunt the praise of you that he creates;

And if he takes liberties, it is through the love he has kept pure.

وابلُغْ به من يَفاعِ المَجدِ مُشتَرَفاً

واغضَبْ له من صُروفِ الدّهرِ مُمتَعِضا

And raise him to a lofty outlook on the heights of glory,

And be angered for him, indignant at time's vicissitudes.

فاسْعَدْ بعِيدٍ أتَى والشّوقُ يُعجِلُه

إلى تَناصُفِ هاتيكَ العُلا غَرَضا

So rejoice in a festival that has come, hastened by longing,

Yearning to share fairly in those lofty honors.

واخلُد لتُرعَى بك الآمالُ آمِنةً

ما جَمّ من وَرَقِ الدُّنيا وما بَرَضا

And live forever, so that through you hopes may graze secure,

On the world's foliage, whether abundant or scant.

لا يُحرَمَنَّ مُناهُ منك ذو أَملٍ

إن كان حَقُّك فَرْضاً عنده فقَضى

Let no hopeful man be denied his wishes by you,

If he deemed your due a duty and fulfilled it.

فاللّهُ يَضْمَنُ أن يُجْزَي بجَنّتهِ

سَعْيُ العبادِ إذا قاموا بما فَرَضا

For God guarantees that His Paradise shall reward

His servants' striving when they carry out what He ordained.