إذا ضربوا بكاظمة الخياما — Alarjani

إذا ضَربوا بكاظمةَ الخِياما

فهل لكَ مَن يُبلِّغُها السَّلاما

If they pitch their tents at Kazima,

have you someone to convey greetings to them?

ودونَ الحيِّ عَطْفُ السُّمْرِ هِيما

إلى ثَغْرٍ وخَطْفُ البِيضِ هاما

Before the camp are dusky spears bending, thirsty

for a mouth, and bright blades snatching heads.

عُداةٌ دونَ أحبابٍ نُزولٌ

أَزورهمُ استِراقاً واقْتِحاما

Enemies encamp before the loved ones;

I visit them by stealth and by storming in.

أُصبِّحُهمْ مُغِيراً مُستبيحاً

وأطْرُقُهمْ مُعنىًّ مُستهاما

I come to them at dawn, raiding and plundering,

and visit them by night, tormented and love-crazed.

إذا هَزَّتْ فَوارسُنا قَناةً

هَززْنَ لنا أَوانسُهمْ قَواما

When our horsemen shake a spear,

their maidens sway their figures for us.

وإنْ رَوِيَتْ نُحورُهمُ دِماءً

روَيْنَ نُحورَنا دَمْعاً سِجاما

And if their throats are drenched with blood,

the maidens drench our throats with streaming tears.

ولي جَفْنٌ قليلُ الصَّحْوِ مهما

تَنفّسَ لائمٌ بالعَذْلِ غاما

My eyelid rarely clears; whenever

a reproacher breathes blame, it clouds over.

وعَهْدٌ لو أَطَعْنا فيه وَجْداً

بكَيْنا كُلَّ يومٍ منه عاما

And a time of union—had we obeyed our yearning for it,

we would have wept a year for every day of it.

تَلاقَى سُرعةً طَرَفَاهُ عنّا

فيا للهِ عَهْدُكِ يا أَماما

Its two ends swiftly met, leaving us behind;

O God, that time with you, Umama!

رَجوتُ دَوامَ وَصلِكُمُ وجَهْلٌ

مُنايَ لَوَ انَّ ضوءَ الشّمسِ داما

I hoped for lasting union with you; folly

was my wish: if only the sunlight endured!

ألائميَ الغَداةَ لغَيْرِ جُرْمٍ

أعدْلٌ أنْ تُسيءَ وأنْ أُلاما

O you who blame me this morning for no offense,

is it just that you do wrong and I am blamed?

تَلومُ على تَذكُّرِ آلِ لَيْلَى

ولَومُكَ زائدي بِهمُ غراما

You blame me for remembering Layla's folk,

yet your blame deepens my passion for them.

ولم تَعْدَمْ مع الإحسانِ ذَمّاً

كما لا تَعْدَمُ الحَسناءُ ذاما

Nor have you lacked censure, despite doing good,

just as a beauty never lacks a detractor.

ولا واللهِ ما حِفْظي لعَهْدٍ

مَرامٌ أستَحِقُّ به مَلاما

No, by God, my keeping faith with a pledge

is no pursuit for which I deserve reproach.

وما أدْماءُ أُمُّ طَلاً أطافَتَ

بأبطَحَ تَرتْعي زَهْرَ الخُزامى

No pale gazelle, mother of a fawn, roaming

a pebbly valley, grazing on lavender blossoms,

تُرَى بين الطَّلا والشَّخصُ يبدو

لعينَيْها من الحَذَرِ انْقساما

seen between her fawn and a figure appearing

before her eyes, her attention divided by fear,

بأحسنَ رَميةً منها بطَرْفٍ

عشيّةَ قَوَّضَ الحيُّ الخياما

shoots a lovelier glance than she did

the evening the tribe struck its tents.

وأمّلْنا برِيقتها شِفاءً

فأعْدتْنا بمُقْلتها سَقاما

We hoped her saliva would bring healing,

but with her eye she infected us with sickness.

فقد أصبحْتُ لا سكَني مُقيمٌ

ولا الأحزانُ زائرتي لماما

For now my beloved no longer stays,

nor does sorrow visit me only now and then.

إذا قصَدَ المُنى يوماً فؤادي

أقرَّ من الأسى فيه زِحاما

Whenever my heart turns one day toward its wishes,

it lodges a throng of sorrow within.

فَهُبّا صاحبيَّ إلى المطايا

ألَمّا تَسأما هذا المُقاما

Rise, then, my two companions, to the mounts!

Are you not yet weary of this stay?

وحُلاّ العُقْلَ عن نُجُبٍ كرامٍ

طِرابٍ في أزِمَّتها تَسامى

And loose the hobbles from noble, choice camels,

restless, straining upward against their reins.

تُجاذِبُنا أخِشَّتُها إلى أنْ

تُحلّي خُطْمَها الدَّمَ واللُّغاما

They tug against us at their nose-pegs, until

they adorn their muzzles with blood and foam.

وتَسْبِقُ الجيادَ مُعارضاتٍ

تُباهي بالحُجولِ لها خِداما

And they outstrip the steeds racing alongside,

which flaunt their white stockings as anklets.

كأنّا والمطيُّ لنا حَنايا

خُلِقْنا في غَواربِها سِهاما

As though we—with our mounts as bows—

were fashioned as arrows upon their withers.

وما عَهِدَ الوَرى من قبْلِ صَحْبي

سهاماً معْ حناياها تُرامَى

Before my companions, mankind had never known

arrows shot together with their bows.

تَؤُمُّ من العُلا غرضَاً بعيداً

لتُدنيَهُ مَضاءً واعْتزاما

They head for a distant target of glory,

to bring it near through drive and determination.

فلا حُيّيتِ من أيّامِ هَزْلٍ

يَرومُ بها بنو جِدٍّ مَراما

May you go ungreeted, days of frivolity,

in which men of earnest purpose seek their goal.

ولو يَسْمَحْنَ لي بصديقِ صدْقٍ

جعلْتُ لَهُنَّ من ذَمّي ذِماما

Yet if they would grant me a true friend,

I would pledge them protection from my censure.

وكم ليَ من قوافٍ سائراتٍ

مُطوِّفةٍ عراقاً أو شَآما

How many traveling rhymes are mine,

roaming through Iraq or Sham!

ومن غرّاءَ أُمليها كلاماً

على أُذُنٍ فأملَؤُها كِلاما

And many a radiant ode I dictate as words

into an ear, then fill it with wounds.

ذمَمْتُ بها اللّئامَ فقال صَحْبي

أأيّاماً تُخاطِبُ أم أناما

With it I censured the base; my companions said,

Are you addressing days, or people?

فنَقِّطْ كيف شئْتَ وذُمَّ عنّي

فأيّاً ما رَميتَ تُصِبْ لئاما

Place the dots as you wish, and censure on my behalf:

whichever you aim at, you will strike the base.

ولكنْ آلُ رضوانٍ فزُرْهمْ

إذا ما شئْتَ أن تَلْقَى كراما

But Ridwan's family—visit them

whenever you wish to meet the noble.

فما خُلِقَ الورَى إلاّ مُحولاً

ولا خُلِقوا همُ إلاّ غَماما

For mankind was made as nothing but drought,

while they were made as nothing but rain-clouds.

أكارمُ وُشِّحتْ صُحُفُ المعالي

بذكْرِهمُ افْتِتاحاً واخْتِتاما

Noble men: the pages of high deeds are adorned

with their mention, at beginning and end.

كأنّهمُ إذا لاقَوا حُشوداً

نظامُ الدّولة القَرْمَ الهُماما

They seem, when in throngs they meet

Nizam al-Dawla, that valiant chief,

نجومٌ زادَها باللّيلِ حُسْناً

جِوارُ ضيائها البدْرَ التَّماما

stars made lovelier in the night

by their light's nearness to the full moon.

فلا ظَمِئتْ بلادُكَ من كريمٍ

نداهُ الدَّهْرَ يَنْسَجِمُ انْسِجاما

May your lands never thirst, thanks to a generous man

whose bounty pours in torrents throughout time.

تَشيمُ نواظرُ الآمالِ فيه

أناملَ تَفْضَحُ الغيمَ الرُّكاما

The eyes of hope watch in him

fingers that put heaped-up clouds to shame.

ويَهْدي الطّارقينَ إليه صِيتٌ

تَخالُ به على شَرَفٍ ضِراما

His fame guides night visitors to him;

you fancy it a blaze upon a height.

صَدوقُ البِشْر لا وجْهاً جَهاماً

تَرَى منه ولا رأياً كَهاما

Sincere in his smiles: no scowling face

will you see from him, nor any blunted judgment.

تَنبَّهَ عند رؤيتهِ زمانٌ

وقِدْماً خاط جفنَيْهِ فَناما

An age awoke upon beholding him,

that long ago had sewn its eyelids shut and slept.

وعيَّدَ بالمديح له لساني

وكان عنِ اقْتضابِ الشِّعْرِ صاما

My tongue held a feast by praising him,

after fasting from improvising verse.

ولم يَحلُلْ بأَعْلَى المجدِ إلاّ

عظيمٌ يُفرِجُ الكُرَبَ العِظاما

None has settled on glory's highest summit but

a great man who dispels great afflictions.

له قلمٌ تُزَمُّ به اللّيالي

فتَتْبعُه امْتِثالاً وارْتِساما

He has a pen by which the nights are bridled,

so they follow it, obedient and compliant.

فلم نَرَ مثْلَه قلماً بكفٍّ

غدا لزمانِ صاحبِه زِماما

We have never seen a pen like it in a hand,

that has become a bridle for its master's age.

تَرفَّعَ عَنْ مُتابعةِ اللّيالي

وخالفَها إباءً واحْتكاما

It rose above following the nights,

and defied them with proud refusal and mastery.

ومَجَّ الدَّهرُ صُبْحاً في ظلامٍ

فَمرَّ يَمُجُّ في صُبْحٍ ظَلاما

And time spat dawn into darkness,

but the pen went on spitting darkness into dawn.

ويُسفِرُ منه عن غُرَرِ المعالي

إذا جَعَل المِدادَ له لِثاما

And from it are unveiled glory's bright brows,

when it makes ink its veil.

بكَفّ أغرٍّ ما يَنْفَكُّ دُرٌّ

يَجودُ به انْتثاراً وانْتظاما

In a radiant man's hand, pearls never cease to flow,

lavished by him, scattered and strung.

تَزِلُّ إلى شَبا الأقلام بِيضاً

لآلي النُّطْقِ فَذّاً أو تُؤاما

White, they glide toward the points of pens,

pearls of speech, singly or in pairs.

وتَخْرجُ في سَوادِ النِّقْس تُبْدي

شِعارَ الحقِّ كي تُرضي الإماما

And they emerge in the blackness of ink, displaying

the emblem of truth, to please the Imam.

أيا مَنْ زُرْتُ مَغْناهُ فأضحَى

إليَّ عُبوسُ أيّامي ابْتِساما

O you whose abode I visited, whereupon

my days' scowl became a smile toward me!

لقاؤكَ شاغلي عن ذكْرِ نَأْيٍ

سُروراً لي بقُربكَ واحْتِشاما

Meeting you distracts me from recalling separation,

with joy at your nearness and reverence for you.

فلا يشكو الَّذي لاقَى حَجيجٌ

إذا ما عايَنَ البيتَ الحَراما

Pilgrims do not complain of what they endured

once they behold the Sacred House.

رأيتُكَ مَنْ تُعِنْهُ يَرِدْ جَميماً

بمُنْتَجَعِ العُلا ويَرِدْ جِماما

I see that whoever you help reaches lush herbage

in glory's pasture, and finds brimming waters.

وكَفُّكَ في ابْتغاءِ الرِّفْدِ قَطْرٌ

ولكنْ إنّما أَبغي اهْتِماما

Your palm is rain for one seeking a gift,

but I seek only your concern.

وفوقَ الرِّفْدِ ما أصبحْتُ أَبغي

ومثْلُكَ قلّدَ المِنَنَ الجِساما

What I now seek is higher than a gift,

and one like you garlands others with mighty favors.

فلا زالتْ عزائمُكَ المَواضي

تَعُمُّ النّاسَ نُعْمَى وانْتِقاما

May your keen resolves never cease

to encompass people with bounty and retribution.

ودولةُ هاشمٍ حمَدتْكَ قِدْماً

فَدُمْتَ كما دُعيتَ لها نِظاما

Hashim's state has praised you from of old;

so may you remain its order, as you were named.

إذا افْتخرَتْ غدوْتَ لها لِساناً

أوِ انْتصرَتْ غدوْتَ لها حُساما

When it boasts, you become its tongue,

or when it triumphs, you become its sword.