1. رَأى البَرقَ مُجتازاً فَباتَ بِلا لُبٍّ

    وَأَصباهُ مِن ذِكرِ البَخيلَةِ ما يُصبي

    He saw the lightning passing and spent the night bereft of reason.

    And memories of the withholding beloved awakened his longing.

  2. وَقَد عاجَ في أَطلالِها غَيرَ مُمسِكٍ

    لِدَمعٍ وَلا مُصغٍ إِلى عَذَلِ الرَكبِ

    And he had turned aside among her ruins, not restraining

    His tears, nor heeding the riders' reproaches.

  3. وَكُنتُ جَديراً حينَ أَعرِفُ مَنزِلاً

    لِآلِ سُلَيمى أَن يُعَنِّفَني صَحبي

    And I deserved, whenever I recognized a dwelling

    Of Sulayma's kin, to be rebuked by my companions.

  4. عَدَتنا عَوادي البُعدِ عَنها وَزادَنا

    بِها كَلَفاً أَنَّ الوَداعَ عَلى عَتبِ

    Distance's hardships kept us from her, and deepened

    Our passion for her, since our farewell was tinged with reproach.

  5. وَلَم أَكتَسِب ذَنباً فَتَجزِيَني بِهِ

    وَلَم أَجتَرِم جُرماً فَتُعتَبَ مِن ذَنبِ

    I had committed no fault for her to punish me for,

    Nor committed an offense for which she might receive redress.

  6. وَبي ظَمَأٌ لا يَملِكُ الماءُ دَفعَهُ

    إِلى نَهلَةٍ مِن ريقِها الخَصِرِ العَذبِ

    And I have a thirst that water cannot quench,

    For a draught of her cool, sweet saliva.

  7. تَزَوَّدتَ مِنها نَظرَةً لَم تَجُد بِها

    وَقَد يُؤخَذُ العِلقُ المُمَنَّعُ بِالغَصبِ

    You provisioned yourself with a glimpse of her that she did not grant,

    And a well-guarded treasure may be seized by force.

  8. وَما كانَ حَظُّ العَينِ في ذاكَ مَذهَبي

    وَلَكِن رَأَيتُ العَينَ باباً إِلى القَلبِ

    And the eye's pleasure was not my aim in that;

    Rather, I saw the eye as a doorway to the heart.

  9. أُعيدُكِ أَن تُمنى بِشَكوِ صَبابَةٍ

    وَإِن أَكسَبَتنا مِنكِ عَطفاً عَلى الصَبِّ

    I would spare you the affliction of longing's complaint,

    Even if it won us your tenderness toward the lovesick lover.

  10. وَيُحزِنُني أَن تَعرِفي الحُبَّ بِالجَوى

    وَإِن نَفَعَتنا مِنكِ مَعرِفَةُ الحُبِّ

    And it saddens me that you should know love through anguish,

    Even if your knowledge of love were to benefit us.

  11. أَبَيتُ عَلى الإِخوانِ إِلّا تَحَنِّياً

    يَلينُ لَهُم عِطفي وَيَصفو لَهُم شِربي

    Toward my friends I have insisted on tenderness alone;

    My side is gentle toward them, and my drink is clear for them.

  12. وَإِنّي لَأَستَبقي الصَديقَ إِذا نَبا

    عَلَيَّ وَأَهنوا مِن خَلائِقِهِ الجُربِ

    And I do keep my friend, even when he turns harshly

    Against me, and salve his mangy traits.

  13. فَمَن مُبلِغٌ عَنّي البَخيلَ بِأَنَّني

    حَطَطتُ رَجائي مِنهُ عَن مَركَبٍ صَعبِ

    Who will tell the miser on my behalf that I

    Have brought down my hope in him from an unruly mount,

  14. وَأَنَّ اِبنَ دينارٍ ثَنى وَجهَ هِمَّتي

    إِلى الخُلُقِ الفَضفاضِ وَالنائِلِ النَهبِ

    And that Ibn Dinar turned the face of my ambition

    Toward an expansive character and bounty free for the taking?

  15. فَلَم أَملَ إِلّا مِن مَوَدَّتِهِ يَدي

    وَلا قُلتُ إِلّا مِن مَواهِبِهِ حَسبي

    So I filled my hand with nothing but his affection,

    And only of his gifts have I said, 'Enough for me.'

  16. لَقيتُ بِهِ حَدَّ الزَمانِ فَفَلَّهُ

    وَقَد يَثلِمُ العَضبُ المُهَنَّدُ في العَضبِ

    I met the edge of time with him, and he blunted it;

    And a keen, Indian-forged sword may notch another keen sword.

  17. كَريمُ إِذا ضاقَ اللِئامُ فَإِنَّهُ

    يَضيقُ الفَضاءُ الرَحبُ في صَدرِهِ الرَحبِ

    A generous man: when the base grow narrow-hearted,

    Even the wide expanse is cramped within his spacious breast.

  18. إِذا أَثقَلَ الهِلباجُ أَحناءَ سَرجِهِ

    غَدا طِرفُهُ يَختالُ بِالمُرهَفِ الضَربِ

    When a hulking fool weighs down the curves of his saddle,

    The generous man's steed prances beneath its slender, lean rider.

  19. تَناذَرَ أَهلُ الشَرقِ مِنهُ وَقائِعاً

    أَطاعَ لَها العاصونَ في بَلَدِ الغَربِ

    The people of the East warned one another of his battles,

    Before which rebels in the western land submitted.

  20. لَجَرَّدَ نَصلَ السَيفِ حَتّى تَفَرَّقَت

    عَنِ السَيفِ مَخضوباً جُموعُ أَبي حَربِ

    He indeed bared the sword's blade until they scattered—

    Abu Harb's hosts—from the blood-stained sword.

  21. فَإِن هَمَّ أَهلُ الغَورِ يَوماً بِعَودَةٍ

    إِلى الغَيِّ مِن طُغيانِهِم فَهوَ بِالقُربِ

    And if the people of the lowlands one day think of returning

    To waywardness in their arrogance, he is close at hand.

  22. حَلَفتُ لَقَد دانَ الأَبِيُّ وَأُغمِدَت

    شَذاةُ عَظيمِ الرومِ مِن عِظَمِ الخَطبِ

    I swear: the defiant submitted, and into its sheath went

    The Roman ruler's galley, so grave was the crisis.

  23. وَأَلزَمُهُم قَصدَ السَبيلِ حِذارُهُم

    لِتِلكَ السَوافي مِن زَعازِعِهِ النُكبِ

    And their fear compelled them to keep the straight path—

    Fear of those dust-driving blasts from his stormy crosswinds.

  24. مُدَبِّرُ حَربٍ لَم يَبِت عِندَ غِرَّةٍ

    وَلَم يَسرِ في أَحشائِهِ وَهَلُ الرُعبِ

    A strategist of war who never spent a night off guard,

    Nor did terror's alarm creep through his entrails.

  25. وَيُقلِقُهُ شَوقٌ إِلى القِرنِ مُعجِلٌ

    لَدى الطَعنِ حَتّى يَستَريحَ إِلى الضَربِ

    And an urgent longing for his opponent keeps him restless

    Amid spear-thrusts, until he finds relief in sword-strokes.

  26. أَضاءَت بِهِ الدُنيا لَنا بَعدَ ظُلمَةٍ

    وَأَجلَت لَنا الأَيّامُ عَن خُلُقٍ رَطبِ

    Through him the world shone for us after darkness,

    And the days revealed to us a tender disposition.

  27. وَمازالَ عَبدُ اللَهِ يُكسى شَمائِلاً

    يَقُمنَ مَقامَ النَورِ في ناضِرِ العُشبِ

    And Abd Allah has ever been clothed in qualities

    That take the place of blossoms amid fresh green grass.

  28. وَفَتىً يَتَعالى بِالتَواضُعِ جاهِداً

    وَيَعجَبُ مِن أَهلِ المَخيلَةِ وَالعُجبِ

    And a young man who strives to rise through humility,

    And marvels at the people of arrogance and conceit.

  29. لَهُ سَلَفٌ مِن آلِ فَيروزَ بَرَّزوا

    عَلى العُجمِ وَاِنقادَت لَهُم حَفلَةُ العُربِ

    He has forebears from the house of Fayruz who surpassed

    The non-Arabs, and the Arab throng submitted to them.

  30. مَرازِبَةُ المُلكِ الَّتي نَصَبَت بِها

    مَنابِرَهُ العُظمى جَبابِرَةُ الحَربِ

    The kingdom's marzbans, through whom were raised

    Its mighty pulpits by the titans of war.

  31. يُكِبّونَ مِن فَوقِ القَرابيسِ بِالقَنا

    وَبِالبيضِ تَلقاهُم قِياماً عَلى الرُكبِ

    They lean down from above the saddle-bows with lances,

    And with bright swords you meet them standing in their stirrups.

  32. لَهُم بُنِيَ الإيوانُ مِن عَهدِ هُرمُزٍ

    وَأُحكِمَ طَبعُ الخُسرُوانِيَّةِ القُضبِ

    For them the vaulted hall was built as early as Hurmuz's time,

    And the forging of the Khosrowian blades was perfected.

  33. وَدارَت بَنو ساسانَ طُرّاً عَلَيهِمِ

    مَدارَ النُجومِ السائِراتِ عَلى القُطبِ

    And all the sons of Sasan revolved around them,

    As the moving stars revolve around the pole.

  34. مَضَوا بِالأَكُفِّ البيضِ أَندى مِنَ الحَيا

    بَلالاً وَبِالأَحلامِ أَوفى مِنَ الهَضبِ

    They passed on with white palms, surpassing rain

    In moisture, and with judgment more ample than the hills.