زَعَمتُمُ أَنَّ غَولاً وَالرَجامَ لَكُم

زَعَمتُمُ أَنَّ غَولاً وَالرَجامَ لَكُم

وَمَنعِجاً فَاِذكُروا وَالأَمرُ مُشتَرَكُ

وَمَنعِجاً فَاِذكُروا وَالأَمرُ مُشتَرَكُ

You claimed that Ghawl and al-Rajam were yours,

You claimed you had power and missiles for yourselves

and Man‘ij—so remember: the matter is shared.

And military superiority, so remember we share in this matter

وَقُلتُمُ ذاكَ شِلوٌ سَوفَ نَأكُلُهُ

وَقُلتُمُ ذاكَ شِلوٌ سَوفَ نَأكُلُهُ

فَكَيفَ أَكلُكُمُ الشِلوَ الَّذي تَرَكوا

فَكَيفَ أَكلُكُمُ الشِلوَ الَّذي تَرَكوا

And you said, “That is a carcass we shall eat.”

And you said that is easy prey which we will eat up

How, then, can you eat the carcass they left behind?

So how did you get eaten up by the easy prey you left behind?

هَل سَرَّكُم في جُمادى أَن نُصالِحَكُم

هَل سَرَّكُم في جُمادى أَن نُصالِحَكُم

إِذِ الشَقاشِقُ مَعدولٌ بِها الحَنَكُ

إِذِ الشَقاشِقُ مَعدولٌ بِها الحَنَكُ

Did it please you in Jumada that we made peace with you,

Did it please you in (the month of) Jumada to make peace with us

when the jaws were turned aside by the camels’ palatal sacs?

When the anemones' petals matched your lips in redness?

أَو سَرَّكُم إِذ لَحِقنا غَيرَ فَخرِكُمُ

أَو سَرَّكُم إِذ لَحِقنا غَيرَ فَخرِكُمُ

بِأَنَّكُم بَينَ ظَهرَي دِجلَةَ السَمَكُ

بِأَنَّكُم بَينَ ظَهرَي دِجلَةَ السَمَكُ

Or, when we caught up with you, did anything please you except your boast

Or did it please you when we joined you without your pride

that you are the fish between the Tigris’s banks?

That you are between the two rivers (Tigris and Euphrates) abounding in fish?

نَفسي الفِداءُ لِمَن أَداكُمُ رَقَصاً

نَفسي الفِداءُ لِمَن أَداكُمُ رَقَصاً

تَدمى حَراقِفُكُم في مَشيِكُم صَكَكُ

تَدمى حَراقِفُكُم في مَشيِكُم صَكَكُ

May my soul be ransom for whoever drove you at a bounding trot!

My soul is the ransom for him who made you dance to exhaustion

Your hipbones bleed; your knees knock as you walk.

Your anklets jingled during your walking, clink clank