Sol 6.1

  1. أَنجِزي يا سَلامَةُ المَوعودا

    وَتَصابَي وَلا تُطيعي الحَسودا

    Fulfill, Salama, what you promised,

    and play the youthful lover; do not heed the envious.

  2. إِن تَرَيني فادَ الرُقادُ مِنَ الوَج

    دِ حَزيناً أُجيدُ فيكَ القَصيدا

    If you see me—sleep has died of longing—

    grieving, I compose fine verses about you.

  3. فَلَقَد كُنتُ لا أَسارِقُ بِالطَر

    فِ إِلى مِثلِكِ الجَميعَ القُعودا

    For once I did not steal sidelong glances

    toward one like you, past all the seated company.

  4. إِنَّ قَد شَفَّني هَواكِ فَأَقصَي

    تُ نَصيحي وَالأَلطَفَ المَودودا

    Truly, love for you has wasted me, so I have banished

    my counselor and my kindest, dearest friend.

  5. قَد مَلِلتُ الأَدنى بِحُبِّكِ إِذ حَل

    لَ فُؤادي وَلَستُ أَهوى العيدا

    I have wearied of those nearest through love for you, since it entered

    my heart; I have no love for festivals.

  6. يَعلَمُ اللَهُ ما ذَكَرتُكِ إِلّا

    بِتُّ مِن لَوعَةِ الهَوى مَعمودا

    God knows I never remember you

    without spending the night stricken by love's burning pain.

  7. ذا لِسانٍ إِذا أَرَدتُ اِعتِذاراً

    مِن هَواكُم وَجَدتُهُ مَصفودا

    Eloquent though I am, whenever I wish to make excuses,

    I find my tongue chained by love for you.

  8. صَدِّقيني بِما أَقولُ فَإِنّي

    باعِثٌ بِالهَوى دُموعي شُهودا

    Believe what I say, for I am

    summoning my tears as witnesses to love

  9. لِمُحِبٍّ عَلى المَوَدَّةِ باكٍ

    أَو يَكونَ الصَنيعُ مِنكُم سَديدا

    for a lover weeping over affection,

    until your treatment of him is right.

  10. باتَ يَرجوكُمو وَذاكَ بَعيدٌ

    دونَهُ بابُ بَذلِكُم مَسدودا

    He spends the night hoping for you, though that is far away;

    the gate of your generosity is shut against him.

  11. إِن قَلبي آلى وَفيهِ لَجاجٌ

    يَومَ بَصَّرتِهِ الهَوى مُستَفيدا

    Indeed, my heart swore, stubborn as it is,

    the day you taught it love and it took the lesson:

  12. لا يُطيعُ العُذّالَ في هَجرِ سَلمى

    أَو تَصوغوهُ صَخرَةً أَو حَديدا

    it would not heed the reproachers by forsaking Salma,

    unless you fashioned it into stone or iron.

  13. فَتَبِعتُ الفُؤادَ حينَ تَأَلّى

    في هَواهُ فَلَم أُوافِق سُعودا

    So I followed my heart when it swore its oath

    in its passion, but found no good fortune.

  14. بَل أَسىً بِالفُؤادِ فيما اِصطَحَبنا

    غَيرَ أَنّي تَبِعتُهُ يَومَ صيدا

    Rather, grief came through my heart while we kept company;

    yet I followed it the day it was ensnared.

  15. لَيتَ أَنّي فَقَدتُ قَبلَ اِتِّباعي

    صاحِ قَلبي وَكانَ قَلبي الفَقيدا

    Would that, before following it, I had lost

    my heart, friend, and my heart had been the one lost!

  16. إِن عَصَيتُ الفُؤادَ حينَ عَصاني

    في هَواهُ إِلى التَعَزّي سَديدا

    If I disobeyed my heart when it disobeyed me

    in its passion, and turned rightly toward consolation,

  17. فَلَقَد كادَ ما أُكابِدُ مِنها

    وَمِنَ القَلبِ يَترُكاني حَريدا

    it is because what I suffer from her

    and from my heart has nearly left me isolated,

  18. مولَعاً بِالخُلوِّ مِمّا أُلاقي

    أَحسِبُ العَيشَ أَن أَكونَ الوَحيدا

    longing intensely to be free of what I endure;

    I reckon life lies in being alone.

  19. لا يُقَضّي العَجيبُ مِنّي أَبو حَر

    بٍ وَينسي الَّذي ضَمِنتُ الوَليدا

    Abu Harb never ceases marveling at me,

    and what I harbor makes al-Walid forget:

  20. عَلَقٌ مِن هَوى سَلامَةَ في القَل

    بِ أَراهُ سَيَبلُغُ المَجهودا

    a passion for Salama lodged within my heart;

    I see it will reach the limit of endurance.

  21. قالَ أَذرى المُرَعَّثُ الدَمعَ فَاِنهَل

    لَ نِظاماً وَكانَ عَهدي جَليدا

    He said, “Al-Muraʿʿath shed tears, and they streamed

    in strands—yet I had known him to be steadfast.

  22. ما لِعَينَيكَ لَم تَذوقا مِنَ اللَي

    لِ رُقاداً وَلَم تُريدا جُمودا

    What ails your eyes, that through the night they taste

    no sleep, and have no wish to cease their tears?”

  23. قُلتُ عَينٌ بَكَت مِنَ الشَيبِ إِذ حَل

    لَ وَأُخرى مِمَّن يُريني الصُدودا

    I said, “One eye wept for gray hair when it appeared,

    the other for the one who turns away from me.”

  24. لَو تَجَلَّت غَيابَةُ الهَمِّ عَن قَل

    بي إِلى يافِعٍ أَطَعتُ الرَشيدا

    If the darkness of grief were to lift from my heart

    and pass to a lofty peak, I would heed the wise counselor.

  25. صَرَّدَت هامَتي سَلامَ وَما كا

    نَ لَدَيهِنَّ مَشرَبي تَصريدا

    Salam has denied my head its fill, though never

    among women had my draught been so scant.

  26. كَيفَ لا يَكثُرُ البُكاءُ وَقَد كُن

    تُ رَبيحاً عِندَ الغَواني صَيودا

    How should weeping not increase, when once I was

    successful among beauties, a keen hunter

  27. كُلِّ بَيضاءَ كَالمَهاةِ اِستَعارَت

    لَكَ أُمَّ الغَزالِ عَيناً وَجيدا

    of every fair-skinned woman, oryx-like, who borrowed

    a mother gazelle's eye and neck for you.

  28. زانَهُ الشَذرُ وَالفَريدُ عَلى النَحر

    رنِظاماً بَل زانَ ذاكَ الفَريدا

    Gold beads and choice pearls adorned it at her throat,

    in strands—no, that neck adorned the pearls.

  29. فَإِذا هُنَّ قَد نَفَرنَ مِنَ الشَي

    بِ وَأَوقَدنَ لِلوِداعِ وَقودا

    But now they have recoiled from gray hair

    and kindled a farewell fire.

  30. كُلُّ شَيءٍ إِلى اِنقِطاعٍ مَداهُ

    وَصُروفُ الأَيّامِ تُبلي الجَديدا

    Everything runs its course toward an end,

    and the days' vicissitudes wear out the new.

  31. وَنَديمٍ نادَمتُهُ عامِرِيٍّ

    كَزِيادٍ عَينِ النَدى أَو يَزيدا

    And many an ʿAmiri companion have I drunk with,

    like Ziyad, the fount of generosity, or Yazid,

  32. لَيلَةً تَلبَسُ البَياضَ منَ الشَه

    رِ وَأُخرى تُدني جَلابيبَ سودا

    on a night of the month clothed in white,

    and another drawing black cloaks around itself.

  33. فَلَهَونا هَذي وَهَذي وَلَم نَأ

    تِ حَراماً فيها وَلا تَفنيدا

    So we made merry this night and that, and committed

    no forbidden act in either, nor any folly,

  34. حَيثُ نَطوي الفَحشاءَ وَالفُحشَ إِن قي

    لَ عَفافاً وَنَنشُرُ المَحمودا

    where we conceal indecency and foul speech, if uttered,

    out of modesty, and spread what deserves praise.

  35. وَلَدَينا حُلوُ الثَنا صَيدَحِيٌّ

    بِهَوانا تَزيدُهُ الكَأسُ جودا

    And with us is a man of sweet renown and ringing voice,

    to our liking; the cup increases his generosity.

  36. فارِغُ اللُبِّ لِلنَديمِ إِذا اِشتَف

    فَ ثَلاثاً أَلفَيتَهُ غِرّيدا

    His mind is at leisure for his companion; once he has drained

    three cups, you find him a merry singer.

  37. ضَمَّنَ الكَأسَ ذا السَماحِ وَلا يُؤ

    ذي جَليساً وَلا يُصافي العَبيدا

    The cup is entrusted to the generous one, who does not

    harm a fellow guest or make intimates of slaves.

  38. بِيَدَيهِ مِثلُ المُصَلّي مِنَ اللَي

    لِ سُجوداً حيناً وَحيناً رُكودا

    In his hands it is like one praying in the night,

    prostrate awhile, and motionless awhile.

  39. لا تَبيتُ الكِئاسُ مِنهُ إِذا ما

    قابَلَتهُ الكِئاسُ إِلّا سُجودا

    The cups spend no night with him, whenever

    they face him, except bowed in prostration.

  40. ثُمَّ فارَقتُهُم أَميدُ غُدُوّاً

    وَحَرِيٌّ نَدمانُهُم أَن يَميدا

    Then I left them in the morning, swaying,

    and well might their drinking companion sway.

  41. وَغَدَوا أَو تَرَوَّحوا بَعدَ أَخدا

    ناً يَجُرّونَ حينَ راحوا البُرودا

    They went out in the morning, or later at evening, as close friends,

    trailing their striped cloaks as they departed.