تسمع لدعوة ناء غريب — Ibn Darray Alqastalli

تَسَمَّعْ لِدَعْوَةِ ناءٍ غَرِيبِ

كَثيرِ الدُّعاءِ قليلِ المُجِيبِ

Listen to the plea of one far away, a stranger,

much given to prayer, with few to answer.

يَهيمُ إِلَيْكَ بِهَمٍّ شُجاعٍ

ويَجْبُنُ عنكَ بِسَتْرٍ هَيوبِ

He wanders toward you with bold resolve,

yet shrinks from you behind a timorous veil.

ويقتادُهُ منكَ صِدْقُ اليقينِ

فيرتابُ منه بِظَنٍّ كَذُوبِ

True certainty about you leads him on,

then a false suspicion makes him doubt it.

أَيَأْذَنُ سَمْعُكَ لِي من بَعيدٍ

ولحظُكَ قَدْ رابَنِي من قريبِ

Will your hearing grant me audience from afar,

when your glance has unsettled me close by?

وكيفَ بأَشجانِ قلبٍ عزيزٍ

فيُسْعِدُهُ لَهْوُ قلبٍ طَروبِ

And how can the sorrows of a proud heart

be consoled by the diversion of a merry heart?

فناداكَ من غَمَراتِ التَّناسِي

وناجاكَ فِي ظُلُماتِ الخُطوبِ

So it called to you from the depths of willful neglect,

and confided in you amid the darkness of calamities,

بِبالِغَةٍ للتَّرَاقِي حَدَتْها

إِلَيْكَ وَصاةُ القريبِ المُجيبِ

with a plea reaching the collarbones, urged onward

toward you by the injunction of the Near One, the Answerer,

بما خُطَّ للجارِ وابْنِ السَّبيلِ

وأُوجِبَ للمُسْتَضامِ الغريبِ

by what was prescribed for the neighbor and the wayfarer,

and made obligatory for the oppressed stranger,

وَمَا قَدْ حَباكَ الرِّضا من مليكٍ

بلاكَ بلاءَ الحُسامِ الرَّسُوبِ

and by the favor a king's approval bestowed upon you,

who tested you as a deeply cleaving sword is tested.

فَحَلّاكَ إِكرامَهُ فِي العيونِ

لِتَقْدُمَ أَعلامَهُ فِي الحروبِ

His honoring you adorned you in people's eyes,

that you might lead his standards in battle.

وأَذْكَى سِراجَكَ وَسْطَ القصورِ

لِيُعْلي عَجاجَكَ خَلْفَ الدُّروبِ

He kindled your lamp amid the palaces,

that he might raise your battle dust beyond the passes.

فأَرْعَيْتَهُ صِدْقَ حُرٍّ شَكُورٍ

تَسَرْبَلَ إِخلاصَ عَبْدٍ مُنِيبِ

So you showed him the sincerity of a grateful free man,

clothed in the devotion of a penitent servant.

وأَبْلَيْتَهُ نُصْحَ جَيبٍ سَليمٍ

وفِيِّ الضَّمانِ بِنُصْحِ الجُيُوبِ

And you demonstrated to him the loyalty of an untainted breast,

faithful in vouching for the loyalty of other breasts.

تقودُ إِلَيْهِ رجاءَ البعيدِ

وتتلُو عَلَيْهِ ثناءَ القريبِ

You bring to him the hopes of those far away,

and recite to him the praises of those nearby.

وتَلْقى وُجوهَ المُحِبِّينَ عنهُ

بِبِشْرِ المُحِبِّ ووَصْلِ الحبيبِ

On his behalf you receive the faces of those who love him,

with a lover's cheer and a beloved's closeness.

وكم مِنْبَرٍ للعُلا قَدْ بناهُ

لَهُ اللهُ من مُعظَماتِ الصَّليبِ

How many a pulpit of glory was built

for him by God from the Cross's revered emblems!

حَمَيْتَ ذُرَاهُ بأَنْفٍ حَمِيٍّ

ورَحْبَ ذَرَاهُ بصدرٍ رَحيبِ

You guarded its heights with fiercely protective pride,

and its broad shelter with a broad breast.

وضاقَ بِمَنْ أَسْمَعَ الضَّيْمَ عَنْهُ

فيا لخطيبٍ صريعِ الخُطوبِ

Yet it had no room for one who voiced oppression on his behalf—

alas for a preacher felled by calamities!

قريبٌ إِلَى كلِّ أُفْقٍ بعيدٍ

بعيدٌ عَلَى ذِكْرِ مولىً قريبِ

Near to every distant horizon,

yet far from the remembrance of a nearby patron.

وَقَدْ أَطْلَعَ الشرقُ والغربُ عنهُ

كواكِبَ تهوي لغيرِ الغُروبِ

East and West have brought forth on his behalf

stars that descend, though not to set,

نجوماً أَضاءَتْ بِفَصْلِ الخطابِ

لَهُ الدَّهْرَ إِلّا مكانَ الخطيبِ

stars that, with decisive speech, illuminated

all time for him, except the preacher's place.

وعنهُ تَنَكَّبْتَ قوسَ النِّضالِ

فَرِشْتَ لَهَا كلَّ سَهْمٍ مُصيبِ

On his behalf you shouldered the bow of archery contest,

and feathered for it every unerring arrow.

فأَوْتَرْتَها لقلوبِ العُداةِ

وأَغْرَقْتَ فِيهَا لِرَمْيِ الغُيُوبِ

You strung it against the hearts of foes,

and drew it fully to shoot at things unseen.

فما لَكَ عن غَرَضٍ كالصَّباحِ

تجلَّلَ أُفْقَ الصَّبا والجَنُوبِ

So what keeps you from a target like the morning,

that overspread the horizon of the east and south winds?

يضاحِكُ من رَوْضِ فِكْرِي بِذِكْرِي

أَزاهِيرَ نَوْرٍ بِنُورٍ مَشوبِ

Through my praise, it exchanges smiles in my thought's garden

with flowers whose bloom is mingled with light.

فلِلَّهِ إِشراقُ ذَاكَ الشبابِ

تأَلَّقَ فِي حُسْنِ ذَاكَ المَشيبِ

Glory to God for the radiance of that youth,

shining in the beauty of that gray hair!

فَفَاحَ تَضَوُّعُ ذا من ضَياعِي

كَمَا لاحَ مَطْلَعُ ذا من غُرُوبِي

Thus its fragrance wafted from my ruin,

just as its rising shone from my setting.

فتِلْكَ نقائِضُ سَعْيِي وسَعْدِي

يُنادِينَ يَا لَلْعُجابِ العَجيبِ

Such are the contradictions of my striving and my fortune,

crying out, 'Oh, what an astonishing marvel!'

وتلكَ بضائِعُ نثري ونظمي

ضوارِبُ فِي الأَرْضِ هَلْ من ضَريبِ

And such are the wares of my prose and my verse,

traveling the earth—is there an equal?

ويا للخلائِقِ هلْ من مُساوٍ

ويا للدَّواوينِ هل من مُجيب

And O all creation, is there an equal?

And O collected works, is there an answerer?

ويا نَشْأَتِي عبْدِ شَمسٍ

ومن أَعْقَبَتْ هاشِمٌ من عَقِيبِ

And O the two lineages of ʿAbd Shams,

and the offspring Hashim left behind,

وَمَا خَطَّهُ أَثَرٌ عن أَميرٍ

وسَطَّرَهُ أَرَبٌ عن أَرِيبِ

and what tradition has inscribed about a prince,

and discernment has recorded about a discerning man:

فَهَلْ فِي الوَرى غَيْرُ سَمْعٍ شهيدٍ

يُلَبِّيهِ كُلُّ فؤادٍ لَبيبِ

is there among humankind anything but an attentive ear,

to which every discerning heart responds,

وغيرُ لسانٍ صدوقِ البيانِ

يُقِرُّ لَهُ كلُّ زَعْمٍ كَذُوبِ

and a tongue truthful in its declaration,

to which every lying claim concedes

بأَنْ لَمْ يَفُزْ قَبْلَها مُلْكُ مَلْكٍ

بِقِدْحٍ كَقِدْحِ مَلِيكَيْ تُجِيبِ

that no king's dominion before this ever prevailed

with a lot-arrow like that of Tujib's two kings?

فأَنْجِبْ بِمُورِثِهِ من مَليكٍ

وأَسْعِدْ بوارِثِهِ من نَجِيبِ

How noble the king who bequeathed it,

and how fortunate the noble man who inherited it!

وأَعْجِبْ بأَوفى مليكٍ أَضاعَ

من الذِّكْرِ والفخرِ أَوْفى نَصِيبِ

And how astonishing that the most faithful king squandered

the fullest share of renown and glory:

لواءَ ثناءٍ كَبَرْقِ الغَمامِ

يُهِلُّ إِلَيْهِ لواءُ الحروبِ

a banner of praise like lightning in the clouds,

toward which the banner of wars lifts a cry,

وَمَا قَدْ كَسَا كُلَّ بَرِّ وبَحْرٍ

بذكراهُ من كُلِّ حُسْنٍ وَطِيبِ

and all that clothed every land and sea,

through his remembrance, in every beauty and fragrance:

حَدَائِقَ من زَهَرَاتِ العُقولِ

تفوحُ إِلَى ثَمَرَاتِ القُلُوبِ

gardens of the flowers of minds,

wafting their fragrance toward the fruits of hearts.

تَغَنَّى العذارى بِهَا فِي الخُدورِ

وتُحدَى المهارى بِهَا في السُّهوبِ

Maidens sing them in secluded chambers,

and Mahri camels are driven to their song across the steppes.

وَقَدْ أَيْنَعَ الحَزْنُ والسَّهْلُ منها

بِشِرْبِ ذَنوبٍ مَحا من ذُنُوبِي

Rugged ground and plain have ripened from them,

through drinking a full bucket that erased some of my sins:

بلاغُ حياةٍ وأَحْجَمْتُ عنهُ

لعودِ الخِباءِ ولِلْعَنْدَلِيبِ

sustenance for life—yet I held back from it,

for the tent's lute and for the nightingale,

كما ابْتَزَّ صَيْدَ العُقابِ الذُّبابُ

وصادَ النَّعامَ حَسيرُ الدَّبيبِ

as the fly snatched away the eagle's prey,

and a weary crawler hunted ostriches.

وذُلِّيَ أَوْدَعَ هَذَا وهذا

أَظافِيرَ لَيْثٍ وأَنيابَ ذيبِ

My humiliation endowed this one and that one

with a lion's claws and a wolf's fangs.

مظالِمُ أَظْلَمَ حَقُّ المُحِقِّ

بِهِنَّ وأَشْرَقَ رَيْبُ المُرِيبِ

Injustices: the rightful claimant's right grew dark

through them, while the dubious man's doubt shone bright.

وأَنتَ عليها شهيدُ العِيانِ

وحكمُكَ فِيهَا صريحُ الوُجوبِ

And you are an eyewitness to them,

and your judgment on them is plainly obligatory.

ووَعْدُكَ أَلزَمَنِي من ذَرَاكَ

وِصالَ المُحِبِّ ورَعْيَ الرَّقِيبِ

Your promise bound me, within your shelter,

to a lover's attachment and a watcher's vigilance.

فحِينَ افتَتَحْتَ بنصرٍ عزيزٍ

يُبَشِّرُ عنكَ بفتحٍ قريبِ

So when you began with a mighty victory,

heralding for you a conquest near at hand,

تَرَقَّيْتَ فِي هَضْبَةِ العِزِّ عَنِّي

وأَهْوَيْتَ بي لِمَهيلٍ كَثيبِ

you ascended the hill of glory, away from me,

and plunged me into the loose sand of a dune.

ولَفَّتْكَ دُونِي غصونُ النعِيمِ

وأُسْلِمْتُ ضاحِيَ مَرْعىً جَديبِ

The branches of bliss enfolded you, excluding me,

and I was abandoned, exposed in a barren pasture.

فَمُلِّيتَها جَنَّةً لا يزالُ

يُمَدُّ بِهَا كُلُّ عيشٍ خَصِيبِ

May you enjoy it long, a garden where always

every flourishing life is sustained.

ولا بَرِحَتْها طيورُ السرورِ

يَميدُ بِهَا كلُّ غصنٍ رطيبِ

And may the birds of joy never leave it,

every tender bough swaying with them.

وإِنْ شاقَني من صَباها نسيمٌ

يُفَرِّجُ عنِّي بُرُوحَ الهَبُوبِ

Even though a breeze from its east wind stirred my longing,

relieving me with the comfort of its blowing,

وأُظْمِيتُ منها إِلَى رَشْفِ ماءٍ

يُمَثَّلُ لي فِيهِ رِيقُ الحبيبِ

and I was made thirsty for a sip of its water,

in which the beloved's saliva is conjured up for me.

وكم سُمْتُ أَوْراقَها فِي الرِّياحِ

لأَخْصِفَ فِيهَا لعارٍ سَليبِ

How often I sought its leaves among the winds,

to stitch from them a covering for one naked and despoiled,

وأَمْسَحَها فِي مآقي جُفونٍ

دَوَامِي القَذَى قَرِحاتِ الغُرُوبِ

and wipe them over the corners of eyelids,

bloodied by grit, ulcerated at their tear ducts,

بما فَتَّ فيهنَّ رَمْيُ العُداةِ

وَمَا غَضَّ منهُنَّ ذُلُّ الغريبِ

by the havoc enemies' shots wreaked within them,

and by what the stranger's humiliation lowered in them.

فإِنْ رَمِدَتْ فقليلٌ لِعَيْنٍ

يُقَلِّبُها شَجْوُ قلبٍ كئيبِ

If they become inflamed, that is little for an eye

kept turning by the grief of a sorrowful heart.

وإِنْ قَدَحَتْ بالحَشا فِي الحشايا

فَزَنْدَا ضِرامٍ لنارِ الكُروبِ

And if they strike sparks in the breast among the cushions,

they are two fire-sticks kindling the fire of anguish.

تُؤَجِّجُها حَسَرَاتُ التَّناسي

وتَنْفُخُها زَفَرَاتُ النَّحِيبِ

The sorrows of being forgotten inflame it,

and the sighs of sobbing fan it.

وكُلّاً وَسِعْتُ بصبرٍ جميلٍ

وبَعْضاً كَفَفْتُ بدمعٍ سَكوبِ

All of it I bore with gracious patience,

and some I checked with freely flowing tears,

لأُوقِدَ منها مصابِيحَ جَمْرٍ

تُنِيرُ إِلَيْكَ بِسِرِّ الغُيوبِ

to kindle from them lamps of embers

that shine toward you with the secret of the unseen.

ولو غابَ عِلْمُكَ عن بَحرِ ظِمءٍ

وَمَا غِيضَ من شربِه فِي الشُّروبِ

Even if your knowledge were unaware of a sea of thirst,

and how its allotted drink was diminished among the drinkers,

لأغناكَ عن شُبْهَةِ الشَّكِّ فِيهِ

ذُبُولُ الجنى فِي ذُبولِ القضيبِ

you would be spared uncertain doubt about it by

the fruit's withering as the bough withers.

وحَسْبي لَهَا منكَ حُرٌّ كريمٌ

وفيُّ الشهودِ أمين المَغِيبِ

For it, I need only you, a free and generous man,

faithful in presence, trustworthy in absence.

وأرْجى عَليلٍ لِبُرْءِ السَّقَامِ

عليلٌ تَيَقَّنَ يُمنَ الطَّبيبِ

The sick man most hopeful of recovery from illness

is one certain of his physician's good auspices.

وحُسْنُ الظُّنونِ لِصدْقِ اليقينِ

نسيبٌ ولا كالنسيبِ الحسيبِ

And good expectations are, to true certainty,

kin, though not like a kinsman of noble lineage.

فإنْ تُنهِ عَنِّي فأولى مُجابِ

دَعا للمكارِمِ أهدى مُجيبِ

So if you speak on my behalf, the worthiest one to be answered

has called the best-guided answerer to noble deeds.

وكُنتَ بذلِكَ أحظى مُثابٍ

لَهُ من ثَنائِيَ أوفى مُثيبِ

And thus you would be the most favored recipient of reward,

whose most bountiful rewarder would be my praise.

ومن يَمْنَعِ الضَّيفَ رَحْبَ الفِناءِ

فقد قادَهُ للفضاءِ الرَّحِيبِ

Whoever denies the guest the breadth of his courtyard

has led him to the wide-open expanse.