بمثل ذا لا يعالج البرح

بمثل ذا لا يعالج البرح

كيف يداوي بقاتلٍ قرح

كيف يداوي بقاتلٍ قرح

Torment is not cured with the likes of this.

With this, grief is not eased,

How can one heal a wound with what kills?

How can a wound be healed by what caused it?

عابوا ضلالي به فلا رشدوا

عابوا ضلالي به فلا رشدوا

واستقبحوا علتي فلا صحوا

واستقبحوا علتي فلا صحوا

They faulted my infatuation with him—may they never find guidance!

They blamed my misguidance, but were not rightly guided,

And they deemed my sickness ugly—may they never be well!

They deemed my illness ugly, but did not become well.

يا وجبة القلب حين قلت له

يا وجبة القلب حين قلت له

علك من نشوة الهوى تصحو

علك من نشوة الهوى تصحو

Oh, the heart’s throb when I said to it:

O solace of my heart, when you said to it

“Perhaps you will sober from love’s intoxication.”

Perhaps from the intoxication of love you will recover.

هذا وكم لي أراك تنصحه

هذا وكم لي أراك تنصحه

فما ثنى من عنانه النصح

فما ثنى من عنانه النصح

This—and how often I have seen you counsel it,

How much have I seen you admonish it,

Yet counsel has not drawn back its rein.

Yet advice does not turn it from its course.

لكنه ينطوي على حرقٍ

لكنه ينطوي على حرقٍ

لنارها في فؤاده قدح

لنارها في فؤاده قدح

But it enfolds burning pangs within,

Rather, it harbors a burning,

Their fire kindled within its heart.

Its fire kindled in my heart.

وكلما زين السلو له

وكلما زين السلو له

قال أعندي يحسن القبح

قال أعندي يحسن القبح

And whenever forgetting love is made alluring to it,

Whenever allurement was adorned for it,

It says, “Can ugliness be beautiful in my eyes?”

It said "I think ugliness is beautiful."

ويا مميتي بالهجر حسبك قد

ويا مميتي بالهجر حسبك قد

أتعبني قصدك الذي تنحو

أتعبني قصدك الذي تنحو

And you who kill me by forsaking me—enough! Already

And O my killer through estrangement, enough -

The aim you pursue has exhausted me.

Your purpose that you pursue has wearied me.

وكان مزحاً هواك أمس فيا

وكان مزحاً هواك أمس فيا

هولة ما جر ذلك المزح

هولة ما جر ذلك المزح

And yesterday my love for you was a jest—oh,

Yesterday your love was jest, yet O dread -

The horror of what that jest has brought!

What flowed from that jest!

ومقربٍ لو أعرته اللمح

ومقربٍ لو أعرته اللمح

بالعين كبا في غباره اللمح

بالعين كبا في غباره اللمح

And a prized steed—were you to lend him a glance

An intimate - had I winked at him,

From your eye, that glance would stumble in his dust.

He would have perished in its dust.

على الدجى منه مسحةٌ وعلى

على الدجى منه مسحةٌ وعلى

متن الضيا من يمينه مسح

متن الضيا من يمينه مسح

On darkness there is a touch of him, and on

Upon the darkness of night it leaves a touch,

The back of daylight, a stroke from his right foreleg.

Upon the saddlecloth a stroke of its right hand.

أغر صافي الأديم أدهم لا

أغر صافي الأديم أدهم لا

يخجل إلا من لونه الجنح

يخجل إلا من لونه الجنح

White-blazed, sleek of hide, jet-black—nothing

The sheen of its faultless velvet is darker -

But his color makes night’s darkness blush.

Ashamed of nothing but the hue of its wings.

كأنما قد جسمه من دجا

كأنما قد جسمه من دجا

الليل ومن وجهه بدا الصبح

الليل ومن وجهه بدا الصبح

As though his body were cut from the darkness of

As though its body was molded from the gloom of night

Night, and from his face the dawn broke.

And from its face the dawn shone clear.

قصر عن شأوه الجياد كما

قصر عن شأوه الجياد كما

قصر عن مكرماتك المدح

قصر عن مكرماتك المدح

Steeds fall short of his pace, just as

Thoroughbred steeds fall short of its merit

Praise falls short of your noble deeds.

As praise falls short of your bounty.

كأنني البحتري أنشده

كأنني البحتري أنشده

وهو على عظم شأنه الفتح

وهو على عظم شأنه الفتح

As though I were al-Buhturi, reciting verse to him,

It is as though I were al-Buhturi reciting to him,

And he, for all his greatness, were al-Fath.

While he in his magnificent glory is triumphant.

فكل مجدٍ لمجده تبعٌ

فكل مجدٍ لمجده تبعٌ

وكل طودٍ لطوده سفح

وكل طودٍ لطوده سفح

For every glory follows his glory,

For every glory trails his glory,

And every mountain is but the foot of his mountain.

And every towering mountain is dwarfed by his height.

قد كنت حرباً للدهر قبل وفى

قد كنت حرباً للدهر قبل وفى

أيامه تم بيننا الصلح

أيامه تم بيننا الصلح

I had been at war with Time before, and in

I was in conflict with fate before, and in his days

His days, peace was made between us.

Peace was made between us.

فاسلم فأنت السواد من مقلة ال

فاسلم فأنت السواد من مقلة ال

دهر ومن بيضة العلى المح

دهر ومن بيضة العلى المح

So remain safe, for you are the pupil in the eye of

So submit - for you are the black of fate's dice

Time, and the yolk in the egg of glory.

And the white of sublime days.