يتساءلون — Jamal Hamdan Ziadeh

يَتَسَاءَلُوْنَ , فَقُلْتُ : يَا آلَ النُّهَىَ

أَوَ مِثْلُكُمْ مَنْ كَانَبِيْ لاَ يَعْلَمُ

They ask one another, so I said: O people of understanding,

can the likes of you be unaware of me?

أَنَا شَاعِرٌ , أَرْضُ الْعُرُوْبَةِ مَوْطِنِيْ

وَإذِا انْتَسَبْتُ يُجِيْبُ عِرْقِيَ وَالدَّمُ

I am a poet; the Arab lands are my homeland,

and when I name my lineage, my roots and blood answer.

مِنْ أَرْضِ مِصْرَ إِذَا طَلَبْتُ أَشَاوِساً

فَهُمُ الْفِدَاءُ , وَهُمْ لِعَيْنِيْ مَرْهَمُ

From Egypt's land—when I seek men of valor,

they are self-sacrifice, and a balm for my eye.

وَهُمُ الأَرُوْمَةُ , وَالْخُؤُوْلَةُ , وَالنَّدَىَ

فَالرَّحْمُ عِنْدَهُمُ يُبَرُّ , وَيُكْرَمُ

And they are my roots, my maternal kin, and generosity;

so kinship among them is cherished and honored.

كَمْ أَمَّهَا مِنْ مُرْسَلِيْنَ لأَمْنِهِمْ

مُوْسَىَ , وَيُوْسُفُ , وَالْمَسِيْحُ , وَمَرْيَمُ

How many messengers sought it out for their safety:

Moses, Joseph, the Messiah, and Mary.

وَبِهَا لإِبْرَاهِيْمَ , جَدِّ نَبِيِّنَا

نَسَبُ الْمُصَاهَرَةِ الَّذِيْ لاَ يُفْصَمُ

And there Abraham, our Prophet's forefather, has

a bond of kinship through marriage that cannot be severed.

مَنْ أَرْضِ تُوْنُسَ , وَالْفُرَاتِ , وصَعدةٍ

فَانْظُرْ طُرُوْسَهُمُ الَّتِي ْتَتَكَلَّمُ

From the lands of Tunisia, the Euphrates, and Sa'dah,

look, then, at their pages, which speak.

ومن الخليج إلى الرباطِ أرُومتي

نَشَأتْ ولِيْ بِثرىَ الجزَائر أسْهمُ

And from the Gulf to Rabat my lineage

arose, and I have shares in Algeria's soil.

إنا أردنيٌّ من دمشقَ وبُرقةٍ

سيفُ ابنِ مُختار ٍبِها لايثلمً

I am Jordanian, from Damascus and Barqa;

the sword of Ibn Mukhtar there is never notched.

مِنْ مَكَّةٍ مَهْدِ الْغَطَارِفَةِ الأُلَىَ

أرْسُوْا الْبِنَاءَ , فَصَرْحُهمْ لاَ يُهْدَمُ

From Mecca, cradle of the noble chiefs who

set the building firm; their edifice is never torn down.

مِنْ يَثْرِبٍ , وَالْعِطْرُ فِيْ جَنَبَاتِهَا

عَبِقٌ بِأَحْمَدَ , وَالْخُطَىَ تُتَرَسَّمُ

From Yathrib, with perfume in its precincts

redolent of Ahmad, and his footsteps are followed.

أَنَا ثَائِرٌ , وَالْقُدْسُ يَشْهَدُ مَوْلِدِيْ

وَكُرُوْمُ يَافَا , وَالرُّبَىَ , وَالأَنْجُمُ

I am a rebel, and Jerusalem witnesses my birth,

and Jaffa's vineyards, the hills, and the stars.

مِنْ غَزَّةٍ , وَالشِّبْلُ فِيْهَا قَدْ رَوَىَ

أُسْطُوْرَةً , وَالْكُلُّ يَعْلَمُ مَنْ هُمُ

From Gaza, where the lion cub has recounted

a legend, and everyone knows who they are.

أَنَا شَاعِرٌ حَلَّقْتُ فِيْ كَبِدِ السَّمَا

وَإِلَىَ الْمَعَالِيْ لاَ أَمَلُّ وَأَسْأَمُ

I am a poet; I soared into the heart of the sky,

and in pursuit of the heights, I neither tire nor grow bored.

وَإذِا هَبَطْتُ , فَفِيْ الْهُبُوْطِ مَآرِبٌ

وَالْغَوْر أَسْبُرُهُ , وَإِنْ هُوَ مُبْهَمُ

And if I descend, there are purposes in descending,

and I plumb the depth, even if it is obscure.

وَأَغُوْصُ فِيْ بَحْرِالْقَرِيْضِ بِهِمَّةٍ

وَأَلُمُّ شَمْلَ الدُّرِّ مِنْهُ , وَأَنْظُمُ

And I dive into the sea of verse with resolve,

and gather its scattered pearls and string them together.

فِيْ كُلِّ يَوْمٍ كَمْ تُقَالُ تَفَاهَةٌ

يَدْعُوْنَهَا شِعْرَاً ! , وَأَنْفُكَ يُرْغَمُ

Each day, how much nonsense is uttered

that they call poetry, while your nose is rubbed in the dust!

وَيُرَوِّجُوْنَ بِضَاعَةً مَسْمُوْمَةً

وَتَرَىَ مِنَ الْجُهَلاَءِ مَنْ يَتَرَنَّمُ

And they peddle poisoned wares,

and among the ignorant you see someone singing.

وَالشِّعْرُ يَنْدُبُ مَا اعْتَرَاهُ , وَيَشْتَكِيْ

قَوْلاً يَحَارُ بِهِ الِّلِسَانُ , وَيَعْجِمُ

And poetry mourns what has befallen it, and laments

speech that bewilders the tongue and leaves it inarticulate.

الشِّعْرُ ذَوْقٌ , وَالْبُحُوْرُ جَمَالُهَا

وَزْنٌ وَقَافِيَةٌ , وَمَعْنَىً يُفْهَمُ

Poetry is taste; the beauty of its meters is

rhythm, rhyme, and meaning that can be understood.

الشِّعْرُ وَحْيُ الْمُرْهَفِيْنَ , وَقَوْلُهُ

نَسَمَاتُ صُبْحٍ فِيْ الصُّدُوْرِ تُتَرْجَمُ

Poetry is the inspiration of sensitive souls, and its words are

dawn breezes given expression within the breasts.

أَنَا شَاعِرٌ غَزَلَا لْحُرُوْفَ بِمِغْزَلٍ

وَالشِّعْرُ عِنْدِيْ بِالرَّحِيْقِ يُخَتَّمُ

I am a poet who spun the letters with a spindle,

and for me, poetry is sealed with nectar.

فَإِذَا رَأَيْتُ الشَّوْكَ لَفَّ وُرُوْدَهُ

فَالشَّوْكُ هُدْبٌ حَوْلَ عَيِنٍ قَيِّمُ

So when I see thorns enfolding its roses,

the thorns are precious lashes around an eye.

وَالطَّيْرُ , لَوْ نَاحَتْ لِفَقْدِ أَلِيْفِهَا

آسَىَ لَهَا , وَأُخَفِّفَنَّ وَأَرْحَمُ

And if the birds lament the loss of their mate,

I grieve for them, and surely ease their sorrow and show compassion.

وَالزَّهْرَ أَلْحَظُهُ إِذَا جَنَّ الدُّجَىَ

صَحْوَاً , وَيَرْنُوْ لِلْفَرَاشِ , فَيُلْثَمُ

And I watch the flowers when darkness falls,

awake, gazing toward butterflies, then being kissed.

وَالْبَدْرُ , لو يُخْفِيْهِغَيْمٌ , لاَ أَرَىَ

عَيْباً لَهُ , فَغَداً يِكِرُّ , وَيَهْجُمُ

And if a cloud hides the full moon, I see no

fault in it; tomorrow it returns and charges forth.

وَأَرَىَ الْجَدَاوِلَ , وَالْمِيَاهَ إِذَا سَرَتْ

تَشْدُوْ , وَتَبْذُلُ نَفْسَهَا , وَتُقَسِّمُ

And I see the streams and waters, when they flow,

singing, offering themselves, and sharing themselves out.

هَذَا أَنَا , أَلْبَسْتُ قَفْراً أَحْرُفِيْ

فَاخْضَرَّ , وَانْتُدِبَتْ إِلَيْهِ الْحُوَّمُ

This is me: I clothed a wasteland in my letters,

so it turned green, and circling birds were summoned to it.

لاَ غَرْوَ إِنْ تَبِعَ الْكَلاَمُ مَقَاصِدِيْ

وَانْقَادَ حَيْثُ رَمَيْتُ سَهْمِيَ يَخْدُمُ

It is no wonder if speech follows my intentions,

and submits, serving wherever I shoot my arrow.

فَلَرُبَّمَا رَضِعَ الْوَلِيْدُ فَرَاسَةً

أغْنَتْهُ عَنْ لَبَنٍ , إِذَا هُوَ يُفْطَمُ

For perhaps an infant suckled discernment

that spared him the need for milk when he was weaned.

سُبْحَانَ مَنْجَعَلَ الْخِطَابَ لأَحْمَدٍ

فَصْلاً . فَفَسَّرَ مَا يُخَطُّ , وَيُرْقَمُ

Glory be to Him who made Ahmad's speech

decisive, so he explained what is written and inscribed.