عوجي علينا واربعي ربة البغل — Jarir

عوجي عَلَينا وَاِربَعي رَبَّةَ البَغلِ

وَلا تَقتُليني لا يَحِلُّ لَكُم قَتلي

Turn toward us and pause, lady of the mule,

and do not kill me; killing me is not lawful for you.

أَعاذِلُ مَهلاً بَعضَ لَومِكَ في البُطلِ

وَعَقلُكَ لا يَذهَب فَإِنَّ مَعي عَقلي

O reproacher, gently—some of your blame is futile;

let not your reason depart, for mine is with me.

فَإِنَّكَ لا تُرضي إِذا كُنتَ عاتِباً

خَليلَكَ إِلّا بِالمَوَدَّةِ وَالبَذلِ

For when you are reproaching, you cannot please

your friend except through affection and generosity.

أَحَقّاً رَأَيتَ الظاعِنينَ تَحَمَّلوا

مِنَ الغيلِ أَو وادي الوَريعَةِ ذي الأَثلِ

Did you truly see the departing folk load up and leave

from al-Ghayl, or al-Wari‘ah’s tamarisk-filled valley?

لَيالِيَ إِذ أَهلي وَأَهلُكِ جيرَةٌ

وَإِذ لا نَخافُ الصَرمَ إِلّا عَلى وَصلِ

Those nights when my people and yours were neighbors,

and when we feared separation only while still united;

وَإِذ أَنا لا مالٌ أُريدُ اِبتِياعَهُ

بِمالي وَلا أَهلٌ أَبيعُ بِهِم أَهلي

when there was no wealth I wished to purchase

with my wealth, nor people for whom I would sell my own.

خَليلَيَّ هيجا عَبرَةً أَو قِفا بِنا

عَلى مَنزِلٍ بَينَ النَقيعَةِ وَالحَبلِ

My two friends, stir a tear, or halt with us

at a dwelling between al-Naqi‘ah and al-Habl.

فَإِنّي لَباقي الدَمعِ إِن كُنتُ باكِياً

عَلى كُلِّ دارٍ حَلَّها مَرَّةً أَهلي

For I have tears still left, if I am to weep

over every home my people once inhabited.

تُريدينَ أَن نَرضى وَأَنتِ بَخيلَةٌ

وَمَن ذا الَّذي يُرضي الأَحِبّاءَ بِالبَخلِ

You want us to be content, though you are miserly;

and who is it that pleases loved ones with stinginess?

لَعَمرُكِ لَولا اليَأسُ ما اِنقَطَعَ الهَوى

وَلَولا الهَوى ما حَنَّ مِن والِهٍ قَبلي

By your life, were it not for despair, love would never end,

and were it not for love, no distraught lover before me would have yearned.

سَقى الرَملَ جَونٌ مُستَهِلٌّ رَبابُهُ

وَما ذاكَ إِلّا حُبُّ مَن حَلَّ بِالرَملِ

May a dark cloud, its low clouds streaming, water al-Raml;

and that is only for love of the one who dwelt in al-Raml.

مَتى تَجمَعي مَنّاً كَثيراً وَنائِلاً

قَليلاً تَقَطَّع مِنكِ باقِيَةُ الوَصلِ

Whenever you combine many reminders of favors with bounty

that is scant, the last bond with you is severed.

أَلا تَبتَغي حِلماً فَتَنهى عَنِ الجَهلِ

وَتَصرِمُ جُملاً راحَةً لَكَ مِن جُملِ

Will you not seek forbearance and curb folly,

and break with Juml, to find relief from Juml?

فَلا تَعجَبا مِن سَورَةِ الحُبِّ وَاِنظُرا

أَتَنفَعُ ذا الوَجدِ المَلامَةُ أَو تُسلي

Do not marvel, you two, at love’s surge; consider:

does blame help the passion-stricken, or bring him solace?

أَلا رُبَّ يَومٍ قَد شَرِبتُ بِمَشرَبٍ

سَقى الغَيمَ لَم يَشرَب بِهِ أَحَدٌ قَبلي

Ah, many a day I drank at a drinking place,

cloud-watered, where no one had drunk before me.

وَهِزَّةِ أَظعانٍ كَأَنَّ حُمولَها

غَداةَ اِستَقَلَّت بِالفَروقِ ذُرى النَخلِ

And many a swaying train of litters, whose laden camels seemed,

the morning they set off at al-Faruq, like palm-tree crowns.

طَلَبتُ وَرَيعانُ الشَبابِ يَقودُني

وَقَد فُتنَ عَيني أَو تَوارَينَ بِالهَجلِ

I pursued them, with youth in its prime leading me,

though they had eluded my sight or vanished in al-Hajl.

فَلَمّا لَحَقناهُنَّ أَبدَينَ صَبوَةً

وَهُنَّ يُحاذِرنَ الغَيورَ مِنَ الأَهلِ

When we caught up with them, they revealed desire,

while guarding against the jealous one among their kin.

عَلى ساعَةٍ لَيسَت بِساعَةِ مَنظِرٍ

رَمَينَ قُلوبَ القَومِ بِالحَدَقِ النُجلِ

At an hour that was no hour for looking,

they shot at the men’s hearts with their wide eyes.

وَما زِلنَ حَتّى كادَ يَفطِنُ كاشِحٌ

يَزيدُ عَلَينا في الحَديثِ الَّذي يُبلي

They did not cease until an enemy almost noticed,

one who would swell the ruinous gossip against us.

فَلَم أَرَ يَوماً مِثلَ يَومٍ بِذي الغَضا

أَصَبنا بِهِ صَيداً غَزيراً عَلى رِجلِ

Never have I seen a day like the day at Dhu al-Ghada—

there we caught abundant game on foot—

أَلَذَّ وَأَشفى لِلفُؤادِ مِنَ الجَوى

وَأَغيَظَ لِلواشينَ مِنهُ ذَوي المَحلِ

more delightful, more healing to a lovesick heart,

or more galling than it to scheming talebearers.

وَهاجِدِ مَوماةٍ بَعَثتُ إِلى السُرى

وَلَلنَومُ أَحلى عِندَهُ مِن جَنى النَحلِ

And many a sleeper in a desert waste I roused to night travel,

though sleep was sweeter to him than the bees’ harvest.

يَكونُ نُزولُ الرَكبِ فيها كَلا وَلا

غِشاشاً وَلا يَدنونَ رَحلاً إِلى رَحلِ

The riders’ halt there lasts no longer than ‘no, no,’

in haste, without drawing saddle near saddle,

لِيَومٍ أَتَت دونَ الظِلالِ سَمومُهُ

وَظَلَّ المَها صوراً جَماجِمُها تَغلي

against a day whose scorching wind penetrated the shade,

and the oryx stood with bent necks, their skulls boiling.

تَمَنّى رِجالٌ مِن تَميمٍ لِيَ الرَدى

وَما ذادَ عَن أَحسابِهِم ذائِدٌ مِثلي

Men of Tamim have wished death upon me,

yet no defender like me has guarded their ancestral honor.

كَأَنَّهُمُ لا يَعلَمونَ مَواطِني

وَقَد عَلِموا أَنّي أَنا السابِقُ المُبلي

As though they did not know my battle stations,

though they know that I am foremost and prove my worth.

فَلَو شاءَ قَومي كانَ حِلمِيَ فيهِمُ

وَكانَ عَلى جُهّالِ أَعدائِهِم جَهلي

If my people wished, my forbearance would be among them,

and my wrath would fall on the fools among their enemies.

وَأَوقَدتُ ناري بِالحَديدِ فَأَصبَحَت

لَها لَهَبٌ يُصلي بِهِ اللَهُ مَن يُصلي

I kindled my fire with iron, and now

it has a flame with which God burns whomever He burns.

لَعَمري لَقَد أَخزى البَعيثُ مُجاشِعاً

وَقالَ ذَوُو أَحسابِهِم ساءَ ما يُبلي

By my life, al-Ba‘ith has disgraced Mujashi‘,

and their men of lineage said, ‘How ill he acquits himself!’

لَعَمري لَئِن كانَ القُيونُ تَواكَلوا

نَوارَ لَقَد آبَت نَوارُ إِلى بَعلِ

By my life, if the smiths left each other to tend

Nawar, Nawar has indeed returned to a husband.

لِيَ الفَضلُ في أَفناءِ عَمروٍ وَمالِكٍ

وَما زِلتُ مُذ جارَيتُ أَجري عَلى مَهلِ

Mine is preeminence among the branches of ‘Amr and Malik,

and since I entered the race, I have always run at ease.

وَتُرهَبُ يَربوعٌ وَرائِيَ بِالقَنا

وَذاكَ مَقامٌ لَيسَ يُزري بِهِ فِعلي

And Yarbu‘ behind me is feared for its spears,

and my conduct does not diminish that standing.

لَنِعمَ حُماةُ الحَيِّ يُخشى وَرائَهُم

قَديماً وَجيرانُ المَخافَةِ وَالأَزلِ

Excellent protectors of the clan, whose rear is feared,

from of old, and neighbors in danger and famine.

لَقَد قَوَّسَت أُمُّ البَعيثِ وَلَم تَزَل

تُزاحِمُ عِلجاً صادِرَينِ عَلى كِفلِ

Al-Ba‘ith’s mother has indeed bowed her back, and still

jostles a foreign lout, both returning from water on a riding pad.

تَرى العَبَسَ الحَولِيِّ جَوناً بِكوعِها

لَها مَسَكاً في غَيرِ عاجٍ وَلا ذَبلِ

You see year-old dung crusted black on her wrist,

her bracelets, of neither ivory nor tortoiseshell,

لَيالِيَ تَنتابُ النِباجَ وَتَبتَغي

مَراعِيَها بَينَ الجَداوِلِ وَالنَخلِ

on nights when she frequented al-Nibaj, seeking

her grazing grounds between the watercourses and the palms.

وَهَل أَنتَ إِلّا نَخبَةٌ مِن مُجاشِعٍ

تُرى لِحيَةً في غَيرِ دينٍ وَلا عَقلِ

And are you anything but a choice specimen from Mujashi‘,

seen as a beard, with neither faith nor reason?

بَني مالِكٍ لا صِدقَ عِندَ مُجاشِعٍ

وَلَكِنَّ حَظّاً مِن فِياشٍ عَلى دَخلِ

Sons of Malik, there is no truth in Mujashi‘,

only a share of boasting founded on deceit.

وَقَد زَعَموا أَنَّ الفَرَزدَقَ حَيَّةٌ

وَما قَتَلَ الحَيّاتِ مِن أَحَدٍ قَبلي

They have claimed that al-Farazdaq is a serpent,

yet no one before me ever killed serpents.

وَما مارَسَت مِن ذي ذُبابٍ شَكيمَتي

فَيُفلِتُ فَوتَ المَوتِ إِلّا عَلى خَبلِ

No keen-edged opponent has ever tested my mettle

and escaped death without being maimed.

وَلَمّا اِتَّقى القَينُ العِراقِيُّ بِاِستِهِ

فَرَغتُ إِلى القَينِ المُقَيَّدِ في الحِجلِ

When the Iraqi smith shielded himself with his backside,

I turned to the smith fettered in an anklet.

رَأَيتُكَ لا تَحمي عِقالاً وَلَم تُرِد

قِتالاً فَما لاقَيتَ شَرٌّ مِنَ القَتلِ

I saw you defend not even a hobble, nor desire

battle; what befell you is worse than being killed.

وَلَو كُنتَ ذا رَأيٍ لَما لُمتَ عاصِماً

وَما كانَ كُفءً ما لَقيتَ مِنَ الفَضلِ

Had you possessed sound judgment, you would not have blamed ‘Asim,

and the generosity you received was not your due.

وَلَمّا دَعَوتَ العَنبَرِيَّ بِبَلدَةٍ

إِلى غَيرِ ماءِ لا قَريبٍ وَلا أَهلِ

And when you summoned al-‘Anbari in a land

to a place without water, kinsman, or family,

ضَلَلتَ ضَلالَ السامِرِيِّ وَقَومِهِ

دَعاهُم فَظَلّوا عاكِفينَ عَلى عِجلِ

you strayed as al-Samiri and his people strayed;

he called them, and they remained devoted to a calf.

فَلَمّا رَأى أَنَّ الصَحارِيَ دونَهُ

وَمُعتَلَجَ الأَنقاءِ مِن ثَبَجِ الرَملِ

Then, when he saw the deserts before him,

and the tangled dunes in the heart of the sands,

بَلَعتَ نَسيءَ العَنبَرِيِّ كَأَنَّما

تَرى بِنَسيءَ العَنبَرِيِّ جَنى النَحلِ

you swallowed al-‘Anbari’s postponement, as though

you found the bees’ harvest in al-‘Anbari’s delay.

فَأَورَدَكَ الأَعدادَ وَالماءُ نازِحٌ

دَليلُ اِمرِئٍ أَعطى المَقادَةَ بِالدَحلِ

Then he led you to the perennial wells, though the water was far off,

a guide for a man who surrendered the reins through deceit.

أَلَم تَرَ أَنّي لا تُبِلَّ رَمِيَّتي

فَمَن أَرمِ لا تُخطِئ مَقاتِلَهُ نَبلي

Have you not seen that none I strike recovers?

Whoever I shoot, my arrows never miss his vital spots.

فَباتَت نَوارُ القَينِ رِخواً حِقابُها

تُنازِعُ ساقي ساقِها حَلَقَ الحِجلِ

So the smith’s Nawar spent the night with her girdle loose,

my leg vying with hers for the anklet’s rings.

تُقَبِّحُ ريحَ القَينِ لَمّا تَناوَلَت

مِقَذَّ هِجانٍ إِذ تُساوِفُهُ فَحلِ

She reviled the smith’s smell when she reached

the nape of a purebred stallion, as she sniffed him.

فَأَقسَمتُ ما لاقَيتِ قَبلي مِنَ الهَوى

وَأَقسَمتُ ما لاقَيتِ مِن ذَكَرٍ مِثلي

So I swore you had known no passion before me,

and swore you had met no male like me.

أَبا خالِدٍ أَبلَيتَ حَزماً وَسُؤدُداً

وَكُلُّ اِمرِءِ مُثنىً عَلَيهِ بِما يُبلي

Abu Khalid, you have shown prudence and nobility,

and every man is praised for how he acquits himself.

أَبا خالِدٍ لا تُشمِتَنَّ أَعادِياً

يَوَدّونَ لَو زَلَّت بِمَهلَكَةٍ نَعلي

Abu Khalid, do not give enemies cause to gloat,

who wish my sandal would slip in a deadly place.