ستالينغراد — Jawahiri

نضت الروح وهزتها لواء

وكسته واكتست منه الدماء

She bared her soul and waved it as a banner;

blood clothed it, and was itself clothed by it.

واستمدت من إله الحقل . والبيت

والمصنع . عزما ومَضَاء

And she drew from the god of field and home

and factory resolve and determination.

رمتِ الزرعَ بعين أثلجَ الدَمعُ

فيها ضرمَ الحِقدِ اجتواء

She looked upon the crops with an eye whose tears cooled

the blaze of hatred within it, in bitter anguish.

أعجلت عنهُ فآلت قَسَماً

أن ستسقيه دمَ الاعداءِ ماء

Hurried away from them, she swore an oath

that she would water them with enemies' blood as water.

ومشت في زَحمةِ الموتِ على

قدمٍ لم تخشَ مَيلا والتواء

And she walked through the throng of death on

a foot that feared neither swerving nor twisting.

اقسمت باسم عظيمٍ كرمت

باسمِه أنْ لا تهين العظماء

She swore by a great man's name, ennobled

by his name, never to dishonor the great.

يا " ستَالينُ " وما أعظمَها

في التهجي أحرُفاً تأبى الهجاء

O Stalin—how mighty they are,

when spelled out: letters that defy revilement.

أحرف يستمطرُ الكونُ بها

إنعتاقاً وازدهاراً وإخاء

Letters through which the universe calls down a rain of

liberation, prosperity, and brotherhood.

خالق الامة لم يمنُنْ ولم

يبغِ – لولا أرَجُ الزهر – ثناء

Creator of the nation, he never vaunted his favors, nor

sought—were it not for the flowers' fragrance—praise.

وزعيمٌ شعَّ فيمنْ حولَه

قبسٌ منه فكانوا الزعماء

And a leader: among those around him shone

a spark from him, and they became leaders.

زَرَّ بُردْيهِ على ذي مِرّةٍ

فاض إشفاقاً وبأساً وعناء

He fastened his two cloaks over a man of strength,

overflowing with compassion, valor, and toil.

مسّه الظلمُ فعادى أهله

وامترى البؤسَ فَحَبَّ البوساء

Oppression touched him, so he opposed its perpetrators;

and drew misery's milk, so he loved the wretched.

وانبرى كالغيمِ في مُضْحِيَةٍ

فسقى دهراً وأحيا وأفاء

And he rose like a cloud on a sun-scorched day,

watering an age, giving life, and casting shade.

بُوركَ الباني وعاشت أمةٌ

وفتِ الباني حقوقاً والبناء

Blessed be the builder, and long live a nation

that paid the builder—and the building—their due.

قيل للعيشِ ففاضت امناء

وإلى الموت ففاضت شهداء

The call was to life, and it poured forth faithful guardians;

and to death, and it poured forth martyrs.

ومشى التاريخُ موزونَ الخُطى

ما انحنى ذُلاً ولا ضجّ ادعاء

And history walked with measured steps,

neither bowed in abasement nor clamorous with pretension.

هذه التربهُ لا ما سُمِّيت

وطناً يُنبِتُ جوعاً وعراء

This is the soil—not what was called

a homeland that sprouts hunger and nakedness.

وهي ذي الحفرة إذ طارت عَجاجاً

الفُ نفسٍ معها طارت فداء

And here is the pit: when it flew up as dust,

a thousand souls flew with it, in sacrifice.

وهو ذا العِرضُ فهل تبغي وقاةً

مثلَهم أو مثل ذا تبغي وقاء

And here is honor—do you seek protectors

like them, or protection like this?

قف على " القَفْقاس " وانظر

موكبَ المجدِ والعزةِ يمشي خُيَلاء

Stand upon the Caucasus and behold

the procession of glory and might, walking proudly.

وسلِ ( القوزاقَ ) هل كان دماً

لمعانُ السيف أم كان طلاء

And ask the Cossacks: was it blood—

the sword's gleam—or was it paint?

وجدَ الغادرُ من قسوتها

ما رأى من لطفها الضيفُ سخاء

The traitor found in its severity

the same bounty the guest found in its kindness.

والعتاقُ الجردُ هل لاقت بما

عاقها من جثث القتلى عناء

And the noble, sleek horses—did they meet with

hardship from the bodies of the slain that blocked them?

نفخت من وَدَجَيْها أن رأتْ

مُمْتطَى فارسِها أمسى خلاء

They snorted through their jugular veins upon seeing

their riders' seats now empty.

فهي والغيظُ مرى أشداقها

تعرِكُ اللُّجْمَ وتجتّر الغثاء

So, with rage milking their jaws,

they grind the bits and chew the froth like cud.

واحتواها رهَجُ الحربِ فما

تُبصر الأرضَ عتواً وازدهاء

And battle's dust engulfed them, so they could not

see the earth, in their fierceness and pride.

من على صهوتِها يمنحُها

شرف " الفارسِ " عزماً وفتاء

The one upon their backs confers on them

the rider's honor—resolve and youthful vigor.

ياعروسَ " الفلغِ " والفلغا دمٌ

ساءت البلوى فاحسنت البلاء

O bride of the Volga—and the Volga is blood—

the ordeal was cruel, yet you excelled in the trial.

صبغ " الدونَ " دماءين هما

بُعدُ بين الرجس والطهر التقاء

Two bloods stained the Don; they were

a gulf between defilement and purity, even in meeting.

وجرت امواجُه حاملةً

فوقها الضدينِ صبحاً ومساء

And its waves flowed, bearing

upon them the two opposites, morning and evening.

وعلى الجرفين " عظمان " هما

رمزُ عهدَيْنِ انحطاطاً وارتقاء

And on the two banks were two bones,

symbols of two epochs: decline and ascent.

يا ابنة النهرين دومي شَبَحاً

لقويٍّ وضعيفٍ يتراءى

O daughter of the two rivers, remain a specter

appearing to the strong and the weak:

للمهينين عقاباً وجزاء

والمهانين انتفاضاً وإباء

punishment and requital to those who abase,

uprising and defiance to the abased.

كنتِ اسمى مثلاً من ظَفَرٍ

لم تلده خططُ الحربِ دهاء

You were the loftiest example of a victory

that no cunning plans of war had brought to birth.

غلب الغالبُ فيه وانثنى الطوقُ

– كالحبل – على الطوق انثناء

The conqueror was conquered there, and the ring bent back,

like a rope, folding around the ring.

كنت رمزاً ألْهَمَ الجيلَ الفداء

وهدى الأعقاب ما شاءت وشاء

You were a symbol that inspired a generation to sacrifice

and guided posterity as it—and that generation—wished.

حسِبوا أمرك ما قد عودوا

صعقَ الحربِ اتقاداً وانطفاء

They reckoned your affair to be what they were accustomed to:

war's thunderbolt, flaring and fading,

وابتداء من حديدٍ ودمٍ

يمهَرُ الفتح به ثم انتهاء

and a beginning of iron and blood

that pays conquest's bridal price, then an ending.

واستجاشوا – فيلق الموت على

ظمأ للدم منَّوه ارتواء

And they mustered death's legion in

a thirst for blood, promising it its fill.

ومضوا فيما أرادوا خطوة

أوشك اليأس بها يمحو الرجاء

And they took one step toward what they wanted,

through which despair almost erased hope.

وجف الغربُ على وطأتِها

وأمالت كلكلَ الشرقِ فناء

The West trembled under its tread,

and it bent the East's chest toward destruction.

وتلوت جيرةٌ طماحةٌ

أفناء تَتَلَقّى أم بقاء

And ambitious neighbors writhed:

would they meet annihilation, or survival?

حملت حاضرَها واثقةً

أنَّ في مستقبلٍ آتٍ عزاء

They bore their present, trusting

that a coming future held consolation.

وانبرى التاريخُ في حَيْرتِهِ

أأماماً يتخطّى ام وراء

And history rose in its bewilderment:

should it step forward, or backward?

وسرت انباءُ سوءٍ تَدّعي

أن ريحاً تُنِذرُ الدنيا وباء

And ill tidings spread, claiming

that a wind threatened the world with plague.

حُلُمٌ حلوٌ مُمرٌّ مؤنسٌ

مُوحشٌ سرَّ بما جاء وساء

A dream—sweet, bitter, comforting,

frightening—delighted and distressed with what it brought.

طاف بالكون فأغفى اهلهُ

تعساءً و أفاقوا سعداء

It roamed the universe; its people fell asleep

wretched, and awoke happy.

فاذا العزة في عليائها

تتضرّى فتدوسُ الكبرياء

And behold, dignity in its lofty heights

grew fierce and trampled arrogance.

وإذا الأنقاض في كُرْبتِها

تُفْعِمُ المكروبَ كالرَّوض شذاء

And behold, the ruins in their anguish

filled the anguished with fragrance like a garden.

واذا المنقضُ من أحجارها

لمح النجمَ تعالى فاضاء

And behold, the falling fragments of its stones

were a star's flash, rising high and shining.

وإذا الطاغوتُ في أعراسه

يملأ الدنيا نحيباً وبكاء

And behold, the tyrant at his wedding feasts

filled the world with wailing and weeping.

أنتِ امليت على تاريخه

طافحا بالكبر ذلاً واختذاء

You dictated to his history—

brimming with pride—humiliation and abasement.

ومحوتِ العجب من اسطاره

وملأت الصَّلَفَ المحضَ ازدراء

And you erased self-admiration from its lines,

and filled sheer arrogance with contempt.

وصفعتِ الدنَّ في يافوخِهِ

صفعة لم تُبْقِ خَمْراً وانتشاء

And you slapped the wine-jar on the crown of its head,

a slap that left neither wine nor intoxication.

حسب من ضاقت ثناياكِ به

أنه يبغي فلا يَقوى النَّجاء

Let it suffice for one hemmed in by your passes

that he seeks escape but has no strength to flee.

وكفى المحتلَ هَوناً أن يُرى

الاسرون الغلبُ منه اسراء

And enough shame for the occupier that there be seen

mighty captors from his ranks turned captives.

نحنُ أهلَ الأرض لو نقْوى وفاء

لرفعناكِ على الأرض سماء

We, the people of the earth—if we could give you your due—

would raise you above the earth as a heaven.

لجعلنا كلَّ عينٍ – مثلما

كلَّ قلب – تتملاكِ اجتلاء

We would make every eye, like

every heart, behold you in your fullness.

نَعْمَ ما أسدَتْ يدٌ آثمةٌ

كشفت عن وجهِكِ الحرِّ غطاء

What a fine gift a sinful hand bestowed,

lifting the veil from your free face.

عاصفٌ مر فجلّى وانجلى

بدت الشمسُ به أبهى سناء

A storm passed, laid things bare, and passed away;

through it the sun appeared more splendid in radiance.

وضح الحق الذي طال خفاء

وتولى زَبَدُ الكِذبِ جُفاءا

The truth, long hidden, became clear,

and falsehood's froth went away as discarded scum.

وحّدَ العدلُ شعوباً خلطاء

عمروا الأرضَ وعاشوا خلصاء

Justice united intermingled peoples,

who made the earth flourish and lived as true companions.

وجدوا في تربة تجمعُهمْ

كلّ ما يُطْلبُ في الخُلْدِ اشتهاء

They found in the soil that united them

all one could wish for in Paradise.

ورأوا في السّلمِ ديناً يُقْتَضى

ورأوا في الحربِ للدَّين اقتضِاء

They saw in peace a debt to be paid,

and in war the exaction of that debt.

اترجي – أن تنجي وطنا

من يد الموت – جنوداً فقراء

Do you hope—to save a homeland

from death's hand—for impoverished soldiers?

إن للحرب رجالا ليتَهُمْ

خبّرونا أنَّ للحرب نساء

War has its men—if only they

would tell us that war has women!

وغيورات أبى تاريخها

أن ترى دون الغيورين غَناء

And zealous women whose history refused

to show them less effective than zealous men.

زانها الطهرُ رُواءً وارتمتْ

في مُثار النقعِ فازدادت رُواء

Purity adorned them with beauty; they plunged

into the rising battle-dust, and grew more beautiful.

ذادت الامُّ عن البيت وقاء

وارتمى الطفلُ على الامِّ افتداء

The mother defended the home as a shield;

the child flung himself upon his mother in sacrifice.

وتعزَّت حين أخلت طُنفا

لم تَصُنْه – أنها صانت فِناء

And she consoled herself, when she left a roof

unguarded, that she had safeguarded a courtyard.

" أم غوركَي " ليت عندي وحيه

لأوفى ( بنتَك ) اليومَ الثناء

Gorky's Mother—if only I had his inspiration,

I would give your daughter her due of praise today.

لو يعود اليومَ حياً لرأى

مثلَها ألفْاً تهزّ البُلَغاء

If he returned alive today, he would see

a thousand like her, stirring the eloquent.

بل ولولا أن غوركي أمه

مثلُ هذي لم يُبزَّ النبغاء

Indeed, had Gorky's mother not been

like this woman, the gifted would not have been surpassed.

يا " تولستوي " ولم تذهبْ سدى

ثورةُ الفكر ولا طارت هَباء

O Tolstoy, it did not go in vain—

the revolution of thought—nor scatter as dust.

يا ثرياً وهبَ الناسَ الثراء

قُمْ ترَ الناسَ جميعا أثرياء

O wealthy man who gave the people wealth,

rise and see all the people wealthy!

قُمْ تَجِدْهم ما لكِي غلّتهِمْ

من على عهِدك كانوا الأجَراء

Rise and find them owners of their yield—

those who in your time were hired laborers.

هكذا ( الفكرةُ ) تزكو ثَمَراً

أن زكت غرساً ، وأن طابت نماء

Thus a thought flourishes in fruit

when its planting thrives and its growth is good.

قد محصتَ حقاً وادعاء

كلم يخترق السمع سواء

You scrutinized truth and pretension—

words that pierce the hearing alike.

ووجدت الناسَ من جهلِهِمُ

لا يَميزون ثُغاء ورُغاء

And you found people, through their ignorance,

unable to distinguish bleating from camels' bellowing.

استُغلوا فهُمُ من بأسِهمْ

لا يكادون يَعون الأنبياء

Exploited, they, through their distress,

could scarcely understand the prophets.

فحملت " البعثَ " باليمنىَ لَهم

وعلى اليسرى هناء ورخاء

So you carried revival for them in your right hand,

and upon your left, happiness and plenty.

وشجبت الرفقَ والرحمةَ من

نفر ليسوا بحق رُحَمَاء

And you condemned kindness and mercy from

people who were not truly merciful:

ينشُدون الناس أحراراً وهم

ملأوا البيتَ عبيداً وإماء

they sought the people free, while they

filled the house with slaves and bondwomen,

وكَسَوْا كلبهُمُ الخزَّ ومنْ

حولهمْ يلتحفُ الجمعُ العراء

and clothed their dog in silk, while

around them the multitude wrapped itself in nakedness.

ووجدت الذئبَ في حالاتِه

ربما رافق معزاة وشاء

And you found the wolf, in his various states,

sometimes accompanying a goat and sheep.

قد يكون الكذب مفضوحا هراء

ويكون الصدقُ مدسوسا وباء

Falsehood may be exposed as nonsense,

and truth, covertly planted, may be a plague;

ويكون الحقُ – ما بينهما

باطلاً والطالحون الصلحاء

and right, between the two, may become

wrong, and the wicked the righteous.

يا ابنةَ النهرين هذا نَسَبٌ

من ولاءٍ لو تقبلتِ الولاء

O daughter of the two rivers, this is a kinship

of loyalty, if you will accept loyalty.

بَعُدَ المَرْمى بما استهدفتِه

واختذى السهمُ فقصرتِ عياء

The mark grew distant through what you aimed at,

and the arrow was humbled, so you fell short in weariness.

وارتمى الحسُّ على الحسِّ فما

يستطيع اللفظُ للوعي اداء

And feeling cast itself upon feeling, so

words could not convey consciousness.

ومن الظلم – الذي تابَيْنَه

أن تسومي المعجزاتِ الشعراء

And among the injustices you reject

is demanding miracles from poets.

عاطفاتٌ حُوَّمٌ عاجت على

أبْحُرِ الشعر فردتها ظماء

Hovering affections turned toward

poetry's seas, which sent them back thirsty.

وهي ما كانت لتدلي سببا

لك ، لولا أنها كانت بَراء

And they would not have extended a bond

to you, had they not been innocent.

لم تُثِرْها نزوةُ النفس ، ولم

يُزهها العُجْبُ ولم تنبِضْ رياء

No whim of the soul stirred them, nor

did vanity inflate them, nor did they pulse for show.

جُلُّ ما يسعفني به

أن يلبي " الفمُ " للقلبِ نداء

The most it can help me achieve

is for the mouth to answer the heart's call.