1. سقَى دارَها بالرَّقمتين وحيَّاها

    مُلِثٌّ يُحيل التربَ في الدار أمواها

    May her dwelling at al-Raqmatayn be watered and greeted

    by lingering rain that turns the dwelling's dust to water.

  2. ورفَّ عليها رائحٌ متهدّلٌ

    من النبت يُرضِي جُردَها ومطاياها

    And may fragrant, drooping growth sway above it,

    plants that please its sleek steeds and riding camels.

  3. ولا برحتْ تمحو ندوبَ هجيرها

    بوادرُ من أسحارها وعشاياها

    And may the scars of its midday heat be ceaselessly erased

    by showers from its dawns and evenings,

  4. إلى أن تَرَى الأبصارُ حسنا تودُّه

    وخُمْصُ المطايا بِطنةً تتعافاها

    until eyes behold a beauty they desire,

    and hollow-bellied mounts a surfeit they would shun.

  5. ومابيَ إلا نفحةٌ حاجريّةٌ

    تؤدّي صَباها ما تقول خُزاماها

    And nothing ails me but a breath from Hajir,

    whose east wind carries what its lavender says.

  6. أحبُّ لظيماءَ العدا من قبيلها

    وأهوى ترابَ الأرض ما كنتُ أهواها

    For Zayma's sake, I love even foes from her tribe,

    and cherish the earth's dust so long as I cherish her.

  7. وأُغضِي على أمرٍ وفيه غميزةٌ

    ليُكسِبني منها المكانةَ والجاها

    I overlook a matter though it carries a blemish,

    so it may win me standing and prestige with her.

  8. وكيف بوصلِ الحبلِ من أمِّ مالكٍ

    وبين بلادينا زَرودُ وحَبْلاها

    But how can the bond with Umm Malik be joined,

    with Zarud and its two sand-ridges between our lands?

  9. يراها بعينِ الشوق قلبي على النوى

    فيحظَى ولكن من لعيني برؤياها

    My heart sees her with longing's eye despite the distance,

    and finds delight; but who will grant my eyes a sight of her?

  10. فلله ما أصفَى وأكدرَ حبَّها

    وأبعدَها منّي الغداةَ وأدناها

    By God, how clear and how troubled is love of her,

    and how far from me this morning she is, and how near!

  11. إذا استوحشتْ عيني أنِستُ بأن أرى

    نظائرَ تُصبيني إليها وأشباها

    When my eyes grow lonely, I take comfort in seeing

    likenesses and resemblances that draw my longing toward her.

  12. فأعتنقُ الغصنَ القويمَ لقدِّها

    وألثِمُ ثغرَ الكأس أحسِبه فاها

    I embrace the straight branch for her figure,

    and kiss the cup's rim, imagining it her mouth.

  13. ويوم الكثيب استشرفتْ لِيَ ظبيةٌ

    مولَّهةٌ قد ضاع بالقاع خِشفاها

    On the day at the dune, a gazelle looked out toward me,

    distraught: her two fawns were lost on the plain.

  14. يدلِّهُ خوفُ الثُّكل حبَّةَ قلبها

    فيزدادُ حسنا مقلتاها وليتاها

    Fear of bereavement bewilders the core of her heart,

    making her eyes and her neck's two sides still more beautiful.

  15. فما ارتاب طَرْفي فيكِ يا أمّ مالكٍ

    على صحّة التشبيه أنكِ إياها

    My gaze had no doubt about you, Umm Malik,

    so true the likeness: you were that gazelle.

  16. فإن لم تكوني خدَّها وجبينَها

    فإنك أنتِ الجيدُ أو أنتِ عيناها

    If you were not her cheek and her brow,

    surely you were her neck, or you were her eyes.

  17. ألُوَّامَهُ في حبِّ دارٍ غريبةٍ

    يشُقُّ على رجمِ المطامع مَرماها

    O you who reproach him for loving a far-off dwelling,

    whose goal desire's blind guesses struggle to reach,

  18. دَعُوه ونجداً إنها شأنُ نفسه

    فلو أن نجدا تلعة ما تعدّاها

    leave him to Najd: it is his soul's concern.

    Even were Najd a single hillock, he would not pass beyond it.

  19. وهبكم منعتم أن يراها بعينه

    فهل تمنعون القلبَ أن يتمنّاها

    Suppose you prevented him from seeing it with his eyes:

    could you stop his heart from yearning for it?

  20. وليل بذات الأثل قصَّر طولَه

    سُرَى طيفِها آهاً لذِكرتها آها

    A night at Dhat al-Athl had its length shortened

    by her phantom's night-journey—ah, her memory, ah!

  21. تخطَّت إليّ الهولَ مشيا على الهوى

    وأخطارِهِ لا يُبعِد الله ممشاها

    She crossed the terrors to reach me, walking upon love

    and its perils—may God never send her steps far away.

  22. وقد كاد أسدافُ الدُّجى أن تُضِلَّها

    فما دلَّها إلا وميضُ ثناياها

    The veils of darkness had almost led her astray,

    and only the gleam of her front teeth guided her.

  23. أصاحِ ترى أنّ الوفاءَ لغادرٍ

    سجيةُ ذلٍّ في الهوى لستُ أنساها

    My friend, do you think loyalty to a betrayer

    a habit of abasement in love? I do not forget her.

  24. قِني الشرَّ منها أو أقِلْني عثارَها

    لعلَّك تلقَى مثلَها فتَوَقَّاها

    Shield me from her harm, or lift me from stumbling over her.

    Perhaps you will meet her like; then beware of her.

  25. إذا أنتَ لم تحفظْ لغيرِ محافظٍ

    ولم ترعَ إلا ذمّةً فيك ترعاها

    If you do not keep faith with one who keeps none,

    and honor only a pledge she honors toward you,

  26. فعِشْ واحدا أو كن من الناس حَجرةً

    فإن الوفاءَ لفظةٌ مات معناها

    then live alone, or stand apart from mankind,

    for loyalty is a word whose meaning has died.

  27. بلى في بني عبد الرحيم وبيتِهم

    أصولُ العلا محفوظةٌ وبقاياها

    Yet among the sons of Abd al-Rahim and in their house,

    the roots of nobility and its remnants are preserved.

  28. وعندهم العهدُ القديمُ لجارِهم

    إذا انتسبت أُولَى الجبال وأخراها

    They hold the ancient covenant with their neighbor,

    when the first mountains and the last recount their lineage.

  29. ملوكٌ بنَوْا في ذروة العزّ خيرَها

    ترابا وأعلاها سماءً وأسناها

    Kings who built upon glory's summit the finest dwelling

    in earth, the loftiest in heaven, and the most radiant.

  30. لهم دوحةٌ خضراءُ رُوِّيَ أصلُها

    بماء الندى الجاري وطُيِّبَ فرعاها

    Theirs is a green, spreading tree whose root was watered

    with generosity's flowing water, its two branches sweetened.

  31. تمنَّت على الله المنَى في ثمارها

    لتُنجِبَ واستعلتْ عليه فأعطاها

    It asked God to fulfill its wishes in its fruit,

    to bear noble offspring; it raised its plea to Him, and He granted it.

  32. نَمتْ كلَّ مفرور عن الرأي سنه

    يقول نعم في المهد أوّلَ ما فاها

    It reared each man whose bared tooth revealed sound judgment,

    who says 'Yes' in the cradle at his very first utterance;

  33. أغرّ إذا أجرى العزائمَ كدّها

    خِماصا وإن سلَّ التجاربَ أمضاها

    bright-faced: when he sets his resolves racing, he strains them,

    lean; and when he unsheathes experience, he makes it keen.

  34. أخا الفتكِ حتى تتقيه بدينه

    فتلقَى منيباً للتقيَّةِ أوّاها

    A man of deadly daring, till his faith safeguards you against him,

    and you find a penitent, sighing in reverent fear.

  35. وعندَ زعيم الدين منهم شهادةٌ

    بأنَّ صدورَ المكرمات تقَفَّاها

    Their leader of the faith has testimony

    that he has pursued the foremost noble deeds.

  36. تبوَّعَ في خَلِّ الثغورِ فسدَّها

    وأسفرَ في سُودِ الخطوب فجلَّاها

    He extended his reach into the frontier's gaps and sealed them,

    and shone through dark calamities, dispelling them.

  37. هم الجوهرُ الصافي وأنتَ يتيمةٌ

    من العِقد ما زانَ العقودَ ثَناياها

    They are pure jewels, and you a matchless pearl

    in the necklace; necklaces owe no beauty to their secondary beads.

  38. ولولا أخوكَ أو أخوكَ وسَطْتَها

    كما أنهُ أعلَى الأنامِل وُسْطاها

    But for your brother, you would be its center—or he, but for you,

    as the highest of the fingers is the middle one.

  39. ملكتَ الكمالَ قادرا متسلِّطا

    فلم تكُ مع فَرطِ المحاسن تيَّاها

    You possessed perfection, powerful and commanding,

    yet, despite your abundant virtues, you were not conceited.

  40. وسُدْتَ بنفسٍ حِلمُها دون بطشها

    وسلطانُها مُولىً عليهِ بتقواها

    You ruled with a soul whose forbearance checked its force,

    and whose power was placed under its piety's rule.

  41. إذا الغضبُ الطارِي أمال طباعَها

    أثابَ بها الخُلْقُ الكريمُ فسوّاها

    Whenever sudden anger bent its disposition,

    noble character brought it back and set it straight.

  42. كأنّ مُعَنِّيها لمجدٍ أراحها

    ومفقِرَها في طاعةِ الجودِ أغناها

    As though whoever wearied it for glory gave it rest,

    and whoever impoverished it in generosity's service enriched it.

  43. فلو أن صوبَ المزِن أنكر نفسَه

    تبصَّر من أخلاقِها وسجاياها

    If the rainclouds' downpour failed to recognize itself,

    it would find insight in that soul's manners and traits.

  44. ومَوتَى من الأضعانِ فوق وجوههم

    ظواهرُ غيب ناطقٍ بخفاياها

    And men dead of rancor bear upon their faces

    outward signs of hidden feelings proclaiming their secrets.

  45. بعثتَ إليهم بالوعيدِ كأنما

    بعثتَ إلى أرواحهم بَمناياها

    You sent them a warning, as though

    you had sent their souls their appointed deaths.

  46. أراد علاك منهُمُ من أرادها

    غرورا ولم يقدِر عليها فعاداها

    Whoever among them sought your eminence did so

    deludedly; unable to attain it, he turned against it.

  47. وهل في أديم الشمس للعين مثْبَتٌ

    وله جَهَدَ القاريُّ يوما فراماها

    Can the eye find a foothold upon the sun's face,

    even if a Qari archer strove one day and took aim at it?

  48. أبا حسنٍ إن الوفاءَ تجارةٌ

    إذا ما تولَّى ربُّها الشكرَ نمَّاها

    Abu Hasan, loyalty is a trade

    that prospers when its owner undertakes gratitude.

  49. وإن فروضَ الجودِ كيف بعثتَها

    إلى مفصِح حرٍّ فإنك تُقضاها

    The dues of generosity, however you send them

    to an eloquent, freeborn man, will be repaid to you.

  50. مننتَ وأعطيتَ المودَّة حقَّها

    فأكرِمْ بكفٍّ ودُّها من عطاياها

    You bestowed favors and gave affection its due:

    how noble a hand whose affection is among its gifts!

  51. ولا خيرَ في جدوَى سوى الحبِّ جرَّها

    ولا في يدٍ غير التوامِقُ أسداها

    There is no good in bounty brought by anything but love,

    nor in a favor bestowed by anything but mutual affection.

  52. أجبتَ وقد ناداك شعريَ من شَفَا

    معمَّقةٍ ينهارُ بالرِّجل جالاها

    You answered when my verse called to you from the brink

    of a deep pit whose two sides crumble beneath a foot.

  53. وكنتَ يمينا نصرُها غيرُ رائثٍ

    إذا استصرخَتْها في الملمَّة يُسراها

    You were a right hand whose help was never slow

    when its left cried to it for aid in calamity.

  54. فمهما يَطُلْ هذا اللسانُ ويتَّسعْ

    له القولُ تسمعْها فِصاحا وتُرواها

    However long this tongue may grow, and however wide

    its scope for speech, you will hear eloquent verses and have them recited to you.

  55. خفائف في الأسماع وهي ثقائلٌ

    على قَلب من يشنا علاك ويشناها

    Light upon the ears, yet heavy

    upon the heart of whoever hates your eminence and hates them.

  56. تُقرِّب في أغراضكم نزعَ سهمِها

    وتُبعِدُ في أعراضكم ليلَ مَسراها

    They bring their arrow's shot close to your targets,

    and prolong their night's journey in the cause of your honor.

  57. عوالق بالأسماع حتى كأنها

    قِراطٌ يودّ السمعُ أن يتحلَّاها

    They cling to the ears, as though

    they were earrings with which hearing longs to adorn itself.

  58. إذا حصَّنتْ عِرضا يُحاط بها وُقِي

    وإن حَصَبَتْ وجها يغاظ بها شاها

    When they fortify a reputation they surround, it is protected;

    and when they pelt a face enraged by them, they disfigure it.

  59. لك العفو منه عن أيادٍ تسلَّفت

    وعن أُنُفٍ يجرين في الجود مجراها

    You have its indulgence for favors already bestowed,

    and for fresh ones that follow their generous course.

  60. فلا تُعطِشنْ غرسا كريما غرسته

    فما تُجتنَى الأعراقُ إلى بسُقياها

    Do not leave thirsty the noble planting you planted:

    roots yield their harvest only when watered.

  61. أعِدْها أعِدها إنما المجدُ كلّه

    لمولىً إذا ما وحَّد اليدَ ثنَّاها

    Repeat them, repeat them: all glory belongs

    to a patron who, having given one favor, doubles it.

  62. سحائب كانت من يديك تربُّني

    وقد أوكأت تلك السحابُ رَواياها

    Clouds from your hands used to nurture me,

    but those clouds have now tied shut their waterskins.

  63. فلا تعدَم الآمالُ عندك حظَّها

    ولا تفقد الآدابُ منك مزاياها

    May hopes never lose their share with you,

    nor letters lose the privileges they receive from you.

  64. وحيَّاك بالنيروز وفدُ سعادةٍ

    يراوحُ مَغداها إليك ومُمساها

    May a delegation of happiness greet you at Nowruz,

    alternating its morning visits to you and its evening ones.

  65. ولا زالت الأيامُ تملِكُ أمرَها

    وتأمرُها فيما تشاءُ وتنهاها

    May the days ever remain yours to govern,

    commanding and forbidding them as you wish.

  66. وكنتَ بعين الله في كلّ نوبة

    تحاذرُها نفسي عليك وتخشاها

    May you be under God's eye in every ordeal

    that my soul fears for you and dreads.

  67. فإني متى علَّقتُ نفسي بحاجةٍ

    وخِفتُ عليها الفوتَ ضمَّنتُها اللهَ

    For whenever I attach my soul to a need

    and fear its loss, I entrust it to God.