قم غير معتذرٍ ولا متثاقلِ — Mihyar Al Daylami

قُمْ غيرَ معتذرٍ ولا متثاقلِ

فاقصص معي أثر الخليطِ الزائلِ

Rise without excuse or reluctance.

Follow with me the trail of the departed company.

واسمح بأحلَى نومتيك لساهرٍ

شُفِعتْ أواخر ليله بأوائلِ

Yield the sweeter of your two sleeps to a sleepless man

whose night's ending has joined its beginning.

قَلقِ الوسادِ يسوم بيعةَ غابن

من صبره ويرومُ نُصرةَ خاذلِ

Restless on his pillow, he seeks a swindler's bargain

from his patience, and seeks a deserter's aid.

إركب وطاوِلْ فوق كُورِك علَّها

أن تُرْفَعَ الأحداجُ للمتطاولِ

Mount and stretch upward above your saddle; perhaps

the litters will be raised for one who reaches up.

وإذا لحِقتَ وقصَّرتْ بي ناقتي

والثّقل ما بي ما يُقَصِّر حاملي

And if you catch up while my she-camel lags with me—

and my suffering is the weight that makes my bearer lag—

فقل السلامُ ومن تباريح الجوى

بعثُ القتيلِ تحيةً للقاتلِ

then say, 'Peace!' Among love's agonies is

the slain one's sending a greeting to the slayer.

ومن الغوارب في الخدور مسلَّط

تَمضِي قضيَّتُه وليس بعادلِ

And among those secluded in curtained chambers is a despot

whose judgment prevails, though he is not just.

لقِنَ النفارَ من الغزالة واحتذَى

لَيَّ العهودِ من القضيبِ المائلِ

He learned to shy away from the gazelle, and copied

the swaying branch in twisting his pledges.

وجد القضاء وطال عمرُ مِطالهِ

أنّ البلية بالمليِّ الماطلِ

Fate found, as his delays dragged on,

that affliction lies with the solvent debtor who stalls.

يا سعدُ أحرِزْها يداً مذخورةً

تُولِي أخاً قمِناً بشكر النائلِ

O Sa'd, secure this as a favor laid in store,

bestowed on a brother worthy of thanking the giver.

إن كنتَ فاتَك يومَ رامةَ نُصرتي

فتغنَّم الأخرى ببُرقَةِ عاقلِ

If you missed your chance to help me on the day at Ramah,

seize the next at Burqat 'Aqil.

ما قام عنك المجدُ أن خلّيتني

والدمعَ أو أسلمتني للعاذلِ

Glory will not stand in your stead if you abandon me

to tears, or surrender me to the reproacher.

ولقد رأيتَ فهل رأيتَ كموقفٍ

بالنّعفِ يُلبَسُ حقُّه بالباطلِ

You saw it: have you seen a scene like that

at al-Na'f, where its truth was cloaked in falsehood?

وعلى النقا من خالفاتِ مَهَا النقا

بمؤزَّرٍ فَعْمٍ وخصرٍ جائلِ

And on the dunes were rivals of the dunes' white oryxes,

with full, skirted hips and loosely girdled waists.

ودَّعننَا بمخضَّباتٍ وقْعُها

وقعُ السهام تموَّهتْ بأناملِ

They bade us farewell with hennaed hands whose impact

was that of arrows disguised as fingertips.

نصَلَ الشبابُ ولات حين أوانه

حسداً لهنّ على الخضاب الناصلِ

Youth's color faded before its proper time,

in envy of them and their fading henna.

وصددن إلاَّ نظرةً من خالسٍ

تُذكِي الجوَى أو لفتةً من قابلِ

They turned away, save for a furtive glance

that kindled longing, or a turn from one facing us.

وأمَا وما استُودِعنَ غيرَ حوافظٍ

يومَ الفراقِ وقُلنَ غيرَ فواعلِ

Indeed, by what they were entrusted with but failed to keep

on parting day, and what they said but failed to do,

وحديثهِنَّ فإنّه بلَّ الصدى

إن بَلَّه ماءُ السحابِ الهاطلِ

and by their talk, which quenched thirst,

if water from pouring clouds quenches it—

لقد انتأين فما سعيتُ لهاجرٍ

حفظاً لهنَّ ولا أويتُ لواصلِ

they have gone far away; I have not sought one who forsakes,

out of loyalty to them, nor sheltered with one who welcomes.

أَعَلَى الوفاءِ بكلِّ فيك تلومني

يا بُعدَ صوتِك قائلاً من قائلِ

Is it for faithfulness that you blame me with your whole mouth?

How far off your voice is, speaker among speakers!

ومِن التجشُّم أن ترومَ بِحطّة

نقضي وقد فتَلَ الحِفاظُ حبائلي

It is an onerous undertaking to attempt, through belittlement,

to unravel me, when honor has braided my cords.

ولَهذِه الخضراءُ تَنقُلُ شُهبَها

أدنى عليك من انتقاصِ فضائلي

And making this green sky move its bright stars

would be easier for you than diminishing my virtues.

أنا من علمتَ قديمَه وحديثَه

علمَ اليقينِ وإن جهلتَ فسائلِ

I am the one whose past and present you know

with certain knowledge; if you do not know, then ask.

قَومي الملوكُ وخِيمُ نفسي خِيمُها

أفلِحْ بمثل أواخري وأوائلي

My people are kings, and my nature is theirs.

Prosper with later generations and forebears like mine!

ما ضَرَّ عِيصِي في أرومِة فارسٍ

ألّا يكونَ بخِندفٍ أو وائلِ

My stock, rooted in Persia, suffers no harm

from not belonging to Khindif or Wa'il.

نحن الولاة العادلون ولم تزل

آثارُنا حَلْيَ الزمانِ العاطلِ

We are the just rulers, and our deeds have always been

the ornaments of time, otherwise unadorned.

ذُدنا فمذ عدِمَ الأنامُ رِعاءَنا

عَدَتِ الذئابُ على السَّوامِ الهاملِ

We protected; since humankind lost our shepherds,

wolves have attacked the untended grazing herds.

عمُرت بنا الدنيا ففَضَّةُ عُذرها

فينا وعمرُ شبابِها المتخايلِ

The world flourished through us; the breaking of her maidenhood

was ours, and ours the span of her proudly strutting youth.

تتبسّم التيجانُ فوق رءوسنا

عن كلّ وضَّاح الجبينِ حُلاحلِ

Crowns smile above our heads,

revealing each bright-browed, noble chieftain.

كالبدر يأذَنُ للسلامِ فإن سطا

لِيثَ السلاحُ بوجهِ أشوسَ باسلِ

Like the full moon, he grants leave for greetings; but if he attacks,

his weapons become a lion with a fierce, valiant face.

من عَدَّ نفساً فخرَه وقبيلَه

فلنا أَثَارُة فخره المتقابلِ

Whoever counts a man as his own and his tribe's pride,

we possess an ancestral legacy to match his glory.

وعلى بقيّتنا طلاوةُ سؤددٍ

تُهدِي لعينك فائتاً من حاصلِ

Upon those of us who remain is the sheen of lordship,

showing your eye what is gone through what survives.

فإذا الخصوم تجادلوا في مجدهم

ظهرَت دلالةُ مجدنا في كاملِ

When rivals dispute their glory,

the proof of ours appears in a man complete in excellence.

ذا الروضُ من ذاك الغمامِ المنجلي

والنُّورُ من ذاك الشهاب الآفلِ

This meadow comes from that cloud now dispersed,

and the light from that bright star now set.

وإذا عدِمتَ الشمسَ فاقض لنورها

بمَشابهٍ للبدرِ أو بمَخايلِ

And if you lose the sun, judge its light

by resemblances to the full moon, or by telltale signs.

حملَ المكارمَ عنهُمُ فوفَى بها

عَبلَ الذراعِ متينَ حبلِ الكاهلِ

He took up their noble deeds and fulfilled them,

stout of arm, strong in the sinews of his shoulders.

يقظان تُسهِره الحقوقُ إذا دجا

ليلُ العُقوقِ على جفونِ الباخلِ

Wakeful, kept sleepless by obligations, when darkens

the night of neglect upon the miser's eyelids.

عَرفَ الزمانَ فلم يدَعْ في يومه

من عاجلٍ مستظهراً للآجلِ

He understood time, and kept nothing in his day

of present means held in reserve for the future.

تجرِي خلائقُه على أعراقِه

وعلى الأنابيبِ اعتمادُ العاملِ

His qualities follow his ancestral roots,

as a spearhead depends upon its shaft's joints.

ويسيء ظنّاً باللُّها ما لم يجد

فيها إصابةَ حسنِ ظنِّ الآملِ

He thinks ill of gifts unless he finds

in them fulfillment of the hopeful seeker's good expectations.

نشر المروءةَ بعد أن نُسِيَ اسمُها

طيّاً ونوّه بالسماح الخاملِ

He unfolded chivalry after its name had been forgotten,

folded away, and made obscure generosity renowned.

ملك المدى فجرى بغير مراسِلٍ

وحوى الندى فسقى بغير مساجِلِ

He mastered the course and raced without a rival,

and encompassed bounty, giving drink with none to rival him.

ووفى فقيل أبو الوفاء وربما

تقعُ الكُنَى صفةً لمعنىً حائلِ

He kept faith, so was called Abu al-Wafa; sometimes, though,

bynames describe a quality that passes away.

فإذا طرَقْت فليلُ ضيفٍ شاكرٍ

وإذا استجرت فيومُ أمنٍ شاملِ

If you call at night, it is a grateful guest's night;

if you seek protection, it is a day of all-embracing safety.

وإذا تحدَّث بِشرُه بنواله

عُرِفَ الخريرُ أمامَ وادٍ سائلِ

When his cheerful face speaks of his giving,

the murmur is heard ahead of the flowing streambed.

شُرِبَتْ خلائقُه فبين مُجَدَّلٍ

سكرانِ أو ثَمِلٍ بها متمايلِ

His qualities are drunk: one is laid prostrate,

drunk, or another sways, tipsy with them.

فكأنّ صِرفَ شَمولةٍ مسكوبةٍ

في الكأس من خُلُقٍ له وشمائلِ

It is as though the unmixed wine poured

into the cup were made from his character and traits.

حمل الرياسةَ ناهضاً بشروطها

وهي الثقيلة في فَقارِ الحاملِ

He bore leadership, rising to meet its conditions,

heavy though it is upon the bearer's vertebrae.

ما كان لما ساد حجَّةَ مُلحدٍ

غضبانَ في جَوْر القضاء مجادلِ

His ascent to lordship was no argument for an unbeliever

angrily arguing over fate's injustice.

لم تأتِ نِعمتُه برزقٍ غالطٍ

ضلَّ الطريقَ ولا بحظٍّ جاهلِ

His prosperity did not come as mistaken provision

that lost its way, nor through unknowing fortune.

لكنها نزلَتْ بساحةِ شاكرٍ

لم يألُ معرفةً لحقِّ النازلِ

It alighted, rather, in a grateful man's courtyard,

who spared no effort to recognize the arriving guest's due.

أقلامُك ارتَجعتْ بواسطَ دولةً

طُرِدتْ بوخزِ أسنّةٍ ومَناصلِ

Your pens recovered at Wasit a dominion

driven out by the thrusts of spearheads and sword blades.

نُشِلت برأيك من بَراثِنِ ضيغمٍ

تَفْرِي الشَّوَى أنيابُه بمَعابِلِ

It was snatched by your counsel from a lion's claws,

whose fangs tore limbs like broad arrowheads.

طَيَّانَ لم يَسمَعْ لهتفهِ زاجرٍ

يوماً ولم يخشع لصيحةِ ثاكلِ

Hollow-bellied, he never heeded a rebuker's cry

on any day, nor humbled himself at a bereaved one's scream.

كانت كقابِ يمينهِ فرددتَها

أختَ المجرَّة من يد المتناولِ

It was a handspan from his right hand; you restored it

as the Milky Way's sister, out of the grasping hand.

سَلُّوا سُعودَك دونها فتراجعت

عنها السيوفُ وما حَظِينَ بطائلِ

They unsheathed your lucky stars in its defense; then

the swords recoiled from it, gaining nothing worthwhile.

كم بين ذلك من لواءٍ ناكسٍ

لولاك عزَّ ومن حسامٍ ناكلِ

How many a drooping banner amid all this,

that would have prevailed but for you, and how many a recoiling sword!

حَسَدَ الرجالُ عُلاك فازددْ يزددوا

واعذِر فلم يحسُدك غيرُ العاقلِ

Men envy your eminence: rise higher, and their envy will grow;

excuse them, for none but the wise has envied you.

حَملوا وبانَ بك السماحُ وربّما

سكَتَ الفتى والصوتُ صوتُ النائلِ

They bore burdens, but generosity shone in you; sometimes

a man is silent, and the voice is the voice of the gift.

جعلوا البلادَ ذخيرةً للمقتني

وجعلتَ مالَك طُعمةً للآكلِ

They made the lands a hoard for the acquirer,

while you made your wealth food for the eater.

شمخَتْ يدُ المعطِي وتاهَ بأنفهِ

عُجْبَ المنيل وزهوَ نفس الباذلِ

The giver's hand rose haughtily, and he tilted his nose in pride,

in a benefactor's conceit and a donor's self-admiration.

وألنتَ جنبَك للعُفاة تواضعاً

حتى كأنك سائلٌ للسائلِ

But you softened your side toward petitioners in humility,

until you seemed to be asking the asker.

أنا من سَكنتَ فؤادَه متخلِّياً

فسكنتَ في وطنٍ بحبك آهلِ

I am he whose heart you inhabited while it was vacant,

thus settling in a homeland peopled by love for you.

وملكتَه بمودّةٍ لم تُكتَسبْ

بفرائضٍ في الجودِ أو بنوافلِ

You possessed it through affection not acquired

by obligatory acts of generosity or voluntary ones.

ودعوتَه فأجابَ ربُّ نوافرٍ

وَحشٍ صوادفَ عن سواك عوادلِ

You called him, and he answered, master of skittish creatures,

wild things that shun all but you and turn away.

لم يُجرِه طمعٌ ولم تَقدَمْ به

حِرصاً على جدواك أوبةُ قافلِ

No greed drew him, nor did he come

on a traveler's return, eager for your bounty,

إلا هوَى القُربَى ورَعيُ وشائجٍ

بيني وبينك أُحْكِمتْ ووصائلِ

but through love of kinship and regard for ties

firmly bound between me and you, and bonds of union.

وإذا وصفتك فهو وصفُ محاسني

وإذا مدحتُك فهو مدحُ قبائلي

When I describe you, I describe my own virtues;

when I praise you, I praise my own tribes.

وأحقُّ من صغتُ الثناءَ لجيدِهِ

من لستُ إن لبِسَ الحُلِيَّ بعاطلِ

Most worthy of praise I fashion for his neck

is he whose wearing jewelry does not leave me unadorned.

والشعرُ عندك من أقلِّ ذرائعي

فيما أروم ومن أدقّ وسائلي

Poetry is among my least claims upon you

in what I seek, and among my slightest means.

ولقد ذَعَرتُ عن الرجال سَوامَهُ

ورفعتُه عن كلِّ بيتٍ نازلِ

I have driven its grazing herds away from men,

and raised it above every lowly house.

ومنعتُه منعَ الغيورِ بناتَهُ

من أن أدنِّس صَوْنه بمبَاذلِ

I guarded it as a jealous man guards his daughters,

lest I soil its purity through debasements.

وأثَرتُ جوهرَ بحره متعمِّقا

والناسُ يحتشُّون فوق الساحلِ

I unearthed the jewels of its sea, delving deep,

while others gather grass along the shore.

فاسمع لحظِّك منه وانبِذْ غيرَهُ

وإذا سمعتَ فقِسْ عليه وماثِلِ

So listen to your share of it, and cast other verse aside;

when you hear, measure against it and compare.

ولقد مدحتُ فكنتُ أصدقَ قائلٍ

وفعلتَ أنتَ فكنتَ أكرمَ فاعلِ

I praised, and was the truest speaker;

you acted, and were the noblest doer.

ولعلّ مجدَك أن يَغارَ فأكتفى

بك معشِباً عن كلّ وادٍ ذابلِ

Perhaps your glory will grow jealous, so I shall be content

with you, a green pasture, rather than any withered valley.

ولعلّ كفَّك أن يَفيضَ غديرُها

فأعِزَّ عن نُطَفٍ لهم ووشائلِ

Perhaps the pool in your palm will overflow,

so I may rise above their droplets and scant trickles.

كم من كرامٍ ليس مثلُك فيهمُ

قد أسمنوا تحت الجُدوبِ هَوَاملي

How many noble men, none your equal,

have fattened my straying herds amid drought!

وتحمّلوا متخفِّفين بحَملِها

كُلَفِي على أيدٍ عليّ ثقائلِ

They bore, finding it light to carry them,

my burdens, on hands that weigh heavily upon me.

وإخالُ أنك سالكٌ بي سُبْلَهُم

وغدت بصدقٍ في الرجال مَخايلي

I think you will lead me along their paths,

and my intuitions about men have proved true.

صبَحَتْك بالنيروز غُرّةُ قادمٍ

حملَ التحيّةَ من حبيبٍ واصلِ

At Nowruz, a newcomer's bright brow greeted you at dawn,

bearing greetings from a loving friend who maintains the bond.

يومٌ أَحبَّ حضورَ أنديةِ الندَى

فأتاك في وفدِ الثناءِ الحافلِ

A day that loved attending generosity's gatherings,

and came to you in praise's thronging delegation.

يُدلي إليك بفضله في فارسٍ

وبحقّه المتقادم المتطاولِ

It pleads before you its distinction in Persia,

and its ancient, long-enduring right.

ويُذِمُّ فيك بألفِ يومٍ مثلهِ

في العزّ يشهدُ عامُها بالقابلِ

It pledges you a thousand days like itself

in glory, their year attesting to the year to come.

أعداه جودُك فاحتبى يصف الحيا

والعُشبَ للبلد الجديبِ الماحلِ

Your generosity infected it; it sat with knees clasped, describing rain

and grass to the dry, barren land.

سَبقَ الربيعَ فكان أيمنَ رائدٍ

وحكى الصلاحَ فكان أصدقَ ناقلِ

It preceded spring, becoming the most auspicious scout,

and told of prosperity, becoming the truest reporter.

وافاك مقتبلاً جديداً كاسمِهِ

فالبَسْه والقَ به السُّعودَ وقابلِ

It came to you in fresh youth, new as its name;

so put it on, and meet and welcome good fortune through it.

واطوِ الزمانَ مساوقا أيامَه

في نعمةٍ فُضُلٍ وعيشٍ غافلِ

Traverse time, keeping pace with its days,

in ample blessing and a carefree life.