Sol 6.1

  1. لَعَمرُكَ إِنَّ الصبرَ غايتُهُ القَدرُ

    وحَسبُكَ قَدرٌ من خلائِقِه النصرُ

    By your life, patience finds its end in destiny,

    and sufficient for you is a destiny whose qualities include victory.

  2. تَشُبُّ الأَعادي في جوانِحِكَ اللَظى

    وما عَلِموا فيهنَّ من دَعَةٍ قُرُّ

    Enemies kindle flames within your breast,

    not knowing the cool repose that lies within.

  3. رَحِمتَ العِدى شاموا بَهاءَكَ فارتعوا

    بَرَوضٍ ولكن في حُشاشتِهم جَمرُ

    You showed your foes mercy; they beheld your splendor and grazed

    in a meadow, yet embers smoldered within their hearts.

  4. بَعُدتَ بِعادَ الحُرِّ عن شَرِّ مَعشَرٍ

    وأَلأمِ قومٍ في الوَرى وكذا الحُرُّ

    You withdrew, as a free man does, from the worst company

    and the basest people in creation—such is the free man.

  5. فللهِ حقّاً هذهِ الأَرضُ كُلُّها

    فما لامرئٍ كَفرٌ يُخَصُّ ولا مِصرُ

    All this earth truly belongs to God;

    no village or city belongs exclusively to any man.

  6. فمالي وللآسادِ ضِمنَ عرينها

    فهل عِندَها إِلا المخالبُ والظُفرُ

    What business have I with lions within their den?

    What have they but claws and talons?

  7. أُحارِبُ بالإِيمانِ بعضاً وإِنني

    وإِيَّاهُ لولا ذِمَّتي الماءُ والخمرُ

    I battle some through faith, although I

    and he, but for my covenant, would be water and wine.

  8. فباللَهِ مَن قد عافَ خِدناً ومَوطِناً

    لهُ اللَهُ خِدنٌ والسماءُ لهُ خِدرُ

    By God, whoever has forsaken a companion and a homeland

    has God for a companion and heaven for a chamber.

  9. وقالوا تَخَيَّر أَلنِفاقُ أَمِ النَوى

    فقلتُ أَلا واللَهِ خيرٌ ليَ الهجرُ

    They said, 'Choose: hypocrisy or separation?'

    I said, 'Indeed, by God, departure is better for me.'

  10. فلا سَكَنٌ لم يَسكُنِ الغدرُ قلبَهُ

    ولا مَسكِنٌ من شَرِّ سُكَّانِهِ صِفرُ

    There is no companion whose heart treachery has not inhabited,

    nor a dwelling free from its inhabitants' evil.

  11. فلا خيرَ في دارٍ وإِن قد أَلِفتَها

    تَبارى بها الإِضلالُ والضُرُّ والمكرُ

    There is no good in a house, however familiar it has become,

    where misguidance, harm, and deceit vie with one another.

  12. وَدِدتُ الجِبالَ الشُمُّ عن مَعقِلِ الحِمى

    فللنابحِ الأَحياءُ والأَسَدِ القفرُ

    I preferred the lofty mountains to the stronghold of the protected land;

    the barking dog has the settlements, and the lion the wilderness.

  13. تَنَقَّل لأُخرى ان تَضِقَ عنكَ قَريةٌ

    فلا يرتضي بالذُلِّ إلا الفتى الغُمرُ

    Move to another village if one grows too narrow for you;

    only the inexperienced youth accepts humiliation.

  14. ودَعهم يقولوا فارَقَ الحَيَّ صاغراً

    ولا يحتكم في أمرِكَ الجاهلُ الغِرُّ

    Let them say, 'He left the tribe abased,'

    and let no ignorant simpleton judge your affairs.

  15. واني رأَيتُ الضَّرَّ احسنَ منظراً

    وأَهَونَ من مرأَى صغيرٍ بهِ كِبرُ

    I have found hardship more pleasing to behold

    and easier to bear than the sight of a petty man filled with pride.

  16. فكم مِنحةٍ كانت على الناسِ مِحنةٍ

    أَحَقَّ بها الكُفرانُ ان وَجَبَ الشُكرُ

    How many a boon has been an ordeal for people,

    more deserving of ingratitude, even if gratitude was due.

  17. وأَعجَزُ مفعولِ رِضى حاسدي الذي

    أَبى هُوَ إِلّا أَن يُواريَني القبرُ

    The hardest undertaking is satisfying my envier, who

    would accept nothing but that the grave conceal me.

  18. وأكرم أخلاقِ الرجالِ مَباسمٌ

    عن الصفح عِندَ الثارِ في القدرِ تَفتَرُّ

    The noblest trait in men is smiling mouths

    that part in forgiveness when revenge lies within their power.

  19. إلى مَ اعتذاري عن ذُنوبٍ هي التُقى

    ولا ذنبَ لي إلا الأمانةُ والبرُّ

    How long must I apologize for sins that are piety,

    when my only offense is faithfulness and virtue?

  20. وقد يُوجَبُ الأعذارُ ديناً على الفتى

    إذا لم يكن ذنبٌ يَحِقُّ لهُ العُذرُ

    Yet apologies may be imposed upon a young man as a debt,

    when no offense exists that warrants an excuse.

  21. محلوا بي لابتغائي اهتداهم

    جزوا الخير إذ قد تاج لي بهم الأجر

    They slandered me because I sought their right guidance.

    They repaid goodness, for through them my reward [accrued].

  22. هدَمتُ بدِينِ اللَهِ أَمصارَ كُفرِهِم

    وقد يَهدِمُ الإِيمانُ ما شيَّدَ الكُفرُ

    With God's religion I demolished the cities of their unbelief,

    for faith can demolish what unbelief has built.

  23. بنيتُ على الصخرِ الوطيدِ وحَبَّذا

    بِناءٌ لبيتِ اللَهِ قد أَسَّهُ الصخرُ

    I built upon the steadfast rock; how fine

    a building for God's house whose foundation is rock!

  24. تُناديكَ خَنساءُ الضَلالِ فلم تُصِخ

    وهل يسمعُ الخَنساءَ إِن هَتَفَت صَخرُ

    The Khansa of error calls to you, but you did not heed her;

    can Sakhr hear Khansa when she cries out?

  25. ولم تخشَ نكباءَ الرياحِ ولم تُبَل

    إذا جرت الأنهارُ وانهمر القطرُ

    You feared no cross-blowing winds, nor cared

    when rivers flowed and the rain poured down.

  26. بروحي عبد اللَهِ أفديكَ من فتىً

    ويشفعُ وترَ الرُوحِ مني لكَ العُمرُ

    With my soul I ransom you, Abd Allah—what a youth!

    And my lifetime makes a pair with my soul's lone offering to you.

  27. سعيتَ فأدركتَ العُلى بعزيمةٍ

    أبان تجاريها المطهمة الضُمرُ

    You strove and attained the heights through a resolve

    that fine-bred, lean steeds [refused] to rival.

  28. شأوتَ معالي أُفقهِ بتواضُعٍ

    إلى حيثُ ما أهوى بهِ غيرُكَ الكِبرُ

    You surpassed the heights of its horizon through humility,

    to where pride has never carried anyone else.

  29. أيا بحرَ فضلٍ زاخرٍ ان نسبتهُ

    لذا البحر قال البحرُ هذا هو البحر

    O surging sea of excellence, if I compared it

    with this sea, the sea would say, 'This is the sea!'

  30. فيا لك بحراً زاخرَ الفضلِ ما لهُ

    مَوانٍ ومدا ليسَ يَعقُبُهُ جَزرُ

    What a sea you are, surging with excellence, with no

    harbors, and a flood tide followed by no ebb!

  31. فأقوالهُ دُرٌّ وآراؤُهُ غِنىً

    وأَنفاسُهُ عِطرٌ وأَلفاظُهُ سِحرُ

    His sayings are pearls, and his judgments riches;

    his breaths perfume, and his words enchantment.

  32. رِوايتُهُ ذُخرٌ وحِكمتُهُ هُدى

    وصُحبتُهُ فَخرٌ ورُؤيتُهُ بِشرُ

    His narration is a treasure, and his wisdom guidance;

    his company an honor, and the sight of him joy.

  33. فلو صَمَتَ الراوُونَ عن نعتِ خِيمِهِ

    لأَومَت اليهِ منهمُ الأَنمُلُ العَشرُ

    Even if the narrators fell silent about his character,

    all ten of their fingertips would point toward him.

  34. حكيمٌ فهيمٌ عالمٌ عاملٌ معاً

    شريفٌ مُنيفٌ حازمٌ فاضلٌ بَرُّ

    Wise, perceptive, learned, and active all at once,

    noble, exalted, resolute, excellent, and virtuous;

  35. تقيٌّ نقيٌّ أَلمعيٌّ مؤَثَّلٌ

    سَناهُ الذي من دونهِ الأَنجُمُ الزُهرُ

    pious, pure, keen-witted, of established nobility,

    his is a radiance beneath which the bright stars lie.

  36. وتشهَدُ فيما أَدَّعيهِ خِلالُهُ

    بأَنَّ اليهِ يَرجِعُ النَهيُ والأمرُ

    His qualities bear witness to what I claim:

    that commands and prohibitions rest with him,

  37. وانَّ قيمناً ينتمي الحَزمُ والحِجى

    إليهِ وأَن يُعزى لهُ المجدُ والفخرُ

    and that resolve and wisdom [fittingly] belong

    to him, and glory and honor should be ascribed to him.

  38. سري إذا ما رمتُ إدراكَ وصفهِ

    فيُدرِكُني في وصفهِ العِيُّ والحصرُ

    A noble man—whenever I seek to describe him fully,

    inarticulacy and speechlessness overtake me as I describe him.

  39. وان شئتُ نظماً شاملاً لِصفاتِهِ

    فلم يكُ كُفواً عِندَها النظمُ والنثرُ

    If I desire a poem embracing all his qualities,

    neither verse nor prose proves equal to the task.

  40. فدُونَكَ يا نسلَ الأماجدِ غادةً

    رِضاكَ بها لا النقدُ هُو النقدُ والمَهرُ

    Take, O descendant of the noble, this fair maiden:

    your approval of her—not criticism—is her payment and dowry.

  41. أَيا تِربَ قلبي ان صَدَرتَ مُفارِقاً

    عُيُوني فمَثواكَ الحُشاشةُ والصدرُ

    O companion of my heart, if you depart and part from

    my eyes, your abode is my heart's core and breast.

  42. يَشُقُّ على قلبي نَواكَ لِأَنَّهُ

    دقيقتُهُ يومٌ وساعتُهُ شهر

    Your separation weighs upon my heart, for

    each minute of it is a day, and each hour a month.

  43. يزيدُ بِكُم في كلِّ يومٍ تَلَهُّباً

    ولو أَنَّهُ صِنُّ الزمانِ وصِنَّبرُ

    It burns for you more fiercely every day,

    even if it were the season's Sinn and Sinnabr.

  44. لأَنتَ قسيمُ الروحِ والعيشُ بَعدَكم

    مُحالٌ على روحٍ يُفارِقُها الشَطرُ

    You are indeed my soul's other half, and life after you

    is impossible for a soul parted from its half.

  45. لَأَصبِرُ يا روحَ الفُؤادِ وصِنوَهُ

    لَعَلَّ بنا رأَياً يُراجِعُهُ الدهرُ

    I shall be patient, O soul of my heart and its twin;

    perhaps time will reconsider its judgment concerning us.

  46. فَعما قليلٍ تنجلي ظُلمةُ الدُجَى

    ويَبسِمُ عن لألآئِهِ ذلكَ الفجرُ

    Soon the darkness of night will clear,

    and that dawn will smile, revealing its pearls.

  47. وعَمَّا قليلٍ يجتني زارعُ سى

    جَنى زرعهِ شرّاً يُدارِكُهُ شَرُّ

    Soon the sower of [evil] will reap

    the fruit of his sowing: evil overtaken by evil.

  48. وعَمَّا قليلٍ ينقضي مَتجَرُ المِرا

    وتُهدَمُ أسواقٌ بِضاعتُها الخَترُ

    Soon the commerce of contention will cease,

    and markets whose merchandise is treachery will be destroyed.

  49. وعن كَثَبٍ يستعلنُ اللَهُ آتياً

    على السُحب مَلكاً حَولَهُ العسكرُ المَجرُ

    Soon God will appear openly, coming

    upon the clouds as King, a vast host surrounding him.

  50. ويَفرَقُ منهُ الطاعنوهُ إذا رأوا

    الهاً وسِيماهُ جِراحاتُهُ الغُرُّ

    Those who pierced him will fear him when they behold

    God, whose distinguishing marks are his radiant wounds.

  51. جِراحٌ بها من والغِ الكُفرِ أُولِغَت

    رِماحُ الخَطايا لا المثقَّفدُ السُمرُ

    Wounds into which a lapper of unbelief dipped

    the spears of sins, not the [straightened] tawny lances.

  52. ويَصفَرُّ لوناً أَسوَدُ الوجهِ بالخطا

    إذا أَسفَرَت منهُ علائمُهُ الحُمرُ

    And one whose face is blackened by sin turns pale

    when his crimson marks shine forth.

  53. وتحترقُ الأرضونَ مع كلِّ عُنصُرٍ

    ويجري لدى كُرسِيهِ ذلكَ النهرُ

    The earths will burn together with every element,

    and that river will flow before his throne.

  54. ويَهتِفُ إِسرافيلُ بالبُوق مُعلِناً

    أَنُوَّامُ هُبُّوا قد دنا البعثُ والحشرُ

    Israfil will cry out with the trumpet, announcing:

    'O sleepers, rise! Resurrection and the gathering draw near!'

  55. دقيقةُ حكمٍ ما لنا شافعٌ بها

    لدى اللَهِ إِلّا مريمُ العاتقُ البِكرُ

    A moment of judgment in which we have no intercessor

    before God except Mary, the maiden virgin.

  56. هِيَ البابُ والمِعراجُ نحوَ وليدِها

    بها ليسَ إِلّا يَمَّحِي الذَنبُ والوِزرُ

    She is the gate and ladder toward her child;

    through her alone sin and guilt are erased.

  57. أَيا نجمةَ الفجرِ التي جَلَّ قَدرُها

    فمِن دُونِها الأَفلاكُ والشمسُ والبدرُ

    O morning star, whose rank is exalted,

    beneath her lie the celestial spheres, the sun, and the full moon.

  58. أيا ذخرنا المأمونَ في هَولِ مَوقِفٍ

    بهِ ما لنا عن قُجِ سيئةٍ عُذرُ

    O our trusted treasure at that terrifying station,

    where we have no excuse for the [ugliness] of a misdeed.

  59. اتيتُكَ يا غَوثَ الأَنامِ وكاهلي

    من الإِثم والأَوزارِ أَثقَلَهُ وِقرُ

    I have come to you, O succor of humankind, and my back

    is weighed down by a burden of sin and guilt.

  60. عليكِ سلامُ اللَهِ ما لاحَ بارقٌ

    وما بكتِ الوَطفاءُ وابتسمَ الزَهرُ

    God's peace be upon you as long as lightning flashes,

    and as long as the rain-heavy cloud weeps and flowers smile.