ألم تلمم على الطلل المحيل — Omar Bin Laji Al Timi

أَلَم تُلمِم عَلى الطَلَلِ المُحيلِ

بِغربيِّ الأَبارِقِ مِن حَقيلِ

Have you not stopped by the weathered ruins,

west of al-Abariq, in Haqil?

صَرَفتُ بِصاحِبي طَرَباً إِلَيها

وَما طَرَبُ الحَليمِ إِلى الطُلولِ

In yearning I turned aside with my companion toward them—

but why should a sober man yearn for ruins?

فَلَم أَرَ غَيرَ آناءٍ أَحاطَت

عَلى العَرصاتِ مِن حَذَرِ السُيولِ

I saw only embankments that encircled

the courtyards, guarding against the torrents.

تَنَسَّفُها البَوارِحُ فَهيَ دَفٌّ

أَشَلُّ وَدَفُّ مُختَشَعٍ ذَلولِ

The scorching winds scour them; one flank

is withered, another bowed and humbled;

وَرَسمِ مباءَةٍ وَرَمادِ نارٍ

وَجونٍ حَولَ مَوقِدِها مُثولِ

and the trace of a dwelling, and ashes of a fire,

and blackened stones standing around its hearth.

ديارٌ مِن أُمامَةَ إِذ رَمَتنا

بِسَهمٍ في مُباعَدَةٍ قَتولِ

Dwellings of Umamah, when she shot at us

with an arrow deadly even at a distance.

رَميتِ بِمُقلَتَيكِ القَلبَ حَتّى

أَصَبتِ القَلبَ بِالثِقلِ الكَليلِ

You shot your two eyes at my heart, until

you struck my heart with that blunt weight.

فَلَمّا أَن نَزَلتِ شِعابَ قَلبي

مَدَدتِ لَنا مُباعَدةَ البَخيلِ

Then, when you settled in my heart's ravines,

you prolonged toward us a miser's estrangement.

سَمِعتِ مَقالَةَ الواشينَ حَتّى

قَطَّعتِ حِبالَ صَرّامٍ وَصولِ

You listened to the slanderers' talk, until

you severed the bonds of one stern in parting, faithful in union.

إِذا ذهلَ المباعِدُ عَن وِصالٍ

لَجَجنا في التَباعُدِ وَالذُهولِ

If one who shuns us forgets communion,

we persist in estrangement and forgetting.

مَدَدتُ بِحَبلِها زَمَناً فَأمسَت

حِبالُ الوَصلِ جاذِمَةَ الوَسيلِ

I kept her cord stretched for a time, but then

the cords of union severed the means of approach.

كَأَنَّ الحَبلَ لَم يوصَل تِماماً

إِذا أنقَطَع الخَليلُ مِنَ الخَليلِ

As though the cord had never been fully joined,

when friend parts from friend.

فخَرتَ ابنَ الأَتانِ بِبَيتِ لؤمٍ

وَما لَكَ في الأَكارِمِ مِن قَبيلِ

You boasted, son of a she-ass, of a house of baseness,

though you have no kin among the noble.

وَلَم يَكُ جَدُّكَ الخَطَفى فَحيلا

فَتَحمَدَهُ وَلا ثاني الفَحيلِ

Your forebear al-Khatafa was no stallion

for you to praise, nor even second to a stallion.

كُلَيبٌ إِن عَدَدتَ بَني كُلَيبٍ

جِحاشَ اللؤمِ في العَدَدِ القَليلِ

Kulayb—if you count the sons of Kulayb—

are donkey-foals of baseness, few in number.

وَلَم تُعرَف كُلَيبُ اللؤمِ إِلّا

بِشارِفها وَبائِسَها السَؤولِ

Base Kulayb was known only

for its aged she-camel and its wretched, persistent beggar.

وَما كانَت بُيوتُ بَني كُلَيبٍ

تَحُلُّ الغَيثَ إِلّا بِالكَفيلِ

The houses of the sons of Kulayb never

settled on rain-fed pasture without a guarantor.

كُلَيبٌ مُنيَةُ الغازي إِذا ما

غَزا أَو شِقوَةُ الضَيفِ الدَخيلِ

Kulayb is a raider's wish whenever

he raids—or the misery of a guest who enters.

فَإِنَّكَ قَد وَجَدتَ بَني كُلَيبٍ

قِصارَ الفَرعِ باليَةَ الأُصولِ

You have indeed found the sons of Kulayb

short of bough and rotten at the roots.

فَخِرتَ بِما بَنَت فُرسانُ تَيمٍ

وَما أَخَذوا المَعاقِلَ مِن قَتيلِ

You boasted of what Taym's horsemen built,

and they took no blood-money for a slain man.

أَبونا التيمُ أَكرَمُ مِن أَبيكُم

وَأَقرَبُ لِلخِلافَةِ وَالرَسولِ

Our father, al-Taym, is nobler than your father,

and closer to the caliphate and the Messenger.

وَتَيمٌ مِنكَ أَوتَرُ لِلأَعادي

وَأَدرَكُ حينَ تَطلُبُ بِالتُبولِ

Taym is more devastating to enemies than you,

and quicker to win redress when you pursue blood-feuds;

وَخَيرٌ لَيلَةَ الحَدثانِ مِنكُم

وَأَسمَحُ لَيلَةَ الريحِ البَليلِ

better than you on a night of calamity,

and more generous on a night of cold, damp wind.

وَبالوَدّاءِ يَومَ غَزَوتَ تَيماً

سَقَوكَ بِمَشَربِ الكِدرِ الوَبيلِ

At al-Wadda', the day you raided Taym,

they made you drink a turbid, deadly draught.

وَتَيمٌ أَظعنَتكَ فَلَم تَخلَّف

وَتيمٌ أَشخَصَتكَ عَن الحُلولِ

Taym drove you away, and you did not linger;

Taym forced you to leave your encampment;

وَتيمٌ وَجهَتكَ لِكُلِّ أَمرٍ

تُحاوِلُهُ وَلَستَ بِذي حويلِ

and Taym directed you in every undertaking

you attempted, though you had no resourcefulness.

بِأَبرَقَ ذي الجُموعِ غَداةَ تَيمٌ

تَقودُكَ بِالخِشاشَةِ وَالجَديلِ

At Abraq Dhi al-Jumu', on the morning Taym

led you by a nose-peg and a braided rein,

فَأَعطَيتَ المَقادَةَ واِحتَمَلنا

عَلى أَثَرِ النَكيثَةِ وَالخُمولِ

you submitted to the lead, and we departed

in the wake of broken faith and obscurity.

زَميلٌ يتبَعُ الأَسلافَ مِنّا

وَما السَلَفُ المُقَدَّمُ كَالزَميلِ

A rear-rider follows the forebears among us;

the forebear in the lead is not like a rear-rider.

فَلَمّا أَن لَقوا رُؤَساءَ سارَت

بِمَذحِجَ يَومَ تَيما وَالشَليلِ

Then, when they met the chieftains who had led

Madhhij on the day of Tayma and al-Shalil,

نَزَلنا لِلكَتائِبِ حينَ دارَت

وَقَد رَعَشَ الجَبانُ عَن النُزولِ

we dismounted to face the battalions as they wheeled,

while the coward trembled, unwilling to dismount.

مُسَهَّلَةٍ نَوافِذُها وَضَربٍ

كَأَفواهِ المُقرَّحَةِ الهدولِ

With broad, penetrating wounds, and blows

like the mouths of sore, drooping-lipped camels,

فَرَوَّينا بِمَجِّ الهامِ مِنهُم

مَضارِبَ كُلِّ ذي سَيفٍ صَقيلِ

with the gushing of their heads we drenched

the blades of all who bore a polished sword.

فَأَمسَت فيهِم القَتلى كَخُشبٍ

نَفاها السَيلُ عَن دَرَجِ المُسيلِ

Their slain lay among them like logs

that a torrent had swept from the watercourse's ledges.

وَخَبَّرَ عَن مَصارِعِ مَن قَتَلَنا

فُلولُ الجَيشِ شابَ إِلى الكُلولِ

The death-sites of those we killed were reported

by the army's remnants, grown gray and worn to exhaustion.

وَيَومَ سيوفُكُم خِزيٌ عَلَيكُم

إِلى قَيسِ الذُحولِ إِلى الذُحولِ

The day of your swords brought disgrace upon you,

against Qays of the blood-feuds—against the blood-feuds.

وَيَومَ سُيوفُنا شَرَقاً تَرقّى

مَع القَمَرَينِ مِن عِظَمٍ وَطُولِ

And the day of our swords rises in radiance

with the sun and moon, in greatness and height.

لَنا يَومَ الكُلابِ فَجيء بِيَومٍ

إِذا عُدَّ الفَعالُ بِهِ بَديل

Ours is the day of al-Kulab; produce a day

to match it when great deeds are reckoned.

وَيَومَ بَني الصَموتِ رَأَت كِلابٌ

أَسيراً مِنهُمُ بَينَ الغُلولِ

On the day of Banu al-Samut, Kilab saw

one of their own captive amid shackles.

وَيَومَ يَزيدَ لَو أَبصَرتَ تيماً

رَأَيتَ فَوارِسَ الحَسبِ النَبيلِ

On Yazid's day, had you seen Taym,

you would have seen horsemen of noble lineage.

أَخَذنا عِرسَهُ فَأَصابَ سَهمٌ

شَوىً مِنهُ بِنافِذَةٍ هَدولِ

We took his wife, and an arrow struck

one of his limbs with a piercing, gaping wound.

وَيَومَ أَغارَ حَسّانُ بنُ عَوفٍ

صَرَعناهُ بِنافِذَةٍ ثَعولِ

And the day Hassan ibn 'Awf raided,

we felled him with a piercing, gushing wound.

وَيَومَ سَما لِنسوَتِنا شُمَيطٌ

بِمَقنَبِهِ عَلى أَثَرِ الدَليلِ

And the day Shumayt advanced against our women

with his cavalry troop, following the guide,

غَزا بِخَميسهِ مِن ذاتِ كَهفٍ

فَقَطَّرَهُ فَوارِسُ غَيرُ ميلِ

he marched with his army from Dhat Kahf,

but steadfast horsemen flung him down.

لَياليَ يَعتَزونَ إِلى كُلَيبٍ

بِمُجتَمَعِ الشَقيقَةِ وَالأَميلِ

On nights when they claimed descent from Kulayb,

at the meeting of al-Shaqiqah and al-Amil.

مَتّى شَهِدَت فَوارِسَنا كُلَيبٌ

ضَلَلتَ وَأَنتَ مِن بَلَدِ الضَلولِ

When did Kulayb ever witness our horsemen?

You are astray, and come from the land of the errant.

لَنا عِزُّ الرِبابِ وَآلِ سَعدٍ

عَطاءُ الواحِدِ الصَمَدِ الجَليلِ

Ours is the might of al-Ribab and the house of Sa'd,

the gift of the One, the Self-Sufficient, the Majestic.

هُمُ وَطِئوا حِماكَ وَهُم أَحَلّوا

بُيوتَكُمُ بِمَنزِلَةِ الذَليلِ

They trampled your protected lands, and they lodged

your households in a place of humiliation.

هُمُ اِختاروا عَليكَ غَداةَ حَلّوا

وَبَيتُ ابنِ المَراغَةِ بِالمَسيلِ

They took their choice at your expense the morning they camped,

while Ibn al-Maraghah's house stood in the floodcourse.

سَدَدتُ عَليك مَطلِعَ كُلِ خَيرٍ

فَعيَّ عَلَيك مُطَّلَعُ السَبيلِ

I barred against you every opening to good,

and the entrance to the path eluded you.

رَماكَ اللُؤمُ لُؤمُ بَني كُلَيبٍ

بِعِبءٍ لا تَقومُ لَهُ بقيلِ

Baseness—the baseness of Banu Kulayb—has burdened you

with a load you cannot withstand with words.

أهب يا بنَ المُراغَةِ مِن كُلَيبٍ

بِلُؤمٍ لَن تُغَيِّرَهُ طَويلِ

Bestir yourself, son of al-Maraghah of Kulayb,

with a long-standing baseness you will never change.

فَقَد خُلِقَت كُليبُكَ مِن تَميمٍ

مَكانَ القُردِ مِن ذَنَبِ الفَصيلِ

For your Kulayb was created within Tamim

as a tick upon a weaned camel-calf's tail.

وَحَظُ ابنِ المُراغَةِ مِن تَميمٍ

كَحَظِّ الزانياتِ مِنَ الفُحولِ

And Ibn al-Maraghah's share in Tamim

is like adulteresses' share in studs.

فَإِنَّكَ واِفتِخارَكَ مِن كُلَيبٍ

بِبَيتِ اللُؤمِ وَالعَدَد القَليلِ

For you and your boasting, as one of Kulayb,

of a base house and scant numbers,

كَأَورَقَ ذَلَّ لَيسَ لَهُ جَناحٌ

عَلى عودَينِ يَلعَبُ بِالهَديلِ

are like a humbled gray dove without a wing,

on two sticks, playing at cooing.

وَقَد رَكِبَت لِغايَتِها كُلَيبٌ

بِأدفى حينَ تَنخُسُهُ زَحولِ

Kulayb has mounted to run its race

on a crooked beast that backs away when you prod it.

بِهِ زَورُ العُبودَةِ فَهوَ أَدنى

نَصَتهُ الخَيلُ عَن مَيلٍ فَميلِ

It bears the crookedness of servitude, and is the lowlier;

the horses drove it hard, mile after mile.

زيايدُ مِن رَقاشِ مُعَلَّقاتٌ

كَحَيضِ الكَلبِ ناقِصَةَ العُقولِ

Offshoots from Raqash, dangling attachments,

like a dog's menstrual blood, deficient in sense.

فَإِن تَخلِط حَياءً مِن صُبَيرٍ

بِهِم تَسُقِ السَفالَ إِلى الخُمولِ

If you mingle a vulva from Subayr

with them, you drive the lowly into obscurity.

وَلَيسَ ابنُ المُراغَةِ يَومَ تُسبى

نِساءُ ابنِ المُراغَةِ بِالصَؤولِ

Ibn al-Maraghah, on the day they capture

Ibn al-Maraghah's women, is no fierce assailant.

وَأَلحَقهُنَّ أَقوامٌ سِواكُم

وَعِندَكَ ما أَخَذنَ وَهُنَّ حُولُ

Men other than you brought them back,

and you have what they took while they were not pregnant.

وَيَلمَعُ بِالسُيوفِ بَنو حَريصٍ

وَلَم يَشفوا بِها وَغَرَ العَليلِ

The sons of Haris brandish swords,

but have not soothed the sufferer's burning rancor with them.

عَلَوتُكَ واِنهَزَمتَ إِلى رياحٍ

تَعوذُ بِها مِنَ الأَسَدِ البَسيلِ

I rose above you, and you fled to Riyah,

seeking their shelter from the fierce lion.

وَطاحَ ابنُ المراغَةِ إِذ تَصَلّى

بِلَيثٍ بَينَ أَنهارٍ وَغيلِ

Ibn al-Maraghah fell when he braved the fire

of a lion amid rivers and thickets,

هِزَبرٍ يَفرُسُ الأَقرانَ فَرسا

بِأَنيابٍ قُراسيَةٍ نُزولِ

a mighty lion that tears rival champions apart

with massive, descending fangs.

فَأَثبَتَ في الذُؤابَةِ مِن جَريرٍ

زِجاجا ما تَخافُ مِنَ النُصولِ

He embedded in Jarir's topknot

spear-butts you need not fear will slip out.

فَأَمسى فَرَّجَ الشَأنَينِ مِنَهُ

بِكُلِ شَباةِ ذي طَرفٍ أَسيلِ

By evening he had split both seams of his skull

with every keen edge of a slender-pointed weapon.

تطَلَّبهُ عَطيَّةُ وَهوَ مَيتٌ

يُقَضيِّ وَهوَ يُسبَرُ بِالفَتيلِ

Atiyyah sought him as he lay dying,

breathing his last while being probed with a wick.

إِذا ما ضَمَّها بِالسَمنِ جاشَت

بِهِ جَيشَ المعَرمَضَةِ الدَحولِ

Whenever he closed it with ghee, it welled up

against him like a scum-covered waterhole seething.

سَأَشتُمُكُم وَإِن نَهَقَت كُلَيبٌ

صَهَلتُ وَما النَواهِقُ كالصَهيلِ

I shall revile you; even if Kulayb brays,

I neigh: their brays are not a horse's neigh.