1. أَمِنْ حَمامٍ رَجَّعَ الهَدَاهِدَا

    جَاوَبَ مِنْ هَتّافة أَغَارِدَا

    Is it because of doves repeating their coos,

    answering the songs of a loudly calling dove,

  2. بَيْنَ طِوَلَّاتٍ عَلَى مَخَاضِدا

    مِيلٍ يُنَاصِي طُولُها الفَرَاقدَا

    among tall trees, upon boughs

    that lean, their height vying with the Farqad stars,

  3. أَلْقَيْتَ مِنْ تَشْواقِهِنَّ كَامِدا

    فَحَيِّ أَطْلالاً وَنُؤْياً لاَبِدا

    that you have sunk into grief at their longing cries?

    Then greet the ruins and the lingering encircling ditch,

  4. أَمْسَتْ بِأَكْماعِ اللِّوَا بَلَائِدَا

    وَاسْتَبْدَلَتْ مِن أَهْلِها الأَوابِدَا

    now lying desolate in the recesses of al-Liwa,

    and having exchanged their people for wild beasts.

  5. وَقَدْ تَرَى خَيْلاً بِها رَوَائِدا

    وَعَكَراً لاَباً وَعِزّاً مَاكِدا

    Once you would see horses there seeking pasture,

    and great, crowded camel herds, and enduring might.

  6. وَقَدْ تَرَى بِيضاً بِهَا خَرَائِدا

    إِذَا مَشَيْنَ مِشْيَةً تَهَاوُدا

    And once you would see fair, bashful maidens there,

    walking with a gently swaying gait,

  7. هَزَّ الصَبَا مِنْ ذِي بُراقٍ مَائِدا

    جَاذَبْن أَصْلاباً بِها رَخَاوِدا

    as the east wind shakes a swaying bough at Dhu Buraq.

    They swayed their loins, with soft flesh upon them,

  8. وَعَقِداً مُسْتَرْدِفاً قَعَائِدا

    فإِنْ تَرَيْنِي بَعْدَ سَيْرٍ رَابِدا

    and firm flesh, with heavy haunches following behind.

    So if you see me after travel, with abiding

  9. هَمِّي فَقَدْ أُعْدِي الهَوَى المَوَائِدا

    أَبِيتُ مِنْ هَمِّي المُعَنِّي سَاهِدا

    care of mine, I can yet inspire passion in swaying maidens.

    I spend the night sleepless from my tormenting care,

  10. أَغْبِطُ بِالنَوْمِ الخَلِيَّ الراقِدا

    لاَقَى الهُوَيْنَا وَالرِبَكَّ الراغِدا

    envying the carefree sleeper his sleep,

    who has found ease and plentiful, rich food.

  11. فَقُلْ لِخَوْدٍ تَلْبَسُ المَجَاسِدا

    إِنَّ الحَشَايَا الخُورَ وَالوَسَائِدا

    Tell the tender maiden wearing saffron-dyed robes:

    Soft mattresses and pillows

  12. لَهْوٌ لِمَنْ راغَدَ عَيْشاً رَاغِدا

    إِنِّي وَإِنْ مَهَّدتِ لِي الأَمَاهِدا

    are pleasures for one who enjoys a comfortable life.

    Though you spread beds for me,

  13. لَمْ أُمْسِ فِي نَصِّ المَهَارَى زَاهِدَا

    نَقْضِي الهَوَى وَنَطْلُبُ الفَوَائِدا

    I have not become averse to driving the Mahri camels hard.

    We satisfy desire and seek gains,

  14. وَإِنْ رَأَيْنَا الحِجَجَ الرَوَادِدا

    قَوَاصِراً بِالعُمْر أَوْ مَوَادِدَا

    even though we see the returning years

    shortening our lifespan or extending it.

  15. تَبْقَى وَيُبْلِي يُبْسُها الأَجَادِدا

    فَلا تَلُومي مَرِحاً مُعَانِدا

    They endure, while their dryness wears out what is new.

    So do not blame a spirited, stubborn man,

  16. وَاخْشَيْ سِهَامَ القَدَرِ المَصَايِدَا

    وَالمَوْتُ قِرْنٌ يَغْلِبُ المُحايِدا

    and fear fate's arrows, those snares.

    Death is an adversary that defeats whoever evades it.

  17. بَلْ بَلْدَةٍ تُخْشِي الشُجَاعَ الفَارِدا

    إِذا السَرَابُ اسْتَعْمَلَ القَرَادِدا

    Many a wilderness frightens the solitary brave man

    when the mirage takes hold of its rugged heights,

  18. وَقُلِّدَت أَعْلامُها قَلائِدا

    آلاً وَآلاً وَقَتَاماً بَاجِدا

    and its landmarks are garlanded with necklaces

    of mirage upon mirage, and abundant dust.

  19. خَوْقاءُ يُنْضِي بُعْدُها الحَوَافِدا

    مِنَ المَهَارِي تُنْضِحُ الوَقَائِدا

    An empty waste whose distances exhaust the swift mounts,

    the Mahri camels streaming with burning sweat.

  20. يُمْسِي صَدَاها مُسْتَهاماً فاقِدا

    مُؤَنِّناً لا يَنْتَهِي أَوْ ناشِدا

    Its owl spends the evening distraught and bereft,

    moaning endlessly, or calling for what is lost,

  21. إِذَا السِفارُ اسْتَنْفَضَ المَزَاوِدا

    يَطْوِي سُرَانَا الأُسْدَ وَالأَسَاوِدا

    when travel has shaken the provision bags empty.

    Our night-march leaves lions and black snakes behind;

  22. يَذْهَبْنَ فِي غُوْرٍ وَنَجْدٍ ناجِدَا

    يَطْرُدُنَا الأَدْنَى فَتَلْقَى طارِدا

    the mounts go through lowlands and lofty uplands.

    The nearer stretch drives us onward; then you meet another pursuer.

  23. وَإِنْ أُحَبِّرْ مِدَحِي الأَجَاوِدَا

    أَصْدُقْ وَيَبْلُغْنَ كَرِيماً ماجِدا

    And if I adorn my praises of generous men,

    I speak truth, and they reach a generous, glorious man

  24. يُعْطِي وَيَقْرِي الجُزُرَ المَقَاحِدا

    إِذا حُفَال الثَلْج أَمْسَى جامِدا

    who gives and feasts his guests on great-humped slaughter camels

    when masses of snow lie frozen,

  25. أَكْدَى الكُدَى وَأَكْذَبَ النَواكِدَا

    وَمِن أَكُفِّ البُخَّل الأَجَاعِدا

    rendering hard ground barren and scant-milking camels disappointing.

    And in place of the misers' clenched hands,

  26. مِخْلافَهَا وَالمُسْتَكِينَ الجاحِدا

    فَأَيُّها القائِلُ قَوْلاً حاسِدا

    he serves as their substitute, and the cowering denier's.

    So, you who speak enviously,

  27. كَيْفَ رَأَيْتَ اللَّهَ يَكْفِي خالِداً

    خُطُوب أَحْداثٍ وَعَمْداً عَامِدا

    how have you seen God protect Khalid

    from the afflictions of chance and deliberately aimed malice?

  28. إِنَّ أَمِير المُؤْمِنِين الراشِدا

    أَمَّر إِذْ ساعَد أَمْراً ساعِدا

    Indeed, the rightly guided Commander of the Faithful

    entrusted command when he advanced a fortunate cause

  29. بِخالِدٍ ذا مِرَّةٍ مُعَاضِدا

    إِذِ الأُمُورُ اعْرَوْرَتِ الشَدائِدا

    to Khalid, a man of strength who lends support.

    When affairs rode bareback upon adversities,

  30. شَدَّ العُرَى وَأَحْكَمَ المَقَاعِدَا

    مِحْرابَ حَرْبٍ يَقْرَعُ الصَنَادِدا

    he tightened the bonds and secured the positions.

    A champion of war, he batters its mighty chiefs;

  31. إِذَا لَوَت أَعْناقَها اللَوادِدا

    صَكَّ الرُؤُوسَ الصُغُر الأَلاَدِدا

    when stubborn opponents twist their necks away,

    he strikes the heads of the petty, contentious men,

  32. لَهْزاً عَلَى الحَقِّ وَلَهْداً لاهِدا

    وَإِن أَغَضَّ الخَنِقُ المَزَارِدا

    with blows for the truth and forceful battering.

    And when strangling pressure chokes the gullets,

  33. رَأَيْتَ مَغْشِيّاً بِه أَوْ عاصِدا

    وَلَمْ يَدَعْ بِالمَشْرِقَيْنِ عانِدا

    you see one overcome by it, or writhing in agony.

    He has left no rebel in the two Easts,

  34. وَلا عَدُوّاً لِلتُّقَى مُرَاصِدا

    إِلَّا رَمَى شَيْطانَهُ المُكَايِدا

    nor any lurking enemy of piety,

    without striking his scheming devil

  35. بِذِي بِعادٍ يَغْلِبُ المُبَاعِدا

    نَقْصاً وَإِمْراراً عَلَى مَحَاصِدا

    with far-reaching force that defeats the distant foe,

    cutting down and tightening upon firmly twisted cords.

  36. تَراهُ عَن أَجْرامِهِمْ مُذَاوِدا

    بِاللَّه يَكفي غائِباً وَشاهِدا

    You see him warding harm from their persons,

    through God, protecting the absent and the present.

  37. أَهدى إِلى السِند لُهاماً حاشِدا

    حَتَّى اسْتَبَاحَ السِنْدَ وَالأَهَانِدا

    He sent to Sind a mighty, massed army,

    until he overran Sind and the Indians.

  38. وَلِخُرَاسَانَ ابْنَ عَمٍّ وَاصِدا

    وَأَسَداً يَرْمِي بِهِ المَآسِدا

    And to Khurasan he sent a steadfast paternal cousin,

    a lion whom he hurls against the lions' dens.

  39. إِنْ هِيجَ هَيْجٌ هِجْتَهُ مُناجِدا

    فِي كُلِّ يَوْمٍ يَشْهَرُ المَجَالِدا

    If strife is stirred, you rouse him to lend aid;

    on every day he brandishes the fighting swords.

  40. أَنْت ابْن أَقْوامٍ بَنَوا مَحامِدا

    سامَى ذُرَاهَا النَجْمَ وَالفَرَاقِدا

    You are the son of men who built glorious deeds,

    whose summits rivaled the stars and the Farqad stars.

  41. رَقَّاكَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ فِيها صاعِدا

    وَمِنْ يَزِيدَ ازْدَدْتَ مَجْداً زائِدا

    Abd Allah raised you upward among them,

    and from Yazid you gained still greater glory,

  42. وَإِرْثَ مَجْدٍ أَزَرَ الأَطاوِدا

    فِي قُحَمٍ كابَد أَمْراً كابِدا

    and inherited glory that buttressed the mountains.

    Amid perils, he endured a grievous ordeal

  43. يَسْقِينَ بِالمَوْتِ الكَمِيَّ الحارِدا

    فِي مَحْفِدٍ يَعْلُو بِهِ المَحَافِدا

    that gives the wrathful, armored warrior death to drink,

    in a stronghold through which he overtops other strongholds.

  44. أَكْرِمْ بِهِ فَرْعاً وَأَصْلاً تالِدا

    وَقِبْصَ عِيصٍ يَكْثُرُ المَعَاوِدا

    How noble he is, in branch and ancient root!

    And a massed thicket, outnumbering its returning challengers—

  45. طَلْحاً وَسِدْراً وَقَتاداً عارِدا

    فِي هَضْبِ غَضبٍ يَمْنَع الأَصالِدا

    acacias, lote trees, and stout thornbushes—

    in rough, hard crags that withstand the hardest stones.

  46. أَمْسَتْ عَلَى رَغْمِ العِدَا صَوامِدا

    يُنبي صَفاها المِقذَف الجَلامِدا

    They stand firm despite their foes;

    their massive rock-face repels great boulders.

  47. فَالحَمدُ للَّه على محامدا

    بِخالِدٍ أَحيَى العِراقَ الفاسِدا

    So praise be to God for praiseworthy deeds:

    through Khalid He revived ravaged Iraq,

  48. تَقِيَّهُمْ وَالمُشْرِكَ المُعَانِدا

    مِنْ بَعْدِ ما كَانُوا رَمَاداً رامِدا

    the devout among its people and the stubborn polytheist,

    after they had been mere gray ashes,

  49. بِلادَ خُرّابٍ وَمَالاً كاسِدا

    فَأَصْبَحُوا مُسْتَلْئِماً وَرافِدا

    a ruined country and wealth left stagnant.

    So they became armored men and benefactors,

  50. فِي حَلَبَاتٍ تَمْنَعُ المَضَاهِدا

    كَمْ مِن أَسِيرٍ يَشْتَكِي الحَدَائِدا

    in companies that hold oppressors off.

    How many a captive complains of iron fetters!

  51. أَطْلَقْتَ قَيْدَيْهِ وَغُلّاً صَافِدا

    مُحَمَّدث أَلاَنْصَار أَمْسَى حامِدا

    You loosed his two fetters and his binding collar.

    Muhammad of the Ansar came to give thanks;

  52. أَنْجَيْتَهُ وَالحَنَفِيَّ العابِدا

    مِنْ خَوْفِ غَبْراءَ فَأَمْسَى ساجِدا

    you saved him and the devout Hanafi

    from fear of a dust-dark disaster; now he prostrates himself,

  53. يَدْعُو لَكَ اللَّهَ دُعَاءً جَاهِدا

    وَانْتَشْتَ مِنْ مَهْواتِهِ عُطَارِدا

    praying earnestly to God for you.

    And you plucked Utarid out of his abyss;

  54. فَأَصْبَحَتْ تَعْلُو بِهِ الصَيَاهِدا

    عَيْساءُ تَمْطُو العَنَقَ المُوَاغِدا

    now she carries him up the sun-baked wastes—

    a pale camel, lengthening her brisk, steady trot.

  55. وَمَنْ يُمَادِدْ حَبْلَكَ المُمَادِدا

    يَبْسُطُ لَهُ اللَّهُ مَتِيناً وَارِدا

    And whoever keeps drawing upon your far-reaching rope,

    God stretches for him a stout rope reaching water,

  56. ومِنْ نَدَى كَفَّيْكَ سَجْلاً بارِدا

    إِذَا الطِلابُ اسْتَخْرَجَ المَوَاعِدا

    and, from the bounty of your two hands, a cool, full bucket.

    When seeking draws forth promises,

  57. أَصَبْت أَجْراً وَسَرَرْت الرائِدا

    كَمُسْتَهِلٍّ يَرْجُسُ الرَوَاعِدا

    you earn a reward and gladden the seeker.

    Like a pouring cloud that makes thunderclouds roar,

  58. يُبْدِي أَهاضِيبَ وَجُوْداً جَائِدا

    يُحْيِي بِهِ اللَّهُ الجَنَابَ البَائِدا

    bringing forth downpours and lavish, abundant rain,

    through which God revives the desolate countryside,

  59. فَرْعاً عَلَى الأَصْلِ وَعِرْقاً هامِدَا

    branch upon root, and a root lying dormant.