غنى الذي من واهج الضيم والنيا — Shibli Al Atrash

غَنى الَّذي من واهج الضيم وَالنيا

ينظم وَقلبو من الغَرام مَلان

He sang, one scorched by oppression and separation,

composing while his heart was full of longing.

ينظم عَلى صَرف الزَمان الَّذي غَدر

فينا وَدَعانا كُل ناس بشان

He composes of time's turns, which betrayed

us and left each person to a different fate.

فينا وَدَعانا كُل ناسا بديره

وَفَرق شظانا بساير البُلدان

It left us, each person in another land,

and scattered our fragments across the countries.

كَما الغيم لا جاه الشمالي جَرى بِنا

قَطايع بديران التراك رهان

Like clouds driven by the north wind, we moved,

scattered in Turkish lands, held captive.

البَعض في بر التراك صار سبلهم

وَالبَعض في غَرب الزِناتي بان

Some, in the Turks' wilderness, lost their way;

some vanished in the west of Zinati.

وَالبَعض زَجوهم وَخانوا عُهودهم

وَسمح الزرد في رقابهم غَرقان

Some were driven off, their pledges betrayed,

with mail hanging loose about their necks.

وَالبَعض ضمنهم لحود الدَوارس

باكريت وَالخضره بموت وَهوان

Some lie within weathered graves

in Crete and the green land, in death and humiliation.

وَالبَعض بِأَرض التُرك عِظامهم

كِلاهُم تُراب التُرك وَالدِيدان

Some left their bones in Turkish soil;

the soil and worms of Turkey consumed them.

ومنا هَفوا وَللحين غابَت نُجومَهُم

وَبتراب رودس دَفنوا فتيان

Some of us fell, and their stars have since disappeared;

young men were buried in Rhodes's earth.

وَمِنا رَموه بلجة البَحر عالميا

وَمِنا بجلق ما لقوا دفان

Some of us were thrown into the open sea;

some in Damascus found no one to bury them.

وَمِنا عَلى الطرقان ماتوا مِن الضَنا

وَاللي مهاجر بَعد حينو حان

Some died of wasting along the roads;

for the emigrant, too, his time came.

وَبحروب حُوران العَذية بِلادنا

مِنا كِلاه الطير وَالسرحان

And in the wars of Hauran, our dear homeland,

birds and wolves ate some of us.

لا ما غدينا للمخاليق وَالمَلا

بِأَرض العَرب مذغا بكل لسان

Have we not become, before people everywhere,

a subject of talk on every Arab tongue?

مذغا معارة للمخاليق وَالوَرى

وَخانَت الأَيام وَالأَزمان

Talked of with reproach among all people,

as days and years betrayed us.

وَخانَت الأَيام مخبث عمالهم

وَخان الزَمان الغادر الخوان

The days betrayed us through the wickedness of their deeds,

and treacherous time betrayed us too.

الأَيام مِنهُم بِالملذات وَالطَرَب

وَالأَيام مِنهُ للرجال حزان

Some days hold pleasures and delight;

other days bring men sorrow.

الأَيام مِنهُم عز بالسَيف وَالقَنا

وَالأَيام مِنهُم لِلعَزيز هوان

Some days bring honor by sword and spear;

other days bring the honored humiliation.

الأَيام منهم تَشرَب الشَهد وَالعَسَل

وَالأَيام مَوردهم دماث طمان

Some days offer nectar and honey to drink;

other days lead them to a murky watering place.

الأَيام مِنهُم مرتع الكَيف وَالصَفا

وَالأَيام مِنهُم عتم سود كَمان

Some days are pastures of ease and purity;

other days are dark and black.

الأَيام مِنهُم رَغد وَالعَيش بِالرَخا

وَمِنهُم كدار وَيحوجوك فلان

Some days bring abundance and an easy life;

others bring hardship and make you beg from someone.

الأَيام مِنهُم امن ما خالطوا رهب

وَالأَيام مِنهُم خوف للإِنسان

Some days hold safety untouched by dread;

other days hold fear for a person.

الأَيام مِنهم بيض أَبيض من اللبن

وَمِنهُم سَواد أَسمر مِن الغربان

Some days are white, whiter than milk;

others are dark, darker than ravens.

وَالأَيام لا مالوا على طود عالي

لا بُد ما يَدعوه هوني كان

When days lean against a lofty mountain,

they will surely bring it low, wherever it stands.

لا بُد ما يَدعوه سهلي مِن البَلا

مَراغه عقب مابو صُخور متان

They will surely make it level through affliction,

a place to wallow where solid rocks once stood.

مَن عاند الأَيام مَغلوب جانبه

لَو كان جيشو مية أَلف عَنان

Whoever resists the days will be overcome,

even with an army of a hundred thousand.

لَو كان جيشو يدهك الرمل وَالحَصى

إِذا عاند الأَيام هان ولان

Even if his army crushes sand and pebbles,

resisting the days will humble and soften him.

صَبراً جَميل الصَبر أَحلى من العَسَل

عَسى اللَه يَدعيها سَماح بَيان

Beautiful patience: patience is sweeter than honey.

Perhaps God will bring a clear reprieve.

عَسى اللَه من بعد العَذاب الَّذي جَرى

عَلَينا يَقضيها عَظيم الشان

Perhaps, after the suffering that befell

us, the One of great majesty will resolve it,

بجاه الحرم وَالبيت وَالرُكن وَالصَفا

وَالمُصطَفى المَنعوت بالأَديان

by the sanctity of the sanctuary, the House, the Corner, and Safa,

and the Chosen One praised in the faiths.

من بَعد ذا يا نار قلبي توقدي

وَهاتي قَوافي من ضَمير ملان

After this, flame of my heart, burn bright

and bring verses from a heart full to overflowing.

هاتي قَوافي مِن ضَمير جَنيتها

جَني الطَرد للناقدين ثَمان

Bring verses gathered from within me,

choice fruit for discerning critics, worth a price.

سار القَلم يُبدي مَعاني كَلامَها

عَلى كاغد يَرسم بُيوت لحان

The pen moves, revealing their meanings

on paper, drawing houses of song.

سيرتها مِن ديرة الضيم وَالشَقا

عَلى ظَهر حرة مِن ضنى وَضيحان

I set them forth from the land of oppression and misery,

on the back of a freeborn camel, through hardship and glaring heat.

يا راكِباً مِن عندنا متن ضامرة

تَهية أَسبَق من الغُزلان

O rider leaving us on a lean camel,

ready to outpace the gazelles,

حرة شَرارية أَصيلة مذيراً

تشداك ربداً طَليعة زيلان

a noble Sharari camel of pure stock,

swift as a herd's foremost runners.

إِن ذوملت بالدوح وَتبين الخَلا

عَالظاهري تسهي كَما الشيهان

When she strides among trees and the open waste appears,

she glides across its surface like a falcon.

ركابها دوبو يمكن زمامها

وَلا لَو غرض بِالسوط وَالمحجان

Her rider can scarcely hold her reins,

even when he aims the whip and hooked stick.

إِذا خلتها مثل السَراب بخبيبها

خفها الياناش الوَطا مابان

When you release her, she shimmers like a mirage in her quick pace;

her light hoof scarcely marks the ground.

وَشديت أَنا من فَوق عالي سَنامها

كورا يماني نابي الغُزلان

I fastened atop her high hump

a Yemeni saddle, raised like a gazelle's back,

مَكسور عالعمدان من غالي الذَهَب

وَمرصعاً بزمرد وَمُرجان

its supports adorned with costly gold

and studded with emerald and coral.

مَنسوف عادل من الخز غالي

وَحبل البريسم للهجين بطان

A fine, balanced covering of precious silk,

and a silk girth for the racing camel.

وَالميركة مثل الوسادة محررة

وَعهونها تلعب أَشكال أَلوان

The saddle cushion is shaped like a pillow, carefully made,

and its tassels play in many colors.

وَخَرج العقيلي رقم بحبوك للغوا

مَصنوع بِالهندام وَالأَوزان

The Uqayli saddlebag bears a patterned weave,

made with fine workmanship and proportion.

يا طارشي زَهب عليها وَميدها

تَرى ضَيف بر الترك مالو شان

O my messenger, ready her and urge her on;

a guest in the Turks' wilderness has no standing.

وَتحزم بحدبا عريضة مخضرة

تقلد بهندي شَطير ضبان

Gird yourself with a broad, greenish curved blade;

wear an Indian sword, sharp at the edge.

وَبارودتك من معمل كروب طرزها

وفرد بست رواح دُوم مَلان

Your gun is fashioned in a workshop's style,

and your six-shot pistol is always loaded.

هاتي قَوافي مِن ضَمير جَنيتها

جَني الطَرد للناقدين ثَمان

Bring verses gathered from within me,

choice fruit for discerning critics, worth a price.

سار القَلم يُبدي مَعاني كَلامَها

عَلى كاغد يَرسم بُيوت لحان

The pen moves, revealing their meanings

on paper, drawing houses of song.

سيرتها مِن ديرة الضيم وَالشَقا

عَلى ظَهر حرة مِن ضنى وَضيحان

I set them forth from the land of oppression and misery,

on the back of a freeborn camel, through hardship and glaring heat.

يا راكِباً مِن عندنا متن ضامرة

تَهية أَسبَق من الغُزلان

O rider leaving us on a lean camel,

ready to outpace the gazelles,

حرة شَرارية أَصيلة مذيراً

تشداك ربداً طَليعة زيلان

a noble Sharari camel of pure stock,

swift as a herd's foremost runners.

إِن ذوملت بالدوح وَتبين الخَلا

عَالظاهري تسهي كَما الشيهان

When she strides among trees and the open waste appears,

she glides across its surface like a falcon.

ركابها دوبو يمكن زمامها

وَلا لَو غرض بِالسوط وَالمحجان

Her rider can scarcely hold her reins,

even when he aims the whip and hooked stick.

إِذا خلتها مثل السَراب بخبيبها

خفها الياناش الوَطا مابان

When you release her, she shimmers like a mirage in her quick pace;

her light hoof scarcely marks the ground.

وَشديت أَنا من فَوق عالي سَنامها

كورا يماني نابي الغُزلان

I fastened atop her high hump

a Yemeni saddle, raised like a gazelle's back,

مَكسور عالعمدان من غالي الذَهَب

وَمرصعاً بزمرد وَمُرجان

its supports adorned with costly gold

and studded with emerald and coral.

مَنسوف عادل من الخز غالي

وَحبل البريسم للهجين بطان

A fine, balanced covering of precious silk,

and a silk girth for the racing camel.

وَالميركة مثل الوسادة محررة

وَعهونها تلعب أَشكال أَلوان

The saddle cushion is shaped like a pillow, carefully made,

and its tassels play in many colors.

وَخَرج العقيلي رقم بحبوك للغوا

مَصنوع بِالهندام وَالأَوزان

The Uqayli saddlebag bears a patterned weave,

made with fine workmanship and proportion.

يا طارشي زَهب عليها وَميدها

تَرى ضَيف بر الترك مالو شان

O my messenger, ready her and urge her on;

a guest in the Turks' wilderness has no standing.

وَتحزم بحدبا عريضة مخضرة

تقلد بهندي شَطير ضبان

Gird yourself with a broad, greenish curved blade;

wear an Indian sword, sharp at the edge.

وَبارودتك من معمل كروب طرزها

وفرد بست رواح دُوم مَلان

Your gun is fashioned in a workshop's style,

and your six-shot pistol is always loaded.

يُعطي السلايل ما يفكر بلونها

وَلا ينشد المعطي بغلا وَثمان

He gives away fine-bred animals without weighing their color

and does not ask the giver about cost or price.

يا صاحب الناموس يا كاسب الثَنا

يا كَهف ذاري يا مطر نيسان

O keeper of honor, O winner of praise,

O sheltering cave, O April rain,

يا زير يا حر المَراقيب وَالنَقا

يا لَيث جارح يا نمر حردان

O warrior, O free spirit of watchposts and dunes,

O fierce lion, O angry tiger,

يا ربن يُوم الكُون غيده مخدره

يُوم أَن رَدي الخال ذل وَفان

O leader on the day of battle, when sheltered women are at risk,

when the base-born man is humbled and disappears.

صادوك غج الترك بالبوق وَالخَنا

ما شفتنا قبلك بسنة زَمان

Turkish rabble caught you by deceit and disgrace;

you did not see what happened to us a year before.

ما شفتنا يوم ان خذونا وَسافروا

بحبال مربوقين مثل الضان

You did not see the day they seized us and departed,

roped together like sheep.

اقفوا بنا بالخون عامورد البلا

وَبذوا شظانا بساير البلدان

They led us treacherously to a place of calamity

and scattered our fragments across the countries.

يا ليت من شاف المواضي بلزمته

ينفر وَلا هوَ من الفَرار جَبان

If only one who witnessed those events had stood firm:

he would rush forward, no coward fleeing.

إِن قُلت ليش أَنتُم خذوكم مثلنا

حنا عيال وَغفل يا حزمان

If you ask why they took you as they took us,

we were children and unwary, O brave ones.

أَما حدوك العامية عَلى البَلا

وَالكُل مِنا عوفوه حوران

But the common crowd drove you into disaster,

and everyone among us abandoned Hauran.

يومن غدو مثل البَصل روس واوبشوا

وَشاخوا الشَباب وَقلطوا العَيان

When they came in a crush, heads packed like onions,

they made young men old and brought the enemy in.

وَعاثوا بحوران العذية بلادنا

اللَه يبليهم بداء وَجان

They ravaged Hauran, our dear homeland;

may God afflict them with disease and pain.

لعبوا بها العسال لا ما تهدمت

وَتضعضعت من ساير الأَركان

They played havoc with it until it was ruined

and shaken in all its foundations.

بوطه عَلى قلال الأَماني توافقوا

وَتَعاقدوا عَلى الزور وَالبُهتان

They agreed upon meager hopes

and bound themselves to falsehood and slander.

اليَوم جَمعية بمردك وَعاهرة

وَبكرا انقلوها عاملح ومتان

Today an assembly at Mardak and Ahira;

tomorrow they move it to Amalh and Matan.

وَبكرا انقلوها ووقعوا الرأي بالهدا

وَكُل من حضر منا عاربعو مان

Tomorrow they move it again and settle their opinion quietly,

while each of us who attends is left to his own lot.

وَتخالطون الجيد وَالغُش بالعمَل

وَشُيوخ الدِيانة شغلوا الميدان

You mix the good with deceit in your work,

and religious elders have taken the field.

شيوخ الدِيانة وافقوهم عَلى الغَضَب

مثل الزغابة في وَقت زيدان

The religious elders joined them in anger,

like rabble in a time of upheaval.

لا ما غَدَت لجه وَظلمه من البَلا

مِن عقب ما هيَ للملا بُستان

It became nothing but clamor and the darkness of affliction,

after it had been a garden for all.

مِن كثر ما سنوا عَجايب مُنوعة

رخصة وَالها كل دار ايوان

From the many strange measures they devised,

every house and hall was given license.

وَصاروا سبايبنا عَلى الغبظ وَالرضى

راحوا وَرُحنا في الفَلا دُخان

They became the cause of our anger and discontent;

they went, and we went into the wilderness like smoke.

مِن بَعد ما حنا دُون كُل الطَوايف

ملجا وَشمامة عرب استان

Though once, among all the communities, we were

a refuge and shelter for the Arabs of Istanbul.

بفعلا مشوهد عند كُل البَوادي

وَلا هِيَ محاكي وَلدنه وَعجيان

Our deeds were witnessed by all the tribes,

no mere tale told by our children and old men.

ياما أَمارا في حِمانا تَدرقوا

وَيا ما لجا في حينا عربان

How many princes sheltered under our protection;

how many Arab people sought refuge among us.

لَو يَطلبوهم دَولة التُرك بنفهوا

لَو الدَم يَجري عالوطا غُدران

Even if the Turkish state demanded them, we would refuse,

though blood ran over the ground in pools.

نحمل مغايظهم وَلا اِحنا بحالهم

لَو جردوها من حلب لمعان

We bore their grievances, even when we were not in their condition,

though troops marched from Aleppo to Ma'an.

واليَوم صرنا للقبايل معارة

من شان حتّى يَشيخوا أَبو فُلان

Today we have become a reproach among the tribes

so that so-and-so's father might become a sheikh.

أَما الملامي عاد أَعظَم من البلا

عَسى اللَه يَجمَعنا بِدار أَمان

The blame is greater still than the calamity.

May God gather us in a land of safety

وَيحسن خَلاص الكُل مِنا مِن البَلا

وَيَفكنا من أُمة الطغيان

and grant all of us deliverance from affliction,

and free us from a people of tyranny.

وَتلمنا حوران بالأَمن وَالصَفا

وَنَفرَح بشوف الأَهل وَالخلان

May Hauran reunite us in safety and peace,

and may we rejoice to see family and friends.

ونذكر فظايعهم ونخسي شوارنا

يوم أَن بقينا في الجبل عدوان

Then we will recall their outrages and regret our counsel

on the day we remained enemies in the mountains.

بالله ياللي باسط الأَرض عالميا

ورافع سما الدُنيا بلا عمدان

By God, you who spread the earth for the world

and raised the sky without pillars,

يا خالق الشضمس المُضيئة بنورها

وَالبَدر صافي النُور وَالميزان

O creator of the shining sun and its light,

the moon of pure light, and the balance,

يا زاجر البَحر المحيط وَعجايبو

يا ضابط الأَرواح وَالأَكوان

O ruler of the encircling sea and its wonders,

O keeper of souls and the universe,

يا منتهى الغايات تفرج كروبنا

وَتَسمع دعا المَظلوم يا منان

O ultimate end of all hopes, relieve our distress

and hear the oppressed one's prayer, O Bountiful One.

وَتلم جَمع الشَمل يا جامع الوَرى

يَوم العَرض عَالواحد الدَيّان

Gather our scattered people, O gatherer of creation,

on the day of presentation before the One who judges.

َتحسن خلاص الكُل مِنا مِن البَلا

وَتلمنا من ساير البُلدان

Grant all of us deliverance from affliction

and gather us from all the countries.

وَتلمنا وَترحم قطايع طفالنا

وَتعود فينا يا عَظيم الشان

Gather us and have mercy on our scattered children;

restore us, O One of great majesty,

بحرمة نبي شَرف الأَرض وَالسَما

المُصطَفى وَالآل وَالقُرآن

for the sake of the Prophet who honored earth and sky,

the Chosen One, his family, and the Quran.

لانا قَطايع مالنا من يعولنا

سِوى رحمتك وَالجُود وَالغُفران

We are scattered, with no one to support us

except your mercy, generosity, and forgiveness.

سِوى رحمتك تشمل قَطايع طفالنا

مَع حقرنا بالذل يا حَنان

Let your mercy embrace our scattered children,

though we are humbled in disgrace, O Tender One.

أَيا طارشي بَعد أَن تبلغ تحيتي

وَتبين وَجدي المربع وَشجان

O my messenger, after you deliver my greetings

and make clear my crowded longing and grief,

سلم عابو محمد خليل المسمى

عاقل مهذب شمعة الدِيوان

greet the one named Abu Muhammad Khalil,

wise and refined, a lamp of the gathering.

يا فرز يا ريبال رأيك بها البَلا

يا مارث الشاهين وَالعقبان

O distinguished one, O mountain, what is your counsel in this plight?

O heir of the falcon and the eagles,

أَين السداق للمشير وَجنوده

أَين الخدامة بَعد لِلأَعيان

where is the promised support for the commander and his soldiers?

Where are the attendants for the notables now?

يا شيخ أَهل الخُون لازم بغيروا

وَاللي وثق فيهم قفر خرفان

O sheikh, the treacherous people must be replaced;

whoever trusted them was left with empty sheepfolds.

اللَه يفرجها عَلى الكُل مننا

بسر النبي المصطَفى العَدنان

May God relieve us all

by the secret of the Chosen Prophet, descendant of Adnan.

وَاهدي سَلامي ثم أَلف تحيتي

لِأَهل الكَرَم وَالجُود وَالإِحسان

Carry my peace and a thousand greetings

to people of kindness, generosity, and beneficence:

ربع المعزة وَالشَهامة بِأَنقرة

مقيمين فيها وَالحَرَس سقمان

our noble and valiant kin in Ankara,

living there while guards stand watch.

ربعاً عَلى الجودات بَنوا خيامهم

وَعَلى الخيل يَوم الموزما فُرسان

They pitched their tents upon generosity

and are horsemen on the day of turmoil.

بَني قيس لا شدوا البَيارق وَشوبشوا

يَدعو المَعادي مثل أَبو الحَصنان

When the sons of Qays raise their banners and shout,

they call out to the foe like Abu al-Hisnan.

تَراني سقيم الجسم من يَوم فقدهم

وَقَلبي لشوف وُجوههم ظَميان

Since losing them, my body has been sick,

and my heart thirsts to see their faces.

سلم عَلَيهم يا رَسولي جَميعهم

وَأَشكي لَهُم إِني بدار هَوان

Greet them all, my messenger,

and tell them I am in a land of humiliation.

إِني بديرة ترك ما يفهموا اللغا

مِن شوفهم قَلبي الشَقي وَلهان

I am in a Turkish land where they do not understand the language;

the sight of them leaves my suffering heart forlorn.

وَحشين عَن دُون البَوادي فَنالهم

نشحين عَن دُون الخَلق زِيوان

Their ways are alien to those of the desert people;

their character is harsh beside other people's.

اللي بخن يَلعن مَزايا طوارهم

وَحكامهم ما يقبضون أَمان

Whoever has known them curses the traits of their kind,

and their rulers cannot be trusted.

خانوا بنا اللَه ينكس علامهم

وَيقصم بهم رب الأَقدار كَمان

They betrayed us; may God bring down their banners,

and may the Lord of destinies break their power too.

لَكن محال الخون وَالعيب كارهم

من يَأمن النادوس وَالثعبان

Yet treachery and shame are their trade:

who trusts a venomous creature or a snake?

لا بُد دمو ما يخالط سمومهم

وَيَموت من غير الوَجع نَدمان

One must keep one's blood from their poison,

lest one die without a wound, full of regret.

أَوصيك يا سامع ملافظ قصيدَتي

اللي وثق بين الترك خَسران

I advise you, listener to the words of my poem:

whoever trusted the Turks has lost.

أَما كَلامي اليُوم من غير فايدة

وَحكي الملامة قيل للنسوان

My words today may be of no use,

and words of reproach are left to the women.

وَلا بالتماني ينقضين الحسايف

وَلا السَراب يَروي العَطشان

Wishing cannot undo regrets,

nor can a mirage quench the thirsty.

سيور ما تجلا ويتغير الهَوى

وَيَركب عريفتها بيوم حصان

Perhaps things will clear and the mood will change,

and a horseman will one day mount at their head.

وَيَركب عريفتها عَلى ذروة العُلا

وَحُوران يصدر مثل قبل كان

He will ride at the summit of glory,

and Hauran will flourish as it did before.

نطلب قطايع الدين من ساير المَلا

إِن ساعف الرَب العلي الرَحمَن

We seek to recover our scattered kin from all people,

if the Most High, Merciful Lord helps us.

وَنحسن لِمَن أَحسَن إِلينا من الوَرى

جزا حسنته يلقي كَمان إِحسان

We will do good to those among humanity who did us good;

for his kindness, each will receive kindness again.

وَإِن كان رُحنا ببحر راحوا امثالنا

ياما هَفا دَرب الحجاز هجان

And if we perish at sea, others like us have perished;

many a riding camel has fallen on the road to the Hijaz.

وَإِن كنَ عُدنا قادر اللَه يلمنا

كا عادَ يُونس من قَرار مَلان

And if we return, God is able to gather us,

as Jonah returned from the depths of the sea.

بِالمصطَفى أَختم مَعاني كَلامها

يَشفَع لَنا مِن واهج النيران

With the Chosen One I close these words,

that he may intercede for us against the scorching fires.

يحسن خلاص الكل مِنا من البَلا

وَيَختم لَنا بِالخَير وَالإِحسان

May He deliver us all from affliction

and grant us a good and gracious end.