Juha and the Misers (جحا والبخلاء) — Page 16

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

تَظَاهَرْتُ بِالْأَلَمِ وَالْحَسْرَةِ.

I feigned pain and regret.

قُلْتُ لَهُ مُتَخَابِثًا: «صَدَقْتَ يَا أَبَا مُرَّةَ».

I said to him cunningly: 'You spoke the truth, O Abu Murra.'

مَا أَذْكُرُ أَنَّنِي رَأَيْتُ لِـ «وَثَّابِ» – فِيمَا رَأَيْتُ مِنَ الْكِلَابِ - شَبِيهًا فِي اكْتِمَالِ الْقُوَّةِ، وَنَضْرَةِ الشَّبَابِ وَتَمَامِ الْفُتُوَّةِ!

I do not recall that I have seen for 'Wathab' - among what I have seen of dogs - a likeness in the completion of strength, the freshness of youth, and the perfection of virility!

لَوْ عَاشَ كَلْبُكَ «وَثَّابٌ» - إِلَى الْيَوْمِ – لَأَصْبَحَ زَعِيمَ الْكِلَابِ، لِفَرْطِ مَا فَاضَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ نِعْمَةِ الشَّبَابِ.»

If your dog 'Wathab' had lived until today, he would have become the leader of the dogs, due to the excess of the blessing of youth that overflowed upon him.

ذُعِرَ «أَبُو مُرَّةَ» مِمَّا سَمِعَ رَفَعَ يَدَهُ عَنِ الطَّعَامِ مُتَفَزِّعًا.

Abu Murra was terrified by what he heard; he lifted his hand from the food, alarmed.

قَالَ مُنْزَعِجًا مُرَوَّعًا: «تَقُولُ: لَوْ عَاشَ وَثَّابٌ ؟!»

He said, annoyed and frightened: 'You say: If Wathab had lived?!'

قُلْتُ: «نَعَمْ، لَوْ عَاشَ! أَلَمْ تَسْمَعْ؟»

I said: 'Yes, if he had lived! Did you not hear?'

قَالَ: «كَيْفَ تَقُولُ؟ أَتَعْنِي أَنَّهُ هَلَكَ؟»

He said: 'How can you say that? Do you mean that he perished?'

تَصَنَّعْتُ الْأَلَمَ لِمَصْرَعِ «وَثَّابِ».

I feigned pain for the death of 'Wathab'.

تَظَاهَرْتُ بِالْحُزْنِ عَلَيْهِ.

I pretended to be sad for him.

قُلْتُ فِي لَهْجَةِ الْمُتَفَجِّعِ: «مِسْكِينُ «وَثَّابٌ»!»

I said in the tone of one lamenting: 'Poor Wathab!'

الْتَهَمَ قِطْعَةً مِنْ لَحْمِ جَمَلِكَ: «أَبِي أَيُّوبَ».

He devoured a piece of the meat of your camel: 'Abu Ayyub'.

أَبَى عَلَيْهِ سُوءُ حَظِّهِ إِلَّا أَنْ تَنْشَبَ قِطْعَةُ اللَّحْمِ فِي حُلْقُومِهِ.

His bad luck refused anything but that the piece of meat should get stuck in his throat.

كَانَ فِيهَا حَتْفُهُ، لَقِيَ بِهَا مَصْرَعَهُ فِي الْحَالِ. (٢٠) مَصْرَعُ «أَبِي أَيُّوبَ»

In it was his doom; he met his death by it immediately.

قَالَ «أَبُو مُرَّةَ»: «يَا لَلدَّاهِيَةِ كَأَنَّمَا تَعْنِي أَنَّ جَمَلِي قَدْ هَلَكَ أَيْضًا؟

Abu Murra said: 'Oh, the calamity! As if you mean that my camel has also perished?'

تُرَى بِأَيِّ حَادِثٍ هَلَكَ؟»

'I wonder, by what accident did he perish?'

قُلْتُ: «عَثَرَ لِسُوءِ حَظِّهِ بِقَبْرِ «أُمِّ أَوْفَى» عَثْرَةً قَاتِلَةً.

I said: 'He stumbled, due to his bad luck, on the grave of Umm Awfa, a deadly stumble.'

انْكَسَرَتْ سَاقُ الْجَمَلِ الْمِسْكِينِ.

The leg of the poor camel broke.

أَشْرَفَ عَلَى الْهَلَاكِ ابْتَدَرَهُ الْقَوْمُ بِالسِّكِّينِ، وَسَارَعُوا إِلَى ذَبْحِهِ.»

He was on the verge of destruction; the people hastened to him with the knife, and they hurried to slaughter him.'

Vocabulary · المفردات (30 verbs · 36 nouns)

• تَظَاهَرَ — to pretend
• قَالَ — to say
• تَخَابَثَ — to act cunningly
• صَدَقَ — to tell the truth
• ذَكَرَ — to remember
• رَأَى — to see
• عَاشَ — to live
• أَصْبَحَ — to become
• فَاضَ — to overflow
• ذَعَرَ — to be terrified
• سَمِعَ — to hear
• رَفَعَ — to lift
• تَفَزَّعَ — to be alarmed
• انْزَعَجَ — to be annoyed
• رَوَّعَ — to frighten
• عَنَى — to mean
• هَلَكَ — to perish
• تَصَنَّعَ — to feign
• تَفَجَّعَ — to lament
• الْتَهَمَ — to devour
• أَبَى — to refuse
• نَشِبَ — to get stuck
• كَانَ — to be
• لَقِيَ — to meet
• عَثَرَ — to stumble
• انْكَسَرَ — to break
• أَشْرَفَ — to be on the verge of
• ابْتَدَرَ — to hasten to
• سَارَعَ — to hurry
• ذَبَحَ — to slaughter
• مَصْرَعٌ — death
• أَلَمٌ — pain
• حَسْرَةٌ — regret
• شَبِيهٌ — likeness
• اكْتِمَالٌ — completion
• قُوَّةٌ — strength
• نَضْرَةٌ — freshness
• شَبَابٌ — youth
• تَمَامٌ — perfection
• فُتُوَّةٌ — virility
• يَوْمٌ — day
• زَعِيمٌ — leader
• فَرْطٌ — excess
• نِعْمَةٌ — blessing
• طَعَامٌ — food
• حُزْنٌ — sadness
• لَهْجَةٌ — tone
• مِسْكِينٌ — poor man
• قِطْعَةٌ — piece
• لَحْمٌ — meat
• جَمَلٌ — camel
• سُوءٌ — badness
• حَظٌّ — luck
• حُلْقُومٌ — throat
• حَتْفٌ — doom
• حَالٌ — state
• دَاهِيَةٌ — calamity
• حَادِثٌ — accident
• قَبْرٌ — grave
• عَثْرَةٌ — stumble
• قَاتِلٌ — deadly
• سَاقٌ — leg
• هَلَاكٌ — destruction
• قَوْمٌ — people
• سِكِّينٌ — knife
• ذَبْحٌ — slaughter