Qatari Arabic Curriculum — Grade 8, Term 1 (اللغة العربية قطر) — Page 17

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

الْوَحْدَةُ الْأُولَى

Unit One

الْقِرَاءَةُ

Reading

إِلَى وَلَدِي

To My Son

لِأَحْمَدَ أَمِين

By Ahmed Amin

أَيَّ بُنَيَّ، لَسْتُ أُرِيدُ أَنْ أُقِيمَ لَكَ الْبَرَاهِينَ بِأَكْثَرَ مِنْ أَنْ تُقَارِنَ بَيْنَ شَبَابٍ قَضَوْا أَوْقَاتَ التَّعْرِيفُ بِالْكَاتِبِ: فَرَاغِهِمْ فِي اللَّعِبِ، أَوْ حَدِيثٍ فَارِغٍ فِي الْأَنْدِيَةِ، وَبَيْنَ شَبَابٍ أَحَبُّوا الْكُتُبَ وَالْمُطَالَعَاتِ، أَحْمَدُ أَمِين (١٨٨٦-١٩٥٤) وَوَضَعُوا بَرَامِجَ لِتَثْقِيفِ نُفُوسِهِمْ، وَتَوْسِيعِ عُقُولِهِمْ أَيُّهُمَا أَكْثَرُ نَفْعًا لِأُمَّتِهِمْ، وَأَيُّهُمَا مُفَكِّرٌ مِصْرِيٌّ، وَأَحَدُ أَعْلَامِ أَجْدَرُ بِلَقَبِ الْإِنْسَانِ؟

My dear son, I do not wish to provide you with proofs beyond asking you to compare between youths who spent their leisure time in play or empty talk in clubs, and youths who loved books and reading and set programs to educate themselves and expand their minds; which of them is more beneficial to their nation, and which of them is more worthy of the title of human?

أَلَيْسَ عَجِيبًا أَنْ تَسْمَعَ مِنْ زُمَلَائِكَ أَنَّهُمْ يُرِيدُونَ قَتْلَ الْوَقْتِ الْفِكْرِ الْعَرَبِيِّ وَالْإِسْلَامِيِّ بِاللَّعِبِ، أَوْ بِالْحَدِيثِ التَّافِهِ...؟

Is it not strange to hear from your colleagues that they want to kill time with play or trivial talk...?

مَعَ أَنَّهُ الْمَادَّةُ الْخَامَّةُ لِلْحَيَاةِ، وَهُوَ أَجْدَرُ بِأَنْ يُصَادَقَ فِي النِّصْفِ الْأَوَّلِ مِنْ لَا أَنْ يُقَاتَلَ، وَلَكِنْ كَمْ يَجْنِي الْإِنْسَانُ عَلَى نَفْسِهِ بِمُعَادَاةِ أَحَقِّ شَيْءٍ بِالصَّدَاقَةِ!

Even though it is the raw material of life, and it is more worthy of being befriended rather than fought; yet how much does a person wrong himself by antagonizing the thing most deserving of friendship!

أَيَّ بُنَيَّ، لِتَكُنْ إِنْسَانًا لَهُ مَلَذَّاتُهُ وَشَهَوَاتُهُ فِي حُدُودِ عَقْلِهِ، وَمَنْفَعَتِهِ، وَمَنْفَعَةِ أُمَّتِهِ، الْحَضَارِيِّ الْإِسْلَامِيِّ، أُرِيدُكَ أَنْ تَفْهَمَ مَعْنَى اللَّذَّةِ فِي حُدُودِهَا الْوَاسِعَةِ لَا الضَّيِّقَةِ...

My dear son, be a human who has his pleasures and desires within the limits of his reason, his benefit, and the benefit of his nation; I want you to understand the meaning of pleasure in its broad limits, not the narrow ones...

إِنَّ اللَّذَّةَ دَرَجَاتٌ كَدَرَجَاتِ وَصَاحِبُ تَيَّارٍ فِكْرِيٍّ السُّلَّمِ آخِذَةٌ فِي الصُّعُودِ، فَأَسْفَلُ دَرَجَاتِهَا شَهِيَّةُ الْأَكْلِ وَالشُّرْبِ وَاللِّبَاسِ، وَمَا إِلَى ذَلِكَ.

Pleasure has degrees like the rungs of a ladder, ascending; the lowest of its degrees is the appetite for food, drink, clothing, and the like.

وَمِنْ غَرِيبِ أَمْرِ هَذِهِ الْمُتْعَةِ أَنَّهَا تَفْقِدُ قِيمَتَهَا بَعْدَ الِاسْتِمْتَاعِ بِقَلِيلٍ مِنْهَا، ثُمَّ هِيَ الْوَسَطِيَّةِ. لَيْسَتْ مُرَادِفَةً لِلسَّعَادَةِ، فَكَثِيرٌ مِمَّنْ يَأْكُلُونَ الْأَكْلَ الْفَاخِرَ، وَيَلْبَسُونَ اللِّبَاسَ الْأَنِيقَ، كَتَبَ أَحْمَدُ أَمِين فِي الْعَدِيدِ وَيَسْكُنُونَ الْقُصُورَ الْفَخْمَةَ، هُمْ مَعَ ذَلِكَ أَشْقِيَاءُ...

One of the strange things about this enjoyment is that it loses its value after enjoying a little of it, and furthermore, it is not synonymous with happiness; for many of those who eat luxurious food, wear elegant clothing, and live in grand palaces are, despite that, miserable...

ثُمَّ هَذِهِ الرَّغَبَاتُ قِيمَتُهَا فِي الِاعْتِدَالِ مِنَ الْحُقُولِ الْمَعْرِفِيَّةِ فِيهَا، وَعَدَمِ التَّهَافُتِ عَلَيْهَا، إِنْ شِئْتَ فَاحْسِبْ حِسَابَ مَنْ أَفْرَطَ فِيهَا فِي فَتْرَةٍ مِثْلِ: الْفَلْسَفَةِ وَالْأَدَبِ قَصِيرَةٍ مِنَ الزَّمَنِ، ثُمَّ فَقَدَ صِحَّتَهُ، فَلَمْ يَعُدْ يَسْتَطِيعُ أَنْ يُتَابِعَ لَذَّتَهُ، وَحِسَابَ مَنْ وَالنَّقْدِ وَالتَّارِيخِ وَالتَّرْبِيَةِ، اعْتَدَلَ فَطَالَ زَمَنُ مُتْعَتِهِ، وَمُضَافًا إِلَى مُتْعَتِهِ مِنْ صِحَّتِهِ.

Furthermore, the value of these desires lies in moderation and not rushing greedily toward them; if you wish, calculate the account of one who indulged in them excessively in a short period of time, then lost his health and could no longer pursue his pleasure, and the account of one who was moderate, so his time of enjoyment lasted, in addition to his enjoyment of his health.

وَأَرْقَى مِنْ هَذِهِ دَرَجَةً لَذَّةُ الْعِلْمِ وَالْبَحْثِ وَالْقِرَاءَةِ وَالدَّرْسِ: فَهَذِهِ لَذَّةُ الْعَقْلِ، وَتِلْكَ شَهْوَةُ الْجِسْمِ، وَهَذِهِ أَطْوَلُ زَمَنًا وَأَقَلُّ مُؤْنَةً، وَأَبْعَدُ عَنِ الْمُنَافَسَةِ وَالْمُزَاحَمَةِ وَالتَّقَاتُلِ وَالتَّكَالُبِ، وَصَاحِبُهَا أَقَلُّ عُرْضَةً لِتَلَفِ النَّفْسِ، وَضَيَاعِ الصِّحَّةِ..

Higher than this in degree is the pleasure of knowledge, research, reading, and study; this is the pleasure of the mind, while that is the desire of the body; this is longer in duration, less costly, and further from competition, crowding, fighting, and scrambling; its possessor is less prone to the destruction of the soul and the loss of health.

وَإِنْ أَرَدْتَ الدَّلِيلَ عَلَى أَنَّهَا أَرْقَى مِنَ اللَّذَائِذِ الْمَادِّيَّةِ، فَاسْأَلْ مَنْ جَرَّبَ اللَّذَّتَيْنِ، وَمَارَسَ النَّوْعَيْنِ، تَجِدِ الْعَالِمَ الْبَاحِثَ، وَالْفَنَّانَ الْمَاهِرَ، وَالْفَيْلَسُوفَ الْمُتَعَمِّقَ لَا يَهُمُّهُمْ مَأْكَلُهُمْ وَمَلْبَسُهُمْ بِقَدْرِ مَا تَهُمُّهُمْ مُتْعَتُهُمْ مِنْ بَحْثِهِمْ وَفَنِّهِمْ.

If you want proof that it is higher than material pleasures, ask someone who has experienced both pleasures and practiced both types; you will find that the researching scholar, the skilled artist, and the profound philosopher are not as concerned with their food and clothing as they are with their enjoyment of their research and their art.

Vocabulary · المفردات (30 verbs · 74 nouns)

• أَرَادَ — to want
• أَقَامَ — to establish
• قَارَنَ — to compare
• قَضَى — to spend
• أَحَبَّ — to love
• وَضَعَ — to place
• سَمِعَ — to hear
• صَادَقَ — to befriend
• قَاتَلَ — to fight
• جَنَى — to commit
• كَانَ — to be
• فَهِمَ — to understand
• أَخَذَ — to take
• فَقَدَ — to lose
• أَكَلَ — to eat
• لَبِسَ — to wear
• سَكَنَ — to dwell
• شَاءَ — to want
• حَسَبَ — to calculate
• أَفْرَطَ — to exceed
• عَادَ — to return
• اسْتَطَاعَ — to be able
• تَابَعَ — to follow
• اعْتَدَلَ — to be moderate
• طَالَ — to be long
• أَضَافَ — to add
• جَرَّبَ — to try
• مَارَسَ — to practice
• وَجَدَ — to find
• هَمَّ — to concern
• وَلَد — boy
• بُرْهَان — proof
• شَابّ — young man
• وَقْت — time
• فَرَاغ — leisure
• لَعِب — play
• حَدِيث — talk
• نَادِي — club
• كِتَاب — book
• مُطَالَعَة — reading
• بَرْنَامَج — program
• تَثْقِيف — education
• نَفْس — soul
• تَوْسِيع — expansion
• عَقْل — mind
• نَفْع — benefit
• أُمَّة — nation
• لَقَب — title
• إِنْسَان — human
• زَمِيل — colleague
• مَادَّة — material
• حَيَاة — life
• صَدَاقَة — friendship
• مَلَذَّة — pleasure
• شَهْوَة — desire
• حَدّ — limit
• مَنْفَعَة — benefit
• مَعْنَى — meaning
• لَذَّة — pleasure
• دَرَجَة — degree
• سُلَّم — ladder
• صُعُود — ascent
• شَهِيَّة — appetite
• أَكْل — eating
• شُرْب — drink
• لِبَاس — clothing
• أَمْر — matter
• مُتْعَة — enjoyment
• قِيمَة — value
• اسْتِمْتَاع — enjoyment
• سَعَادَة — happiness
• قَصْر — palace
• رَغْبَة — desire
• اعْتِدَال — moderation
• تَهَافُت — rushing
• كَسْب — earning
• فَتْرَة — period
• زَمَن — time
• صِحَّة — health
• نَزْعَة — inclination
• عِلْم — knowledge
• بَحْث — research
• قِرَاءَة — reading
• دَرْس — study
• جِسْم — body
• مَؤُونَة — provision
• مُنَافَسَة — competition
• مُزَاحَمَة — crowding
• تَقَاتُل — fighting
• تَكَالُب — greed
• عُرْضَة — exposure
• تَلَف — damage
• ضَيَاع — loss
• دَلِيل — evidence
• لَذِيذَة — delight
• عَالِم — scholar
• بَاحِث — researcher
• فَنَّان — artist
• مَاهِر — skilled
• فَيْلَسُوف — philosopher
• مُتَعَمِّق — deep
• مَأْكَل — food
• مَلْبَس — clothes ; clothing
• فَنّ — art