Sindbad the Sailor (السندباد البحري) — Page 15

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

الرِّحْلَةُ الْأُولَى عَلَى ظَهْرِ حُوتٍ (١)

The First Voyage: On the Back of a Whale

السِّنْدِبَادُ بَعْدَ وَفَاةِ أَبِيهِ

Sinbad After His Father's Death

كَانَ أَبِي مِنْ كِبَارِ تُجَّارِ بَغْدَادَ، فَلَمَّا مَاتَ تَرَكَ لِي ثَرْوَةً طَائِلَةً

My father was a prominent merchant in Baghdad. When he passed away, he left me a vast fortune.

وَكُنْتُ حِينَئِذٍ شَابًّا طَائِشًا –

I was a reckless young man at the time.

فَأَخَذْتُ أُنْفِقُ عَلَى نَفْسِي وَعَلَى أَصْحَابِي عَنْ سَعَةٍ مِنْ هَذَا الْمَالِ الَّذِي لَمْ أَتَكَبَّدْ فِي جَمْعِهِ أَيَّ عَنَاءٍ

I began to spend lavishly on myself and my companions, squandering wealth I had never lifted a finger to earn.

وَظَلِلْتُ عَلَى ذَلِكَ مُدَّةً طَوِيلَةً مِنَ الزَّمَنِ، دُونَ أَنْ أَتَدَبَّرَ عَوَاقِبَ هَذَا الْإِسْرَافِ.

This went on for a long time, and I never once considered the consequences of such extravagance.

ثُمَّ انْتَبَهْتُ مِنْ غَفْلَتِي ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ فَرَأَيْتُ مَالِي لَمْ يَبْقَ مِنْهُ إِلَّا الْقَلِيلُ

One day, I finally woke from my stupor to find that almost all my money was gone.

وَعَلِمْتُ أَنَّنِي إِذَا ظَلِلْتُ عَلَى هَذِهِ الْحَالِ ضَاعَ كُلُّ مَا أَمْلِكُ، وَكَانَ عَاقِبَتِي الْإِفْلَاسُ وَالْخَرَابُ

I realized that if I continued this way, I would lose everything and end up destitute and ruined.

وَرُبَّمَا اضْطُرِرْتُ إِلَى سُؤَالِ النَّاسِ فَجَزِعْتُ مِنْ هَذِهِ الْعَاقِبَةِ السَّيِّئَةِ،

The prospect of being forced to beg terrified me.

وَقُلْتُ لِنَفْسِي: إِنَّ الْفَقْرَ فِي آخِرِ أَيَّامِ الْإِنْسَانِ وَاحْتِمَالَ ذُلِّ السُّؤَالِ، مِمَّا لَا تَرْضَاهُ نَفْسُ الْكَرِيمِ، وَإِنَّ الْكَسَلَ مِفْتَاحُ الْفَقْرِ

I told myself that poverty in one's old age and the humiliation of begging are things no self-respecting person can bear, and that laziness is the surest path to ruin.

وَذَكَرْتُ تِلْكَ الْحِكْمَةَ الصَّادِقَةَ الَّتِي يَقُولُهَا النَّاسُ: مَنْ لَمْ يَرْكَبِ الْأَهْوَالَ لَمْ يَنَلِ الرَّغَائِبَ

I remembered the old saying: He who does not brave the dangers will never attain his desires.

فَعَزَمْتُ عَلَى السَّفَرِ، وَبِعْتُ كُلَّ مَا بَقِيَ لَدَيَّ مِنْ مَتَاعٍ، وَاشْتَرَيْتُ بِثَمَنِهِ بَضَائِعَ أَتَّجِرُ فِيهَا،

I resolved to travel, sold everything I had left, and used the money to buy goods for trade.

وَسَافَرْتُ مَعَ جَمَاعَةٍ مِنَ التُّجَّارِ مِنْ مَدِينَةِ بَغْدَادَ حَتَّى وَصَلْنَا إِلَى مَدِينَةِ الْبَصْرَةِ حَيْثُ أَقْلَعَتْ بِنَا سَفِينَةٌ كَبِيرَةٌ، وَسَارَتْ فِي طَرِيقِ الْخَلِيجِ الْفَارِسِيِّ

I traveled with a group of merchants from the city of Baghdad until we reached the city of Basra, where a large ship set sail with us and proceeded along the Persian Gulf. This was my first journey. ⟶ (sentence continues on next page)

Vocabulary · المفردات (29 verbs · 52 nouns)

• كَانَ — to be
• مَاتَ — to die
• تَرَكَ — to leave
• أَخَذَ — to begin
• أَنْفَقَ — to spend
• تَكَبَّدَ — to endure
• ظَلَّ — to remain
• تَدَبَّرَ — to ponder
• انْتَبَهَ — to notice
• رَأَى — to see
• بَقِيَ — to remain
• عَلِمَ — to know
• ضَاعَ — to be lost
• مَلَكَ — to own
• اضْطَرَّ — to be forced
• جَزِعَ — to be anxious
• قَالَ — to say
• رَضِيَ — to be satisfied
• ذَكَرَ — to remember
• رَكِبَ — to ride
• نَالَ — to obtain
• عَزَمَ — to resolve
• بَاعَ — to sell
• اشْتَرَى — to buy
• اتَّجَرَ — to trade
• سَافَرَ — to travel
• وَصَلَ — to arrive
• أَقْلَعَ — to set sail
• سَارَ — to walk
• رِحْلَة — journey
• ظَهْر — back
• حُوت — whale
• وَفَاة — death
• كَبِير — elder
• تَاجِر — merchant
• ثَرْوَة — wealth
• طَائِل — vast
• شَابّ — young man
• طَائِش — reckless
• نَفْس — self
• أَصْحَاب — friends
• سَعَة — abundance
• مَال — money
• جَمْع — gathering
• عَنَاء — trouble
• مُدَّة — period
• طَوِيل — long
• زَمَن — time
• عَاقِبَة — consequence
• إِسْرَاف — extravagance
• غَفْلَة — negligence
• يَوْم — day
• قَلِيل — a little
• حَال — state
• إِفْلَاس — bankruptcy
• خَرَاب — ruin
• سُؤَال — begging
• نَاس — people
• سَيِّئ — bad
• فَقْر — poverty
• آخِر — end
• إِنْسَان — human
• احْتِمَال — bearing
• ذُلّ — humiliation
• كَرِيم — noble person
• كَسَل — laziness
• مِفْتَاح — key
• حِكْمَة — wisdom
• صَادِق — truthful
• أَهْوَال — terrors
• رَغِيبَة — desires
• سَفَر — travel
• مَتَاع — goods
• ثَمَن — price
• بِضَاعَة — merchandise
• جَمَاعَة — group
• مَدِينَة — city
• سَفِينَة — ship
• طَرِيق — path
• خَلِيج — gulf
• فَارِسِيّ — Persian