Chapter 18: Shapur Talks about Shirin & Shabdiz :: حکایت کردن شاپور از شیرین و شبدیز

1	He had a best friend named Shapur, a world traveler from Morocco to Lahore.	نـــدیمـــی خـاص بــــــــودش نام شاپـــور جـــهان گــــــشتــه ز مــغرب تــــــا لهاور
2	In painting he gave advice to Mani; In drawing he opened Euclid’s door. These two lines appear to be extravagant praise of Shapur’s abilities. It is impossible to know how much Nezami knew about Mani, the founder of Manichaeism (a religion which is based on the dual nature of the world: good and evil), who was born 216 AD and died in prison in 274. Besides being a prophet, Mani was also known to be a remarkable artist. ¶It is odd that Nezami named the artist in this poem Shapur, for Shapur was the name of the Persian king who sentenced Mani to death. Furthermore, the word مژده [mozhdah] means ‘good news.’ Did Nezami use this to refer to Mani, who was called بشیر [bashīr] ‘bringer of good news’ in Arabic? Whatever Nezami’s intention, the gist of these two lines seems to mean that Shapur was a painter in the style of Mani and a limner in the style of Euclid.	ز نــــقٌـاشی بـــه مــــــانـــی مــــژده داده بـــــــه رسامـــــی در اقـــلــــیدس گـشاده
3	[Shapur is] a fine calligrapher, a deft painter, From whose mind, even without a quill,  images spring up.	قلم زن چابــــکـــی صورتگـــری چُست که بی کلک از خیالش نقش مـــی رست
4	He had such skill in delicacy That he could with delicacy draw upon water. The word آبدستی [ābdastī], skill, is composed of two words: آب [āb], water, and دست[dast], hand. Nezami expands the  image of water, pivoting his wordplay upon the word for delicacy in each line.	چـنان در لــطف بـــــودش آبــــدســتــی کـــه بــــر آب از لـــطافت نـــقش بستی
5	He kissed the ground before the throne of Parviz; He uttered these words to hang one’s heart upon:	زمیــن بــوســـید پـــیش تـــخت پــرویز فــــرو گفت ایـــن ســـخـنهـای دلاویـــز
6	“Should the king of the world order me, I shall tell one percent of what I know.”	کـــه گـــر فـــــرمان دهـــد شاه جهانــم بـــگــویــم صـد یک از چیزی که دانم
7	Khosrow the brave king nodded, Saying, “Tell me warmly and don’t let the time grow cold.” Warm گرم [garm] implies speed and force. Perhaps the idea is to serve the words up warm before they grow cold. In other words: don’t beat around the bush.	اشـــارت کـــرد خســرو کــی جوانمرد بگو گرم و مــکـن هنــگامـــه را ســرد
8	The eloquent Shapur loosed his tongue; He shared his words with color and scent, Color and scent رنگ و بوی [rang-o būyī] mean ‘with splendor and beauty,’ that is, with eloquence and sparkle.	زبان بـگــشاد شــاپـــور سـخـنــگـــوی سخـن را بهره داد از رنگ و از بـوی
9	Saying: “As long as the world exists, may the world be a slave to you; May time, the years and the months, be favorable to you.	کــه تا گــتـیــست گیـــــتی بــنده بـــادت زمانــــه ســال و مــه فـرخــنده بـــادت
10	May youth be a companion to your beauty; May it ever be an aid to your desires.	جــمالــت را جـــوانی هــم نــفــس بـــاد هــمــیشــه بـر مــرادت دسـتــرس بـــاد
11	May he be aggrieved who does not wish you joy; May he be ruined who does not wish you wealth. The word آباد [ābād] means ‘a place of habitation,’ ‘filled with buildings’ and by extension ‘replenished’ and ‘a full treasury.’	غـمـــــین باد آنکه او شــادت نخواهــــد خـراب آنکـــس که آبــادت نـخواهـــــــد
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30	A fairy girl! A fairy surpassing the moon, Beneath a thin veil, graced with a crown,	پــــــــــري دختي پــــري بگذار ماهـــي بـــه زير مقـــنــعه صاحب کلاــهـــــــي
31	Lighting up the night, like moonlight, young, Dark-eyed like the Water of Life,	شـــب افـــروزي چو مهـتاب جوانــــــي سيه چــشمـــي چـــــو آب زنـــدگاـــــــي
32	Tall in stature like a silver date palm— Two Zangis atop the palm, picking dates!	کــــــشيده قامتي چـــون نــخل ســيمــين دو زنگي بــــر ســر نخلش رطب چـين
33	In bringing to mind that sweet-lipped one, Her mouth has become more full of sugar than a date.	ز بـــس کاورد يـــاد آن نــوش لـــب را دهان پــر آب شــــکـــر شـــد رطـب را
34	To the pearl, her teeth are as  light, Out shining mother of pearl by far.	بــــــــه مـرواريـــد دندانهاي چون نـور صـــــــدف را آب دنــــدان داده از دور
35	Two sugar lips like red gems glistening, Two locks like lassos given a twist!	دو شـــــکــــر چـــون عقـــيــق آب داده دو گـــيـــــسو چــــون کـمـــند تاب داده
36	Her hair’s drawn the strength from one’s heart, With that hair she’s drawn green over moist earth.	خـــم گــــــيسوش تــاب از دل کـــشـيده بـــــــــه گيـــسو سبزه را بر گل کـشيده
37	The brain feverish from her musk-scattering breeze! Yet her eyes heal the sick.	شــــــده گـــرم از نسیم مـــــشک بیزش دمــــاغ نـــرگس بـــیمار خـــــــیــــزش
38	A magician having made on herself her own eye, Her tongue having shut the evil eye with spells.	فسونگر کرده بـــــر خود چــشم خود را زبان بسته به افـــسون چــــشم بــــــد را
39	By a magic that makes the fire of the heart blaze, Her lips— a 100 tongues, each 100 pouring sugar.	بـــه سحری کاتـــش دلــهــا کـــند تــــیز لــبــش را صد زبان هر صد شکر ریز
40	Her lips are salty when bound in a smile, Though salt may not be sweet, hers is!	نمک دارد لــبــش درخــــنده پــــــیوست نـــمــک شیرین نباشد وان او هـــــــست
41	You’d say her nose is a silver blade, And that blade has cleft the apple in two.	تو گـــوئی بــیــنـیش تیغیست از سیــــــم که کـرد آن تیـغ ســیبی را به دو نــــیـــم
42	Of her moon-like face you’ll find a 100 pens notched. Since she is a moon, you’ll find no blemish on her face.	ز ماهــش صد قصب را رخـنه یـابــــی چو ماهـش رخـنه ای بر رخ نه یابـــــی
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