Did the heavens submit?

Abraham Ibn Ezra

First Half of the 12th Century

Did the heavens submit to an earthling,

Or did the soil-bound reach the heights?

A mortal drew near the angels and was

Privy to their council and they were unaware;

It was the esteemed Samuel, scion of the wise;

Without him they [the wise] are bellowing oxen;

He is the Lord’s staff, a prodigy and model

For his generation, while the staves of idolaters are felled;

Gates of wisdom open effortlessly with

His mouth, but without him they labor in vain;

He guides the wayfarer to his

Destination, but without him they stray like sheep;

O men, enter the garden of Eden and touch

The tree of knowledge and the tree of life and do not fear.

Those who hasten to enter will find his insights a source

Of strength, but without him there is calamity.

You who are hungry come and feed on his grain;

Fill up with rich bread until you have had enough.

You who are thirsty, draw from the well of his

Intellect flowing in all directions.

Justice comes from his lips and his truthful breath

Kills the wicked, and he remains innocent.

Men content by nature rejoice in him,

While the mournful at the mere mention of his name take pleasure.

His generosity is gracious and benefits friends

Afflicted by Time, and I among them much sinned against.

Why has Time made my flesh a target

And directed its bow and arrows to pierce me?

The years of famine arrived in place of the days

Of plenty and they were devoured like ears of grain.

I wander afar because of the forces arrayed against me;

They make camp about my heart and do not budge;

Furiously, they wage war upon me, and I timidly retreat

Lest I die before they do.

They take up the ax in anger to torture me;

They set fire to my home and its guardians tremble.

My children weep when I am forced to take the rugged road;

I am a stranger whose name and city are forgotten.

My oppressors are as numerous as the sea and

Can its waters overcome me and I not drown?

Alas, my eyes are torrents of tears

Descending on my heart unable to quench its flame.

My family is disabled and I am ignorant of what lies ahead;

I ask others who have suffered—

I am told there is no record or report

Of anyone having endured as much.

I can forgive the sins that Time commits

If only it would keep the promise it made

To be gracious and permit me to see the face

Of the Rabbi [Samuel], then would I rejoice as would Time itself.

[Rabbi], be not offended by my limited gifts of speech;

My ears tremble from fear and my eyes grow dim.

What can I do, being powerless?

I am a vagabond, therefore my words stray.

Translated by Leon J. Weinberger.

Notes

Words in brackets appear in the original translation.

Credits

Abraham Ibn Ezra, “Tribute to Samuel Ibn Jāmi‘,” from Twilight of a Golden Age: Selected Poems of Abraham Ibn Ezra, ed. and trans. Leon J. Weinberger (Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 1997), 78–79. Used with permission of the publisher.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 3: Encountering Christianity and Islam.