1. All pride and glory lead to you,
So spend the nights and days renewing your glory.

2. Glory was yours, then you embraced it,
And your son builds from it the most noble seat.

3. Three days, no more, make up this life,
No more than yesterday, today and tomorrow.

4. The full moon is but one, though it
Disappears to give renewed radiance.

5. Think not the moons are many in number,
In truth, just one moon rising again.

6. Goodness deserves the finest praise, though others are generous,
That's just natural bounty, not calculated giving.

7. The essence flows through him, sweetening his being,
Seeking him ardently after seeking.

8. Had they concealed their lineage, their faces would still reveal them,
Actions and deeds bear witness in every gathering.

9. Though bounty comes from the clouds, in truth it springs
From the sea - or so people claim.

10. The guide leads the tribe though dark is the night,
He finds direction by the stars that guide.

11. O most patient lord without submissiveness,
O most generous giver making no appointments.

12. You endured fate's caprice like a raging camel,
And so tamed it though it wasn't shackled.

13. You taught it patience so it would bend
When attempting anything you support.

14. You burdened it with favors and kindnesses
So it walks the gait of one fettered.

15. Days and nights submitted to you, so take
Whichever you wish and attain your goal,

16. With seven slave girls of Zawāwah married
To seven Romans enjoying your bounty.

17. Without you, treacherous Aphamia would not be safe,
Since she saw others like her meet their demise.

18. You saved a fortress, its summits
Wearing garments of cloud and sheathed in them.

19. Alone on the Muslim border, as though
Its mouth holds back the talons of screaming vultures,

20. Green as the sea, yet its greenness
Not from water but steel bared.

21. As if the black, silent camels atop its dust
Were rising grey hairs amidst deep blackness.

22. Indian cane is but scribbling
Of cane in the hands of one with sleeves rolled up.

23. When will I be in a caravan, stopping somewhere
Your noble figure unifies with most sublime?

24. On elegant camels, as though their litter's poles
When erected by riders are the bed'ssupports.

25. Watching standards of departure with gazes
Lined with the night's kohl when it's complete.

26. Their hooves made the land and expanse bloody,
Raining down silver coins, all scattered about.

27. In the sky they appeared like textured garments,
If they showed a blemish, you'd snatch at it by hand.

28. You'd think them folds of woven cloth, but if
The sun shone on them it ran gold embroidery atop.

29. Within its rooms the stars spend the night
Like scattered pearls down each and every alley.

30. Gazelles hoped to reach their shadows on the water,
Nearly grasping them in hand, so close they descended.

31. Their necks reached the sky itself, swaying just a little
Between eagles and alighted ducks.

32. They were reminded of plentiful watering places
From your noble line, but got just a sip.

33. For guests fires ignited in every valley and trail,
Their fuel provided by your hospitality.

34. With a cleft where the wings bow down long in worship
As the devout priest bows down to the earth.

35. If his daughters raised a bier therein
They would die without hearing a chanter.

36. Tempests hide their winds in its midst,
Had they blown on plants, none would stand straight.

37. The two poles have not settled in confusion,
That was but a pause before decay.

38. They passed as the chorus sang, driven on
Like ostriches chased away.

39. They avoid trampling seedlings as though
Stepping with the head of grief on hunted prey.

40. After darkness they startle away from every stream,
Like a coward fleeing a drawn sword.

41. Long has it been since those who came for its water,
Neglected until like a severed limb.

42. To such barrenness that it seems
Sins of the swollen bellied drunk its fill.

43. I see glory as a sword and poetry its sheath,
Without the sheath, a sword is never worn.

44. Best for bearing swords are sheaths
Adorned with the finest preserved verse.

45. Yet tribes avert their faces before meeting,
Seeking imperfect, patch-worked leather.

46. Rebels, when disaster befalls their homes,
Appoint horsemen for it at every watchtower.

47. Obeying the command of a rebel as though
He holds sway over fate, wronging and trespassing.

48. When thunder rumbles, alarming his herd,
He runs to it with his umbrella inclined.

49. This plain now knows it's your heritage
So let it glory in that and grow forever.

50. If you wish, claim that those upon its back
Are your servants - and call your God as witness.

51. Thoughts of you rekindle longing in every soul,
Even if locked in the heart of a deaf mute.