1. Your good fortune opened every ambiguous door,
And your certainty illuminated every dark affair.

2. You reaped the unripe fruits of victory
And triumph from the broken spears.

3. So destroy your enemies with your fortune before your army,
And rout them with your might before your conquering troops.

4. And protect with your wisdom every heedless flock,
And soothe with your calm every anxious eye.

5. For heads lie above the edges of your sword, awaiting
And sustenance flows between your palms, to be seized.

6. O guardian of the land for which enemies
Surrounded like bangles around a wrist.

7. O leader of the cavalry who raid at dawn
And shake the quarters of unbelief.

8. With every steed furnished for battle,
Tethered in place by strong tent pegs.

9. Some green like ink, others blond like wheat,
Or red like coral, dappled and spotty,

10. Or gray—when it shines in the dusk of night
It seems a rain cloud in gathered darkness.

11. Your swords cut every firm decree,
And your fortunes decide before any astrologer.

12. And when events are confused in their discourse,
The keen blade is the best translator.

13. How many famous killings credited to you
Whose oft-told tales revive the ancient days!

14. And what band recited your auguries
So you knew of them all that was unknown!

15. You have slave girls diving beneath the waves
Like hawks into the sea, plunging with purpose.

16. Every ship equipped for battle
Whose sails cling to the mast tops in the wind.

17. The sails billow white beneath wings
That you’d think, in the gloom, were black ravens.

18. Those diving slave girls, their dowry is
The enemy dead, and they are created from blood.

19. Their anklets are of twisted rope without
Any gold or silver links.

20. They came to aid Allah’s servants—
Exalted is His Majesty—and the people of Christ and Mary.

21. You launched them though water was at hand,
Slaying the foe, and that was the best ablution.

22. They carried men like battle-hungry lions
Steadfast against the piercing of lances.

23. With purpose they sailed the Sea of Suez,
Baring blades, without wavering.

24. Until their auspicious faces rose
White against the great darkness.

25. As if the rainbow were among their ranks
And those with braided locks were the arrows.

26. The tongue of victory cried out, articulating:
“O kin of the true religion, be resolute!”

27. How many banners of conquest waved over them!
How many realms were designated for the sword!

28. They left the hordes of the cross as if
They'd feasted on sealed wine mixed with blood.

29. Their ships belch them as if sleeping at sea,
Not with decay, but slumbering tranquilly,

30. Strewn as carrion upon the sandy shore,
A feast for whales, birds, or crawling creatures.

31. You called them wretched heretics, but were not surprised—
This outcome suits that fateful epoch.

32. From each withdrawer wearing trailing robes,
Hiding serpents under a viper’s skin.

33. Rolled up in a turban that revealed its core,
And wrapped in a fringed cloak.

34. Or bearing arms but unable to defend himself,
So he surrendered to you, admitting defeat.

35. You emptied the enemies’ lands of inhabitants
Destroying them, and filled Hell with their souls.

36. You gave them to drink the cup of misery
Mixed with viper venom and bitter aloe.

37. You kindled fire over water, raising flames,
And spilled blood over the sea, an ocean of gore.

38. As if the horizon cast waves atop it
With hands of wind, from fresh blood.

39. The edifice of unbelief was fortified in its foundations—
It would have never fallen but for God’s defense.

40. From a day when its power was swollen
To every passing, advancing day.

41. He revived the peninsula after the tightness of its bonds,
And protected the Muslims trapped within.

42. The first fruits of your opening successes
Unveiled themselves before you after long concealment.

43. The footfalls of your mounted warriors, when ghosts whisper to them,
From a restless soul on earth or an anxious one.

44. And from the stranger of fate whose traces
Are obscured between ruins and holy Zamzam.

45. Rejoice in it, beautiful work, and anticipate
Even greater feats to come.

46. God, like Joseph, gathered the far reaches of the world
And doubled the yields, while dearth gaped.

47. Calm spirits when events are grave,
Smiling at the threatening circumstance.

48. He follows through with resolute winds, not procrastinating,
And observes opinions after their disarray.

49. Thus you see him, in days of vigor, the last to doubt,
And in days of resolve, the first to advance.

50. You are from a noble Sa’dian line
That attained glory—so excellent is their attainment.

51. Critics, though none can criticize them,
And benefactors, though none can do them good.

52. Passionate to attain the highest aspirations, enamored
With the prime of virtues, immersed in generosity.

53. Thus you find him in days of steely resolve
And days of pardoning the offenses of a criminal.

54. I swear by your munificence—and it is the loftiest of oaths—
And by the glory of your kingdom—the sublimest of all sworn.

55. The remembrance of youthful days after their passing
Is naught, nor riches for the destitute pauper.

56. I prize an instant gazing on your face
More precious than my praise spoken from my mouth.

57. My lord, take it as an unblemished Arabian gift
Adorned with a necklace of your sublime traits.

58. When I set out to praise you, it became clear
How necessary it is to thank the Bestower.

59. If an aging Zuhair had composed the likes of this,
Age wears on but his remembrance does not fade.

60. Or if Antara had passed by them, he would not say
“Have the poets who came before passed away?”