أدام الله مولانا العليا

أدام الله مولانا العليا

يُحاكي الزُّهر والزَّهر الْجنيا

يُحاكي الزُّهر والزَّهر الْجنيا

May God preserve our exalted lord,

May Allah perpetuate our noble master

May God preserve our exalted master,

Who rivals the shining stars and freshly gathered blossoms,

Who emulates the flowers and the lovely blossoms

Who resembles the shining stars and the freshly gathered flowers,

ذكي الْخُلق زين الْخَلق يحي الن

ذكي الْخُلق زين الْخَلق يحي الن

واظر والْخواطر حيث حيا

واظر والْخواطر حيث حيا

Fine in character, fair in form, he revives the

Wise in character, beauty of creation, reviver of faith

Pure of character, the adornment of creation, who revives the

eyes and minds wherever he offers greetings.

And thoughts wherever life continues

Eyes and minds wherever he brings life,

وحلاه الإله بكل فضل

وحلاه الإله بكل فضل

ولا زال العَلاء له نَجِيا

ولا زال العَلاء له نَجِيا

And God has adorned him with every excellence;

And Allah has granted him every virtue

And God has adorned him with every virtue,

May loftiness never cease to be his confidant.

And the high-minded are still loyal to him

And eminence remains his intimate companion.

أمولانا الذي خفظ الثريا

أمولانا الذي خفظ الثريا

وبان به العُلا بشرا سويا

وبان به العُلا بشرا سويا

O our lord, who has humbled the Pleiades,

Our master who protected the fresh flowers

O our master, who has humbled the Pleiades,

And through whom loftiness appeared as a perfectly formed man,

And through him the most high was manifested in good shape

And through whom greatness has manifested as a perfect human being.

لقد أضنت مَحبتك الْمزايا

لقد أضنت مَحبتك الْمزايا

كما أضنى الْهوى غيلان ميا

كما أضنى الْهوى غيلان ميا

Love for you has indeed worn the virtues down,

Indeed your love has made me lean

The love for you has exhausted all virtues,

As passion for Mayy wore Ghaylan down.

As passion made the creeping plants lean

Just as passion once exhausted Ghaylan for Mayya.

حبارك لا تكدرها دلاء

حبارك لا تكدرها دلاء

إذا ما كدرت يوما ركيا

إذا ما كدرت يوما ركيا

Your seas are not muddied by buckets,

Your seas have no turbulence

Your seas cannot be muddied by the drawing of buckets,

Even when they muddy wells one day.

If one day they become turbulent

Even when one day they muddy a shallow well.

أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَبُوكَ مَنْ قَدْ

أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَبُوكَ مَنْ قَدْ

أَتَاهُ رَبُّهُ مُلْكاً عَلِيَّا

أَتَاهُ رَبُّهُ مُلْكاً عَلِيَّا

O Commander of the Faithful, your father is the one

The Commander of the Faithful your father who

The Commander of the Faithful, your father, is he to whom

Whose Lord has granted him a lofty kingdom.

His Lord has given him the most high kingdom

His Lord has granted a supreme kingdom,

وَجَدُّكَ خَيْرُ خَلْقِ اللهِ طُرّاً

وَجَدُّكَ خَيْرُ خَلْقِ اللهِ طُرّاً

بِحَسْبِكَ أَنْ تَكُونَ لَهُ سَمِيَّا

بِحَسْبِكَ أَنْ تَكُونَ لَهُ سَمِيَّا

And your forefather is the best of all God's creation;

And your grandfather the best of Allah's creation

And your ancestor is the very best of all God's creation;

It is enough for you to be his namesake.

It suffices you to be his namesake

It is sufficient honor for you to be his namesake.

فَكَيْفَ وَقَدْ عَكَفْتَ عَلَى هُدَاهُ

فَكَيْفَ وَقَدْ عَكَفْتَ عَلَى هُدَاهُ

وَصِرْتَ بِكَنْزِ سُنَّتِهِ غَنِيَّا

وَصِرْتَ بِكَنْزِ سُنَّتِهِ غَنِيَّا

How much more, then, when you have devoted yourself to his guidance,

So how could it be and you have focused on his guidance

So how much more, when you have devoted yourself to his guidance,

And grown rich through the treasure of his tradition,

And you became rich through the treasure of his way

And become enriched by the treasure of his tradition,

وَجَنَّبْتَ الْمَثَالِثَ وَالْمَثَانِي

وَجَنَّبْتَ الْمَثَالِثَ وَالْمَثَانِي

وَصَيَّرْتَ الْهَوَى يَهْوِي هَوِيَّا

وَصَيَّرْتَ الْهَوَى يَهْوِي هَوِيَّا

And shunned the lute's third and second strings,

And avoided trivialities and vain things

And you have cast aside the strings of lutes,

And made desire plummet headlong.

And made desire fall down deeply in love

And caused vain desire to plummet into the abyss.

وَبَيْنَ يَدَيْ خِطَابِكَ يَا مَلاَذِي

وَبَيْنَ يَدَيْ خِطَابِكَ يَا مَلاَذِي

أَبُوحُ بِمَا غَدَوْتَ بِهِ شَجِيَّا

أَبُوحُ بِمَا غَدَوْتَ بِهِ شَجِيَّا

And before addressing you, O my refuge,

And in front of your speech, my refuge

And before addressing you, O my refuge,

I disclose what has made you sorrowful.

I confess what has made me ardent

I reveal the sorrows that have left me so grieved;

بِعَادُكَ يَا مُحَمَّدُ وَهْوَ سُمٌّ

بِعَادُكَ يَا مُحَمَّدُ وَهْوَ سُمٌّ

أَعَانَ الْبَثَّ وَالشَّكْوَى عَلَيَّا

أَعَانَ الْبَثَّ وَالشَّكْوَى عَلَيَّا

Your absence, O Muhammad—poison that it is—

Your absence, O Mohammad, is deadly poison

Being far from you, O Muhammad, is a deadly poison,

Has helped anguish and lament assail me.

Helping complaint and weeping against me

That has aided my grief and complaints against me,

وَنَارُ الشَّوْقِ وَهْيَ أَحَرُّ نَارٍ

وَنَارُ الشَّوْقِ وَهْيَ أَحَرُّ نَارٍ

رَأَتْ قَلْبِي بِهَا أَوْلَى صُلِيَّا

رَأَتْ قَلْبِي بِهَا أَوْلَى صُلِيَّا

And the fire of longing—the hottest fire—

And the fire of passion, which is the hottest fire

And the fire of longing—which is the hottest of all fires—

Has deemed my heart most deserving of burning within it.

Saw my heart most worthy of being roasted

Has deemed my heart the most deserving to burn within it.

فِرَاقُكَ صَيَّرَ الْبَيْضَاءَ سَوْدَا

فِرَاقُكَ صَيَّرَ الْبَيْضَاءَ سَوْدَا

لِأَنَّكَ كُنْتَ كَوْكَبَهَا السَّنِيَّا

لِأَنَّكَ كُنْتَ كَوْكَبَهَا السَّنِيَّا

Your parting turned the white city black,

Your departure made the white land black

Separation from you has turned the white city black,

Because you were its radiant star.

Because you were its shining star

Because you were its most brilliant star.

أَمَا شَاقَتْكَ فَاسُفَقَبْلُ شَاقَتْ

أَمَا شَاقَتْكَ فَاسُفَقَبْلُ شَاقَتْ

لَيَالِي السَّفْحِ مَوْلاَنَا الرَّضِيَّا

لَيَالِي السَّفْحِ مَوْلاَنَا الرَّضِيَّا

Has Fez not stirred your longing? For longing was stirred before

Has your separation made the slopes lean before?

Does Fes not fill you with longing? For in the past, it filled with longing

By the hillside nights in our worthy lord.

The nights of the foothill, our pleased master

The nights of the foothills, our agreeable master.

لَعَلَّ أَبَاكَ يَنْبُوعَ الْمَعَالِي

لَعَلَّ أَبَاكَ يَنْبُوعَ الْمَعَالِي

مُعِيدُ رَمِيمِ مَيْتِ الْفَخْرِ حَيَّا

مُعِيدُ رَمِيمِ مَيْتِ الْفَخْرِ حَيَّا

Perhaps your father, the fountain of exalted virtues,

Perhaps your father, the fountain of glories

Perhaps your father, the fountain of eminences,

Who restores dead glory's mouldering remains to life,

Will revive the corpse of lost pride alive

Who restores the decayed bones of dead glory back to life,

يَكُونُ بِكُمْ عَلَى فَاسٍ سَخِيّاً

يَكُونُ بِكُمْ عَلَى فَاسٍ سَخِيّاً

كَمَا كَانَ الزَّمَانُ بِهِ سَخِيَّا

كَمَا كَانَ الزَّمَانُ بِهِ سَخِيَّا

Will be generous to Fez through you,

To be with you in Fez generous again

Will be generous in bestowing you upon Fes,

As Time was generous with him.

As time was generous with him before

Just as time has been generous with him,

يَرُدُّ لِمَطْلِعِ الْخُلَفَاءِ مِنْكُمْ

يَرُدُّ لِمَطْلِعِ الْخُلَفَاءِ مِنْكُمْ

هِلاَلَ الْفَضْلِ مُلْتَاحاً بَهِيَّا

هِلاَلَ الْفَضْلِ مُلْتَاحاً بَهِيَّا

He will restore to the rising-place of caliphs from among you

To bring back for the Caliphate sunrise from you

Returning to the horizon of the caliphs from among you

The crescent of excellence, gleaming and splendid.

The crescent of superiority smiling beautifully

The crescent of virtue, radiant and magnificent,

فَيَسْرَحُ مِنْكَ غَيْهَبُنَا فَنَلْقَى

فَيَسْرَحُ مِنْكَ غَيْهَبُنَا فَنَلْقَى

بِكَ الآمَالَ زَاهِرَةَ الْمُحَيَّا

بِكَ الآمَالَ زَاهِرَةَ الْمُحَيَّا

Then our darkness will flee from you, and we shall find

So our anxiety may be relieved by you and we find

So that our darkness will be driven away by you, and we shall find

Through you, our hopes with radiant faces.

Through you thriving hopes

In you our hopes, with brightly glowing faces.