1. يا رفاعي وقعت في أبوابك

    فدارك عبدا يلوذ ببابك

    O Rifa‘i, I have fallen at your gates.

    So rescue a servant seeking refuge at your gate.

  2. يا رفاعي يا غوث كل البرايا

    لا تضيع طفلا جميل الرجابك

    O Rifa‘i, O succor of all created beings,

    Do not forsake a child whose hope in you is fair.

  3. سيدي سيدي وحاشاك ترضى

    قطعتي بعد وصلتي بجنابك

    My master, my master—far be it from you to consent

    To my severance after my union with your presence.

  4. وأبي الله ان يهان محب

    ربط القلب في طويل طنابك

    And God would not allow a lover to be humiliated

    Who bound his heart to your long tent-rope.

  5. انت انت الذي تبدت جهارا

    يد روح الوجود بعد خطابك

    You, you are the one for whom there appeared openly

    The hand of the spirit of existence after your address.

  6. وبها سدت كل قطب وشيخ

    ومشوا للنوال حول ركابك

    And through it you became lord over every spiritual pole and shaykh,

    And they walked seeking bounty around your stirrup.

  7. وبهاكم جذبت نفحة قدس

    هبطت بالدجى الى محرابك

    And through it, how many a holy breath you drew

    That descended in the darkness to your prayer niche.

  8. وبها قد اخذت باليمين حقا

    من يد المصطفى كريم كتابك

    And through it you truly received in your right hand

    From the Chosen One’s hand, your noble writ.

  9. وبها صرت في المقام عروسا

    ينجلي الفيضر تحت طرز نقابك

    And through it you became a bride in that station;

    The outpouring shines beneath your veil’s embroidery.

  10. وبها كم قلبت ثابت قلب

    فتوى قلبه على أبوابك

    And through it, how many a man steadfast of heart you turned,

    So his heart perished at your gates.

  11. وبها كم شققت قلب عدو

    طرقته يد القضا بحرابك

    And through it, how many an enemy’s heart you split;

    The hand of fate struck it with your spears.

  12. وبها كم قطعت ظهر لئيم

    أخذته الخيول تحت السنابك

    And through it, how many a vile man’s back you broke;

    The horses seized him beneath their hooves.

  13. وبها كم شملت عبدا فقيرا

    بالغنى فاكتفى بعذب شرابك

    And through it, how many a poor servant you enfolded

    With wealth, so he was content with your sweet draught.

  14. وبها صرت للائمة غوثا

    وصدور الجميع من حجابك

    And through it you became the imams’ succor,

    And the leaders of them all are among your doorkeepers.

  15. وبها صرت كنز علم خفي

    ولامر ظهرت تحت ثيابك

    And through it you became a treasure of hidden knowledge,

    And for a purpose you appeared beneath your robes.

  16. وبها صرت للعوالم غيثا

    وجرى الرشد من جليل سحابك

    And through it you became rain for the worlds,

    And right guidance flowed from your majestic cloud.

  17. وبها والذي اعزك اضحت

    سادة العارفين من طلابك

    And through it—by Him who exalted you—now rank

    The masters of the knowers among your pupils.

  18. وبها والذي اطصفاك اليها

    ما نحا الطالبون غير رحابك

    And through it—by Him who chose you for it—

    The seekers have sought no precincts other than yours.

  19. انت غوث الوجود مفتاح كنز ال

    جود والخير سح من ميزابك

    You are existence’s succor, the key to the treasure of

    Generosity; and goodness poured from your waterspout.

  20. انت باب الرسول من غير شك

    واتينا نرجو العطا من بابك

    You are the Messenger’s gate, without doubt,

    And we came, hoping for bounty from your gate.

  21. انت ان قام للأكابر شأن

    فمدى الدهر شأن بيتك حابك

    As for you, if the great have attained eminence,

    Then your house’s standing is [firmly knit?] throughout time.

  22. انت ان عدت الرجال أمام

    برحاب التفويض انزلت مابك

    You, when the men are counted, are foremost;

    In surrender’s courts you established your abode.

  23. انت ان ثارت الاعادي بحرب

    يوم كرب احرقتهم بشهابك

    You—if the enemies rose up in war—

    On a day of distress, burned them with your meteor.

  24. انت ان صح للسوى ترك دنيا

    كان خلع الاكوان من آدابك

    You—if others truly renounced the world—

    Had the casting off of all created realms among your disciplines.

  25. انت مولى ائمة القوم طرا

    وعن الغير صح صدق اتقلابك

    You are master of all the fellowship’s imams,

    And your sincere turning away from all else is established.

  26. انت فرد الرجال في كل عصر

    بعدك الوارثون من نوابك

    You are the peerless one among men in every age;

    After you, the inheritors are among your deputies.

  27. أنت ركن القبول والكل يدري

    ان لله كل ذهابك

    You are the pillar of acceptance, and everyone knows

    That all your journeying is for God.

  28. انت شيخ ما خيب الله يوما

    ما اليه رفعت من آرابك

    You are a shaykh; God has never once disappointed

    Any wishes of yours that you raised to Him.

  29. انت حصن الملهوف والباذل المع

    روف والعاجزون من احزابك

    You are the fortress of the distressed and the bestower of

    Kindness; and the helpless are among your followers.

  30. وانا عبدك الذي باعتقاد

    علقت راحتاه في أثوابك

    And I am your servant, who with faith

    Has clung with both palms to your garments.

  31. فتحرك بهمة واغثني

    وتذكر تشرفي بانتسابك

    So act with spiritual resolve and come to my aid,

    And remember my honor through affiliation with you.

  32. والفت الطرف لي فان عيوني

    تستعد التبشير من نجابك

    And turn your gaze toward me, for my eyes

    Prepare for glad tidings from your courier.

  33. رسل الروح منك في الملك طافت

    بصنوف العطا الى احبابك

    Messengers of the spirit from you have roamed the realm,

    With many kinds of bounty, toward your loved ones.

  34. رضى الله عنك دهرا فإني

    يا رفاعي وقعت في اعتباك

    May God be pleased with you for all time, for I

    Have fallen, O Rifa‘i, at your thresholds.