كانَ المُغَنّونَ لَهُم خَزرَجٌ

كانَ المُغَنّونَ لَهُم خَزرَجٌ

فَصارَ داوُودُ لَنا خَزرَجا

فَصارَ داوُودُ لَنا خَزرَجا

The singers once had Khazraj;

The singers once had Khazraj

The singers of old laid claim to Khazraj,

Then Dawud became our Khazraj.

But David became Khazraj for us

And now Dawud has become a Khazraj for us.

إِن أَنشَدَ الشِعرَ زَوى وَجهَهُ

إِن أَنشَدَ الشِعرَ زَوى وَجهَهُ

وَإِن بَقي في صَدرِهِ كَرَّجا

وَإِن بَقي في صَدرِهِ كَرَّجا

If he recites poetry, he contorts his face;

When he recites poetry, his face lights up

When he recites poetry, he contorts his face,

And if it stays within his breast, he prances.

And when it remains in his heart, it stirs

And if it lingers in his chest, it cackles like a hen.

فَنَحنُ لا نَسطيعُ تَفسيرَهُ

فَنَحنُ لا نَسطيعُ تَفسيرَهُ

أَفلَجَنا داوُدُ أَو ثَلَّجا

أَفلَجَنا داوُدُ أَو ثَلَّجا

So we cannot make sense of him—

We cannot comprehend him

We are unable to interpret his utterance—

Dawud has paralyzed us, or frozen us.

Did David unlock us or pierce through us?

Has Dawud struck us with palsy, or frozen us to ice?

مُهَذَّبُ الأَعمامِ مِن كَسكَرٍ

مُهَذَّبُ الأَعمامِ مِن كَسكَرٍ

وَماجِدُ الأَخوالِ مِن تَوَّجا

وَماجِدُ الأَخوالِ مِن تَوَّجا

With well-bred paternal uncles from Kaskar,

Well-groomed beards from Kaskar

Of refined paternal lineage from the lands of Kaskar,

And noble maternal uncles from Tawwaj.

And glorious uncles from Tawwaja

And of noble maternal uncles from the district of Tawwaj.