قل لمن يطلب الحجر

هل أتى العلم والنظر

Say to whoever seeks the Stone:

Has he attained knowledge and insight?

ليس والله ماؤنا

من دم لا ولا شعر

By God, our water is not

from blood—no, nor from hair.

لا ولا البيض والمَنى

لا ولا البول والقذر

No, nor from eggs and semen,

no, nor from urine and filth,

لا ولا سائر المعا

دن أعني بها المَدَر

no, nor from any other minerals—

by which I mean clay.

لا ولانابت ولا

حيوان وذي ثمر

No, nor from a growing plant, nor

an animal, or anything bearing fruit.

لا ولا ملحة العقا

ب التي شانها الكدر

No, nor from the eagle's salt,

which murkiness has marred.

فاطلبوا الملح باجتها

د ولو كان في سقر

So seek the salt diligently,

even if it lies in Saqar.

وانخلوه فياله

إن ظفرتم به ظفر

And sift it—oh, what a

triumph, if you obtain it!

وإذا ما فهمتم

وتحققتم الخبر

And when you have understood

and verified the account,

فهو شمس النهار لا

شك فيها ولا أشر

it is the sun of day—there is no

doubt about it, nor vainglory.

وهو بدر الدجى إذا

لم يشب كنهه كدر

And it is the full moon of darkness, when

no murkiness has tainted its essence.

يشبه الزعفران في ال

لون والصمغ في الشجر

It resembles saffron in

color, and gum in trees.

أحسنوا الخلط بعده

قد فهمتم بلا ضجر

Blend it well thereafter;

you have understood, without weariness.

سكنّوا الجمع قبة

من زجاج بلا بصر

House the mixture in a dome

of glass, without sight.

قد حوت خير عنصر

حجر ليس بالحجر

It has enclosed the finest element:

a stone that is not a stone.

صخرة العلم هذه

وهو كنّ لمن خبر

This is the rock of the science,

and it is a shelter for whoever has knowledge.

وهو البيت بيتهم

فافهموا يا أولي النظر

And it is the house—their house;

so understand, O possessors of insight.

وهو الرأس عندهم

في البرابي لمن نظر

And it is the head, in their view,

in the temples, for whoever looks.

وهو مغنيسياهم

واسمه صورة الصور

And it is their magnesia,

and its name is the form of forms.

وهو البيض عندهم

وبه خالد خبر

And it is the eggs, in their view,

and Khalid was versed in it.

وهو تنين رمزهم

وبه زوسم شهر

And it is the dragon of their symbolism,

and through it Zosim became renowned.

وهو برباة هرمس

ويسمى بذي الغير

And it is the temple of Hermes,

and it is called the possessor of changes.

وهو سبع بحفرة

حين مرقونس احتضر

And it is a beast of prey in a pit,

when Marqunus lay dying.

وادرسوا الكتب كتبهم

إنما أحسنوا النظر

And study the books—their books;

only examine them well.

فجميع الذي تريد

دونه فهو مستطر

For everything that you desire—

record it, for it stands written.

مثلكم كنت أولاً

أمزح الصفو بالكدر

At first I was like you,

mixing clarity with murkiness,

وأرى كل ناقص

كاملاً من عمى البصر

and seeing every incomplete thing

as complete, through blindness of sight.

لم ازل هكذا إلى

أن بدا الحق واشتهر

I remained thus until

the truth appeared and became known.

فإذا الأمر واحد

ليس شيء سوى الحجر

Then, behold, the matter was one:

nothing but the Stone.

صمغة الشمس هذه

جسد الصمغة القمر

This is the gum of the sun;

the body of the gum is the moon.

يشبه الشمع ذوبه

وإذا سال كالمطر

Its melt resembles wax,

and when it flows, it is like rain.

وإذا طال كالسحا

ب والكنار إن قطر

And when it lengthens, it is like clouds,

and like fire if it drips.

هذه تحفة إلي

ك فخذها ولا وزر

This is a gift to

you; so take it, with no guilt.

وتدبّر سطورها

فبها الحق مستطر

And ponder its lines,

for in them the truth is written.

أجمل القول قد بدا

أجمل السرّ قد ظهر

The fairest saying has appeared;

the fairest secret has emerged.

وافصد المعدن الكري

م مرامي ذوي النظر

And bleed the noble mineral—

the aims of those with insight.