1. الأَكرَمونَ طَوالَ الدَهرِ إِن نُسِبوا

    والمُجتَدون إِذا لا يُجتَدى أَحَدُ

    The noblest throughout time, when their lineage is traced,

    and those sought for bounty when no one else is sought.

  2. والمانِعونَ فَلا يُسطاعُ ما مَنَعوا

    والمُنجِزونَ لما قالوا إِذا وَعَدوا

    And the protectors—what they guard cannot be seized,

    and those who fulfill their word whenever they promise.

  3. والقائِلونَ بِفَصلِ القَولِ إِن نَطَقوا

    عِندَ العَزائِمِ والموفونَ إِن عَهِدوا

    And those who utter decisive words whenever they speak

    on weighty matters, and keep faith whenever they pledge.

  4. مَن تُمسِ أَفعالُهُ عاراً فَإِنَّهُمُ

    قَومٌ إِذا ذُكِرَت أَفعالُهُم حُمِدوا

    Though some men's deeds may prove disgraceful, these are

    a people praised whenever their deeds are recalled.

  5. قَومٌ إِذا انتَسَبوا أَلفَيتَ مَجدَهُمُ

    مِن أَوَّلِ الدَهرِ حَتّى يَنفَدَ الأَمَدُ

    A people whose glory, when they trace their descent, you find

    stretching from time's beginning until time itself runs out.

  6. إِذا قُرَيشٌ تَسامَت كانَ بَيتُهُمُ

    مِنها إِلَيهِ يَصيرُ المَجدُ والعَدَدُ

    When Quraysh vies for eminence, theirs is the house

    among them to which glory and strength in numbers accrue.

  7. لا يَبلُغُ الناسُ ما فيهِم إِذا ذُكِروا

    مِل مَجدِ إِن أَجحَفوا في المَجدِ أَو قَصَدوا

    People cannot encompass what they possess when they are recalled

    of glory, whether they praise it extravagantly or with restraint.

  8. هُم خَيرُ سُكّانِ هَذي الأَرضِ نَعلَمُهُم

    لَو كانَ يُخبِرُ عَن سُكّانِهِ البَلَدُ

    They are, we know, this earth's finest inhabitants—

    were the land to speak of its inhabitants.

  9. يَبقى التُّقى والغِنى في الناسِ ما عَمِروا

    وَيُفقَدانِ جَميعاً إِن هُمُ فُقِدوا

    Piety and prosperity remain among people as long as they live,

    and both are lost together if they themselves are lost.

  10. وَما مَدَحتُ سِوى عَبدِ العَزيزِ وَما

    عِندي لِحيٍّ سِوى عَبدِ العَزيزِ يَدُ

    I have praised none but Abd al-Aziz, nor

    am I beholden to any living man but Abd al-Aziz.

  11. إِذا اجتَهَدتُ ليُحصي مَجدَهُم مدحي

    لَم أعشُر المَجدَ مِنهُم حينَ أجتَهِدُ

    When I strive for my praise to recount their glory,

    I do not reach a tenth of their glory, however hard I strive.

  12. إِنّي رَأَيت ابنَ لَيلى وَهوَ مُصطَنَعٌ

    موَفَّقاً أَمرُهُ حَيثُ انتَوى رَشَدُ

    Indeed, I have seen Ibn Layla, a favored man,

    granted success, his course sound wherever he heads.

  13. أَقامَ بِالناسِ لَمّا أَن نَبا بِهِمُ

    دونَ الإِقامَةِ غَورُ الأَرضِ والنجدُ

    He brought the people stability when they were spurned,

    denied a dwelling by the earth's lowlands and uplands.

  14. والمُجتدي مُوقِنٌ أَن لَيسَ مُخلِفَهُ

    سَيبُ ابنِ لَيلى الَّذي يَنوي وَيَعتَمِدُ

    And the seeker of bounty is certain it will not fail him—

    the bounty of Ibn Layla, whom he seeks and relies upon.

  15. لَو كانَ يَنقُصُ ماءَ النيلِ نائِلُهُ

    أَمسَى وَقَد حانَ مِن جَمَّاتِهِ نَفَدُ

    If his bounty could diminish the waters of the Nile,

    by evening its brimming pools would be about to run dry.

  16. يَبني عَلى مَجدِ آباءٍ لَهُ سَلَفوا

    يَنمى لِمَن وَلَدوا المَهدُ الَّذي مَهَدوا

    He builds upon the glory of forefathers who preceded him;

    the foundation they laid grows for those they begot.