1. مولاي يهنك هذا الفتحُ مُبتكرا

    من غير جيش ولاسيف به شُهرا

    My lord, may this early victory bring you joy,

    Without an army or a sword drawn for it.

  2. لا بل بجيشين جيش الصبر يصحبه

    جيشٌ من السّعد لا ينفكّ مُنتصرا

    No—rather, with two armies: patience's army, accompanied by

    An army of good fortune that never ceases to prevail.

  3. قاد العدى لك من سهل ومن جبل

    بأسرهم من أقاصي أرضهم أسرا

    It brought your foes to you from plain and mountain,

    All of them, captives from the farthest reaches of their land.

  4. هُم أذعنوا طاعة من خوفهم وأتى

    كلٌّ إليك بثوب الذُّلّ مُتّزرا

    They submitted obediently out of fear, and came—

    Each to you, girded in the garment of abasement.

  5. عفوت عنهم جميعا إذا أتوك ولا

    عفوٌ على مثل ذنب منهمُ صدرا

    You pardoned them all when they came to you, though no

    Pardon is given for such a sin as they committed.

  6. لكن سجيّةُ نفس منك قد كرُمت

    لتغنم الشّكر والمحظوظ من شكرا

    But your soul's nature has proved noble,

    So that you may reap gratitude; fortunate is whoever gives thanks.

  7. وفر ثائرُهم يطوي الفلاة ولو

    أتاك مُؤتمنا لم يرتقب ضررا

    And their rebel fled across the desert; yet had he

    Come to you in trust, he would have expected no harm.

  8. فالله أعطاك أخلاقا مُقدّسة

    وحسن صبر على الأحداث مُنتصرا

    For God has given you hallowed virtues,

    And noble patience through calamities, as you prevail.

  9. جاؤُوا ولم يقنعوا بالملك ثم رضوا

    بغنمهم من فرار منك مُستترا

    They came, not content with dominion, then were content

    With what they gained by fleeing you in secret.

  10. تحصنوا منك في الأجبال من حذر

    ولا يُلامُ امرُؤٌ من ضغيم حذرا

    They fortified themselves against you in the mountains, out of fear,

    And no man is blamed for being wary of a lion.

  11. فلم تُجهز لهم جيشا يُحاربُهم

    إذا جمعهم جمعُ تكسير وإن كثرا

    So you did not muster an army to fight them,

    When their host is a “broken plural,” however numerous.

  12. ليسوا بكفء لتجهيز الجيوش لهم

    لكن جلاصٌ لهم كفءٌ وإن قصرا

    They are not worthy of armies being mustered against them;

    But Jlass is a match for them, even if it falls short.

  13. ما اللّيثُ يرضى قتال الثّعلبان ولا

    باز يُبارزُ عُصفورا ليفتخرا

    The lion does not deign to fight the fox, nor

    Does a hawk duel a sparrow to boast.

  14. خانُوا العهود بالنّعماء قد بطرُوا

    أخسر بمن خان عهد الله أو بطرا

    They betrayed their covenants, made insolent by prosperity.

    How great the loss of one who betrays God's covenant or grows insolent!

  15. هُم آثرُوا المكر من خُبث فحاق بهم

    والمكرُ ما حائقٌ إلا بمن مكرا

    They chose deceit out of malice, and it engulfed them;

    And deceit engulfs none but those who practice it.

  16. قل للشّقيّين ما الدّاعي الّذي خرجُوا

    به عن ابن حُسين سيّد الأمرا

    Say to the wretched: what motive drove them to rebel

    Against the son of Husayn, lord of princes?

  17. المالكُ الكاملُ الباشا الأعزّ على

    باي حميد المزايا فاقد النّظرا

    The perfect sovereign, the most exalted Pasha, Ali,

    Bey of praiseworthy qualities, without peer.

  18. مليكُ حلم وعفو في الجناية لا

    يثنيه عذلٌ عذُول طال أو قصرا

    A king of forbearance and pardon for offenses, whom no

    Faultfinder's censure can sway, whether long or brief.

  19. فالعفوُ منهُ على ذنب ألذُّ لهُ

    طعما من الأخذ للجاني وإن كبرا

    For his pardon of a sin is sweeter to him

    In taste than punishing the offender, however grave the sin.

  20. ما ردّ راجيه محروما وراحتهُ

    كنهر سيحون بل من راحتيه جرى

    He never turned his supplicant away empty-handed, and his palm

    Is like the river Sayhun—nay, it flowed from his two palms.

  21. لم يخلُ عن درس فقه الدّين مجلسهُ

    يوما ولا من حديث المصطفى هُجرا

    His assembly did not lack the study of religious law

    For a single day, nor were the Chosen One's traditions forsaken.

  22. يكادُ لو شاء من تقوى الإلاه لهُ

    تأتي الحجارةُ سعيا لو دعا الحجرا

    Such is his piety toward God that he could almost, if he wished,

    Have the stones come running, were he to summon them.

  23. تراهُ بدرا مُنيرا في مواكبه

    وفي النّزال على جمع العدى شررا

    You see him as a radiant full moon in his processions,

    And in battle, a shower of sparks upon the enemy host.

  24. إذا رأتهُ العدى ولّت مُقهقرة

    هل يثبتُ الوحشُ إن ليثُ الشّرى كشرا

    When his foes see him, they turn back in retreat.

    Will wild beasts stand firm if the lion of al-Shara bares its teeth?

  25. مولاي شُكرا على فضل الإلاه فلم

    يُحرم زيادة فضل الله من شكرا

    My lord, give thanks for God's bounty, for never

    Is one who gives thanks denied an increase in God's bounty.

  26. إنّا نُهنّيك بل كلُّ الأنام بكم

    غدتْ تُهنّأ والمدّاحُ والشّعرا

    We congratulate you—rather, all creation, through you,

    Has come to be congratulated, as have the panegyrists and poets.

  27. هذا وإنّي مُذ فارقتُ حضرتكم

    حلف الضّنى في إسار الحصر منحصرا

    Thus—and I, since I departed from your presence,

    Have been wasting illness's sworn companion, confined in the bonds of restraint.

  28. حتّى إذا وردت عنّي بشائركم

    جاءت بإطلاق ذاك الأسر مُبتدرا

    Until, when your glad tidings concerning me arrived,

    They brought swift release from that captivity.

  29. لازال مُلكك يا مولاي مُقترنا

    بالعزّ والسّعد والإقبال مُعتمرا

    May your reign, my lord, ever remain joined

    With glory, good fortune, and prosperity, wearing them as its turban.

  30. والدّهرُ عبدك لا ينفكُّ مُنتهيا

    إذا نهيت ومأمُورا إذا أمرا

    And may Time be your slave, never failing to desist

    When you forbid, and under orders when commanded.