1. A thousand melodies captivate me,
A just one, not exceeding justice.
١. ليَ إِلْفٌ حمانيَ الألاَّفا
منصفٌ لا يُجاوِزُ الإنصافا
2. Neither the crescent nor the full moon named him,
Yet they named him when naming the excellent.
٢. لم يسمُّوه لا الهلال ولا البد
رَ وسَمَّوْهُ حين سَمَّوْا جُزَافا
3. They gave him the wreath, the river, and the atmosphere
As a reward they did not give vainly or emptily.
٣. منحوهُ الإِكليلَ والجديَ والجو
زاءَ لم يمنحوه فاءً وقافا
4. If you saw him yesterday reciting a verse,
It was as honey, or even as pure wine.
٤. لو تراهُ بالأمس يُنشِدُ بيتاً
كان شهداً بل كان سَمّاً ذعافا
5. Oh Abu Bakr, safe from vitriol,
While the afflicted is not like the safe one.
٥. يا أبا بكرٍ المعافى من الهج
ر وما المبتلى به كالمعافى
6. You would have walked purely among the flowers,
Whose gardens neighbor all kinds of flowers.
٦. لتنزَّهْتَ بين أصناف زهرٍ
جاورتْ في رياضها الأصنافا
7. Poetry pearls overflowing from smiling lips -
You see no difference between this and that.
٧. دُرُّ شعرٍ يفيضُ من دُرِّ ثغرٍ
لا ترى بين ذا وذاك خِلافا