دع طيش نفسك لا تسمع دعاويها

دع طيش نفسك لا تسمع دعاويها

فالوهم عنوان خافيها وباديها

فالوهم عنوان خافيها وباديها

Renounce your soul's recklessness; do not heed its claims.

Ignore your soul's whims, do not listen to its claims

For delusion is the hallmark of its hidden and outward aspects.

For illusion hides and shows its essence

واطرح هواها ولا تقبل سفاسفها

واطرح هواها ولا تقبل سفاسفها

فالغي يطرحها والزور يمليها

فالغي يطرحها والزور يمليها

And cast aside its desire; do not accept its trifles.

Cast off its passions, do not accept its trifles

For error casts it down, and falsehood dictates to it.

Nonsense discards them, lies dictate them

تروح تفعل في طي الخيال على

تروح تفعل في طي الخيال على

زعمٍ وخمرا حان الكذب يسقيها

زعمٍ وخمرا حان الكذب يسقيها

It goes about acting in the folds of fancy, relying on

It goes and acts in the folds of imagination

conjecture, and the tavern of lies serves it wine.

Supposedly, and the lies of intoxication give it to drink

خرفاء كم سكرت حتى إذا غلبت

خرفاء كم سكرت حتى إذا غلبت

قالت وصالت وراح العجز يصحيها

قالت وصالت وراح العجز يصحيها

Addled, how often it grew drunk, until, when overcome,

How many raving drunks has it intoxicated until, overcome

it spoke and lashed out, and helplessness began to sober it.

It says it has reached its beloved, and inability sobers it

يا من يوافقها في كل ما طلبت

يا من يوافقها في كل ما طلبت

لو كنت تعرفها حقاً تعاديها

لو كنت تعرفها حقاً تعاديها

O you who indulge it in everything it asks for,

O you who agree with it in all it asks

if you truly knew it, you would treat it as an enemy.

If you truly knew it, you would oppose it

تمشي بطيش الهوى مفتونةً ولها

تمشي بطيش الهوى مفتونةً ولها

من الهوى جيش بهتانس يواليها

من الهوى جيش بهتانس يواليها

It walks with desire's recklessness, beguiled; and it has

It walks in the madness of passion, infatuated

an army of slander, born of desire, that stands by it.

And passion has an army of delusions loyal to it

تروح عمياء في نومٍ بغفلتها

تروح عمياء في نومٍ بغفلتها

حتى ينبهها بالموت داعيها

حتى ينبهها بالموت داعيها

It wanders blind, asleep in its heedlessness,

It goes blindly in the sleep of its heedlessness

until its summoner awakens it through death.

Until its summoner, death, awakens it

هناك تعلم أن الزور ما زعمت

هناك تعلم أن الزور ما زعمت

وفي الخلود لقد خابت أمانيها

وفي الخلود لقد خابت أمانيها

There it learns that what it claimed was falsehood,

There it knows that what passion claimed is false

and in eternity its wishes have indeed failed.

And in eternity, its hopes have certainly failed

فطر بقلبك للرحمن منتبهاً

فطر بقلبك للرحمن منتبهاً

واجعل لسيرك بالإخلاص تنزيها

واجعل لسيرك بالإخلاص تنزيها

So fly with your heart to the All-Merciful, awake,

So make your heart, vigilant for the Merciful

and purify your journey through sincerity.

And make your path sincere in devotion to Him

واقرأن من الذكر آياتٍ مطهرةً

واقرأن من الذكر آياتٍ مطهرةً

وافهم بذوقك عن صدقٍ معانيها

وافهم بذوقك عن صدقٍ معانيها

And recite purified verses from the Remembrance,

And recite purified verses from the Remembrance

and grasp their meanings through your inward taste, with sincerity.

And taste with your innermost being their truth

واجهد لتلحق ركبان الرجال إذا

واجهد لتلحق ركبان الرجال إذا

ما سار في شطحات الليل ساريها

ما سار في شطحات الليل ساريها

And strive to catch up with the men's caravan, when

And strive to join the caravan of men, when

its nightfarer journeys through the night's ecstatic flights.

It sets out by night, wandering in yearning for Him

واعمل بسر كلام المصطفى فيه

واعمل بسر كلام المصطفى فيه

أخبار حقٍّ عن الجبار يرويها

أخبار حقٍّ عن الجبار يرويها

And act upon the secret of the Chosen One's speech; in it

And act according to the core of the Chosen One's speech

he recounts true tidings from the Compeller.

In which he relates the news of truth about the Majestic

وخذ عن القوم سادات الحمى جملاً

وخذ عن القوم سادات الحمى جملاً

من الحقائق قد رقت حواشيها

من الحقائق قد رقت حواشيها

And take from the folk, masters of the sanctuary, collections

And take from the leaders, lords of longing, some

of truths whose fringes have indeed grown delicate.

Sublime truths, their margins refined

قد أودعوها رعاهم ربهم حكماً

قد أودعوها رعاهم ربهم حكماً

قلوبهم عن رسول اللَه تمليها

قلوبهم عن رسول اللَه تمليها

They have indeed placed within them—may their Lord watch over them—words of wisdom

They entrusted them as wisdom to the hearts

that their hearts dictate from the Messenger of God.

Of their followers, from God's Messenger they took them

فرمشةٌ إذ بذكر اللَه تقطعها

فرمشةٌ إذ بذكر اللَه تقطعها

خلصاء خيرٌ من الدنيا وما فيها

خلصاء خيرٌ من الدنيا وما فيها

For a blink, when you spend it in remembrance of God,

So a blinking of the eye, cut short by God's remembrance

in pure sincerity, is better than this world and all it contains.

Is better than the world and all that is in it