أمنذرٌ ملكٌ قد جاء للبشر

أمنذرٌ ملكٌ قد جاء للبشر

أم طالع السعد وافى داحض الكدر

أم طالع السعد وافى داحض الكدر

Is it an angel bearing warning who has come to humankind?

Is this a warning king who has come for mankind,

Or has fortune's rising star arrived, dispelling gloom?

Or the rising of good fortune dispelling sorrow?

أم ضوء صبحٍ يلاشي ظلمةً دهمت

أم ضوء صبحٍ يلاشي ظلمةً دهمت

أم البشير أتى في أطيب الخبر

أم البشير أتى في أطيب الخبر

Or is it dawn's light, dispelling a darkness that descended?

Or the light of dawn erasing the darkness of gloom,

Or has the bearer of glad tidings come with the sweetest news?

Or the giver of glad tidings who has come with the best news?

أم ذا طبيبٌ دنا يشفي لعلتنا

أم ذا طبيبٌ دنا يشفي لعلتنا

أم أقبل الحبر جبرائيل بالظفر

أم أقبل الحبر جبرائيل بالظفر

Or is this a physician who has drawn near to cure our ailment?

Or a physician who has approached to heal our ailments,

Or has the learned prelate Gabriel arrived in triumph?

Or has Gabriel arrived with victory and triumph?

العالم العامل الفرد الذي سطعت

العالم العامل الفرد الذي سطعت

فيه فضائل ما جمعن في بشر

فيه فضائل ما جمعن في بشر

The peerless scholar and man of deeds, in whom shone

The unique, hardworking, distinguished man in whom

Virtues never before united in a mortal;

Virtues that none combined in mortals have shone,

ومذ أضاءت به الشهباء وافتخرت

ومذ أضاءت به الشهباء وافتخرت

فيه ومن رشده أمست على حذر

فيه ومن رشده أمست على حذر

And since al-Shahba shone through him and took pride

And by whom the stars have become radiant and proud,

In him, and through his guidance became vigilant,

And through his wisdom have become cautious.

فأصبحت جنة مما أفاض بها

فأصبحت جنة مما أفاض بها

من حسن منطقه بالمعنى مبتكر

من حسن منطقه بالمعنى مبتكر

It became a paradise through what he lavished upon it

So it has become a paradise from what he has poured into it

Of his beautiful speech, inventive in meaning.

Of eloquent meaningful innovative speech.

ومن جلا لظلام الجهل حين دجا

ومن جلا لظلام الجهل حين دجا

بالعزم والحزم شبه الصارم الذكر

بالعزم والحزم شبه الصارم الذكر

And he who dispelled ignorance's darkness when it grew thick,

And from the darkness of ignorance when it covered

With resolve and firmness, like a keen blade of hard steel;

With determination and wisdom like a drawn sword.

حلال مشكلةٍ كشاف معضلةٍ

حلال مشكلةٍ كشاف معضلةٍ

نقاد عاطلةٍ بالذوق والنظر

نقاد عاطلةٍ بالذوق والنظر

A solver of problems, an unraveler of perplexities,

Solving a complex issue, clarifying a dilemma,

A critic of unadorned verse, with taste and discernment;

Criticizing laziness with taste and insight.

القائل الفصل لم تخطئ روايته

القائل الفصل لم تخطئ روايته

والفاضل المخلص الصافي من الكدر

والفاضل المخلص الصافي من الكدر

The speaker of the decisive word, whose account has never erred,

The decisive speaker whose narration is never wrong,

And the virtuous, sincere man, free from impurity.

The virtuous devoted one pure from murkiness.

مذ أصبحت للورى أعتاب سدته

مذ أصبحت للورى أعتاب سدته

ملجا العفاة ومنجي الخلائف الحذر

ملجا العفاة ومنجي الخلائف الحذر

Since the thresholds of his court became, for humankind,

Since he has become for mankind thresholds blocking

A refuge for supplicants and a rescuer of fearful peoples,

The refuge of the destitute and savior of the wary.

يلقاك طلق المحيا وهو مبتسمٌ

يلقاك طلق المحيا وهو مبتسمٌ

بمنطقٍ خلته أبهى من الشذر

بمنطقٍ خلته أبهى من الشذر

He greets you with a cheerful countenance, smiling,

You meet him with a bright smile and he is smiling

With speech you would deem more splendid than beads of gold.

With speech that is more beautiful than splendor.

له مزايا كزهر الروض مقصرةً

له مزايا كزهر الروض مقصرةً

فشأن مثلك ينفي العيب بالعذر

فشأن مثلك ينفي العيب بالعذر

His virtues are like garden blossoms; my verse falls short.

He has virtues like flowers of a meadow,

For it is the way of one like you to excuse faults when given an excuse.

So it is natural for the likes of you to make excuses for shortcomings.

واستر قاني تركت الشعر من زمنٍ

واستر قاني تركت الشعر من زمنٍ

لشاغلٍ عنه غشى مقلة الفكر

لشاغلٍ عنه غشى مقلة الفكر

And veil my faults—[for I] abandoned poetry long ago,

And cover, O you who have neglected poetry for a time

For a distraction from it that veiled the eye of thought.

Preoccupied from it, overwhelmed by contemplation’s concerns.

وإن تكن من بليغ القول عاطلةً

وإن تكن من بليغ القول عاطلةً

فقد تحلت بعقد المدح كالدرر

فقد تحلت بعقد المدح كالدرر

And though it be unadorned by eloquent speech,

And if you have been silent in eloquent speech

Yet it has adorned itself with a necklace of praise, like pearls.

You are adorned with a necklace of pearls in praise.