قدَّمتك العُلى وكنتَ زعيماً

قدَّمتك العُلى وكنتَ زعيماً

وقصارى رجائها أن يدوما

وقصارى رجائها أن يدوما

High honor brought you forward, and you were a leader,

You were given supremacy and you were a leader

And her utmost hope is that this should endure.

And the height of its hopes that it lasts

واستنابتك عن أكارمَ تقفو

واستنابتك عن أكارمَ تقفو

هديَهم والكريمُ يقفو الكريما

هديَهم والكريمُ يقفو الكريما

She appointed you in the stead of noble men; you follow

And it appointed you to the most generous qualities

Their guidance—for the noble follows the noble.

Their guidance, and the generous imitates the generous

لو يزدْكَ التعظيمُ منَّا جلالاً

لو يزدْكَ التعظيمُ منَّا جلالاً

إذ لدى ذي الجلال كنت عظيما

إذ لدى ذي الجلال كنت عظيما

Would that our reverence could add to your majesty,

If exaltation from us increases your majesty

Since, before the Lord of Majesty, you were already great.

Since the Majestic you were august

لكَ فوق الأنام طودَ جلالٍ

لكَ فوق الأنام طودَ جلالٍ

طائرُ الوهم حوله لنْ يحوما

طائرُ الوهم حوله لنْ يحوما

Above all mankind, yours is a mountain of majesty,

For you above people a towering majesty

Around which the bird of imagination will never circle.

The fanciful bird around it will not hover

ما تجلى به لك الحقُّ إلاَّ

ما تجلى به لك الحقُّ إلاَّ

وغدا يصفقُ الحسودَ وجوما

وغدا يصفقُ الحسودَ وجوما

Never did the Truth reveal itself to you through it

What the truth has manifested to you except

Without striking the envious man with speechless dismay.

And tomorrow the envious clap and frown

فالعجيب العجاب أنَّك موسى

فالعجيب العجاب أنَّك موسى

ونرى مَن سواكَ كانَ الكليما

ونرى مَن سواكَ كانَ الكليما

So the wonder of wonders is that you are Moses,

So the wondrous wonder is that you are Moses

Yet we see another become the wounded one.

And we see those other than you were the Kalim

باسطاً بالندى بنانَ يدٍ بيضا

باسطاً بالندى بنانَ يدٍ بيضا

ءَ لم يغدُ طرفة مضموما

ءَ لم يغدُ طرفة مضموما

Extending in bounty the fingers of a white hand,

Extending with dew soft fingers whiteness

Never clenched, not even for an instant.

That has not become for a twinkling constricted

هي شكلٌ للجودِ ينتجُ دأباً

هي شكلٌ للجودِ ينتجُ دأباً

وسواها قد جاءَ شكلاً عقيما

وسواها قد جاءَ شكلاً عقيما

It is a form of generosity, ceaselessly fruitful,

It is a form of generosity that produces habitually

While every other has proved a barren form.

And other than it has come barren form

أيُّها المسقمُ الحواسدَ غيظاً

أيُّها المسقمُ الحواسدَ غيظاً

بالنُّهى كم شفيتَ فكراً سقيما

بالنُّهى كم شفيتَ فكراً سقيما

O you who sicken the envious with rage,

O reliever of the envious their rage

How many an ailing mind you have healed with wisdom!

With prohibition how much aberrant thinking you have healed

أنتَ لطفٌ لكنْ تجسمت شخصاً

أنتَ لطفٌ لكنْ تجسمت شخصاً

فغدا منك الجسيم جسيما

فغدا منك الجسيم جسيما

You are gentleness, yet you took bodily form,

You are kindness but you embodied a person

And through you the great became truly great.

So the immense from you became immense

كم لعامٍ مسحتَ وجهاً بأندى

كم لعامٍ مسحتَ وجهاً بأندى

من وجوه الغرِّ الغوادي أديما

من وجوه الغرِّ الغوادي أديما

How often have you wiped a year's face with a hand more dewy

How many years have you wiped a face with more tender

Of skin than the faces of bright morning rainclouds!

Than faces of the beautiful roe, eternal

تلكَ راحٌ كم روحتنا وكفٌّ

تلكَ راحٌ كم روحتنا وكفٌّ

كم بها اللهُ كفَّ عنَّا الهموما

كم بها اللهُ كفَّ عنَّا الهموما

That palm—how often it has comforted us!—and that hand,

Those are comforts, how much you have comforted us, and a palm

Through which God has so often kept sorrows from us!

How much with it Allah has stopped worries from us

علمتْنا هي الثنا فانتقينا

علمتْنا هي الثنا فانتقينا

من مزايا علاكَ درًّا يتيما

من مزايا علاكَ درًّا يتيما

It taught us praise, and so we chose

It taught us to choose and so we chose

From the merits of your eminence a peerless pearl.

From your sublime traits a peerless pearl

فلكَ الفضلُ إنْ نظمنا لأنَّا

فلكَ الفضلُ إنْ نظمنا لأنَّا

منكَ نهدي إليك عقداً نظيما

منكَ نهدي إليك عقداً نظيما

Yours is the credit if we compose verse, for we

So for you is the merit if we compose poems

Present you with a well-strung necklace drawn from you.

Since from you we present to you a strung necklace

عصم اللهُ دينه بك يا مَن

عصم اللهُ دينه بك يا مَن

كانَ من كلِّ مأثمٍ معصوما

كانَ من كلِّ مأثمٍ معصوما

God safeguarded His religion through you, O you who

May Allah protect His religion through you, O you

Were preserved from every sin.

Who from every sin was infallible

لا أرى يملك الحسودُ سوى ما

لا أرى يملك الحسودُ سوى ما

إنْ عددناه كانَ فيه ذميما

إنْ عددناه كانَ فيه ذميما

I see the envious man possessing nothing but things

I do not see the envious possess except what

That, if we list them, make him contemptible:

If we counted it, was in it despicable

بصراً خاسئاً وكفًّا أشلاً

بصراً خاسئاً وكفًّا أشلاً

وحشاً ذاعراً وأنفاً رغيما

وحشاً ذاعراً وأنفاً رغيما

A humbled gaze and a palsied hand,

An eye downcast, and a hand withered,

A frightened heart and a nose forced into the dust.

A beast startled, and a nose dripping

قد تقلدتها إمامةَ عصرٍ

قد تقلدتها إمامةَ عصرٍ

سدتَ فيها الإِمامَ والمأموما

سدتَ فيها الإِمامَ والمأموما

You have assumed it—the imamate of an age,

You assumed leadership of an era

In which you surpassed both leader and follower.

In which you barred the imam and the led in prayer

قدّمتْ منكَ واحدَ العصرِ يا مَن

قدّمتْ منكَ واحدَ العصرِ يا مَن

عادَ نهجُ الرشادِ فيه قويما

عادَ نهجُ الرشادِ فيه قويما

It set you forth as the peerless man of the age, O you

It presented through you one leader of the time, O you

In whom the path of right guidance became straight again.

Through whom the path of guidance became upright

قدّمتْ فيكَ ثاني الغيثِ كفًّا

قدّمتْ فيكَ ثاني الغيثِ كفًّا

ثالثَ النيِّرين وجهاً وسيما

ثالثَ النيِّرين وجهاً وسيما

It set you forth as a second rain in bounty of hand,

It presented in you second of rain a palm

A third beside the sun and moon in beauty of face.

Third of the luminaries a face well-featured

قدّمتْ منكَ يا أدلُّ على اللهِ

قدّمتْ منكَ يا أدلُّ على اللهِ

عليماً ناهيك فيه عليما

عليماً ناهيك فيه عليما

It brought forth in you, O surest guide to God,

It presented through you, O most guiding to Allah

A learned man—and what a learned man he is!

A knowledgeable one, needless to say, knowledgeable

قدّمتْ يا أجسُّ للحكم نبضاً

قدّمتْ يا أجسُّ للحكم نبضاً

منك طبًّا بالمعضلاتِ حكيما

منك طبًّا بالمعضلاتِ حكيما

It brought forth, O keenest at feeling judgment's pulse,

It presented, O most perceptive of ruling, a pulse

From you a physician wise in knotty problems.

From you a healer of dilemmas, wise

قد نظرنا بكَ الأئمَّةَ حلماً

قد نظرنا بكَ الأئمَّةَ حلماً

وحجًى راسخاً وفضلاً عميما

وحجًى راسخاً وفضلاً عميما

In you we have beheld the Imams, in their forbearance,

We have seen through you the imams forbearance

Their firmly rooted wisdom and their all-embracing excellence.

And firm guidance, and overflowing merit

وروينا في الدينِ عنك حديثاً

وروينا في الدينِ عنك حديثاً

ما روينا في الدينِ عنكَ قديما

ما روينا في الدينِ عنكَ قديما

And we have lately transmitted from you concerning faith

And we have transmitted in religion from you a hadith

What we transmitted from you concerning faith of old.

We have not transmitted in religion from you old

بكَ منهم بدتْ مناقب غرّ

بكَ منهم بدتْ مناقب غرّ

في سماء الهُدى طلعنَ نجوما

في سماء الهُدى طلعنَ نجوما

Through you, their radiant virtues shone forth;

Through them virtues of nobility emerged

They rose as stars in the sky of guidance.

In the sky of guidance, stars rose

هي طوراً تكونُ رشداً لقومٍ

هي طوراً تكونُ رشداً لقومٍ

ولقومٍ تكونُ طوراً رجوما

ولقومٍ تكونُ طوراً رجوما

At times they become guidance for some people,

It is at times guidance for a people

And for others, at times, missiles.

And for a people it is repelling stones

فأقمْ في عُلًى ترى كلَّ آنٍ

فأقمْ في عُلًى ترى كلَّ آنٍ

مقعداً للعدوِّ منها مقيما

مقعداً للعدوِّ منها مقيما

So abide in heights where, at every moment, you see

So reside in a loftiness you see every instant

An enduring force from them that cripples the foe.

A seat for the enemy therein remaining

لم يكنْ ودُّنا مقالاً علكناهُ

لم يكنْ ودُّنا مقالاً علكناهُ

كما يعلكُ الجوادُ الشكيما

كما يعلكُ الجوادُ الشكيما

Our love was not merely words we mouthed,

Our affection was not just lip-service we professed

As a noble steed chews the bit.

As the noble horse professes restiveness

بل وجدناكَ حجَّة الله فينا

بل وجدناكَ حجَّة الله فينا

فنهجْنا صراطكَ المستقيما

فنهجْنا صراطكَ المستقيما

Rather, we found you to be God's proof among us,

Rather, we found you God's proof in us

And so we followed your straight path.

So we followed your straight path

ولنا اليوم أنتَ في الأرض ظلٌّ

ولنا اليوم أنتَ في الأرض ظلٌّ

وغداً نستظلُّ فيك النعيما

وغداً نستظلُّ فيك النعيما

And today you are our shade upon the earth,

And for us today you in the earth a shadow

And tomorrow, through you, we shall shelter in bliss.

And tomorrow we seek shade in you, bliss