حاجيتكم ما اسمٌ لبعضِ السّباع

حاجيتكم ما اسمٌ لبعضِ السّباع

تصحيفُهُ ما لكَ فيه انتفاع

تصحيفُهُ ما لكَ فيه انتفاع

I pose you this riddle: what is the name of one of the beasts of prey,

I pose you a riddle: what is the name of a beast of prey?

whose altered dots yield something of no benefit to you?

With its letter-dots changed, it becomes something useful to you.

وعكسه إن شئتَ عكساً له

وعكسه إن شئتَ عكساً له

يوجد لكن عند دورِ السماع

يوجد لكن عند دورِ السماع

Turn it around, if you will, and its reverse

And its reverse, if you wish to reverse it,

is found only in halls of music.

Is found, though, in houses where music is heard.

وإن تصحِّف بعد قلبٍ له

وإن تصحِّف بعد قلبٍ له

فمذهبٌ يعزى لأهل النزاع

فمذهبٌ يعزى لأهل النزاع

And if its dots are altered after it is reversed,

And if you change its letter-dots after reversing it,

it becomes a doctrine ascribed to the contentious.

Then it is a doctrine ascribed to disputants.

فبيِّنِ الإلغازَ وارفع لنا

فبيِّنِ الإلغازَ وارفع لنا

بنورِ فكرٍ منكَ عَنهُ القناع

بنورِ فكرٍ منكَ عَنهُ القناع

So solve the riddle and lift for us,

So explain the riddle, and lift for us,

with the light of your thought, the veil from it.

With the light of your thought, the veil from it.