ألا إنّ أمرَ الله أمرُ رسولِه

ألا إنّ أمرَ الله أمرُ رسولِه

فإنّ رسولَ الله عنهُ يترجمُ

فإنّ رسولَ الله عنهُ يترجمُ

Behold, God's command is the command of His messenger,

Indeed, the command of Allah is the command of His Messenger

for God's messenger interprets on His behalf.

For the Messenger of Allah conveys it from Him

وما هو إلا واحدٌ بعد واحدٍ

وما هو إلا واحدٌ بعد واحدٍ

يكون على شَرعِ به الله يحكم

يكون على شَرعِ به الله يحكم

And he is but one following another,

And it is nothing but one after the other

abiding by a law through which God judges.

It will be upon the law with which Allah judges

وذلك عينُ الحقِّ في كلِّ شُرعةٍ

وذلك عينُ الحقِّ في كلِّ شُرعةٍ

ومنهاجه والكلُّ منه ومنهمُ

ومنهاجه والكلُّ منه ومنهمُ

And that is the very essence of the Real in every sacred law

And that is the essence of truth in every law

and His path; all comes from Him and from them,

And its approach, and all are from it and from them

على حسبِ الوقتِ الذي يقتضي له

على حسبِ الوقتِ الذي يقتضي له

فيطلبه حالاً كما جاء عنهمُ

فيطلبه حالاً كما جاء عنهمُ

according to what the time requires for him;

According to the time which necessitates it for him

so it calls for it at once, as has come down from them.

So he seeks it now as it came from them

فتختلفُ الآياتٌ والأمر واحدٌ

فتختلفُ الآياتٌ والأمر واحدٌ

فإنَّ الإله الحقَّ بالوقتِ أعلم

فإنَّ الإله الحقَّ بالوقتِ أعلم

Thus the signs differ, while the command is one,

So the verses differ while the command is one

for the true God knows the time best.

For indeed the true God knows best with time

وأعجبُ من هذا الكلام بنظرةٍ

وأعجبُ من هذا الكلام بنظرةٍ

فيفهم عني ما أقولُ وأفهم

فيفهم عني ما أقولُ وأفهم

And more wondrous than this is speech through a glance:

And I am amazed by this speech with an insight

he understands from me what I say, and I understand.

So I understand what I say and make understood

وما ثَمَّ لفظَ يدركُ السمعَ حرفُه

وما ثَمَّ لفظَ يدركُ السمعَ حرفُه

وأدري بأني ناطقٌ ومكلِّم

وأدري بأني ناطقٌ ومكلِّم

Yet there is no utterance whose letter reaches the ear,

And there is no expression that the ear grasps its letter

and I know that I speak and address another.

And I know that I am a speaker and addressed

وما ثَم صوتٌ لا ولا ثم أحرف

وما ثَم صوتٌ لا ولا ثم أحرف

كما قال قبلي ناظمٌ متقدِّم

كما قال قبلي ناظمٌ متقدِّم

And there is no sound—no, nor are there letters,

And there is neither a sound nor letters

as an earlier poet said before me:

As said before by an ancient composer

تكلم منا في الوجوه عيوننا

تكلم منا في الوجوه عيوننا

فنحن سكوتٌ والهوى يتكلم

فنحن سكوتٌ والهوى يتكلم

Our eyes speak for us in our faces,

Our eyes speak from us in aspects

while we are silent and love speaks.

While we are silent and desire speaks

فألسنة الأحوالِ أفصحُ ناطق

فألسنة الأحوالِ أفصحُ ناطق

لها يسمعُ القلبُ الذكيُّ ويفهم

لها يسمعُ القلبُ الذكيُّ ويفهم

Thus the tongues of states are the most eloquent speakers;

So the tongues of states are the most eloquent speakers

the perceptive heart listens to them and understands.

For them the wise heart hears and understands

علومٌ رسولِ الله ضربٌ منزَّهٌ

علومٌ رسولِ الله ضربٌ منزَّهٌ

عن الحدِّ والتكييفِ والكلُّ معلم

عن الحدِّ والتكييفِ والكلُّ معلم

The knowledge of God's messenger is of a kind free

The knowledge of the Messenger of Allah is a kind of exalted poetry

from limitation and specification of modality; all is taught.

Above limit, classification, and all teach

وكلُّ كلامٍ من حروفٍ تعينتْ

وكلُّ كلامٍ من حروفٍ تعينتْ

مخارجُها يدريه عُربٌ وأعجمُ

مخارجُها يدريه عُربٌ وأعجمُ

And every utterance made of letters with defined

And every speech made up of letters

points of articulation is known to Arabs and non-Arabs

Whose places of articulation both Arabs and non-Arabs know

سَماعاً ولا يدري الذي جاءهم به

سَماعاً ولا يدري الذي جاءهم به

إذا جهل للحن الذي هو مفهم

إذا جهل للحن الذي هو مفهم

through hearing; yet one does not know what he brought them

Audibly, but do not know the one who brought it to them

if one is ignorant of the idiom that conveys meaning.

If they do not know the error which makes understood

إذا حكم المجلّي عليه بصورة

إذا حكم المجلّي عليه بصورة

فمستلزَمُ أحكامها فهي تحكم

فمستلزَمُ أحكامها فهي تحكم

When the Revealer judges him through a form,

If the scholar judges it by its form

he is bound by its rulings, and so it governs.

Then its necessitated rulings judge it

فلا تفزعن إلا إليها فإنها

فلا تفزعن إلا إليها فإنها

هي الحكم الأعلى الإمام المقدَّمُ

هي الحكم الأعلى الإمام المقدَّمُ

So seek refuge only in it, for it

So do not panic except to them, for they

is the highest arbiter, the foremost imam.

Are the highest judgment, the leading imam

الا من هنا قد جاء في أي صورة

الا من هنا قد جاء في أي صورة

يشاءُ إلهي ركَّب الخلقَ فاعلموا

يشاءُ إلهي ركَّب الخلقَ فاعلموا

Behold, from here it has come: in whatever form

Unless from here He has come in any form

my God wills, He has fashioned creation—so know.

My God composed creation, so know

إذا قلتُ ذا حقٌ فقل بحقيقةٍ

إذا قلتُ ذا حقٌ فقل بحقيقةٍ

بصاحبه إنَّ الحقائقَ تعصمُ

بصاحبه إنَّ الحقائقَ تعصمُ

If I say, 'This is real,' then affirm a reality

If I say this is truth, say with truth

in its bearer; indeed, realities protect.

With its holder, indeed truths protect

بذا نطقتْ أرساله عن شهودها

بذا نطقتْ أرساله عن شهودها

وما منهمُ إلا رسولٌ محكم

وما منهمُ إلا رسولٌ محكم

His envoys spoke of this from their witnessing,

With this its missions spoke from witnessing them

and none of them is other than a firmly established messenger.

And none of them except a decisive messenger

وكيف يُرى حقٌ بغيرِ حقيقة

وكيف يُرى حقٌ بغيرِ حقيقة

لها في وجودِ الحقِّ حكمٌ مترجم

لها في وجودِ الحقِّ حكمٌ مترجم

And how can something real be seen without a reality

And how can truth be seen without a truth

whose rule is expressed in the existence of the Real?

Which in the existence of truth has a translating judgment?

حقيقةُ عينِ الحقِّ رؤية ذاتِه

حقيقةُ عينِ الحقِّ رؤية ذاتِه

بها جودُه يسدي إليّ وينعمُ

بها جودُه يسدي إليّ وينعمُ

The reality of the Real's very being is the vision of His essence;

The truth of the essence of truth is seeing His essence

through it His bounty gives to me and grants favor.

With it His generosity gives me and grants bounty

وما كون حقي غير كونِ حقيقتي

وما كون حقي غير كونِ حقيقتي

ولكنها الألفاظ بالفرقِ توهم

ولكنها الألفاظ بالفرقِ توهم

And the existence of my truth is no other than the existence of my reality,

And my truth is not other than the being of my truth

but words create the illusion of a distinction.

But the words make distinctions imagined