انظر إليَّ ولا تنظر إلى حالي

انظر إليَّ ولا تنظر إلى حالي

واحذر من العذلِ لا تخطره بالبالِ

واحذر من العذلِ لا تخطره بالبالِ

Look at me, and do not look at my condition.

Look at me, and look not at my state,

And beware of reproach; do not let it cross your mind.

And beware of passion, think it not in your mind,

وافرغ إلى طلبِ الفضلِ الذي صبنت

وافرغ إلى طلبِ الفضلِ الذي صبنت

عنه ظنوني في ترتيب أحوالي

عنه ظنوني في ترتيب أحوالي

And devote yourself to seeking the bounty from which

And pour yourself into seeking virtue, from which

My conjectures turned aside in the ordering of my affairs.

My suppositions have distracted me in arranging my states,

لو أنَّ لي سيِّداً فتَّ الأنام جداً

لو أنَّ لي سيِّداً فتَّ الأنام جداً

ولم أعرِّج على جاهٍ ولا مال

ولم أعرِّج على جاهٍ ولا مال

Had I a master, I would far surpass mankind,

If I had a master who was extremely generous to people,

And would not turn aside to rank or wealth.

And I did not incline to status or wealth,

المالُ مالُ الذي مالَ الوجودُ به

المالُ مالُ الذي مالَ الوجودُ به

إليه من كرمٍ فلا تقل ما لي

إليه من كرمٍ فلا تقل ما لي

Wealth belongs to the One through whom existence inclined

Wealth is the wealth through which existence inclined

Toward Him out of generosity; so do not speak of 'what is mine.'

Toward Him through generosity, so say not, "What do I have?"

بل قل إذا جاء من يبغي نزالكمُ

بل قل إذا جاء من يبغي نزالكمُ

ما لي من المالِ إلا حظ آمالي

ما لي من المالِ إلا حظ آمالي

Rather say, when someone comes seeking lodging with you:

Rather say, when one comes seeking to humble you,

'I have no wealth except the share of my hopes.'

"I have no wealth except my hopes."

وقد علمتُ بأنَّ الجودَ من خلقي

وقد علمتُ بأنَّ الجودَ من خلقي

طبعاً جبلتُ عليه فيه إقبالي

طبعاً جبلتُ عليه فيه إقبالي

And I have learned that generosity is part of my nature,

And I knew that generosity is of my nature,

An inborn disposition I was fashioned with; in it lies my inclination.

I was created having a propensity for it.

لا تفرحنَّ بشيءٍ لستَ مالكه

لا تفرحنَّ بشيءٍ لستَ مالكه

بل أنت مستخلفٌ فيه وكالوالي

بل أنت مستخلفٌ فيه وكالوالي

Do not rejoice in something you do not own;

Do not be joyous in anything you do not own,

Rather, you are its appointed steward, like a governor.

But you are only a steward over it, like a governor.

مكانتي عند من أصبحتُ نائبه

مكانتي عند من أصبحتُ نائبه

في ملكه حاكماً بقدر أعمالي

في ملكه حاكماً بقدر أعمالي

My standing with the One whose deputy I have become,

My status with the one whom I became the deputy

As a ruler in His kingdom, is measured by my deeds.

Of his kingdom, a ruler according to my deeds.

فإنْ عدلتَ فإن العدلَ شيمتنا

فإنْ عدلتَ فإن العدلَ شيمتنا

لعلمنا أو تفضّلنا فلا ما لي

لعلمنا أو تفضّلنا فلا ما لي

So if you act justly, justice is our nature,

So if you act with justice, justice is our quality,

Because of our knowledge or our graciousness; thus nothing is mine.

Either for our knowledge or nobility, not for "what I have."

الفضلُ فضلُ إلهي ما لنا قدمٌ

الفضلُ فضلُ إلهي ما لنا قدمٌ

فيه لفقري وما أدريه من حالي

فيه لفقري وما أدريه من حالي

Bounty is my God's bounty; we have no footing

Virtue is a divine favor, we have no footing in it,

In it, given my poverty and what I know of my condition.

Due to my poverty and ignorance of my state.

فليس يفضل عني ما أجود به

فليس يفضل عني ما أجود به

ولا يليق بنا قصد لأمثالي

ولا يليق بنا قصد لأمثالي

So what I give freely is not something I have to spare,

So nothing surpasses what I spend generously,

Nor does it befit us to seek those like me.

And it is unfit for us to aim for the likes of me.

فما لنا غيرُ من تُرجَّى عوارفه

فما لنا غيرُ من تُرجَّى عوارفه

وهو الغنيّ عن الحاجاتِ والعالي

وهو الغنيّ عن الحاجاتِ والعالي

So we have none but Him whose favors are hoped for,

For we have none but He whose favors are hoped for,

And He is self-sufficient, beyond all needs, and exalted.

And He is free of needs and Most High.

لما رأى من رأى حكمي ومملكتي

لما رأى من رأى حكمي ومملكتي

وما درى أنني العاطلُ الحالي

وما درى أنني العاطلُ الحالي

When he who looked saw my rule and my kingdom,

When he who saw my decree and kingdom saw me,

And did not know I am unadorned yet adorned,

He did not know that I am the helpless one.

وقد رأى من أنا فيهم خليفته

وقد رأى من أنا فيهم خليفته

يقولُ تقرضني من عرض أموالي

يقولُ تقرضني من عرض أموالي

And had seen the One whose deputy I am among them

And he saw that I am His deputy among them,

Saying, 'Will you lend Me from My worldly goods?'

Saying, "Lend me from your wealth."

وما رأى أنه قد جال في خَلَدي

وما رأى أنه قد جال في خَلَدي

أقرضن بالفعلِ لا بالعقد والحالِ

أقرضن بالفعلِ لا بالعقد والحالِ

And did not see that this had crossed my mind:

But he did not see that he wandered in my imagination,

'I shall surely lend in deed, not in belief or state.'

"Lend me" in action, not in contract and state.

لذاك نطقهم فيه بأنَّ له

لذاك نطقهم فيه بأنَّ له

فقراً إلينا وما ربي من أشكالي

فقراً إلينا وما ربي من أشكالي

For that reason they spoke of Him as having

Therefore, their words about Him are that

Need of us; yet my Lord is not of my kind.

He has poverty toward us, though the Lord has no forms.

الفيت فيه الذي عليَّ يلبسه

الفيت فيه الذي عليَّ يلبسه

بأنْ تشخص لي أفعال أفعى لي

بأنْ تشخص لي أفعال أفعى لي

I found in Him what He makes obscure to me,

So I have erred regarding what He clothes me in,

As deeds take shape before me—a viper for me.

By making the acts of snakes seem like acts for me.

لا أعرف اللغو في قولٍ أفوه به

لا أعرف اللغو في قولٍ أفوه به

إنَّ السديد من الأقوالِ أقوالي

إنَّ السديد من الأقوالِ أقوالي

I know no idle speech in any words I utter;

I do not know nonsense in words I utter,

Indeed, among sayings, the sound ones are mine.

The most truthful words are my words.

أَجلُّ وصفي أنّ الله أهَّلني

أَجلُّ وصفي أنّ الله أهَّلني

لحلِّ ما عند أشكالي من أشكالي

لحلِّ ما عند أشكالي من أشكالي

My loftiest attribute is that God has made me fit

The greatest description of me is that Allah has made me worthy

To unravel what my peers find perplexing about my forms.

To solve the forms among my forms.