يستجمعُ الشملُ في الدُّنيا وينصدِعُ

يستجمعُ الشملُ في الدُّنيا وينصدِعُ

حتَّى يَليهِ افتِراقٌ ليسَ يجتمِعُ

حتَّى يَليهِ افتِراقٌ ليسَ يجتمِعُ

In this world, company gathers and breaks apart,

Kindred spirits are drawn together in this world, only to later split apart,

Until a parting follows it, with no reunion.

For after unity comes separation that will never again meet.

فخُذ لنفسِكَ حظّاً من احِبَّتِها

فخُذ لنفسِكَ حظّاً من احِبَّتِها

من قبلِ ما حَبلُ هذا العيشِ ينقطعُ

من قبلِ ما حَبلُ هذا العيشِ ينقطعُ

So take for your soul a share of its loved ones,

So take your share of pleasure with loved ones

Before the cord of this life is severed.

Before the cord of life itself is cut.

نستخدمُ الصُّحْفَ فيما بيننا رُسُلاً

نستخدمُ الصُّحْفَ فيما بيننا رُسُلاً

تمضي أحاديثُنا فيها وتُرتَجَعُ

تمضي أحاديثُنا فيها وتُرتَجَعُ

We use written pages as messengers between us;

We use letters between us as messengers,

Our conversations go forth in them and are returned.

Bearing our conversations back and forth.

بُعْدُ المنازلِ مع قُربِ القلوبِ لَنا

بُعْدُ المنازلِ مع قُربِ القلوبِ لَنا

يُعَدُّ قُرْباً بهِ نحظَى ونَنتَفِعُ

يُعَدُّ قُرْباً بهِ نحظَى ونَنتَفِعُ

For us, distance between homes, when hearts are close,

Though our homes be distant, our hearts are near,

Counts as a closeness we enjoy and benefit from.

And through this closeness we find joy and gain.

وأوحشُ النَّاسِ بُعداً من نُجاوِرُهُ

وأوحشُ النَّاسِ بُعداً من نُجاوِرُهُ

دهراً وليسَ لنا في أُنسهِ طَمَعُ

دهراً وليسَ لنا في أُنسهِ طَمَعُ

Yet the most estranged and distant is someone we live beside

The most lonesome are those who for ages we've neighbored,

For ages, with no hope of fellowship with him.

Yet they remain strangers to us, aloof.

هيَّا ابتدِرْ يا كتابي اليومَ منتجِعاً

هيَّا ابتدِرْ يا كتابي اليومَ منتجِعاً

ديارَ مصرَ التي تُرجَى وتُنتَجَعُ

ديارَ مصرَ التي تُرجَى وتُنتَجَعُ

Come, my letter, hasten today, seeking pasture,

Come my letter, hasten today to a treasured land,

To Egypt's lands, looked to with hope and sought for pasture.

To Egypt, where hopes and dreams are fulfilled.

وابشِرْ بخيرٍ إذا التقيتَ بها

وابشِرْ بخيرٍ إذا التقيتَ بها

بِشارَةَ الخيرِ مَن للخير يَصطَنِعُ

بِشارَةَ الخيرِ مَن للخير يَصطَنِعُ

And rejoice in good fortune when there you meet

Bring glad tidings if goodness you find there,

Bishara of goodness, who bestows kindness for good's sake.

For goodness brings joy to those who seek good.

يا حَبَّذا مِن أراضيها التي خَصِبَتْ

يا حَبَّذا مِن أراضيها التي خَصِبَتْ

رِيفٌ ويا حَبَّذا من نيلها تُرَعُ

رِيفٌ ويا حَبَّذا من نيلها تُرَعُ

How lovely, among her lands grown fertile,

Blessed is that fertile land by the Nile,

Is the countryside; and how lovely the canals of her Nile!

Whose shores are graced by water's flow.

دارُالحبيبِ حبيبٌ لي أُسَرُّ بهِ

دارُالحبيبِ حبيبٌ لي أُسَرُّ بهِ

والدَّارُ للأهلِ في حُكمِ الهَوَى تَبَعُ

والدَّارُ للأهلِ في حُكمِ الهَوَى تَبَعُ

The beloved's home is itself my beloved, and I delight in it;

The home of a friend is itself a friend,

And, in love's judgment, the home is secondary to its people.

For in love, the place takes on the status of its people.

أهوى زِيارتَها شوقاً وتَعرِضُ لي

أهوى زِيارتَها شوقاً وتَعرِضُ لي

دونَ انصرَافِيَ أسبابٌ فأَمتنِعُ

دونَ انصرَافِيَ أسبابٌ فأَمتنِعُ

I yearn to visit it, but before me arise

I yearn to visit, longing to see,

Obstacles to my departure, so I hold back.

But circumstance prevents me from going.

فيها الصَّديقُ الذي يَسقي مَوَدَّتُهُ

فيها الصَّديقُ الذي يَسقي مَوَدَّتُهُ

طولُ الزَّمانِ فتنمو وهي ترتفِعُ

طولُ الزَّمانِ فتنمو وهي ترتفِعُ

There is the friend whose affection is watered

There lives a friend whose affection

By time's long course, so it grows and rises.

Has only grown through the long years.

طالت بهِ فَحسبناهُ لها صِلَةً

طالت بهِ فَحسبناهُ لها صِلَةً

كالثَّوبِ قد وَصَلَتْ أطرافَهُ قِطَعُ

كالثَّوبِ قد وَصَلَتْ أطرافَهُ قِطَعُ

It has lengthened with time, which we reckoned an extension of that love,

He's been there so long he seems a part of the land,

Like a garment whose edges have been extended by patches.

Like clothes whose patches have become one with the original cloth.

طَلْقُ الجبينِ كريمُ النَّفسِ ليسَ لهُ

طَلْقُ الجبينِ كريمُ النَّفسِ ليسَ لهُ

من كُلِّ مَكرُمةٍ رِيٌّ ولا شِبَعُ

من كُلِّ مَكرُمةٍ رِيٌّ ولا شِبَعُ

Cheerful of brow and generous of soul, he finds no

Open and noble is he, never satisfied

Quenching of thirst or satiety in any noble deed.

With any honor or riches that come his way.

في قلبهِ سُنَنُ التَّقوَى قد اُنطبعت

في قلبهِ سُنَنُ التَّقوَى قد اُنطبعت

كالختم في صَفحةِ القِرطاسِ ينطبعُ

كالختم في صَفحةِ القِرطاسِ ينطبعُ

In his heart the ways of piety have been imprinted,

In his heart are stamped the ways of piety

As a seal is imprinted upon a sheet of paper.

As a seal on paper leaves its imprint.

حال النَّوَى بين دارَينا وليسَ لهُ

حال النَّوَى بين دارَينا وليسَ لهُ

بينَ القلوب مَجالٌ فيهِ يَتَّسِعُ

بينَ القلوب مَجالٌ فيهِ يَتَّسِعُ

Separation stands between our two homes, yet has no

Absence lies between our two homes, leaving no space

Room between our hearts in which to spread.

In our hearts for closeness to grow.

إن لم أنَلْ نَظرةً من وجههِ فأنا

إن لم أنَلْ نَظرةً من وجههِ فأنا

برُؤيةِ الخطِّ منهُ اليومَ اقتنِعُ

برُؤيةِ الخطِّ منهُ اليومَ اقتنِعُ

If I gain no glimpse of his face, then I

If I cannot look upon his face, then I will be content

Am content today with the sight of his handwriting.

Just seeing his handwriting today brings me joy.