1. هوَ العُمرُ أَهناهُ اصطِناعُ المكارمِ

    هو العيشُ أَصفاهُ اصطِفاءُ الأكارمِ

    Life's greatest delight is the practice of noble deeds.

    Living is purest in choosing the noblest companions.

  2. تَمُرُّ حيوةُ المَرءِ وَشكاً وانهُ

    لما بينَ يقظانِ الجُفُونِ ونائِمِ

    A person's life passes swiftly, and he

    is indeed between wakeful eyelids and sleep.

  3. وما الخيرُ والمعروفُ في كل مكنةٍ

    سِوَى فُرصةٍ مَلساءَ في كفّ حالمِ

    Goodness and kindness, whenever one has the means,

    are but a slippery opportunity in a dreamer's palm.

  4. حيوةُ الفتى في سُوق ذا العُمرِ متجرٌ

    فتبّاً لخَسرانٍ وطُوبى لغانمِ

    A young man's life is a venture in this life's marketplace:

    so ruin to the loser, and blessedness to the winner.

  5. حَذارِ من الدنيا الغَرُورِ باهلها

    فكم بُدِّلَت افراحها بمآثمِ

    Beware the world, which deceives its people;

    how often its joys have been exchanged for sins!

  6. توقَّ كؤُوس النُجحِ إِمَّا تشعشعت

    فصَهباؤُها ممزوجةٌ بالعلاقمِ

    Beware success's cups if ever they sparkle,

    for their amber wine is mixed with bitterness.

  7. ولا تَغتَرِر بالأَريِ فالشَريُ دُونَهُ

    وفي ضَرَبِ الحُلوَى ضُروبُ السمائِمِ

    Do not be deceived by honey: colocynth lies beneath it;

    and in sweet honey lurk many kinds of poison.

  8. من الناسِ من يُرجَى نوالاً ويَختَشَى

    ومَن عُدَّ في الدُنيا كبعض البهائِمِ

    Among people are those whose bounty is hoped for and who are feared,

    and those counted in this world as mere beasts.

  9. طوالُ اللَجى لكن قِصارُ عزائِمٍ

    صِغارُ النُهى لكن كِبارُ العمائِمِ

    Long of beard, yet short in resolve,

    small in understanding, yet large in turbans.

  10. وكلُّ فَتىً لا يُرتَجى لِمُلِمَّةٍ

    فَذَرهُ وكُن عن فَقدهِ غير سادمِ

    And any man from whom no help is hoped in a crisis—

    leave him, and do not grieve over losing him.

  11. فيا مَن غدا وجهاً وجيهاً فوجِّهَن

    إلى اللَهِ وَجهاً من وُجوه المراحمِ

    O you who have become an honored face, direct

    toward God one of the faces of mercy.

  12. فانَّ زَكاةَ المال إِسعافُ بائسٍ

    وان زَكاةَ القَدرِ ترميدُ ظالمِ

    For the alms due on wealth are aid to one in misery,

    and the alms due on rank are reducing an oppressor to ashes.

  13. وليسَ زكاةُ الجاهِ الَّا حِمايةً

    لَدَى العجز من بَغي الأَلدِّ المخاصمِ

    The alms due on influence are nothing but protection

    for the helpless, against an implacable adversary's oppression.

  14. وليسَ زكاةُ النُطقِ الَّا إِقامةً

    لحُجَّةِ ذي حصرٍ عن القَولِ واجمِ

    The alms due on speech are nothing but establishing

    the plea of one tongue-tied and silent, unable to speak.

  15. فأَدُّوا إلى اللَه الزَكاةَ لتغنَموا

    بها البِرَّ ان البِرَّ أَسنَى الغنائِمِ

    So render your alms to God, that you may gain

    righteousness through them: righteousness is the most splendid gain.

  16. تأَمَّلتُ دهراً سُلَّ منهُ كِرامُهُ

    سِوَى النَدبِ عبدِ اللَهِ نسلِ الأكارمِ

    I contemplated an age from which its noble men had been drawn away,

    except the generous Abd Allah, scion of the noblest,

  17. ابي يُوسُفَ القَرمِ الذي فاقَ في النُهَى

    على الناس من ماضٍ وبادٍ وقادمِ

    Abu Yusuf, the eminent chief whose wisdom surpassed

    all people, past, present, and yet to come.

  18. تُسدَّدُ آراءُ الوُلاةِ برأيهِ

    إلى ان غدا مُعتلُّها مثلَ سالمِ

    The rulers' opinions are set right by his counsel,

    until their faulty ones become as sound as the healthy.

  19. اذا ما رأى فعلاً بدت فيهِ عِلَّةٌ

    اتاهُ بامرٍ ناهي الريب جازمِ

    If ever he sees an action in which a fault appears,

    he meets it with a decisive command that puts doubt to rest.

  20. لهُ اللَهُ من شَهمٍ لقد أحرزَ التُقَى

    وان التُقى للمرءِ أحرَزُ عاصمِ

    God bless such a noble man! He has secured piety,

    and piety is a person's surest protector.

  21. أَلا إِنَّ تَقوَى اللَه حِرزٌ ممنّعٌ

    يُصانُ بهِ لا بالرُقَى والتمائِمِ

    Indeed, reverence for God is an impregnable refuge,

    by which one is protected, not by incantations and amulets.

  22. لقد ذَرَّ في أُفقِ المشارقِ كوكبٌ

    تَجَلَّت بهِ الجُلَّى وجُنحُ المظالمِ

    A star has risen on the horizon of the East,

    by which great calamity and the darkness of wrongs have been dispelled.

  23. تصاغَرَ حُبّاً فاضلاً غيرَ صاغرٍ

    وأَبذلَ فضلاً شاكراً غيرَ نادمِ

    He humbled himself out of love, virtuous but never abased,

    and lavished bounty, grateful and never regretful.

  24. وأَحنى لدى الحاجاتِ جِيداً وكاهلاً

    وأَخنَى على الفَدمِ العنيدِ المقاومِ

    He bent neck and shoulder to the needs of others,

    and crushed the dull, obstinate resister.

  25. وماحَ ذوي الفاقاتِ أَقصَى مُناهمُ

    وأَرضَعَهُم بالأَمنِ من ضَرعِ راحمِ

    He granted the needy their utmost wishes,

    and suckled them with security from a merciful one's udder.

  26. لهُ الهِمَّةُ الكُبرَى بكل مُلِمَّةٍ

    فما زالَ ماضي الامر ماضي العزائمِ

    His is the loftiest resolve in every calamity,

    and he has never ceased to be firm in command and firm in resolve.

  27. فانَّ ذَكاءَ العقل للمَرءِ مَعقِلٌ

    غنيٌّ بهِ عن كلّ تُرسٍ وصارمِ

    For keenness of mind is a person's fortress,

    with which he needs neither shield nor sharp sword.

  28. بَسالةُ أُسد الغاب من دون بَهمِها

    بهِ فهو خِلصُ الأُنسِ بينَ العوالمِ

    The forest lions' courage, without their brutishness,

    is in him; he is humanity's true friend among all creatures.

  29. فكالليثِ لكن دونَ نشبِ اظافرٍ

    وكالغيثِ لكن دونَ بَسر الغمائِمِ

    He is like a lion, but without hooking claws,

    and like rain, but without the clouds' frown,

  30. وكالبدرِ لكن دُونَ نقصٍ وخسفةٍ

    وكالبحر لكن دُونَ موجٍ ملاطمِ

    and like the full moon, but without waning or eclipse,

    and like the sea, but without battering waves.

  31. فما عَظُمَت يوماً لديهِ عظيمةٌ

    ولو أَنَّها كانت اجلَّ العظائمِ

    No great calamity ever seemed great to him,

    even if it was the greatest of calamities.

  32. فكم غادرٍ افضالَهُ ومغادرٍ

    لها قام فيهم عاذراً غيرَ لائمِ

    How many have betrayed his favors or abandoned

    them, yet he stood among them excusing, not reproaching.

  33. بَنَى من صياصِي الحُبّ ما كان دارساً

    وكم بينَ بانٍ بالقُلوبِ وهادمِ

    He rebuilt the ruined strongholds of love;

    how far apart are one who builds in hearts and one who tears down!

  34. لقد زانَهُ خَلقٌ وخُلقٌ مهذَّبٌ

    فما شانَ منهُ الشانَ لَومُ اللوائِمِ

    His form and his refined character have adorned him;

    the reproaches of reproachers have never tarnished his standing.

  35. طِباعٌ كماءِ المُزنِ صفواً وكالصبا

    مَخايِلُ قد يصبو لها كلُّ حازمِ

    Dispositions pure as rainwater, and, like the east wind,

    traits for which even every steadfast man may yearn.

  36. خِلالٌ كوَشيِ الروضِ باكَرَهُ الحَيا

    بها سجعُ فضلٍ دونَ سجعِ الحمائمِ

    Virtues like a garden's brocade visited by morning rain,

    in which virtue's cadence sounds, not the cooing of doves.

  37. وشِنشِنةٌ ما شانَها قَطُّ وَصمةٌ

    وخِيمٌ لهُ تعنُو شَمَالُ النواسمِ

    An inborn nature never marred by a blemish,

    and a temperament before which the northern breezes bow.

  38. ووَجهٌ اذا ما الوَفدُ أَمَّ مُورَّدٌ

    تفتَّقَ غيظاً منهُ وردُ الكمائِمِ

    A rosy face whenever a delegation comes to him,

    the roses in their buds burst open in envious rage at it.

  39. لقد لَهِجَت في مدحِهِ أَلسُنُ الوَرَى

    أَتى المدحُ من أَفذاذِها والتوائِمِ

    The tongues of all people have dwelt on his praise;

    praise has come from single voices and voices paired.

  40. ولا بِدعَ ان أَهدَوا نِثارَ مديحهم

    لمن قامَ في أحوالهم خيرَ ناظمِ

    It is no wonder they have offered showers of their praise

    to the one who best sets their affairs in order.

  41. امينُ ذوي الأَقدارِ نَدبٌ مُدرَّبٌ

    تُصانُ بهِ الأَسرارُ صَونَ الكرائِمِ

    Trusted by men of rank, a noble man trained by experience,

    he safeguards secrets as precious treasures are safeguarded.

  42. حفيظٌ اذا ما استُودِعَ السِرَّ لم يَبُج

    فكانَ لناهي أَمرِهم خيرَ كاتمِ

    A guardian who, when entrusted with a secret, never divulges it,

    he is the best keeper of secrets for the director of their affairs.

  43. وَدُودٌ فلم يَخفُر ذِماماً بعهدهِ

    وانَّ انتقاضَ العهد شرُّ الذمائِمِ

    Affectionate, he never violates a pledge within his covenant;

    breaking a covenant is the worst of disgraceful deeds.

  44. فيا مَن غدا للجار كَهفاً ومَوئِلاً

    وان جارَ الَّا في ارتكابِ المحارمِ

    O you who have become a refuge and shelter for your neighbor,

    even if he acts unjustly—save in committing forbidden deeds—

  45. لَعَمرُكَ سالمتَ الزَمانَ بفِطنةٍ

    وان كانَ هذا الدهرُ غيرَ مُسالمِ

    by your life, you have made peace with time through shrewdness,

    though this age is not peaceable.

  46. تمرَّستَ بالأَحوالِ عن جُلِّ حِكمةٍ

    فصِرتَ بهذا الدهرِ احكمَ حاكمِ

    You have grappled with circumstances through great wisdom,

    and become this age's wisest judge.

  47. اذا فَغَرَت فاها اللَهَى تبتغي اللُهَى

    وَقَفتَ بها وَقفَ الشَجا في الغلاصمِ

    When gullets gape wide, seeking bribes,

    you block them like a bone lodged in the throats.

  48. نَفَحتُكَ مدحاً ان نفحَ كِبائهِ

    يَلَذُّ بهِ نشقُ النُهَى لا الخياشمِ

    I have gifted you praise; the fragrance of its incense

    delights the mind's inhaling, not the nostrils.

  49. يُعِيرُ نسيمَ الصُبحِ لُطفاً ورِقَّةً

    اذا ما ازدَهى يوماً لطيفَ النسائِمِ

    It lends the morning breeze gentleness and delicacy,

    if ever it enchants the gentlest of breezes.

  50. اذا رَمَقَت عينُ العُداةِ انسجِامَهُ

    رأَتهُ ولكن بالعُيونِ السواجمِ

    When an enemy's eye regards its flowing harmony,

    it sees it, but through eyes streaming with tears.

  51. وان صُمِّمَت آذانُهم عن سَماعهِ

    صَغَت نحوهُ آذانُ صُمّ الصلادمِ

    Though their ears are deafened to hearing it,

    the ears of deaf, hard rocks incline toward it.

  52. قريضُ قريئٍ سِيقَ للحبِّ مُخلصاً

    وان سِيقَ مَن دوني لنيلِ الدراهمِ

    A reciter's verse, conveyed in sincere love,

    though those beneath me are driven to gain dirhams.

  53. بهِ ارتحلَت اشواقُنا ظهرَ كاغدٍ

    ولولاهُ أَنضَينا هِجانَ الرواسمِ

    On it our longings have traveled on the back of paper;

    without it, we would have exhausted the noble white, swift-striding camels.

  54. فهِمنا قلوباً اذ فَهِمنا نُعوتَكم

    فما من نُهىً الَّا بمَعناك هائِمِ

    Our hearts were enraptured when we understood your qualities;

    no mind is without rapture at your essence.

  55. وَثِقتُ باني في مديحك صادقٌ

    وقد يُوجِبُ التصديقَ صِدقُ العلائِمِ

    I am certain that I speak truth in praising you,

    and truthful signs may compel belief.

  56. وانتَ بحمدِ اللَهِ ما زلتَ كُفؤَهُ

    تَفِيهِ كما اوفيتَ عن كل غارمِ

    And, praise be to God, you have always been worthy of it;

    you fulfill its due, as you have paid in full for every debtor.

  57. بَقِيتَ مَدى الايامِ بَهجةً اهلها

    تَذِيلُ بفَضفاضٍ من العِزِّ دائمِ

    May you remain for all days the delight of their people,

    trailing a flowing robe of lasting honor,

  58. عظيمَ الوَلا مُستطرِفاً كلَّ نِعمةٍ

    ومستغنماً فيها أَبَرَّ المغانم

    great in devotion, finding every blessing fresh,

    and reaping through it the most righteous gains.

  59. ولا عُرِفَت لك بينَ رَهطِكَ قيمةٌ

    ولا قيلَ يوماً كانَ بَرَّ المكارمِ

    May your worth among your kin never be reckoned,

    nor may it ever be said, 'He was a man of noble deeds.'

  60. ولا زِلتَ في طَودٍ من العِزّ شامخٍ

    منيعِ العَلا الأَسمَى وطيدِ الدعائِمِ

    May you ever remain on a lofty mountain of honor,

    impregnable in its highest reaches, with firm foundations,

  61. بجاهِ التي قد شرَّفَ اللَهُ قَدرَها

    فحارَ بَمَعنى سِرّها كلُّ عالمِ

    by the standing of her whose dignity God has exalted,

    so that every scholar is bewildered by her mystery's meaning.

  62. هيَ الآيةُ العُظمَى وسيطةُ جِنسنا

    شفيعتُنا يومَ اجتِزاءِ المآثمِ

    She is the greatest sign, the mediator of our kind,

    our intercessor on the day when sins are requited.

  63. هيَ الهيكلُ الأَسنَى لسُكنَى إِلهنا

    يسوعَ هُوَ ابنُ الآبِ ثاني الاقانمِ

    She is the most exalted temple for the dwelling of our God,

    Jesus, who is the Father's Son, the second of the divine Persons.

  64. هيَ الكوكبُ الوَضَّاحُ يَهدِي ضِياؤُهُ

    لَمِن ضلَّ في ظِلِّ الذُنُوبِ القواتمِ

    She is the radiant star whose light gives guidance

    to whoever has strayed in the shadow of darkening sins.

  65. اذا مَسَّتِ الضَرَّاءُ فاقصِد جَنابَها

    تَجِد عِندَها السَرَّاءَ عن ثَغر باسمِ

    If adversity touches you, seek her presence;

    with her you will find happiness, from smiling lips.

  66. لَقَد حَسَمَت عنا وَثاقَ ذُنوبنا

    فكانت لحَسمِ الداءِ افضلَ حاسمِ

    She has severed from us the bonds of our sins,

    and proved the best at cutting off the disease.

  67. اليكِ أَأُمَّ اللَهِ قد جِئتُ سائلاً

    نَوالَ نداكِ الهاملِ المتراكمِ

    To you, O Mother of God, I have come asking

    for the bounty of your generosity, raining down in abundance.

  68. فما مُنقِذٌ إِلَّاكِ للمرءِ ان بُلِي

    بآزفةٍ من سُوءِ شرٍّ مُداهمِ

    For none but you can rescue a person who is afflicted

    by an imminent calamity of suddenly assailing evil.

  69. أُرجِّي بكِ الشُفعى لصَفحِ مآثمي

    لَدَى حاكمي أَلَّا يَكُونَ مُحاكِمي

    Through you I hope for intercession to pardon my sins

    before my Judge, that he may not become my accuser.