1. خَبِّرونا معاشرَ الفُسَّاقِ

    امرَ ذاك البِلى وذاكَ المِحاقِ

    Tell us, you companies of sinners,

    about that decay and that annihilation,

  2. يومَ أَهمى عليكُمُ اللَهُ عدلاً

    وَبلَ نارٍ من عالياتِ الطِباقِ

    on the day God justly rained upon you

    a downpour of fire from the upper heavens.

  3. تطلُبُ النارَ بالغريزةِ فَوقاً

    كيفَ قد أُحدِرَت إلى الأَعماقِ

    Fire naturally seeks the heights;

    how was it driven down into the depths?

  4. كيفَ بالقَسرِ قد هَوَت نحو أرضٍ

    وَهيَ تسمو على الهَوا بالتراقي

    How was it forced to fall toward earth,

    when it rises above the air in its ascent?

  5. وغَدَوتُم رمائماً بل رَماداً

    قد ذَرَتهُ السَمُومُ في الآفاق

    You became crumbling remains—rather, ashes

    that the scorching wind scattered across the horizons.

  6. فنَما الفِسقُ مُنذُ ذاك بخَلقٍ

    خُلِقوا من ذمائِم الأَخلاقِ

    Since then, vice has flourished among people

    created from despicable traits.

  7. فُحشُكم عَمَّ كلَّ ارضٍ وقُطرٍ

    سِيَّما في شآمِها والعِراقِ

    Your obscenity spread through every land and region,

    especially Syria and Iraq.

  8. آلَ لُوطٍ كأَنَّما من ثراكم

    كُوِّنَ اللائطونَ اهلُ النِفاقِ

    O house of Lot, it is as though from your dust

    the sodomites, those hypocrites, were formed.

  9. بَطُوءَ اللَهُ بالتجسُّدِ لكن

    بدعكم كان علة الاعتياقِ

    God was slow to become incarnate, but

    your heresies were the cause of the delay.

  10. قد صَدَرتم عن الحيوةِ وأَنتم

    تَرِدُون الرَدى بكأسٍ دِهاقِ

    You have departed from life, while

    approaching death with a brimming cup.

  11. نَعَبَ البُومُ في عِراصِ حِماكم

    ليسَ شيءٌ سِوى الالهِ بباقِ

    The owl croaked in the courtyards of your sanctuary;

    nothing but God endures.

  12. عاثَ فيها البَوارُ طُولاً وعَرضاً

    واستباها الدمارُ باستِيثاقِ

    Ruin ravaged it lengthwise and breadthwise,

    and destruction took secure possession of it.

  13. فَتَداعَت أَمصارُها مثلَ رِيحا

    اذ تَداعَت بجلبة الأَبواقِ

    Its cities collapsed like Jericho,

    when it fell at the clamor of trumpets.

  14. ما بها من مُجاوبٍ لمُنادٍ

    لا ولا من مُودِّعٍ أو مُلاقِ

    There is no one there to answer a caller,

    nor anyone bidding farewell or offering a greeting.

  15. وإلى الآنَ فالشُهودُ عليكم

    ثَمَراتٌ تروِي عن الإِحتراقِ

    To this day, the witnesses against you

    are fruits that tell of the burning,

  16. بدُخانٍ تَمَّنَتهُ نباءَ

    عن قَضاءِ المُهَيمِنِ الخَلاقِ

    with smoke [unclear wording], as tidings

    of the judgment of the Sovereign Creator,

  17. وأُصولٍ غُصونُها ذاوياتٌ

    عَرِيتَ من ملابس الأَوراقِ

    and roots whose branches are withered,

    stripped of their garments of leaves.

  18. ارعدَ اللَهُ من عَلاهُ برُجزٍ

    فابتداهُ بمُومِضٍ أَلاقِ

    God thundered from His heights in wrath,

    then began His assault with a glittering flash.

  19. رَتَعَت منكم اللحاظُ بنُورٍ

    هُوَ نارٌ مَزِيدةُ الإِشراقِ

    Your gazes feasted upon a light

    that is fire of heightened brilliance.

  20. ونَعِمتم بحَرّها فنعيماً

    دائماً مُطلَقاً بغيرِ طَلاقِ

    You enjoyed its heat—so bliss be yours,

    everlasting, unrestricted, without release!

  21. ارفعوا الهامَ وانصِبوا اللحظَ منكم

    لِم خَفَضتم بهِ إلى الإِطراقِ

    Raise your heads and fix your gaze;

    why have you lowered it in downcast silence?

  22. جاءَكم هاتفُ الحِمام حثيثاً

    فاعقِدوا للرحيلِ حبكَ النِطاقِ

    The herald of death has come swiftly to you;

    tighten your girdles for departure.

  23. فَهوَ خيرٌ من عِلَّةٍ ودواءٍ

    وطبيبٍ عِلاجُهُ غيرُ باقِ

    For it is better than illness and medicine,

    and a physician whose treatment does not last,

  24. ونِزاعٍ على فِراش المنايا

    والتحادٍ محكَّمِ الإِغلاقِ

    and death throes upon the bed of doom,

    and burial sealed firmly shut.

  25. كلُّ حَيٍّ من الأَنام لموتٍ

    واجتماعٍ مصيرُهُ لِفراقِ

    Every living human is destined for death,

    and every gathering ends in separation.

  26. قد أَمِنتم دَبَّ الوُحوشِ اليكم

    وبِلىً تحتَ هَبوة الأَطباقِ

    You are safe from beasts creeping toward you,

    and from decay beneath the dust of grave-slabs.

  27. غيرَ أَنَّ الذي هَلَكتم فيهِ

    مستمرٌّ بكم على الإِطلاقِ

    Yet that in which you perished

    continues with you without limit.

  28. قد نسجتم لكم غلائلَ يأسِ

    وثِباتَ الرجاءِ من أَخلاقِ

    You have woven yourselves robes of despair,

    and hope's steadfastness from tattered rags.

  29. واتخذتم من الحيوةِ نصيباً

    وَهوَ يومَ المَماتِ شَرُّ خَلاقِ

    You took a portion from life

    that, on the day of death, is the worst of shares.

  30. هل وَثِقتم من العَذابِ لهذا انتمُ

    في لَظىً شديدِ الوَثاقِ

    Did you feel secure from punishment? For this you are

    in a blaze, tightly bound.

  31. يا لِسربٍ مُنِي بقُولَنجِ فِسقٍ

    فأَتاهُ الدَمارُ كالتِرياقِ

    Alas for a company afflicted with the colic of vice,

    to whom destruction came like an antidote!

  32. ارسلَ اللَهُ نَبلهُ فذراهم

    من حُصون منيعةِ الرُستاقِ

    God sent His arrows and scattered them

    from the district's impregnable fortresses.

  33. أَظمأَتهم تلكَ الصواعقُ لكن

    سوفَ يُرويهمِ بِشُربِ الزُعاقِ

    Those thunderbolts made them thirsty, but

    He will quench them with a drink of bitter brine.

  34. وابتلاهم برِعدةٍ أَخَذتهم

    من مَهِيل الإِرعاد والإِبراقِ

    He afflicted them with a trembling that seized them

    from terrifying thunder and lightning.

  35. أَعرَقَتهم شآمةٌ لا مَناصٌ

    لهمُ بالإِشام والإِعراقِ

    Ill fortune made them sweat; there was no escape

    for them by going to Syria or Iraq.

  36. وبُروقٍ لمّا بدت عَربَسَتهم

    فرَعَوها بَمدمَعِ الآماقِ

    And lightning, when it appeared, terrified them;

    they watched it with streaming eyes.

  37. مُذ سَقى جِسمَهم وَلِيُّ اصطلاءِ

    سَحَّ وَسميُّ دمعهم كالسواقي

    Since a following shower of scorching drenched their bodies,

    the first rain of their tears poured like watercourses.

  38. فَتَرُوا في محبَّةِ اللَهِ قلباً

    فصَلاهُ بجُذوةِ الإِحراقِ

    Their hearts grew lukewarm in love for God,

    so He scorched them with an ember of burning.

  39. أُشعِلَ الجمرُ منهُ لكنَّ أَنّي

    لم يَبخ منكمُ بسَحِّ المآقي

    The embers were kindled by Him; yet how

    did they not subside beneath your streaming eyes?

  40. عن سفاحٍ محرَّمٍ ولِواطٍ

    وبدالٍ وغُبَّرٍ ونِفاقِ

    Over forbidden fornication and sodomy,

    and swapping, ghubbar [an obscure term], and hypocrisy,

  41. ثم عزل ينفي اللِقاحَ تَلاهُ

    وَلَعٌ لن يُباحَ بالإِتفاقِ

    then withdrawal, which prevents conception; after it came

    a passion forbidden by common consent.

  42. كلُّ إِلفٍ بإِلفهِ مُتَكَفٍّ

    كلُّ عِلقٍ بمثلِهِ ذُو اعتِلاقِ

    Each lover leans upon his lover;

    each beloved clings to his like.

  43. لم يَزَل بعضُكم يرضّعُ بعضاً

    من فواق النفاق سُوءَ النِفاقِ

    You never ceased suckling one another

    with hypocrisy's spurting milk, the evil of hypocrisy.

  44. وكَرعتُم عندَ الظَماءِ أُجاجا

    يا لهُ من فُجورِ ظامٍ وساقِ

    You gulped brine when thirsty—

    what debauchery in thirsty man and cupbearer!

  45. خلتُم أَريَ ما اضَّلعتُمُ حُلواً

    وَهوَ شَريُ الطُعومِ مُرُّ المَذاقِ

    You thought the honey of what you drank down sweet,

    though it was colocynth in flavor, bitter to taste.

  46. وصِغارٍ تَوحَّموا بكِبارٍ

    فأَتَوا مِثلَهم بحُسنِ انتِساقِ

    And little ones took their cravings from grown ones,

    then came forth like them in fitting succession,

  47. كمواشٍ توحَّمَت بعِصِيٍّ

    وُضِعَت عِندَ وِردِها في المَساقي

    like livestock influenced in pregnancy by rods

    placed at their drinking places in the troughs.

  48. كلُّ شخصٍ اضحى التنازُعُ فيهِ

    فَهوَ موضوعُ عاملي الإِنشقاقِ

    Every person over whom contention arose

    became the object of two agents of division.

  49. ان يكن مَصدَرٌ وفيهِ اعتِلالٌ

    أَشبهتهُ الافعالُ بالإِشتقاقِ

    If a verbal noun contains a weakness,

    its derived verbs resemble it.

  50. لَحِقوا في مَسِيرِهم لاحقِيهم

    كم وكم مُعرَبٍ على الإِلحاقِ

    They overtook their followers on their way;

    how many an inflected word follows analogical attachment!

  51. يَتَجارَونَ بالفَسادِ وكلٌّ

    مُستَعِدٌّ بعَضبِهِ للَّحاقِ

    They race one another in corruption, and each

    is ready with his sword to catch up.

  52. قُربُهم بالجُسوم فَهوَ كَحرفِ ال

    باءِ بالجَرّ خُصَّ بالإِلصاقِ

    Their bodily closeness is like the letter

    bāʾ, which governs the genitive and denotes attachment.

  53. سَكَنوا في اللَظى بجازمِ سُخطٍ

    بعدَ ذاك الحَراك والإِخفاقِ

    They fell still in the blaze under decisive wrath,

    after all that movement and failure.

  54. رَقَدوا في هواهمُ فاستفاقوا

    وهُمُ قُطبُ دائر الإِقلاقِ

    They slept in their desire, then awoke

    as the axis of the revolving wheel of unrest.

  55. ذلك الإِقتراضُ جِسماً بجسمٍ

    قد حباكم جَسامةَ الأَوثاقِ

    That borrowing, body for body,

    has bestowed upon you enormous bonds.

  56. قرضكم في الكَساد مُدٌّ بصاعٍ

    بِكَمِ الصاعُ في زَمانِ النَفاقِ

    Your lending in a slack market is a mudd for a saʿ;

    what does a saʿ cost when trade is brisk?

  57. تَتَقاضَونَ بالتقايُض حقّاً

    مُحرَماً في المبيع والمسواقِ

    Through barter you exact a claim

    forbidden in the goods and the marketplace.

  58. قد شنيتم بذا التعارُضِ عِرضاً

    بِيعَ منكم بأَبخَس الأَسواقِ

    Through these mutual dealings you have sullied an honor

    sold by you in the cheapest markets.

  59. يا ليكيفيَّةٍ بكم قد تناهت

    في اشتِدادٍ بالخَرقِ والإِنخِراقِ

    Oh, what a quality has reached its utmost in you,

    growing intense through rending and being rent!

  60. عَرَضٌ قد أَهان جوهرَ عِرضٍ

    فادرِكوهُ بلُؤلُؤِ الآماقِ

    An accident has debased the substance of honor;

    rescue it with the pearls of your eyes.

  61. لن تُفيدَ الاثيمَ أَدمُعُ يأسٍ

    بل دموعُ الرَجاءِ بالإِنسحاقِ

    Tears of despair will not help the sinner,

    but tears of hope with contrition will.

  62. ايُّها الفاسقُ المملِّقُ آهاً

    من دواهي لِسانك الملاقِ

    O flattering sinner, alas

    for the calamities of your fawning tongue!

  63. صدَّك اللَهُ بالبِلى والبلايا

    والأَذى والشَقاءِ والإِملاقِ

    May God turn you back through decay and afflictions,

    through harm, misery, and poverty.

  64. لبسَ ملكُ الالهِ لَذَّةَ جِسمٍ

    بل عناهُ بِشدَّةِ الاعراقِ

    God's kingdom is [not] bodily pleasure;

    rather, He wearied the body with intense sweating.

  65. جَدِّدِ القلبَ تَملِكِ الطُهرَ إِذ لن

    يُحفَظَ الخمرُ في رثيث الزِفاقِ

    Renew your heart and possess purity, for wine will not

    be preserved in worn-out wineskins.

  66. وانبُذَن ما جنيتَهُ مستمدّاً

    فضلَ ذاتِ الحُنُوّ والإِشفاقِ

    Cast away what you have committed, seeking

    the grace of her who has tenderness and compassion:

  67. مريمَ البِكرِ عينِ كل سَناءِ

    اشرفِ الخَلقِ صُفوةِ الخَلاقِ

    Mary the Virgin, the essence of every splendor,

    the noblest of creatures, the Creator's chosen one.

  68. سادت الناسَ والملائكَ طُهراً

    بالغاً بالغُلُوّ والإِغراقِ

    She surpassed mankind and the angels in purity,

    reaching the utmost, beyond all measure.

  69. بحرُ جُودٍ يَمُدُّ من غير جَزرٍ

    زادَ في الناسِ فيضُهُ باندِفاقِ

    A sea of generosity that rises without ebb,

    its overflow increased among people in a torrent.

  70. فُلكُ نوحٍ وقوسُ عهدٍ وثيقٍ

    ثابتٍ وَهيَ قُبَّةُ المِيثاقِ

    Noah's ark, and the bow of a firm covenant,

    enduring—and she is the Tabernacle of the Covenant.

  71. وَهيَ بابٌ قد جازهُ حِكمةُ اللَهِ

    وما زالَ مُحكَمَ الإِغلاقِ

    She is a gate through which God's Wisdom passed,

    yet it remained firmly shut,

  72. باثقاً رُوحَهُ نظيرَ ابيهِ

    فَهوَ والآبُ مَصدَرُ الإِنبِثاقِ

    sending forth His Spirit like His Father;

    He and the Father are the source of procession.

  73. وتَشَبَّث بها إذا شِئتَ تَرقى

    للعُلى فَهيَ سُلَّمٌ ومَراقِ

    Cling to her if you wish to ascend

    to the heights, for she is a ladder and ascending steps.

  74. ليسَ يجلو صَدى القُلوبِ سِواها

    فَهيَ نُورُ العُقولِ والأَحداق

    None but she polishes the rust from hearts;

    she is the light of minds and eyes.

  75. أَدركينا فلا يَشُقُّ عليكِ

    ان تَشُقِّي ملابسَ الإِنشقاقِ

    Come to our aid; it is not hard for you

    to tear apart the garments of division.

  76. قد شَقِينا وقد غَدَونا أَسارى

    وحَيارَى من حين وقع الشِقاقِ

    We have suffered and become captives,

    bewildered since discord arose.

  77. لَستُ أَلقى سِواكِ عنِّيَ يُلقي

    عِبءَ ثِقل الهُمومِ مما أُلاقي

    I find none but you to cast from me

    the heavy burden of the sorrows I encounter.

  78. كم وكم قلَّبَت خميساً وقلباً

    ذا جَناحٍ لمُرهَفات الرِقاقِ

    How often she has turned an army, and a heart

    with wings, toward keen-edged, slender blades!

  79. فَهيَ تسطو على العُداةِ ببأسِ

    لا ببيض الظُبي وسُمرِ الرِشاقِ

    For she assails the enemies with might,

    not with shining blades and brown, slender spears.

  80. فاجبُري يا بَتُولُ قلباً كسيراً

    رام منكِ الوقاءَ يا خيرَ واقِ

    So mend, O Virgin, a broken heart

    that sought your protection, O best protector.

  81. لَذَّ لي في هَواكِ ذُلُّ غَرامي

    وهِيامي وصَبوتي واشتياقي

    The abasement of my passion is sweet to me in loving you,

    as are my wandering love, my yearning, and my longing.

  82. انني لا أَزالُ في كل وادٍ

    هائمَ القلب هاميَ الآماقِ

    In every valley I remain

    with wandering heart and streaming eyes.

  83. أَودِعيني السَلامَ او وَدِّعيني

    عن أَمانٍ من قبلِ وشك الفِراقِ

    Grant me peace, or bid me farewell

    in safety, before separation draws near.

  84. إِنَّ ذَنبي قَضَى عليَّ فِراقاً

    ليتَ شِعري متى يكونُ التلاقي

    My sin has sentenced me to separation;

    if only I knew when reunion would come!

  85. أُرفُقي بي فرُفقتي غادَرَتني

    انكِ في الأَنامِ خيرُ الرِفاقِ

    Be gentle with me, for my companions have abandoned me;

    you are the best companion among mankind.

  86. فعليكِ السَلامُ ما نَسَّم الرو

    ضُ ولذَّ النسيمُ للإِنتِشاقِ

    Peace be upon you while the garden breathes,

    and the breeze is sweet to inhale,

  87. وتلظَّت حشاشةٌ وفُؤَادٌ

    من مُحِبٍّ متيَّمٍ مُشتاقِ

    and the spark of life and the heart blaze

    within an enthralled, yearning lover,

  88. وتصافت عشيرةٌ لوِدادٍ

    وصَفَت أَدمُعٌ من العُشَّاقِ

    and a kindred band grows sincere in affection,

    and lovers' tears run clear,

  89. وتبدَّى من بعدِ ليلٍ نَهارق

    آخذٌ من دُجاهُ بالأَطواقِ

    and daylight appears after night,

    grasping its darkness by the collars,

  90. واستُحِثَّت إلى حِماكِ المطايا

    سارعاتٍ تَمُدُّ بالأَعناقِ

    and the mounts are urged toward your sanctuary,

    hurrying, stretching out their necks.