1. يا حُسن مرآة زها حُسنها

    ما حازَها كِسرى وَلا قَيصَرُ

    How lovely the mirror whose beauty has blossomed!

    Neither Kisra nor Caesar possessed it.

  2. مِن جَوهَر العَقل غَدا سَبكها

    لا الدرّ يَحكيها وَلا الجَوهَرُ

    It was cast from the essence of reason;

    Neither pearls nor gemstones can match it.

  3. مرآة حسن كُلّ مَعنىً حَوَت

    فيهِ مِن الحكمة ما يُؤثرُ

    A mirror of beauty, it holds every meaning

    In which lies wisdom that is handed down.

  4. راقَت وَرَقّ الطَبع حَتّى غَدَت

    كَالماء في الرقّة إِذ يقطرُ

    It charmed, and its nature softened, until it became

    Like water in delicacy as it drips.

  5. الحسن يُروى عَن أَبيهِ بِها

    فَهوَ لَدَينا القَمَر المبدرُ

    In it, beauty is handed down from its father;

    For he is, to us, the full moon,

  6. منشئ أَبكار المَعاني الَّتي

    تَخجل مِنهُ الشَمس إِذ تُسفرُ

    Creator of virgin meanings that

    Make the sun blush before him as she unveils.

  7. وَحيد هَذا العَصر مقدامه

    مصباحه المتّقدُ المُزهرُ

    Peerless in this age, its bold champion,

    Its blazing, radiant lamp.

  8. أَنتَجت يا بَدر العُلى دُرّة

    يَحسدها شانئك الأبترُ

    You brought forth, O full moon of eminence, a pearl;

    Your hater, bereft of posterity, envies it.

  9. أمرتَ من نَفسك في بَذلِها

    عَلى كَرَم فَاِصدع بِما تُؤمرُ

    Your own soul bade you to bestow it

    With generosity; so proclaim what you are commanded.

  10. عَين حَياة النَفس أَمسَت بِها

    نَفائس الأَنفُس تَستَبشرُ

    It has become a wellspring of life for the soul; through it

    The choicest souls rejoice.

  11. لَو شاعَ فيما قَد مَضى ذكرها

    لأمَّها الخَضر وَإِسكَندرُ

    Had its renown spread in days gone by,

    Al-Khidr and Iskandar would surely have sought it.

  12. لِلّه أَقلام بَنانٍ حَوَت

    حبراً بِهِ أَنفُسنا تخبرُ

    God be praised for the pens of fingertips that held

    Ink through which our souls are informed.

  13. وَدرُّ مرآةِ المَعاني فَما

    في الجيد دُرٌّ مَعَها يُذكرُ

    And the pearls of the mirror of meanings—no

    Pearl on a neck can be mentioned beside it.

  14. فاِكشف نِقاب اللُطف عَن وَجهِها

    واِشهد مِن الزينة ما يُبهرُ

    So lift the veil of grace from its face,

    And behold what dazzles in its adornment.

  15. وَاِنظر وجوه الحُسن مَطبوعَةً

    تجلى بِها أرّخ لِمَن ينظرُ

    And see the faces of beauty, imprinted,

    Revealed through it; record the date for whoever looks.