1. عَلامَ يَلوم العاذِلون عَلى وَجدي

    وَما ضَرَّهُم أَنّي أكابده وَحدي

    Why do the reproachers blame me for my passion?

    And what harm is it to them that I suffer it alone?

  2. أَروح بِأَشواقي وَأغدو بِصَبوَتي

    فَمِن شَجوه شَجوي وَمِن سُهدِهِ سُهدي

    I go at evening with my yearnings and at dawn with my longing;

    for my sorrow is from his sorrow, my sleeplessness from his.

  3. شَجاني حمام الدَوح مِن رَوضة الحِمى

    فَهيّج أَشجاني وَلَم يَألُ عَن جهدِ

    The dove of the great trees grieved me from the sanctuary's garden,

    rousing my sorrows and sparing no effort.

  4. أَعاد وَأَبدى ساجِعاً وَمُغَرِّداً

    وَبتّ شَجيّاً لا أعيد وَلا أبدي

    He sang again and anew, cooing and warbling;

    while I spent the night sorrowful, neither repeating nor uttering a sound.

  5. أَقول لَهُ وَالصَبّ يَأنس بِالرَجا

    وَيَطمَع مِن أَحبابه بِوَفا الوَعدِ

    I say to him—and the lover takes comfort in hope,

    and hopes his loved ones will fulfill their promise—

  6. أَلا يا حَمام الأيك هَل أَنتَ مُنجِدي

    إِذا هَينمت نجديّة مِن حمى نَجدِ

    O dove of the thicket, will you come to my aid

    when a Najdi dove murmurs from Najd's sanctuary?

  7. وَيا بُلبل الأَغصان هجت بَلابِلي

    أَعندك مِن حرّ الجَوى بَعض ما عِندي

    And O nightingale of the branches, you have stirred my woes;

    have you any of the burning anguish that I have?

  8. أَهيم وَأَصبو كُلَّما هَبّت الصبا

    فَلا صَبوتي تُغني وَلا عبرَتي تجدي

    I wander lovesick and yearn whenever the east breeze blows,

    yet neither my longing helps nor my tears avail.

  9. تَذكّرت عهدي مِن سُعادٍ فَلَم أَجد

    بِهِ مسعداً لي في دِيار بَني سَعدِ

    I recalled my days with Su'ad but found no

    one to comfort me in them, in the dwellings of Banu Sa'd.

  10. وَقُمت أُناجي الفرقدين كَأَنّني

    جذيمة إِذ غابَت نهاه عَن الرُشدِ

    I rose to confide in the two Farqad stars, as though I were

    Jadhima, when his reason strayed from sound judgment.

  11. بِنَفسي الَّتي نَفسي أَقلّ هباتها

    عَليَّ إِذا ما أَنعَمَت ليَ بِالودِّ

    My life be ransom for her—my life is the least of her gifts

    to me, whenever she graciously grants me affection.

  12. أعزّ حَياتي أَن أذلَّ لعزّها

    وَخَير صِفاتي قَولها لِيَ يا عَبدي

    The dearest part of my life is to humble myself before her glory,

    and my finest attribute is her saying to me, 'O my slave.'

  13. وما ضَرَّني أن لا أَرى لي مُعاهِدا

    إِذا هِيَ قالَت نَحنُ مِنكَ عَلى العَهدِ

    And what harm is it to me to find no one pledged to me,

    if she says, 'We remain faithful to our pledge to you'?

  14. وَفت لي وَكانَت كَالسموأل بالوَفا

    وَكانَت عُهودي عِندَها أَدرع الكندي

    She kept faith with me, like al-Samaw'al in fidelity,

    and my pledges in her keeping were al-Kindi's coats of mail.

  15. إِلى اللَه أَشكو ظلم مَن لَيسَ عاذِري

    بِأُخت العَذارى الغيد عادلة القدِّ

    To God I complain of the injustice of one who will not excuse me

    over the sister of graceful maidens, so shapely of form.

  16. مَليكة حُسن تَحت رايات شعرِها

    نُجوم الدَراري بَدرها قائد الجُندِ

    A queen of beauty: beneath the banners of her hair

    are brilliant stars, her full moon commanding the host.

  17. مَهاة إِذا ما حاربتك جُفونها

    أَرَتك بِأَشراك المَها مَهج الأُسدِ

    An oryx-doe: when her eyelids wage war on you,

    she shows you lions' hearts in the oryxes' snares.

  18. تَمرّ فَيَحلو مرّ صَبري عَلى النَوى

    إِذا ما تَصَدّت عَن دلال إِلى الصَدِّ

    She passes, and the bitterness of my patience in separation grows sweet,

    when, out of coquetry, she inclines toward rebuff.

  19. وَتَحنو عَلى وَجدي بِها وَتَنهّدي

    إِذا أَطلَعت مِن صَدرِها كَوكَبي نهدِ

    She takes pity on my passion for her and my sighing,

    when she reveals from her chest the twin stars of her breasts.

  20. إِذا عايَنت نار الخَليل بِمُهجَتي

    أَماطَت وَحيّت بِالسَلام وَبِالبَردِ

    When she sees Abraham's fire in my heart,

    she sweeps it away and greets me with peace and coolness.

  21. فَيا جنّةً عيني بِها لَو تخيّرت

    لَما اِستبدلتها العَين في جَنّة الخلدِ

    What a paradise she is to my eye! Were it free to choose,

    it would not trade her for the paradise of eternity.

  22. هِيَ الشَمس لا عَيب يُرى بِجَمالِها

    وَلَكن بِهِ غَيب عَن الأَعيُن الرُمدِ

    She is the sun: no flaw can be seen in her beauty,

    yet it is hidden from inflamed eyes.

  23. بِها سَعدت أَوقات أُنسي فَأشرقت

    وَنجمي بِسَعد اللَه في طالع السَعدِ

    Through her my hours of intimacy grew happy and radiant,

    and through Sa'd Allah my star stands in fortune's ascendant.

  24. همام هُوَ البَدر المُنير الَّذي سَمَت

    بِهِ الرُتبة العَلياءُ في فلك المَجدِ

    A magnanimous lord, he is the shining full moon through whom

    the loftiest rank has risen in the sphere of glory.

  25. وَفى للحجا عَهداً عَلى البرّ وَالتُقى

    كَما عَهد الهادي إِلى السَيّد المَهدي

    He fulfilled a pledge to wisdom in goodness and piety,

    as al-Hadi pledged to the lord al-Mahdi.

  26. إِذا عُدَّ أَعلام الهُدى مِن أُولي النُهى

    أَشارَت لَهُ الأَيّام بِالعلم الفَردِ

    When the beacons of guidance are counted among people of reason,

    the days point to him as the peerless beacon.

  27. وَما زانَ جيدَ المَجدِ عقدُ فَرائِدٍ

    مِن الناس إِلّا كانَ واسطة العَقدِ

    No necklace of unique gems has adorned glory's neck,

    drawn from mankind, without him as its centerpiece.

  28. هُوَ البَحر إِلّا أَنَّهُ العَذب ما بِهِ

    هياج يَروّي القَلب في الجزر وَالمَدِّ

    He is the sea, except that he is fresh water, with no

    tumult in him; he quenches the heart at ebb and flow.

  29. رَوى فعله عَن طيب عنصر أَصلهِ

    أَحاديث صدق عن أَبيه عَن الجَدِّ

    His deeds tell of the goodness of his ancestral stock:

    truthful accounts from his father, from his grandfather.

  30. شَمائل أَذكى مِن شَذا شَمأل الصبا

    هيَ الندُّ لَكن صانَها اللَهُ عَن نِدِّ

    Qualities more fragrant than the scent of the northeasterly breeze;

    they are fragrant incense, yet God has kept them without a rival.

  31. وَأَخلاق شَهم كَالرِياض تَسلسلت

    جَداولها بَينَ الأَقاحيّ وَالوَردِ

    And a noble man's character, like gardens where flow

    their streams among daisies and roses.

  32. مَكارم لَو عَدَّدتها لَتمنّعت

    عَلَيكَ وَهَل لِلأَنجُم الزهر مِن عدِّ

    Noble virtues: if you tried to count them, they would elude

    you—and can the bright stars be numbered?

  33. محيّا عَلى الدُنيا تَلا سورة الضُحى

    وَبَأس عَلى الأَعدا تَلا سورة الرَعدِ

    A countenance that recited the surah of Morning Brightness to the world,

    and valor that recited the surah of Thunder to his foes.

  34. وَصيت سَرى في الأَرض شَرقاً وَمَغرِباً

    فَأَغرَب في سَمع وَأَعرَب عَن حَمدِ

    And renown that spread across the earth, east and west,

    astonishing the ear and clearly voicing praise.

  35. هُوَ العَربيّ الطَبع ذُو الهمّة الَّتي

    هِيَ السمهريّ اللدن وَالصارم الهندي

    He is Arab in nature, possessing resolve that

    is the supple Samhari spear and the sharp Indian sword.

  36. تَميّز عَن أَضدادهِ بِمناقِبٍ

    هِيَ الفَضل وَالأَشياء تَمتاز بِالضدِّ

    He stands apart from his rivals through virtues

    that are excellence itself; things are distinguished by their opposites.

  37. تَواضع ذي مَجد وَعفّة قادر

    وَرَأفة ذي جُود وَهمّة ذي جدِّ

    A glorious man's humility, a powerful man's restraint,

    a generous man's compassion, a determined man's resolve.

  38. وَكَم جاهل لِلمَجد تَطمَحُ عَينُهُ

    وَثَغر المَعالي مِنهُ يَضحَكُ عَن بُعدِ

    How many an ignorant man's eye aspires to glory,

    while the mouth of high honors laughs at him from afar.

  39. وَما شرَّف العَلياء مِن أَهلِها سِوى

    فَتىً أَرضَعته ثَديها وَهوَ في المَهدِ

    None among its people has honored exalted rank except

    a youth whom it suckled at its breast while he lay in the cradle.

  40. إِذا نَظر الدُنيا اِستَقَلّ حُطامها

    بِعَين تَقيٍّ كحلها إِثمد الزهدِ

    When he regards the world, he deems its fleeting riches paltry,

    with a pious eye, kohled with the antimony of renunciation.

  41. صِفات كَمالٍ خَصَّهُ اللَه منّةً

    بِها وَمحال قسمة الجَوهر الفَردِ

    Qualities of perfection: God graciously singled him out

    with them—and dividing the indivisible atom is impossible.

  42. سَما عَن نَظير في العُلى وَمناظرٍ

    وَعَن جاحِدٍ نَذلٍ وَعَن حاسِدٍ وَغدِ

    He rose above any peer or rival in the heights,

    above the base denier and the vile envier.

  43. وَحلَّ مِن الإِسكندريّة ساحة

    بَناها عَلى حكم المَكارم لِلوَفدِ

    He made his home in a precinct of Alexandria,

    which he built for visitors under the rule of noble generosity.

  44. فَكانَت بِحَمد اللَه لِلناس جنّةً

    وَفَوزاً لآمال العفاة ذوي القَصدِ

    Thus, praise be to God, it became a paradise for people,

    and a fulfillment of the hopes of supplicants who came with purpose.

  45. وَزار حِمى بَيروت فَاِبتهجت بِهِ

    سُروراً وَأضحت منهلاً صافي الوردِ

    He visited Beirut's sanctuary, and it rejoiced in him

    with joy, becoming a watering place of pure draughts.

  46. وَللشام أَضحى شامة حينَ زارَها

    وَزادَت جَمالاً إِذ غَدا شامة الخَدِّ

    For al-Sham he became a beauty mark when he visited it,

    and it grew more beautiful when he became the cheek's beauty mark.

  47. وَعادَ وَكانَ العود عيداً بِهِ الهَنا

    يَفيض عَلى رَوض القُلوب بِلا حَدِّ

    He returned, and his return was a festival through which joy

    overflowed the gardens of hearts without limit.

  48. قُدوم أَتى بِالخَير يا خَير قادم

    عَلَينا قُدومَ الغَيث لَكن بِلا رَعدِ

    An arrival bringing goodness, O best of newcomers,

    upon us like the coming of rain, but without thunder.

  49. أَبا أَحمَد لا زالَ حمدك سائِغاً

    عَلى أَلسُن المدّاح أَحلى مِن الشهدِ

    Abu Ahmad, may praise of you remain sweet

    on the tongues of panegyrists, sweeter than honey.

  50. حِماك حَماك اللَه أَمّت بَديعة

    وَجاءَت مِن الإِبداع ترفل في بردِ

    A wondrous poem sought your sanctuary—may God protect you—

    and came from artistry, sweeping along in a mantle.

  51. ربت في ربى نَجد وَعَن طَبعِها رَوَت

    نَسيم الصبا بَينَ العباهر وَالرندِ

    She grew on Najd's hills and recounted, from her own nature,

    the east breeze among narcissi and laurel.

  52. أَتَت وَالمذاكي خَلفَها فَتقلّدت

    حلى الفَخر سَبقاً وَاِرعوت عطل الجردِ

    She came with seasoned steeds behind her, and donned

    the jewels of pride for winning, while unadorned sleek steeds drew back.

  53. فَما اِرتفعت كَعب لكعب أَمامها

    وَلا نَبغَت أَقلام نابغة الجعدي

    So no heel of Ka'b rose before her,

    nor did the pens of Nabigha al-Ja'di excel.

  54. هِيَ الغادة الحَسنا الَّتي فاقَ حُسنها

    وَأدهش مِن قَبلي سَناها وَمِن بَعدي

    She is the fair, graceful maiden whose beauty excelled,

    and whose radiance dazzled those before me and those after me.

  55. فَلَيسَ لَها عَن ذكرِ فَضلك مِن غِنىً

    وَلَيسَ لَها عَن شُكر صنعك مِن بُدِّ

    She cannot dispense with mentioning your excellence,

    nor can she escape thanking you for your kindness.

  56. ذكرت سَجاياك الَّتي توجب الثَنا

    فَأَصبح ما بَين الوَرى ذِكرها وردي

    I mentioned your traits that deserve praise,

    and their mention among mankind became my daily litany.

  57. أَقول هَوى هِند تَملّك خاطِري

    وَلَيسَ هَوى هِند عنيت وَلا دَعدِ

    I say, 'Love of Hind has possessed my thoughts,'

    but I do not mean love of Hind or Da'd.

  58. وَلَكنّ أَوصافاً لَديك كَريمة

    ملكت بِها قَلبي وَكدت بِها ضدّي

    Rather, it is the noble qualities you possess:

    through them you won my heart and thwarted my adversary.

  59. وَعقد كَمال زان مِنكَ شَمائِلاً

    تَملّكته مِن مالك الحلِّ وَالعقدِ

    And a necklace of perfection adorned qualities of yours,

    which you acquired from the master of loosing and binding.

  60. فَكُن شَمس عزٍّ لا مَغيب لِنورِها

    يُنادي نَدىً لِلوَفد مَغناه وَالرَفدِ

    So be a sun of honor whose light never sets,

    whose dwelling proclaims bounty and aid for visitors.

  61. وَدُم في سُرور لا يشاب بكدرةٍ

    مَدى الدَهرِ واِسلم في صفا عَيشك الرَغدِ

    And remain in joy unmixed with any cloudiness

    forever, and stay safe in the serenity of your life of ease.