عَلَيكَ سَلامُ اللَهِ قَيسَ بنَ عاصِمٍ

عَلَيكَ سَلامُ اللَهِ قَيسَ بنَ عاصِمٍ

وَرَحمَتُهُ ما شاءَ أَن يَتَرَحَّما

وَرَحمَتُهُ ما شاءَ أَن يَتَرَحَّما

Upon you be the peace of God, Qays ibn ‘Asim,

Upon you be the peace of Allah, O Qays bin Asim,

and His mercy, for as long as He wills to show mercy—

And His mercy, for as long as He wills to show mercy.

تَحِيَّةَ مَن أَلبَستَهُ مِنكَ نِعمَةً

تَحِيَّةَ مَن أَلبَستَهُ مِنكَ نِعمَةً

إِذا زارَ عَن شَحطٍ بِلادَكَ سَلَّما

إِذا زارَ عَن شَحطٍ بِلادَكَ سَلَّما

the greeting of one whom you clothed in a blessing from yourself,

The greeting of one whom you have clothed with a favor,

who, whenever he came from afar to visit your land, saluted you.

Who offers peace when visiting your land from afar.

فَما كانَ قَيسٌ هُلكُهُ هُلكُ واحِدٍ

فَما كانَ قَيسٌ هُلكُهُ هُلكُ واحِدٍ

وَلَكِنَّهُ بُنيانُ قَومٍ تَهَدَّما

وَلَكِنَّهُ بُنيانُ قَومٍ تَهَدَّما

For Qays’s death was not the death of one man;

For the death of Qays was not the loss of a single man,

rather, it was the edifice of a whole people that came crashing down.

But rather it was the edifice of a people that collapsed.