هذا البناءُ الَّذي محمودُ أنْشَأهُ

وزانَه زُخْرُفُ زاهٍ وتشييدُ

This is the building that Mahmoud raised,

adorned by brilliant ornament and solid workmanship.

فجاءَ في غاية الإتقان منتزهاً

فيه السُّرور وفيه الأنْس موجود

It emerged, perfected to the utmost, a place of delight,

where joy resides and warm companionship is found.

لا يسمع المرءُ في مغناه لاغيةً

وطائر اليمن في مغناه غرّيد

No one hears an idle word within its precincts,

and the bird of Yemen—of good fortune—warbles there.

آل المبارك لا زالت مباركة

لكم منازل فيها الفضل مشهود

House of al-Mubarak, may you never cease to be blessed;

yours are dwellings where excellence stands attested.

قد أسعدَ الله أرضاً تنزلون بها

ومنزل السعد في أهليه مسعود

God has blessed the land in which you make your home,

and the house of happiness is happy in its people.

فقلْ لأحبابنا زوروه وانبسطوا

فيه ومن بعدها إنْ شئتم عودوا

So tell our loved ones: Visit it and be at ease

within it; then afterward, return whenever you wish.

من زارنا فهوَ في خيرٍ وفي دَعةٍ

ولم يَفُتْه بحول الله مقصود

Whoever visits us enjoys prosperity and ease,

and, by God’s power, no desire of his goes unfulfilled.

يا حبّذا ذلك الباني وبنْيَتُه

فللمسرّات في ناديه تجديد

How delightful is that builder—and the building he has built!

For joys are ever renewed in his gathering place.

لذاك في ذلك التاريخ قيلَ له

هذا مقامُك يا محمودُ محمود

Thus, for its date, this was said to him:

This is your abode, O Mahmoud—praised.