أُعاذِلُ كَم مِن منفس قَد رُزئته

وَفارقني شَخص عليّ كَريمُ

O blamer, how many precious things have I been stricken by,

And a noble person has departed from me.

وَقاسَيتُ مِن بَلوى زَمان وَكُربَةٍ

وَودّعني مِن أَقرَبيّ حَميم

I have endured the tribulations of time and anguish,

And a close intimate among my kin bade me farewell.

فعزّيت نَفسي غَيرَ أَنّي بِأَحمَدٍ

بُنيّ لمسلوب العَزاء سَقيم

So I consoled myself, except that regarding Ahmed,

My son, I am bereft of solace and ailing.

أَرى الصَبرُ عَنهُ جَمرَةً مُستَكنّةً

لَها لَهب في القَلب لَيسَ يريم

I see patience regarding him as a hidden ember,

Possessing a flame in the heart that never ceases.

وَخَطَّ خَيالٌ منه يَعتاد مَضجَعي

له كرب ما تَنجَلي وَغُموم

A phantom of his traces a path, visiting my bed,

Bringing distress that does not clear, and clouds of gloom.

وَآثاره في البَيت حَيثُ توجّهت

بي العَينُ حزنٌ في الفُؤادِ مُقيم

And his traces in the house, wherever I turn

My eye, are a sorrow residing in my heart.

إِذا رمتُ عَنهُ الصَبرَ أَرجو ثَوابه

أَبى الصَبرَ قَلبٌ بِالحَميم يَهيم

If I seek patience over him, hoping for its reward,

A heart wandering in love with the intimate one refuses patience.

لَعَمرُكَ إِنّي يَوم أَدفن مُهجَتي

وأرجع عَنه صابِرا لكظيم

By your life, the day I buried my very soul

And returned from him, patient and suppressing grief,

وَإِنَّ فُؤادي بعده لمفجَّعٌ

وَإِن دُموعي بعده لَنُجوم

Truly my heart after him is stricken with agony,

And my tears after him are falling stars.

خَططت لَهُ في الترب بيت إِقامَة

إِلى الحَشر فيهِ وَالنُشور مُقيم

I marked out for him in the dust a house of residence,

Wherein he stays until the Gathering and the Resurrection.

وَكانَ سرورا لَم يدم لي وَغبطةً

وَأَيّ سُرور في الحَياة يَدومُ

He was a joy that did not last for me, and a delight;

And what joy in this life ever lasts?

وَرَوحاً وَريحاناً أَتى دونَ شمّه

مِنَ الدَهرِ يَومٌ بالفُراقِ عَظيمُ

A comfort and sweet fragrance that came, yet before I could savor it,

There came from Fate a day of terrible separation.

عَلى حينَ أَمضيت الشَباب وَقاربت

خَطاي قُيود الشيب حينَ أَقوم

Just when I had spent my youth, and my steps

Approached the shackles of old age whenever I rose.

وَفارقت حلو العَيشِ إِلّا صُبابَةً

عَلَيها خطوب الحادِثات تَحوم

I parted with the sweetness of life, save for a bitter dreg

Over which the calamities of fortune hover.

فُجِعت بشِقّ النَفس والهَمّ وَالهَوى

عَذاب لعمري في الحَياة أَليم

I was bereaved of half my soul; and worry and affection

Are, by my life, a painful torment while alive.

أَلا كُلُّ عَيش بَعد فرقة أَحمَدٍ

وكلّ سُرور ما بقيت ذَميم

Behold, every life after the parting of Ahmed,

And every joy, for as long as I remain, is blameworthy.

يَعيب عَليّ الأَخلياءُ صَبابَتي

وَحُزني وَكلٌّ يا بُنيّ يَلوم

The carefree find fault with my yearning,

And my grief; everyone, O my son, casts blame.

فَهَل كانَ يَعقوب النَبيّ بحزنه

مليما وَما يزري عليّ حَكيم

Was the Prophet Jacob, in his grief,

Blameworthy? And does a wise man mock me?

كَوى قَلبَه حزنٌ كأنَّ لهيبه

توقّدُ نيرانٍ لهن ضَريم

Grief branded his heart as if its blaze

Was the kindling of fires fed by dry fuel.

فَما عيّر اللَهُ النَبيّ بِحُزنِهِ

أَبى ذاك ربّ العالَمين رَحيم

God did not reproach the Prophet for his sadness;

The Lord of the Worlds, the Merciful, refused that.

فَلَولا رَجاء الأَجرِ فيكَ وَإِنَّه

ثَواب وان عزّ المُصاب عَظيم

So were it not for the hope of reward concerning you—and truly it is

A recompense, even if the affliction is grievous and great—

وَإِنَّكَ قربان لَدى اللَه نافِع

وَحظ لَنا يَوم الحِساب جَسيم

And that you are a beneficial offering before God,

And a massive fortune for us on the Day of Reckoning,

لأُضعِف حُزني يا بُنيّ وَأَوشكت

عَليّ البَواكي بالرنين تَقوم

I would have doubled my grief, O my son, and nearly

Made the wailing women rise over me with their cries.