أيَا مُطرِياً في مَدحِهِ الشيخَ أحمدَا

ألِمَّتَ فقد جَاوزَت في الكذِبِ المَدَى

O you who lavish praise upon Sheikh Ahmad,

Has madness seized you? You have gone too far in lying.

أتَمدَحُ بِالعلمِ إمرءاً غَيرَ عَالمٍ

وتَحسِبُ مِن أهلِ الهُدَى جَاهلَ الهُدَى

Do you praise as learned a man who has no learning,

And count one ignorant of guidance among the rightly guided?

وتَزعُمُ أنَّ اللهَ يَاخُذُ جاهِلاً

وَلِيّاً فَيُبقِى دِينَهُ هَمَلاً سُدَى

Do you claim that God would take an ignorant man

As a saint, while His religion remains neglected and unattended?

فإِن قُلتَ قَد شاهدتُ فِيه كرامةً

وألفَيتُه بينَ العَشِيرِ مُسَوَّدَا

If you say, “I have witnessed a saintly marvel in him,”

And found him honored as a chief among the clan;

يَغذِّيهِ مَن وَالاَهُ منهم بِنَفسِه

ويُعطُونَهُ الأمَ الحِسَانض والأعبُدَا

Whoever among them is loyal to him personally serves him supper,

And they give him lovely bondwomen and male slaves;

ويأخذ من أموالهم أخذَ مالِكٍ

ويَففونُه إن راحَ يَوماً أو اغتَدَى

He takes from their wealth as an owner takes his own,

And they throng around him whenever he goes forth, evening or morning.

فإن قُلتَ قَد شاهدتُ فِيه كرامةً

وألفَيتُه بينَ العَشِيرِ مُسَوَّدَا

If you say, “I have witnessed a saintly marvel in him,”

And found him honored as a chief among the clan;

يُغَدِّيهِ مَن وَالاَهُ منهم بِنَفسِه

ويُعطُونَه الأمَ الحِسَانَ والأَعبُدَا

Whoever among them is loyal to him personally serves him breakfast,

And they give him lovely bondwomen and male slaves;

ويأخذُ من أموالهم أخذَ مالِكٍ

ويَقفَونُه إِن رَاحَ يَوماً أو اغتَدَى

He takes from their wealth as an owner takes his own,

And they follow him whenever he goes forth, evening or morning.

أَقُل لَكَ سِحرٌ ما بذلك كِلهِ

فَزنهُ بِميزَانِ الشريعة إن بَدَا

I say to you: “Sorcery?”—there is nothing in all of that.

Then weigh him in the scales of Sacred Law when he appears.

وإن جئتَه سَائِلهُ عَن فَرضِ عَينِه

وإِنَّكَ لَو ساءَلتَهُ لَتَبَلَّدَا

And if you visit him, ask him about the duty individually incumbent upon him;

If you were to question him, he would surely be confounded.

وَسائِلهُ عَمَّا فَات مِن صَلَوَاتِهِ

وهوَّ صَحِيحٌ دونَ عُذرٍ تَعُمَّدَا

Ask him about the prayers he has missed,

Deliberately, though sound in health and without excuse.

يُجِبكَ جَواباً فيه أعظمُ رِدَّةٍ

بجهل وليس الجهلُ يُشفي مِنَ الصّدَى

He will answer you with an answer containing the gravest apostasy,

Through ignorance—and ignorance does not quench thirst.

أعِد نَظَراً يَا عَبدَقَيسٍ لَعَلَّمَا

أضاءت لَكَ النَّارُ الحِمَارَ المُقَيَّدَا

Look again, O ʿAbd Qays; perhaps

The fire has illuminated for you the tethered donkey.