تَوَكَّلنا عَلى رَبِّ السَماءِ
وَسَلَّمنا لِأَسبابِ القَضاءِ
We have entrusted ourselves to the Lord of the heavens,
And submitted to the causes of destiny.
وَوَطَّنّا عَلى غِيَرِ اللَيالي
نُفوساً سامَحَت بَعدَ الإِباءِ
We have settled, after trials,
Souls that forgave after being wronged.
وَأَفنِيَةُ المُلوكِ مُحَجَّباتٌ
وَبابُ اللَهِ مَبذولُ الفِناءِ
The courts of kings are veiled,
Yet God's door is open and accessible.
فَما أَرجو سِواهُ لِكَشفِ ضُرّي
وَلَم أَفزَع إِلى غَيرِ الدُعاءِ
So I hope for none but Him to relieve my pain,
And cry out to none but Him in my prayers.
وَلِم لا أَشتَكي بَثّي وَحُزني
إِلى مَن لا يَصَمُّ عَنِ النِداءِ
Why shouldn't I complain of my sorrows and grief
To the One who does not ignore supplication?
هِيَ الأَيّامُ تَكلِمُنا وَتَأسو
وَتَجري بِالسَعادَةِ وَالشَقاءِ
The days speak to us and grieve,
And flow with good and ill fortune.
فَلا طولُ الثَواءِ يَرُدُّ رِزقاً
وَلا يَأتي بِهِ طولُ البَقاءِ
Neither length of life brings sustenance,
Nor does longevity bring it.
وَلا يُجدي الثَراءُ عَلى بَخيلٍ
إِذا ما كانُ مَحظورَ الثَراءِ
Wealth does not benefit the miser
When wealth itself is forbidden to him.
وَلَيسَ يَبيدُ مالٌ عَن نَوالٍ
وَلا يُؤتى سَخِيٌّ مِن سَخاءِ
No money is lost to the generous,
Nor is the generous given from generosity.
كَما أَنَّ السُؤالَ يُذِلُّ قَوماً
كذاكَ يُعِزُّ قَوماً بِالعَطاءِ
Just as asking debases some people,
So giving honors others.
حَلَبنا الدَهرَ أَشطُرَهُ وَمَرَّت
بِنا عُقَبُ الشَدائِدِ وَالرَخاءِ
We have milked the days, their halves and wholes,
And we have tasted the ups and downs.
فَلَم آسَف عَلى دُنيا تَوَلَّت
وَلَم نُسبَق إِلى حُسنِ العَزاءِ
I did not lament a world that has turned away,
Nor did we hasten to beautifully console ourselves.
وَلَم نَدَعِ الحَياءَ لِمَسِّ ضُرٍّ
وَبَعضُ الضُرِّ يَذهَبُ بِالحَياءِ
We did not abandon propriety in the face of harm,
Though some harm takes propriety away.
وَجَرَّبنا وَجَرَّبَ أَوَّلونا
فَلا شَيءٌ أَعَزُّ مِنَ الوَفاءِ
We and our forebears have experienced
That nothing is nobler than loyalty.
تَوَقَّ الناسَ يَاِبنَ أَبي وَأُمّي
فَهُم تَبَعُ المَخافَةِ وَالرَجاءِ
People disappoint, my son of my father and mother.
They follow fear and hope.
وَلا يَغرُركَ مِن وَغدٍ إِخاءٌ
لِأَمرٍ ما غَدا حَسَنَ الإِخاءِ
No friendship tomorrow should delude you
About something whose comradeship was not good yesterday.
أَلم تَرَ مُظهِرينَ عَلَيَّ غِشّاً
وَهُم بِالأَمسِ إِخوانُ الصَفاءِ
Have you not seen those displaying enmity toward me
When just yesterday they were boon companions?
بُليتُ بِنَكبَةٍ فَغَدَوا وَراحوا
عَلَيَّ أَشَدَّ أَسبابِ البَلاءِ
I was struck by misfortune and they left,
Inflicting on me the harshest causes of tribulation.
أَبَت أَخطارُهُم أَن يَنصُروني
بِمالٍ أَو بِجاهٍ أَو بِراءِ
They refused to support me
With money, status, or integrity.
وَخافوا أَن يُقالَ لَهُم خَذَلتُم
صَديقاً فَاِدَّعَوا قِدَمَ الجَفاءِ
They feared it would be said they abandoned
A friend, so they pretended our friendship was long gone.
تَضافَرَتِ الرَوافِضُ وَالنَصارى
وَأَهلُ الإِعتِزالِ عَلى هِجائي
The Shia, the Christians, the Mu’tazilites
Banded together to revile me.
فَبَختَيشوعُ يَشهَدُ لِاِبنِ عَمروٍ
وَعَزّونٌ لِهارونَ المُرائي
So Bukhtyishu’ testifies for the son of ‘Amr,
And ‘Izzun for Harun the Heretic.
وَما الجَذماءُ بِنتُ أَبي سُمَيرٍ
بِجَذماءِ اللِسانِ عَنِ الخَناءِ
As for Al-Jadhma’ the daughter of Abi Sumayr,
Her tongue’s wit cannot match her vulgarity.
وَعابوني وَما ذَنبي إِلَيهم
سِوى عِلمى بِأَولادِ الزِناءِ
They blame me though I have done them no wrong
Save my knowledge of the illegitimate children.
إِذا ما عُدَّ مِثلُهُمُ رِجالاً
فَما فَضلُ الرِجالِ عَلى النِساءِ
When the likes of them are counted as men,
What virtue do men have over women?
عَلَيهِم لَعنَةُ اللَهِ اِبتَداءً
وَعَوداً في الصَباحِ وَفي المَساءِ
May God's curse be upon them at the start
And repeat each dawn and eve.
إِذا سَمَّيتُهُم لِلنّاسِ قالوا
أُولئِكَ شَرُّ مَن تَحتَ السَماءِ
When I name them to people, they say
“Those are the worst under the heavens.”
أَنا المُتَوَكِّلِيُّ هَوىً وَرَأياً
وَما بِالواثِقِيَّةِ مِن خَفاءِ
I am Al-Mutawakkilī in passion and reason,
And there is no shame in trusting completely.
وَما حَبسُ الخَليفَةِ لي بِعارٍ
وَلَيسَ بِمُؤيسي مِنهُ التَنائي
My detention by the Caliph is no disgrace,
Nor does remoteness from him make me despair.
