لازالَ يَرفَعُكَ الحِجى وَالسُؤدَدُ
حَتّى رَنا حَسَداً إِلَيكَ الفَرقَدُ
Still do your excellence and nobility raise you
Until out of envy the stars have turned green for you
صَعِدَ المُلوكُ وَأَنتَ تَصعَدُ عَنهُمُ
فَكَأَنَّهُم لَم يُحسِنُوا أَن يَصعدُوا
Kings ascend yet you ascend above them
As though they failed to ascend properly
بُعداً لِحاسِدِكَ الشَقِيِّ فَإنِّما
حَسَدُ الحَسُودِ سَجِيَّةٌ لا تُحمَدُ
Away with your wretched envious enemies
For the envy of the envious is a despised trait
حَسبُ الحَسودِ نَقيصَةً أَنَّ العُلى
عَدَتِ الحَسُودَ وَما عَدَت مَن يَحسُدُ
The flaw of the envious is that grandeur
Has avoided the envious but not those envied
أَمّا المُعِزُّ فَإِن سَمِعتَ بِأَوحَدٍ
فاقَ البَرِيَّةَ فَهوَ ذاكَ الأَوحَدُ
As for the glorious one, if you have heard of a singular one
Who surpassed all humanity, that's the unique one
سَبَقَ الكِرامَ وَقَصَّروا أَن يَلحَقُوا
أَدنى مَداهُ وَضُلِّلوا أَن يَهتَدُوا
He surpassed the generous and they failed to catch up
With the least of his bounds and strayed from following his guidance
نَفَقَ الثَناءَ بِهِ وَأَصبَحَت العُلى
عِندَ الأَعَزِّ تِجارَةً لا تَكسُدُ
Praise flowed through him and the heights
Became priceless to the honorable, never deprecated
خَلَتِ البِلادُ مِنَ الكِرامِ وَأَقفَرَت
إِلّا العَواصِمُ مِن جَوادٍ يُقصَدُ
The lands emptied of the generous and only
The bastions had magnanimous ones who were sought
لَو عاشَ قَومٌ أَعتَقُوهُ لَسَرَّهُم
ما أَعتَقُوا وَلَسَرَّهُم ما أَولَدُوا
If a people lived who freed him, their freeing would have delighted him
As would what they sired have delighted him
شادُوا لَهُ الفَخرَ المُنيفَ عَلى السُهى
وَنَشا فَشَيَّدَ فَوقَ ما قَد شَيَّدُوا
They built him towering glory upon glory
And he prospered and built atop all they erected
ما كُلُّ مَن وَرِثَ المَكارِمَ قائِمٌ
فَيها وَلا كُلُّ ابنِ فَحلٍ سَيِّدُ
Not all who inherited virtues continue them
Nor are all sons of stallions lords
يا حَبَّذا الفَرعُ الزَكِيُّ وَحَبَّذا
ذاكَ النِجارُ وَحَبَّ ذاكَ المَحتِدُ
O excellent is that virtuous scion and excellent
Is that carpenter, and excellent is that devotee
مِن سادَةٍ أَخَذُوا المَكارِم عادَةً
وَلِكُلِّ قَومٍ في العُلى ما عُوِّدُوا
Of lords who made virtues their habit
And for every people in grandeur what they are accustomed to
قَومٌ إِذا شَهِدُوا النِزالَ تَقَلَّدُوا
مِن بَأسِهِم بِأَحَدَّ مِمّا قُلِّدُوا
A people when they witness war don they
Of their might the sharpest of what they are adorned with
يا سَيِّدَ الأُمَراءِ دَعوَةَ شاكِرٍ
لا يَجحَدُ الإِحسانَ فِيمَن يَجحَدُ
O master of princes, the prayer of a grateful one
Who does not deny favor amongst the ungrateful
إِنَّ الرَعايا أَشرَبَتكَ قُلُوبُهُم
حُبّاً كَما شَرِبَ الغَمامَ الفَدفَدُ
Indeed, the subjects have drunk the love of you into their hearts
As the rainclouds drink the pouring rain
وَجَدُوا لِفَقدِ أَخيكَ في مُهَجاتِهِم
ناراً تَنُوبُ مَنابَ ما لَم يُوقِدُوا
And in their depths they felt the loss of your brother
Like a fire that takes the place of what they have not kindled
وَتَحَرَّجُوا أَن يَفرَحُوا في لَيلَةٍ
سَكَنَ التُرابَ بِها الحُسامُ المُغمَدُ
And they refrained from rejoicing on a night
When dust settled on the sheathed swords
هَجَرُوا السُرورَ وَلَم يَبِت يَعتادُهُم
أَسَفُ المَلامَةِ أَنَّهُم ما مَلًّدُوا
They abandoned joy and grief at negligence
That they were not gentle did not accustom them
تَبِعُوا هَواكَ فلَو أَمَرت جَمِيعُهم
بِالكَفِّ عَن أَعيادِهِم ما عَيَّدُوا
They followed your passion so if you commanded all
To refrain from their festivals, they would not celebrate
فاسلَم لَهُم فَإِذا سَلِمتَ فَإِنَّهُم
تَحتَ السَلامَةِ أَتهَمُوا أَم أَنجَدُوا
So make peace with them, and if you make peace, they will
Be secure whether blamed or aided
