أكواب زهر قد تنظم

أم خرد عرب تبسم

Cups of flowers arranged

Or chuckles of honored Arabs

أم روضة هب الشمال

على خمائلها ونسم

Or a garden breathed on

By the north wind on its bendings

أم نظم دره راق نظ

مه ابن بجدتها المسلم

Or well-ordered pearls of poetry

Whose regex its composer made Muslim

نظم تود الغانيات

ثغورها منه تنظم

Poetry that would please singers

Whose themes from it are arranged

بوركت من نظم زهى

حسناً وبورك من منظم

Blessings on he who arranges poetry

Nicely and blessings on its arranger

وموشح في النجوم الز

زهر عمر الدهر تنجم

And compositions in the shining stars

The flowers of eternal time are arranged

لو كلم الميت الرميم

بسره جهراً تكلم

If the frail dead spoke

His secrets aloud he would speak

وبلاغة لو شامها قس

س لدان لها وسلم

And with eloquence that if Pythons

Heard they would bow to it and submit

أين ابن اوس والفرز

دق والمهلهل أو متمم

Where is the son of Aws and Al-Farazdaq

And Al-Muhalhil or the completer

يا من بسيماه الورى

سيماء أهليه توسم

O you whose marks the creation

Marks of his family perceive

جرعت من جاراك لما

كل عند الجري علقم

I have sipped from your neighbor when

Every near one was unquenchably thirsty

فأحكم على من شئت فيه

فأنت أهل أن تحكم

So judge whom you wish to judge

For you are worthy to judge

فلأنت من قوم بهم

رب العلى يبدي ويختم

For you are from a people with whom

The Lord of the Most High begins and ends

لولا وجودهم لما

قام الوجود وما تقوم

If not for their existence the existence

Would not stand nor be set up

بهم استجاب لآدم

دعواه والأسماء علم

Through them the supplication of Adam

Was answered and the names were taught

ونورهم سجد الملائك

حين اشرق لا لآدم

And their light the angels bowed down

When it shone not to Adam

لولاهم لم ينج نوح

في سفينته ويسلم

If not for them Noah would not

Have been saved in his ark and spared

وعلى الخيل بهم أحال

النار برداً حين تضرم

And by them the horses were turned

To cold when the fire was kindled

وبسرهم موسى الكليم

لربه في الطور كلم

And by their secret Moses the Interlocutor

To his Lord on the Mount spoke

وبهم أعاد الميت حيا

داعياً عيسى بن مريم

And through them the dead was revived

Jesus son of Mary invoking

وأنال يعقوب المنى

وأزال عنه الهم والغم

And Jacob attained his wish

And was relieved of care and sorrow

وبهم تجاذو النون

لما سبح الرحمن في اليم

And through them Jonah transgressed

When he glorified the Merciful in the sea

أقمار تم أشرقت

منهم بأفق الدين أنجم

Brilliant moons whose

Rising in the horizon of faith stars were lit

كالصالح الفعل الذي بال

فضل خص وبالندى عم

Like the sincere deed which in

Virtue he specially favored and with dew watered

أسد إذا ما عبست

أسد الشرى خوفاً تبسم

A lion whose frown

Would make the lions of evil smile

ومعظم يعنو إلى

عليائه الملك المعظم

And the glorious who aspires

To his most high sovereignty the magnificent king

فاق الأنام فمن تأخر

عن علاه كمن تقدم

He surpassed men so one who lags

Behind his sublime is like one preceding

ما ضن يوماً عارض

إلا بعارضه تكرم

He never refused throughout time

Except by his refusal he would be generous

يعنو له يحيى بن أكتم

والفتى زيد بن أرقم

To him John the reserved aspires

And the youth Zayd son of Arqam

أرغمت آنافاً بغيرك

لم تكن تاللَه ترغم

I have subjugated other snouts than yours

They were not like yours subjugated

بنظام عقد فرائد

تأريخها العقد المنظم

In the harmony of a necklace of gems

Its date the harmonious arranger