بُلوغُ الأَماني في شِفارِ القَواضِبِ
وَنَيلُ المَعالي في مَجَرِّ السَلاهِبِ
The attainment of desires lies on the cutting edges of swords,
And the grasping of glory is found in the tracks of charging steeds.
وَمَن حَكَّمَ السُمرِ اللِدانِ تَعَبَّدَت
لَهُ مَع تُقى المَولى رِقابُ المُشاغِبِ
He who makes the pliable brown spears his arbiter,
Shall enslave the necks of rebels, alongside his fear of the Lord.
وَمَن قادَها مِثلَ السَراحينِ شُرَّباً
تَناقَلُ بِالشُمطِ الطِوالِ المَناكِبِ
He who leads his armies out like hungry wolves,
Carried along by grizzled warriors with broad, high shoulders,
وَكُلِّ فَتىً ضَربٍ خُشاشٍ إِذا سَطا
يَرى المَوتَ أَحلى مِن زُلالِ المَشارِبِ
And every striking youth, sharp and resolute when he assaults,
Who deems death sweeter than the purest cool water.
وَفي ذَملانِ العيسِ في كُلِّ مَهمهٍ
بِكُلِّ جَرٍ عاري الاِشاجِعِ شاحِبِ
Glory lies in the swift trotting of white camels across every wasteland,
With every bold rider, gaunt and hardened by the journey.
حَليفِ سُرىً لا يَثلِمُ اللَيلُ عَزمَهُ
إِذا هَمَّ أَلغى حادِثاتِ العَواقِبِ
An ally of the night journey; the darkness does not blunt his resolve,
When he sets his mind, he disregards the perils of the outcome.
إِذا نِيَّةٌ أَوفَت بِهِ الشَرقَ طَوَّحَت
بِهِ نِيَّةٌ أُخرى لِأَقصى المَغارِبِ
If a purpose brings him to the heights of the East,
Another purpose casts him toward the furthest West.
وَذاكَ قَريعٌ الدَهرِ إِن ماتَ لَم يُلَم
وَإِن عاشَ أَضحى في سِنِّيِ المَراتِبِ
Such is the champion of the age; if he dies, he is blameless,
And if he lives, he ascends to the most exalted ranks.
أَقولُ لِطُلّابِ المَعالي تَأَخَّروا
فَقَد طَمَحَت عَنكُم لِأَكرَمِ خاطِبِ
I say to the seekers of high glory: stand back,
For Glory has turned her gaze from you to a nobler suitor,
لِأَروَعَ مِن عُليا رَبيعَةَ أُحكِمَت
تَجارِبُهُ مِن قَبلِ حينِ التَجارِبِ
To a magnificent hero from the heights of Rabia,
Whose wisdom was perfected before the age of experience.
قَعَدتُم وَلَم يَقعُد وَنِمتُم وَلَم يَنَم
يُساوِرُ هَمّاً كَاِضطِرابِ اللَهائِبِ
You remained seated while he rose; you slept while he kept vigil,
Wrestling with ambition that burns like dancing flames.
وَما نالَ هذا المُلكَ حَتّى تَحَطَّمَت
صُدورُ العَوالي في صُدورِ الكَتائِبِ
He did not grasp this dominion until the chests of spears
Were shattered against the chests of enemy battalions.
فَلَولا دِفاعُ اللَهِ عَنكُم بِسَعدِهِ
لِأَصبَحَ نَجدٌ مُضغَةً لِلنَوائِبِ
Were it not for God defending you through his auspicious star,
Najd would have become a mere morsel for calamities to devour.
لَهُ سَطَواتٌ لَو تَنَحَّينَ مَرَّةً
عَلى يَذبُلٍ هَدَّت شِعافَ الشَناخِبِ
He possesses such overwhelming might that were it turned
Against Mount Yadhbul, it would crumble its towering peaks.
سَبَرتُ مُلوكاً قَد رَأَيتُ فِعالَهُم
وَطالَعتُ أَخبارَ المُلوكِ الذَواهِبِ
I have scrutinized kings and witnessed their deeds,
And studied the chronicles of monarchs long departed,
فَما نَظَرَت عَيني وَلا مَرَّ مِسمَعي
كَعَبدِ العَزيزِ اِبنِ الهُداةِ الأَطايِبِ
Yet my eye has never seen, nor has my ear ever heard,
Of anyone like Abdul-Aziz, son of the righteous guides.
بَعيدِ مَرامِ العَزمِ لا مُتَفَيِّئاً
ظِلالَ الهُوَينا لا ولا بِالمُراقِبِ
Far-reaching in his resolve, never seeking the shade
Of indolence, nor content merely to be a passive observer,
وَلا عادِلاً عَن مَنهَجِ الحَقِّ يَمنَةً
وَلا يَسرَةً يَبغي حُطامَ المَكاسِبِ
Never swerving from the path of Truth to the right,
Nor to the left in search of fleeting worldly gains.
عَفُوٌّ عَنِ الجانينَ حَتّى كَأَنَّهُم
لَدَيهِ كَأَدنى واشِجاتِ الأَقارِبِ
He pardons the transgressors until they seem
To stand before him as his closest kin.
يُريدُ اِئتِلافَ المُلِمينَ وَجَمعُهُم
عَلى مَسلَكِ المُختارِ مِن جَذمِ غالِبِ
He seeks the unity of the faithful and their gathering
Upon the path of the Chosen One from the root of Ghalib.
وَإِلّا فلا الواني وَلا مُتَبَلِّداً
إِذا طُرِقَت أُمُّ الدُهَيمِ بِحاطِبِ
Yet if forced, he is neither weak nor hesitant
When the mother of calamities is stoked by the flames of war.
مَتى هَمَّ أَمضى هَمَّهُ بِفَيالِقٍ
تَسوقُ إِلى الأَعداءِ دُهمَ المَصائِبِ
When he resolves, he executes his will with legions
That drive dark catastrophes toward the enemy,
كَما ساقَها يَوماً أَبها وَقَد طَغَت
وَغُرَّت بِتَسويلِ الأَماني الكَواذِبِ
Just as he drove them one day toward Abha when it rebelled,
Deluded by the seduction of false hopes.
رَماهُم بِنَجمٍ زَلزَلَت صَعَقاتُهُ
دِيارَ مُغَيدٍ مَع تِهامَ وَمَأرِبِ
He struck them with a meteor whose thunderous impact shook
The lands of Mughayd, along with Tihama and Marib,
بِشِبلِ مُلوكٍ أَرضَعَتهُ ثُدِيُّها
وَمِدرَهِ حَربٍ عُضلَةٍ لِلمُوارِبِ
With a lion cub of royalty, suckled at the breast of sovereignty,
A master of war, an insurmountable knot for the deceiver.
فَأَضحَوا وَهُم ما بَينَ ثاوٍ مُجَندَلٍ
وَبَينَ أَسيرِ في الحَديدِ وَهارِبِ
So they ended up scattered: some lying dead in the dust,
Others shackled in iron, and the rest in flight.
فَلا حَسَنٌ أَجدى عَلَيهِم وَلا اِرعَوى
لِغُرِّ الثَنايا وَاضِحاتِ التَرائِبِ
Hassan could not save them, nor did he stay to defend
The fair-faced maidens with bright, clear chests,
وَلكِنَّهُ وَلّى يَداهُ عَلى الحَشا
لَهُ خَفَقانٌ مِثلُ صَفقِ اللَواعِبِ
Instead he turned and fled, clutching his hands to his heart,
His heart pounding like the rhythmic clapping of dancers.
يَؤُمُّ رِعاناً جارَ وَبرٍ إِذا دَعا
يُجاوِبُهُ فيها ضُباحُ الثَعالِبِ
He seeks the mountain peaks, neighbor to the hyrax; when he calls out,
Only the barking of foxes answers him in the void.
يُحاذِرُ ما لاقى مُحمَّدَ إِذ مَضى
وَأَصحابَهُ جَزراً لِحُمرِ المَضارِبِ
Dreading the fate that befell Muhammad when he passed,
And his companions, who became a feast for crimson blades.
وَيَومَ بَني شِهرٍ عَلى العَينِ غودِروا
وَلائِمِ فيهِ لِلوُحوشِ السَواغِبِ
And on the day of Bani Shihr, they were abandoned at the spring,
A banquet spread for the starving beasts of the wild.
أَضَلَّهُمُ الغَرّارُ لا بَل شَقاؤُهُم
فَصارَ قُصاراهُم عِضاضَ الرَواجِبِ
The Deceiver led them astray—nay, it was their own wretched fate,
So their final lot was to bite their fingers in regret.
فَيا مَلِكاً فاقَ المُلوكَ سَماحَةً
وَعَفواً وَإِحساناً إِلى كُلِّ تائِبِ
O King who surpasses all monarchs in magnanimity,
In forgiveness and kindness to every repentant soul,
إِلَيكَ زَبَرتُ النُصحَ لا مُتَبَرِّماً
بِقَولي وَلا أُهدي نَصيحَةَ خالِبِ
To you I have penned this counsel, not out of discontent,
Nor offering the hollow advice of a flatterer:
إِذا لَجَأَت يَوماً عَدُوَّكَ حاجَةٌ
إِلَيكَ فَلا تَأمَنهُ عِندَ النَوائِبِ
If necessity one day forces your enemy to seek refuge
With you, do not trust him when calamities strike.
يُريك اِبتِساماً وَهوَ لِلمَكرِ مُبطِنٌ
وَيومي إِلى الأَعدا بِرَمزِ الحَواجِبِ
He displays a smile to you while harboring treachery within,
Signaling to the enemy with a secret twitch of his brow.
وَأَنتَ خَبيرٌ بِالذي قَد تَواتَرَت
بِهِ قَبلَنا أَقوالُ أَهلِ التَجارِبِ
You are well-versed in the wisdom that has come down to us,
Through the sayings of the experienced men of old.
وَلكِنَّهُ مَن يَتَّقِ اللَهَ وَحدَهُ
يَجِد فَرَجاً عِندَ اِزدِحامِ الكَرائِبِ
Yet truly, whoever fears God alone
Shall find relief when disasters crowd around him.
ضَمَمتَ إِلى عَدنانَ قَحطانَ وَالتَقَت
عَلَيكَ قُلوبُ الناسِ مِن كُلِّ جانِبِ
You have united the tribes of Qahtan with Adnan,
And the hearts of the people have converged upon you from every side.
فَما مُسلِمٌ إِلّا يَراكَ إِمامَهُ
سِوى مارِقٍ عَن مَنهَجِ الرُشدِ ناكِبِ
There is no Muslim who does not see you as his Imam,
Save for the rogue who deviates from the path of rectitude.
دَعَوتَ إلى الوَحيِ المُقَدَّسِ حاكِماً
بِما فيهِ مِن حَقٍ مُبينٍ وَواجِبِ
You called for the Holy Revelation to be the judge,
Ruling by the clear truth and duties contained therein.
وَشَرَّدتَ قَوماً خالَفوهُ فَحُكمُهُم
بِأَوضاعِ كُفرٍ جُزِّئَت في العَواقِبِ
You scattered a people who opposed it, for their law
Was based on disjointed, infidel statutes.
يَقولونَما شِئتُم مِنَ الفِسقِ فَاِفعَلوا
أَوِ الشِركِ بِالّلاطينَ تَحتَ النَصائِبِ
They say: "Commit whatever depravity you desire,"
"Or embrace idolatry and foreign codes beneath your banners;"
فَإِنَّكُم حُرِّيَةٌ في فِعالِكُم
وَأَقوالِكُم لا تَحذَروا مِن مُعاتِبِ
"For you possess 'freedom' in your deeds,"
"And in your words; fear no one's rebuke."
إِذا ما تَراضى الفاسِقانِ عَلى الخَنا
فَلَن يَخشَيا ما لَم يَكُن بِتَغاصُبِ
"If two sinners consent to obscenity,"
"They need not fear, provided there is no force."
فَيا عَجَباً مِن عالِمٍ يَدَّعي الهُدى
يُواليهِمُ مَع فِعلٍ تِلكَ المَثالِبِ
How strange is the scholar who claims to possess guidance,
Yet allies with them despite these shameful vices!
وَهَل أُنزِلَت كُتبٌ وَأُرسِلَ مُرسَلٌ
بِغَيرِ اِفعَلوا أَو فَاِترُكوا بِالتَراتُبِ
Were scriptures revealed and messengers sent
For anything other than divine commands of "Do" and "Abstain"?
فَيا مَن عَلا فَوقَ السَماءِ بِذاتِهِ
وَيَعلَمُ ما تَحتَ الطِباقِ الرَواسِبِ
O You who are exalted above the heavens in Your Essence,
And who knows what lies beneath the deepest strata of the earth,
أَدِم عِزَّ مَن لِلدّينِ كَهفٌ وَلِلدُّنا
وَأَيَّدهُ بِالإِسعادِ يا خَيرَ واهِبِ
Preserve the might of him who is a sanctuary for the Faith and the world,
And aid him with divine success, O Best of Givers.
وَصَلِّ إِلهي كُلَّما حَنَّ راعِدٌ
وَما ناضَ بَرقٌ في خِلالِ السَحائِبِ
And send blessings, my God, as often as the thunder rolls,
And lightning flashes amidst the gathering clouds,
عَلى خَيرِ مَبعوثٍ إِلى خَيرِ أُمَّةٍ
كَذا آلِهِ الأَطهار مَع كُلِّ صاحِبِ
Upon the best Messenger sent to the best of nations,
And upon his pure family and every noble companion.
