ولَربَّ ليلٍ نلتُ فيه مَقصِدي

ما شِمْتُ وقتاً مثلَه من مَولِدي

Many a night have I attained my heart’s desire,

yet never since my birth have I beheld an hour like it.

فَغَدَوتُ أَشدو مِن فُؤادي المُمكدِ

يا لَيلةً سَمَحت بِرؤيةِ سَيّدِ

Then I began to sing from my careworn heart:

O night that granted me the sight of a master

مِن أَهلِ بَحرٍ كاملينَ أكابرِ

خُدّامُه ذا الدَّهرِ لَم يُحزِنهُمُ

from a house ocean-vast, consummate and eminent.

Throughout this age, his servants have known no grief.

وَهوَ الَّذي مِمَّنْ رَوَينا عَنهُمُ

حُسنَ اللَّطافَةِ في الطِّباعِ وَإِن هُمُ

He is among those from whom we have handed down

the beauty of graciousness in character; indeed, they

لَهمُ المُلوكُ الأَكرَمونُ وَمِنهُمُ

وَرِثَ المَكارِمَ كابِراً عَن كابِرِ

are the noblest kings, and from them

he inherited virtues—great one after great one.

يا لَيلةً فيها تَكامُلُ فَخرِنا

حَتّى عُددتِ تَنفُّساً مِن دَهرِنا

O night in which our glory reached perfection,

until you were counted a breath of relief within our age,

مُذْ فيكِ أَشرقَ شَمسُنا مع بَدرِنا

لا بِدْعَ إِن أَمسَيتِ ليلةَ قَدرنا

since within you our sun rose beside our full moon.

No wonder you became the Night of our Destiny.

فيكِ السّرورُ يَحِلّ قَلبَ الذاكِرِ

قرّي عُيوناً في الدُّنى وَتَعطَّري

In you, joy alights in the heart of one who remembers.

Gladden eyes throughout this world, and perfume yourself

مِن طيبهِ الذّاكي الشّذى العَنبَري

وَإِذا أَردتِ تَباهِياً مَع مَفخَرٍ

with his sweet perfume, fragrant and amber-scented.

And if you wish to vaunt yourself in splendor,

تيهي عَلى كُلّ اللّيالي وَاِفخَري

بِالمُصطَفى مِن نَسلِ عبدِ القادرِ

exult above every other night, and glory

in al-Mustafa, descended from ʿAbd al-Qadir.