إِيّاكَ في الشَرقِ أَن تَعدو طَرابُلساً
إِن كُنتَ تَبغي كِرامِ الإِنسِ وَالأُنسا
Take care lest you pass Tripoli in the East,
If you seek the generosity of humankind and companionship,
وَحَجَّ مِنها لِقَصادِ الهُدى حَرَما
أَمناً وَجاوَرَ لِأَربابِ النُهى قُدسا
And perform the pilgrimage from it to achieve true guidance,
A safe sanctuary, and neighbor to the people of righteousness a holy place,
مَدينَةٌ جادَها الباري بِرَحمَتِهِ
مِنَ الخَصائِصِ ما عَن غَيرِها حَبسا
A city endowed by the Creator with His mercy,
With qualities that He has kept from anywhere else,
لَم يَكفِها بَحرَها العَجاجُ باتَت طَرابُلسُ
مِصراً يَقصِرُ عَنها كُلَّ ما يَبسا
Its sea did not suffice it so Tripoli remained
An Egypt whose breadth falls short of all dry lands,
ناهيكَ بِالرافِعيِينَ الَّذينَ لَهُم
مِنَ المَآثِرِ ما يَستَنطِقُ الخَرَسا
Not to mention the Rafa‘is whose
Achievements make even the mute speak,
الرافِعينَ مِنَ الأَعلامِ أَرفَعَها
وَالخافِضينَ مِنَ الأَعداءِ ما رَأَسا
The Rafa‘is, the highest of all standards,
And foes they lower, whatever their station,
لَقَد رَعَوا تَلَعات المَجدِ أَجمَعَها
وَجَدَّدوا مِن دُروسِ العِلمِ ما دَرَسا
They have harvested all the fruits of glory
And revived the lessons of knowledge that were lost,
وَآثَروا مِن أَيادي الفَضلِ ما قَرَّبتَ
ثِمارَهُ وَمِنَ العَلياءِ ما قَعَسا
They chose from the hands of merit what drew near
Its fruits, and from the lofty what was out of reach.
ساروا عَلى أَثَرِ الفاروقِ جَدَّهُم
وَلَن يَضِلَّ الَّذي مِن نورِهِ اِقتَبَسا
They followed in the footsteps of their grandfather the Faruq,
Those who drew light from his light will not go astray,
مِثلَ السُيوفِ المَواضي في ضَرائِبِها
صَفّاً أُقيمَت لِشَرعِ المُصطَفى حَرَسا
Like bared swords in their sharp edges,
A rank erected to guard the Law of Mustafa.
وَكُلُّ ذي أَدَبٍ يَبغي الكَمالَ فَمِن
عَبدِ الحَميدِ يَرومُ الأُذُنَ مُلتَمِسا
And so every man of letters who seeks perfection—
From ‘Abdulhamid he hopes the ear will take note—
الشاعِرُ الفَذُّ لَو جاءَت قَريحَتُهُ
تَعارَضَ العارِضُ الهَطّالُ ما اِنبَجَسا
That consummate poet, if his talent came
To contend, the sublime rhymester would not prevail,
تَغدو عِذاري المَعاني قَيدَ خاطِرِهِ
وَطالَما اِمتَنَعَت عَن غَيرِهِ شُمُسا
The meanings are captives to his thoughts at dawn,
And have long refused any but him to harness them.
مِن مَعدِنٍ كُلُّهُ صافٍ وَلا عَجَبُ
مَن تِلكُمُ النَفسِ نُلقي ذَلِكَ النَفسا
From a mine entirely unalloyed, small wonder
We get this soul when we expend that breath!
إِنّي أَقولُ وَخَيرَ القَولِ مُجمَلَهُ
لَو جاءَ في عَصرِهِ الكِندِيُّ ما نَبَسا
I say outright, and best of sayings is the briefest:
If al-Kindi came in his time he would not have measured up!
هَذِهِ طَرابُلسَ الفَيحاءَ حافِلَةٌ
تَختالُ في حُلَلٍّ مِن عيدِهِ وَكُسا
This is illustrious Tripoli, decked out
In gowns of festival from her Eid.
عيدٌ لِخَمسينَ حولاً قَد تُنجِزَها
في خِدمَةِ اللُغَةِ الفُصحى صَباحَ مَسا
A fiftieth Eid it is soon to complete
In the service of the eloquent Arabic language,
وَقَد أَبَتِ غَربَتي أَنّي أَرى وَطَني
وَأَن أُشاهِدَ فيهِ ذَلِكَ العُرُسا
Though my exile refused me to see my homeland
And witness in it that wedding feast.
