أُخفي الأسى ولسان دمعي يعلنُ

وأرى الدّمى ترنو إليَّ فأُفتن

I conceal my sorrow, yet my tongue of tears speaks out,

And I see the tears turning towards me, so I am tempted.

وتظل تعدي الغانيات مدامعي

فمدامعي كعهودها تتلوَّن

And they continue to count my sighs as my tears,

So my tears change colors like their promises.

بأبي التي أسكنتها في خاطرِي

وسرت فسار مع النزيل المسكن

By her who resides in my imagination,

And traveled, so the lodger traveled with her.

لمياء لي دينٌ على ميعادها

مع أنَّ قلبي عندها مسترهن

I have a debt to meet her at the appointed time,

Even though my heart is pledged to her.

تبدي اللآلئ منطقاً وتبسماً

فكأنَّ فاها للآلي معدن

She reveals pearls, eloquence and smiles,

As if her mouth is a mine of pearls.

ويلومني فيها خليٌ ما درى

الشمس أم تلك المليحة أزين

And a friend blames me in her, not knowing

Whether it is the sun or that beauty who is more adorned.

يا لائمي انظر حسن تلك وهذه

وادفع ملامك بالتي هي أحسن

O you who blame me, look at the beauty of this one and that,

And ward off your blame with she who is most excellent.

كيف التصبر عن سعاد وحسنها

كالفضل في الملك المؤيد بين

How can I have patience from Saada and her beauty,

As superiority lies in the supported victorious king.

ملك على عهد المعالي ثابت

لكنه في فضله متفنن

A king whose glory is firmly established

In the era of greatness, yet he is varied in his nobility.

بينا يرى بحر العلوم إذا به

بحر الندى فحديثه متشجّن

While he sees the sea of knowledge, behold,

The sea of light, so his conversation is refined.

ظعن الكرام الأولون وأقبلت

أيَّامه فكأنهم لم يظعنوا

The generous ones of early times withdrew,

And his days came, as if they had not withdrawn.

لم يبقَ لولا جوده ومديحنا

مالٌ يكال ولا مقالٌ يوزن

If not for his generosity and our praise,

No wealth would be measured, nor words weighed.

من أين للآمال مثل مقامه

ألروض أفيح والغمائم هتن

Whence do hopes have the like of his abode,

The meadows are spacious, and the clouds submissive?

نعم الملاذ لمن يلوذ بظله

من شرِّ ما يخشى وما يتحصّن

An excellent refuge for one who seeks his shade

From the evil feared and fortified against.

خذ عن عواليه أحاديث الوغى

فحديثها عن راحتيه يعنعن

Take from his heights the rumors of calamity,

For their talk of his tranquility murmurs.

شرف القتيل بسيفه فقتيله

في الجوّ ما بين الحواصل يدفن

The slain by his sword - his slain

In the air between ribs is buried.

وتطابقت أفعاله لعفاته

فالكيس تهزل والحقائب تسمن

And his actions matched his chastity,

So the bag is made fat and the purse fattened.

كرم كفيض السيل إلاَّ أنه

لا مانع السقيا ولا متأسن

Generosity like the flood of torrents, except

There is no withholder of irrigation or stainer.

وعلاً يموت به الحسود تحسراً

فكأنَّه بثيابه متكفنُ

And a superiority by which the envious die of regret,

As if wrapped in his clothes like a shroud.

ما ضرَّ معشر حاسديه لو أنهم

فطنوا لسرّ الله فيه وأذعنوا

No harm would have touched his envious mob,

Had they understood the secret of God in him and submitted.

الله قدَّر في العزائم أنهم

يتحارفون وأنه يتسلطن

God ordained in destiny that they

Contend, while he rules.

يا ابن الملوك إذا دعاهم مقترٌ

لانوا وإن دعيت نزال اخشوشنوا

O son of kings, if a quarrelsome man invites them,

They become submissive, but if you invite them to descent, they become turbulent.

نسب كصدر الرمح إلا أنه

عند المحامد ليس فيه مطعن

A lineage like the blade of a spear except

With praise, there is no blemish in it.

لله دهرك إنه الدهر الذي

سيءَ الكفور به وسرّ المؤمن

By God, may your world last, it is the world

That was miserable for the ungrateful, and the secret of the faithful.

شيدت بإسماعيل أركان العلى

فإليه يلتجئ الرجاء ويركن

The pillars of the Most High were constructed with Ishmael,

So hopes turn to him and depend on him.

ودعا ندى ابن عليّ كلّ مودةٍ

حتَّى استوى الشيعيّ والمتسنن

The dew of the son of Ali called out every affection

Until the Shia and the Sunni became equal.

فليعذر المدَّاح فيه فإنهم

بالعجز عن أدنى المدى قد أيقنوا

So let the praiser be excused in him, for they

Have despaired of reaching even the lowest praise.

عنت القرائح عن بلوغ صفاته

وتسترت خلف الشفاه الألسن

The talents despaired of reaching his attributes

And the tongues concealed themselves behind the lips.