ثَقيفُ انظري أين قَصْدُ الطريقْ

وكيفَ يلقَّى النجاةَ الغريقْ

Thaqif, look which way the road goes,

And how the drowning man salvation meets,

مَشَى البأسُ في هَوْلِهِ المستطير

له لَهَبٌ ساطِعٌ كالحريقْ

Oppression marched in its dreadful form,

It has a burning flame like fire that heats,

مَشَى ترجفُ الأرضُ من حولِهِ

فأين الفِرارُ وهل من مُطِيقْ

It marched and the earth trembled around it,

So where to flee, and who retreats?

ثَقيفُ ادْخُلِي الحصن لا تهلكي

ويا عَبْدَ ليل لماذا النَّعيقْ

Thaqif, enter the fortress don’t perish,

And O slave of the night, why do you bleat?

دَعا خالدٌ يَسْتَفِزُّ الرجال

فكان فَريقُكَ شَرَّ الفرِيقْ

Khalid called rousing up the men,

So your group was the worst of the groups,

وكنت عليهم شهيداً بما

يُعابُ العدوُّ به والصّديقْ

And over them you were a witness with what

The foe finds fault and what the friend rebukes,

يَضيقُ على العاجزينَ الفضاء

وَيَرْحَبُ بالقادِرينَ المضيقْ

To the helpless ones space is confined,

And for the powerful the narrow way makes room,

وليس الخليقُ بحرِّ الجلاد

غَداةَ التَّنادي كغيرِ الخَليقْ

Nor is it seemly for the executioner to mope

The day after calling out and gathering the troops,

رَمَوْا بالسّهامِ ولو أنصفوا

رَمَوْا بالطُّلَى كلَّ عَضْبٍ ذَلِيقْ

They shot arrows, though if they were just

They’d pelt the forts with every pliant twig,

حِراصٌ على الأنفُسِ الهالكات

وذلك منهم خَبالٌ وَمُوقْ

Greedy for the doomed souls,

And that in them is flaw and defect,

ضِعافُ القلوبِ قُعودٌ جُمودُ

يخافون كلَّ سَفوحِ دَفُوقْ

The weak-hearted sitting still inert

Fear every towering, pouring wave,

وما يَسْتَوِي الهِبْرِزِيُّ الجَسُور

غَداةَ الوَغى والهَيُوبُ الفَروقْ

No equal is the valiant energetic man

The day of turmoil, and the coward who lags,

رَأَوْا عَجباً من عَتادِ الحروب

تَذوق الحصونُ به ما تَذُوقْ

A wonder they saw in the tools of war,

The forts tasted through it what they never tasted,

رَماهُمْ فَتاهَا بدبّابَتَينْ

فيا لَك من فَارسِيٍّ لَبيقْ

You hit them with two tanks,

What a graceful horseman you are!

رَميْتَ الأُلى حَبَسَ الفاتحون

بموتٍ حبيسٍ وبأسٍ طليق

You shot the banners, the conquerors were confined

To death captive, and power free,

وَزِدْتَ فقلت اضربوا الكافرين

وَعلّمتهم صنعةَ المنجنيقْ

And you added saying: Strike the unbelievers!

And taught them the making of mangonels,

تَظَلُّ الحجارةُ مقذوفةً

يُشيّعها من مكانٍ سَحِيقْ

The stones kept hurling,

Sent from a far-off place,

ونُودُوا إلينا فمن جاءنا

مَنَنَّا عليه بِعَهْدٍ وَثيقْ

And they called us, whoever came to us

We favored with a covenant and pact,

فأقبلَ منهم بُغاةُ الأمان

فكلٌّ مُخلَّى وكلٌّ عَتِيقْ

So the truce-breaking rebels came

Each freed and each slave too,

لهم مَنزلُ الضّيفِ في المسلمين

رُعاةِ العهودِ حُماةِ الحُقوقْ

For them is the guest’s abode among the Muslims,

Keepers of covenants, protectors of rights,

عُيَيْنَةُ ما قلت للمشركين

وهل يَقتني الحمدَ إلا الصَّدُوقْ

Uyaynah, what you told the polytheists,

And does praise belong to other than the truthful?

كذبتَ النبيَّ فقلتَ المحال

وجئتَ من الأمرِ ما لا يليقْ

You belied the Prophet, and said the impossible,

And you came with what does not befit,

وأزلفْتَها توبةً تبتغي

بها الخيرَ والخيرُ نِعْمَ الرفيقْ

And you turned it into a repentance you seek

Through which good - and good the best mate,

تبيَّنْ عيينةُ عُقْبَى الأمور

لعلَّكَ تعقلُ أو تَستفيقْ

It became clear, Uyaynah, the sequel of things,

Perhaps you will understand or awake,

سيأتي بهم رَبّهم مُسلمين

فما من ضلالٍ ولا من فُسوقْ

Their Lord will bring them as Muslims,

So no perversion or dissoluteness remains,

ولو شاءَ لاجْتثَّهم أجمعين

فبادت أصولٌ وجفّتْ عُروقْ

And had He wished He would have uprooted them all,

So roots would vanish and veins run dry,

يقولُ الفوارسُ كيف الرحيل

وما شَرِقَتْ بالدِّماءِ الحُلوقْ

The horsemen say how can we depart

While the throats are not overflowing with blood?

رُوَيداً رُوَيداً جُنودَ النبيِّ

فقد ينفعُ الناسَ ما لا يَروقْ

Gently, gently, O troops of the Prophet,

For what people dislike may benefit them,

وللهِ ما شَاءَ فيما يسوق

من الحادثاتِ وفيما يَعوْقْ

To Allah belongs what He wills of what happens,

And what He causes to pass or He checks,