أَتاني عَن تاجِ الزَمان تَعتُّبُ

يُضَيِّق وسع الأَرض فَضلاً عَن الصَدرِ

My poem reproached the crown of the age,

It constricts the spaciousness of the earth, let alone my heart.

وَلَم أَمتَدِحهُ آخِراً لِجَهالَةٍ

وَهَل لِلَّذي لا يَعرف الشَمس من عُذرِ

I did not praise him at first out of ignorance,

Can one who knows not the sun be excused?

وَلَكِنَّني لَمّا رأَيتُ صِفاتِهِ

خَتَمنَ العُلى طراً خَتَمتُ بِهِ شعري

But when I saw his attributes,

The apex sealed my poetry with which I sealed it.

وَقَد أَخَّرَ اللَهَ النَبيَّ لِفَضلِهِ

وَقَدَّمَه في رتبةِ الفَضلِ وَالأَجرِ

God deferred the Prophet due to his superiority,

And advanced him in rank of merit and reward.

أَعرتَهُم مِن دُرِّ وَصفك جَوهَراً

تَحَلّوا بِهِ ما بَينَ سَحرٍ إِلى نَحرٍ

You adorned them with the pearls of your description,

They wore it from dawn till dusk.

وَتاهو به عاريَّةً لا تَمَلُّكا

فَإِن شِئتَ رَدّوا ما استَعاروا مِنَ الدُرِّ

And they wandered with it naked, having no possession,

So if you wish, take back what they borrowed of the pearls.

فَلَما تَمادى الأَمرُ نادَت بيَ العُلى

غَلَّطت فأعطِ القوسَ وَيحَكَ من يَبري

When the matter went too far, the Most High called me,

"You have wronged, so give the bow and leave the hitting to the skilled archer."

فَعادَ مَديحي نَحوَ أَبلجَ حَدِّثوا

بِلاح حَرَجٍ عَن جودِهِ وَعَن البَحُرِ

Thus my praise returned to the brightest white,

Speak without shame of his generosity and the sea.

وَغايَة هَذا الفَضل أَنتَ وَإِنَّما

يُوافي إِلى الغاياتِ في آخِرِ الأَمرِ

The epitome of this merit is you, and only

At the end of the matter is the ultimate aim reached.