إن سير الخليط حين استقلا — Albohtry

Indeed, the companions' departure, when they set out,

was an aid to tears, until they poured forth.

And separation is a lot dealt by time: it never

ceases to grieve the lover and wear him down.

So you two, lessen your blame over ʿAlwa; I

grow deeper in passion if you do not relent.

Those bygone days of hers were part of the finest

life now past, and an age departed;

and a phantom of her visited me at an hour

of estrangement, and I said, “Welcome, be at ease!”

Love has not been neglected, nor the beloved forgotten—

he who neglected love and withdrew.

May God guard him wherever he is, morning and evening,

and care for him wherever he travels and settles.

My solace, enamored of shunning me, grows

more aloof whenever I grow more devoted.

And I wish I could lighten

my lord's burden through patience when he grew weary.

And God forbid that I should find consolation

for his absence, all my days, or seek distraction.

And I have clothed myself in love, though it be harmful,

and borne it, though it be a burden.

And I have earnestly humbled myself before my king;

for a lover, abasement is but a small thing.

The station of the caliphate has become, for al-Muʿtazz

bi-llāh, a home and dwelling.

God brought it together in his hands,

and deemed him its proper home and worthy of it.

The retainers undertook his support, and granted

him the height of al-Simāk—or he is higher still.

A king: whenever he appears before your eyes,

I say, “An overflowing sea, a full moon revealed!”

He wears a robe of dignity; and part of the splendor

of a sword is that it be adorned.

O beauty of the world in radiance and glory,

and the world's refuge in giving and generosity!

Whenever the noble deeds of Quraysh are reckoned,

you are noble in its lineage, both branch and root.

Yours is the pure, refined lineage among them,

without doubt, and their highest-ranking lot-arrow.

O descendant of the Prophet's uncle, of al-Ḥibr, and of

al-Sajjād and al-Kāmil, who stood out in excellence.

Theirs are Zamzam and the courtyards of the Kaaba,

and al-Ḥijr, al-Ṣafā, and the place of prayer.

Whoever refuses to love you is not of God,

even if he fasts a thousand years and prays.

Your preeminent right kept effacing

the falsehood of the borrowed claim, until it vanished.

We have searched, but found none to match you in

eminence, glory, and noble virtues.

You are most generous of hand and noblest

in character, purest in speech, and most generous in deed.

Auspicious stars greeted you, and the rain poured

in drizzle and downpour into your two courtyards.

And Eid came amid dark clouds that sought out

the ailing ground of al-Baṭḥāʾ until it recovered.

The rain-bearing stars rivaled you there in generosity,

and the sky imitated you with torrents and downpours.

That is a favor bestowed on you—you were, among

all creation, most entitled to it and most deserving—

and a gift from God: may you ever remain

congratulated on that gift and granted long life.