ما ضرَّ لو سلّمَ أو ودّعا

مَنْ أوْدَعَ القلْبَ الذي أوْدَعا

What harm if he bid farewell or took leave,

He who entrusted to my heart which entrusted him

ضَنّ برَجْعِ الطّرْفِ يوْمَ النّوى

هَلاّ رَعَى عهْدِي كَما أرْعى

He was jealous of my glance on the day we parted,

Why did he not honor my pledge as I honored it

زمّ المَطايَا وتَخلَّفَني

أسْألُ عنْها الطّلَلَ البَلْقَعا

He took away the camels and left me behind,

So I asked the relics of stone about them

وصارَ لا يلْوي على طِيّةٍ

يوْماً ولا يلْوي لَها أخدَعا

And he ceased not to wander every hillock,

A day, nor bend down to it deceitfully

وارْتَحَلَ القَلْبُ على إثْرِه

فصِرْتُ أبكِيهِ وقَلبي مَعا

And my heart departed after him,

So I weep for him while my heart is with him

نشَدْتُكَ اللهَ نسيمَ الصَّبا

إنْ جِئْتَ في تَسْيارِكَ الأجْرَعا

I adjure you, O breeze of the dawn,

If you come in your wandering, bare

هصَرْتَ منْ أغْصانِهِ ذُبُلا

وصُغْتَ منْ غُدْرانِه أذْرُعا

You have plucked from its branches only witheredness,

And you have heard from its betrayal only lies

عرِّجْ على الوادِي كَذا يسْرَةً

وابْلِغْ سَلامي ذلكَ المَرْبَعا

Pass by the valley gently,

And convey my greetings to that pasture

وقُلْ لها إنّي مُقيمٌ على

وُدّي إذا أخْلَفَ أو ضيّعا

And tell her that I remain true to

My love, if he is faithful or unfaithful

يا سائِلاً لي كيْفَ طعْمُ الهَوى

للّهِ ما أحْلَى وما أفْظَعا

O you who ask me how the taste of passion is,

By God, how sweet and how bitter!

كأنّما في أضْلُعي بارِقٌ

يهْفو إذا ما صادِحٌ رجّعا

It is as if my ribs contain a lightning

That flames when a roaring cloud thunders

كأنّما دمْعي إذا استَنْصَرَتْ

لَواعِجُ الشّوْقِ بهِ أسْرَعا

It is as if my tears, when the pangs

Of passion seek help, run to aid

وضُمَّرُ الشُّقْرِ علَى وَجْنَتي

تصْنَعُ ما شاءَتْهُ أنْ يَصْنَعا

The raccoon eyes on my cheeks

Do whatever they want to do

جيْشُ بَني نصْرٍٍ مُلوكِ الوَرَى

قوْماً إذا الدّاعِي لخَطْبٍ دَعا

The army of the Banu Nasr, kings of the world,

A people when the summoner to an ordeal calls

خَلائِفٌ مجْدُهُمُ أفْرُعٌ

سَما جَلالاً ونَما تَبَعا

Caliphs whose glory branched out

High in majesty and spread in following

بَيْتٌ علَى أُسِّ الهُدَى قائِمٌ

قدْ أذِنَ اللهُ بأنْ يُرْفَعا

A house standing on the foundation of guidance

Which God has given permission to be elevated

أمْلاكُ صِدْقٍ جاهدوا في العِدَى

وصيّروا أمْلاكَها خُضَّعا

Lands of truth whose people struggled against injustice

And made its lands submitted

فاسْتَشْهِدِ الآثارَ في أرْضِها

تُلْفِ بكُلِّ رَبْوَةٍ مَصْرَعا

Seek testament in its land and you will find

At every hilltop a place of death

إنْ بَطَشَ الدّهْرُ بقوْمٍ حمَوْا

أو تعْثُرِ الأيّامُ قالوا لَعا

If fate assaulted a people who defended,

Or if days stumbled, they said: Refuge is in God

أوْ جِئْتَهُم في الجَدْبِ تبْغي النّدى

سحّوا عليْكَ السُّحْبَ الهُمَّعا

Or if you came to them in barrenness, seeking drink,

They poured on you rain laden clouds

وإنْ خبرْتَ القوْمَ ألفَيْتَهُمْ

للّهِ ما أهْدَى وما أوْرَعا

And if you knew the people you found them

By God, how rightly guided and how virtuous!

في حَوْمَة الحرْبِ أسودَ الشّرَى

وفي الظّلامِ سُجَّداً رُكّعا

In the heat of war, lions of evil,

And in the darkness, kneeling worshippers

كَواكِبُ الأرْضِ وأنْوارُها

أضْحَى بهِمْ مَغْرِبُها مَطْلِعا

The stars of earth and its lights

Their west has become their east

كَفاهُمُ أنْ أنْجَبوا يوسُفاً

الأريَحيَّ المَلِكَ الأرْوَعا

It suffices them that they gave birth to Yusuf

The purest, most splendid king

ملْكاً عميمَ الجودِ سحَّ النّدَى

أجدى منَ الوابِلِ أو أنْفَعا

A king of boundless generosity, who poured forth dew

More beneficial than rain or clouds

ألّفَ بالعدِل قُلوبَ الوَرى

وفرّقَتْ يُمْناهُ ما جمّعا

He united the hearts of the people through justice

And his favors dispersed what was united

يهْوي إليْهِ الوَفْدُ مُسْتأنِساً

منْ نازِحِ الآفاقِ ما أشْسَعا

Delegations hasten eagerly to him

From the farthest reaches of the horizons

حتّى إذا ما أبْصَروا وَجْهَهُ

صدّقَ مرْأىً عندَهُمْ مَسْمَعا

Until when they saw his face

Sight of him verified for them what was heard

حاطَ بِلادَ اللهِ منْ بعدِما

هبّتْ بِها ريحُ العِدَى زِعْزِعا

He surrounded the lands of God after

The wind of injustice shook them to their foundations

وابتَهَلتْ فيهِ قُلوبُ الوَرى

واللهُ جلّ اسْماً سَميعُ الدُّعا

And the hearts of all people beseeched through him

And God, Sublime is His Name, is Hearer of prayer

فصانَها منْهُ بماضِي الظُّبَى

إنْ هَمّ أمْضى أو هَمى أتْرَعا

So He protected it from the passing of misfortunes

If it intended destruction or trembling

فجرّد البيضَ وجرّ القَنا

وجرّعَ الأعْداء ما جرَّعا

He unsheathed the swords and pulled the spears

And made the enemies drink what they made others drink

يا ناصِرَ الدّينِ وحامِي الهُدَى

إنْ غالهُ خطْبٌ وإنْ روّعا

O champion of the faith, protector of guidance

If an ordeal befell him or alarmed him

ما لي بِما أوْلَيْتَ منْ مِقْوَل

وإنْ غدَوْتُ اللَّسِن المِصْقَعا

I have no words to match what you have bestowed

Even if I become the most eloquent of tongues

فاسْتَقْبِلِ الأيّامَ وضّاحَةً

واجْنِ جنيَ النّصْرِ فقدْ أيْنَعا

So meet the days joyfully,

And reap the harvest of victory for it is ripe

وهْنأ بنَيْروزٍ مسَرّاتُه

قدْ أصْبَحَتْ أبوابُها شُرَّعا

And enjoy the celebrations of Nayrouz,

Its gates have been opened wide

دُمْتَ رفيعَ المُلْكِ سامِي العُلا

ما طافَ بالبَيْتِ امْرُؤ أو سَعى

You remain the pillar of exalted rule, the summit of glory,

As long as pilgrims circle the House or traverse the hills