سلامٌ عَلَى الأَيَّامِ تسليمَ إِقْبالِ
بآمالِ تحقيقٍ وتحقيقِ آمالِ
I greet the days with hope and hopes fulfilled,
With the advent of victory from a conquering king,
بمَقْدَمِ فتحٍ من مليكٍ مُظَفَّرٍ
وأَوْبَةِ نَصْرٍ فِي تباشِيرِ إِقْبالِ
And the omens of triumph in the dawn of destiny,
And a kingdom’s splendor shining in a glorious crown,
وشاهدِ مُلْكٍ لاحَ فِي تاجِ مَفْرِقٍ
مُحَيَّاً بإِعظامٍ مُحَلَّىً بإِجلالِ
Greeted with reverence and graced with majesty,
A treasure of dominions and allegiance of subjects,
ذخيرةُ أَملاكٍ وعِلْقُ تَبابِعٍ
وصفوةُ أَذْواءٍ وميراثُ أَقْيالِ
The elite of eras and the legacy of generations.
Rejoice, O World, at the one whose voice
فبُشْرَاكِ يَا دُنيا سَمِيُّ الَّذِي بِهِ
عَلا صوتُ جِبْرِيلٍ بَشيراً ومِيكالِ
Archangel Gabriel extolled as a bearer of good news.
Rejoice at the coming of a land whose life
وبشراكِ باستقبالِ أَرضٍ حَياتُها
بما فِي اسمِهِ من صادِقِ الظَّنِّ والفالِ
Bears truth and fortune in his name.
And here a sky of grace raining with favor,
فَهَذِي رِياضُ الأَمنِ تُزْهِرُ بالمُنى
وهذِي سماءُ الفضلِ تَهْمِي بإِفْضالِ
And here the glitter of pride beaming with brilliance,
And here the beauty of time adorned with grace.
وهذا سناءُ الفخرِ يُشْرِقُ بالسَّنا
وهذا جمالُ الدهرِ يُزْهى بإِجْمالِ
By the one who dispelled the disaster that darkened the morn
And confounded minds with the wilderness of misguidance,
بِمَنْ كَشَفَ الخَطْبَ الَّذِي أَظْلَمَ الضُّحى
وأَلقى عَلَى الأَلبابِ حَيْرَةَ إِضْلالِ
Who mended the schism that stumped all creation,
Leaving it no trickery by which to scheme,
ومن رَتَقَ الفتْقَ الَّذِي أَعْجَزَ الورى
وأعْدَمَ فِيهِ الدَّهْرُ حِيلَةَ مُحْتالِ
Who revived in the body of virtues its soul,
So none can lament nor victims complain;
ومن رَدَّ فِي جسمِ المكارِمِ رُوحَهُ
فلا عُذْرَ للباكِي ولا ذَنْبَ للسَّالي
Who made Islam a refuge for the blessed,
And hostility for those astray;
ومَنْ وَسِعَ الإسلامَ رَأْفَةَ مُنْعِمٍ
وهيَّأَ للإِشراكِ عَدْوَةَ رِئْبَالِ
Who boarded the ship that sails through tumult
Into every awesome abyss and its horrors,
ومن ركِبَ الفُلْكَ السَّوابِحَ فِي الوغَى
إِلَى كلِّ هَوْلٍ ينتحيهِ بأَهوالِ
And raised banners that flap as though
To shake the signs of misbelief with tremors;
ورفَّعَ أَعلاماً كَأَنَّ خفوقَها
عَلَى عَلَمِ الإِشراكِ إِرجافُ زِلْزَالِ
Who paraded the steeds as though the earth
Walked with the strut of a prancing camel;
وسامَرَ بالشِّعْرى خيولاً كَأَنَّما
تَمَشَّى بِهِنَّ الأَرضُ مِشْيَةَ مُختالِ
He marched by night in December's chill
As praises showered him amid the darkness.
سرى ليلَ كانُونَيْنِ والدَّجْنُ ذائِبٌ
عَلَيْهِ بحمدٍ فِي دُجى الليلِ مُنْهَالِ
None but the flames of his spears kept him warm,
No other fire comforted him in the bitter cold,
وَلَيْسَ سِوى نارِ الطِّعانِ لَهُ صِلىً
ولا غَيْرُهُ فِي حَرِّ أَوَّلِها صالِ
With an army that mirrored his eyes
When he marched at dawn or dusk.
بجمعٍ كَأَنَّ الجَوَّ مرآةُ عَيْنِهِ
إِذَا مَا سَرى أَوْ بالغُدُوِّ والآصالِ
So the stars of high heavens are your army's stars
And the sun’s glow is the most radiant image of you,
فَتِمْثالُ أَطرافِ العوالي نُجُومُهُ
وشَمْسُ ضحاهُ منكَ أَبْيَنُ تِمْثَالِ
As though you made the dunes and wilds verdant
And the valleys’ acacias flower and thrive,
كَأَنَّكَ عَوَّضْتَ الأَباطِحَ والرُّبى
وشيجَ القنا من مَنْبِتِ السِّدْرِ والضَّالِ
Where the touch of your hands has reached
Joining dusk and dawn, plateau and mountain.
كما عَمَّها جَدْوى يَدَيْكَ فوصَّلَتْ
مساءً بإِصباحٍ وسَهْلاً بأَجْبالِ
How the wilds have worn, thanks to you, the turbans of prosperity,
And the desert trails the train of abundant fortune!
فكَمْ أَلبَسَتْ شُمَّ الرُّبى من عمائِمٍ
وجَرَّتْ عَلَى البيداءِ من فَضْلِ أَذْيالِ
Gardens of bliss smile amid the shadows,
When the breeze of victory blows, blooming
حدائِقُ ماذِيٍّ يُضاحِكُ فِي الدُّجى
حبيكاً كَلَمْعِ الشمسِ فِي رَيِّق الآلِ
With bright oleanders and dark myrtles.
The gushing of springs in rich oases
إِذَا هَبَّ ريحُ النصرِ فِيهَا تَفَتَّحَتْ
بأَبْيَضَ قَضَّابٍ وأَسْمَرَ عَسَّالِ
And flowers shining in meadows of greens,
The trade of conquest paying deeds for spoils
وطاقَةِ نَبعٍ في بنانِ مُوَتِّرٍ
وَزَهْرَةِ نَوْرٍ فِي كِنانَةِ نَبَّالِ
Fulfilling rights and claiming debts.
God, how your hands made the blood of Muslims dear
تجارَةُ غَزْوٍ نَقْدُها البِيضُ والقنا
قضاءَ حُقوقٍ واقتِضاءً لآجالِ
And cheapened in their foes blood however dear!
You delivered to Islam therein wares
فلِلَّهِ كم أَغلَيْتَ من دَمِ مُسْلِمٍ
وأَرخَصْتَ فِي أَعدائِهِ من دَمٍ غالِ
That bring manifold profit and matchless gain.
Son of Shanj's capture of captives suffices you
وأَسلَمْتَ للإِسلامِ فِيهَا بضاعَةً
تعود بأَضعافٍ وتوفي بأَمثالِ
As the prime specimens and signs of those specimens.
You bought a king and all his court for some of him
وحسبُكَ فِيهَا بِابْنِ شَنْجٍ وجُنْدِهِ
من السَّبْيِ أَبْدالاً وأَيَّةُ أَبدالِ
And profited with a pound sold for a few grams.
No conqueror gained spoils like it,
مليكاً وَمَا يحوي شَرَيْتَ بِبَعْضِهِ
وأَرْبِحْ بِقِنطارٍ يُباعُ بمثقالِ
Nor did any captor seize captives so fine.
You did not sell them into slavery, postponing
فما حازَ غازٍ مثلَهُ فَيْءَ مَغْنَمٍ
ولا نالَ سابٍ مثلَها سَبْيَ أَنفالِ
Or excusing payment, but paid forthright
With acknowledgment of submission and submission’s humiliation,
وما بعتَ رِقَّ المُلكِ مِنْهُمْ نَسِيئَةً
ولا مُستجِيزَاً كالِئَ الدَّيْنِ بالكَالي
And admission, by one who seeks no refuge from you,
That without your sword he has no ally;
ولكنَّ نقداً ناجِزاً فِي رِقابِهِمْ
بإِذْعانِ تَمْلِيكٍ وإِذْعانِ إِذلالِ
Return, then, with the keys to your past victories
That opened what was locked tight in the shackles of betrayal,
وإِقرارِ من لا يبتغي عنكَ مَوْئِلاً
وَلَيْسَ لَهُ من دونِ سيفِكَ مِنْ والِ
By the man whose abhorrence of you was not sated by distance,
Who did not avert his eyes in disdain after you
فَعُدْ بمفاتِيحِ الفتوحِ الَّتِي شَفَتْ
عَلَى غَلَقٍ من غَدْرَةٍ تحتَ أَقفالِ
Took from him the next morning the cost of your horses
In steeds unlike any destrier;
بمَنْ لَمْ يُسِغْهُ كَرُّهُ بَعْدَ فَرِّهِ
ولا رَدَّ من عَيْنَيْهِ نَظْرَةَ إِجفالِ
An enemy was born to a mother you impregnated,
Whose belly contained the spawn of a wicked schemer;
غداةَ تقاضى منه أَكفالَ خيلِهِ
بأَجيادِ خيلٍ لا تَقَرُّ بأَكفالِ
When dread of you hits him, it leaves him
Scattered like a garden wrecked amid the ruins of homesteads;
وأُلقِحَ منهُ بَطْنُ أُمٍّ طَوَتْ بِهِ
مَشِيمَةُ شُومٍ جَالَ فِي سُخْدِ أَوْجالِ
It healed a paradise whose fruits were never savored
Until war let it reap the flames of hell and its anguish.
إِذَا أَسْقَطَتْهُ رَوْعَةٌ منكَ راعَهُ
هشيمُ رياضٍ فِي دوارِسِ أَطلالِ
He flips his palms in the despair of one devastated,
His eyes brimming with the tears of one distraught,
شَفا جَنَّةٍ لَمْ تُجْنَ حَتَّى جَنى لَهَا
حروباً جَناها من جحيمٍ وأَنْكالِ
A cultivator of gardens ravaged by enmity,
Which you replaced for him with towering peaks.
يقلِّبُ كفَّيْهِ بحَسْرَةِ حاسِرٍ
عَلَيْها وعيْنَيْهِ بعبرةِ إِعْوالِ
What walls withstand when your advice is their secret?
What trees flourish when your well-being waters them?
مصانِعُ رَوْضاتٍ رَعى البَغْيُ نَبْتَها
فعَوَّضَهُ منها شواهِقَ أَوْعالِ
He protected them, raising them high,
Though none has seen a place loftier than yours,
فأَيَّةُ أَسوارٍ ونُصْحُكَ سِرُّها
إِلَى أَن طوى غِلّاً فأَيَّةُ أَغلالِ
He constructed them tall, but how many like them
Have you lamented over when rubble remained?
وأَيَّةُ أَشجارٍ وسَلْمُكَ سَقْيُها
إِلَى أَنْ بَغى فِيهَا فأَيَّةُ أَجْذالِ
He disabled them of your loyal counsel,
Bent on destruction—marvel at the days for one who damages!
حَماها فأَعْلاها بِناءً وَمَا رأى
مكانَكَ يَعْلُو كُلَّ ذي شَرَفٍ عالِ
You crown them with siege, your troop's circled around,
A space filled with regiments of horsemen and heroes.
وشيَّدَها عُجْباً ويا رُبَّ مِثْلِهِ
عَلَى مِثلِها أَبكيْتَ من طلَلٍ بالِ
By night, they are his bedcover and pillow,
By day, amid coats of mail and armor.
وعَطَّلَها من حَلْيِ نُصْحِكَ باغِياً
فيا عَجَبَ الأَيامِ للعاطِلِ الحالي
As the Kindite described his lover's husband
Upon him the dark suspicions and omens of ruin.
يُتَوِّجُها بالنَّقْعِ نَظْمُكَ حولَها
مجالَ عُقُودٍ من خيولٍ وأَبطالِ
So unleash against it the power of unwavering son and advice
For no coward reached its vulnerability like the aggressor,
فيُمْسي لَهَا منهُ لِحافٌ ومِلْحَفٌ
وتُصْبِحُ منه بَيْنَ دِرْعٍ وسِرْبالِ
No guardian defended war’s secrets like her husband,
No watcher over lions resembled the usurping cub.
كما وَصَفَ الكِنْدِيُّ بَعْلَ فَتاتِهِ
عَلَيْهِ القَتامُ سَيِّءَ الظَّنِّ والبالِ
Especially when a free man shone upon you like gathering clouds,
Sincere advice, neither wavering nor partisan,
فأَبْقِ لَهَا بأْسَ ابْنِ باقٍ ونُصْحَهُ
فما لَمَسَ الجَرْباءَ مِثْلُ يَدِ الطَّالِي
An loyal ally, not falling short of extremes,
Nor causing doubt between falling short and extremes.
ولا أَحْصَنَ الحربَ العوانَ كَبَعْلِها
ولا راعَ آساداً كغاصِبٍ أَشْبَالِ
A bird of joy whose feathers forever
Arrive with determination and zeal,
ولاسِيَّما حُرٌّ جَلا لَكَ غَيْمُهُ
نصيحةَ لا وانٍ وإِشفاقَ لا آلِ
With it, he repelled the steeds of enmity
As their necks bled, having despaired of kin or maternal uncles’ aid.
وشِيعِيَّةٌ لا مُقْصِراً عن غُلُوِّها
ولا مُشْكِلاً بَيْنَ المقصِّرِ والغالي
He gave security against their aggression to all who feared
And impoverished their storage of people and money.
وطائرُ يُمْنٍ لا تَزَالُ تَرِيشُهُ
قوادِمَ إِقدامٍ ونَهْضَةَ إِعجالِ
Indeed, the crescent moon gleamed from the edge of his sword
A guaranteed fulfillment dependent on him.
بِهَا رَدَّ خيلَ البغيِ تَدْمى كُلُومُها
وَقَدْ يَئِسَتْ من نُصْرَةِ العَمِّ والخالِ
Succeeding in exaltation and submission.
The steeds do not shy from heading into fray,
وأَمَّنَ من عُدوانِها كُلَّ خائِفٍ
وأَثكلَها مُسْتَوْدَعَ الأَهلِ والمالِ
Nor the warriors settling down and journeying.
وإِنَّ هلالاً لاح من حَدِّ سيفِهِ
لمضمونُ إِتمامٍ عَلَيْهِ وإِكمالِ
فهاكَ نجومَ السَّعْدِ من كُلِّ مطلعٍ
تُوالي بتكبيرٍ إِلَيْكَ وإِهلالِ
فلا عَرِيَتْ منكَ الجيادُ إِلَى الوغى
ولا العيسُ من حِلٍّ إِلَيْكَ وتَرْحالِ
