أَهلاً بِمَنْ قَهَرَ الملوكَ وَمَرْحَبا

وأَعَزِّ مَنْ حُلَّتْ لِرُؤْيَتِهِ الحُبى

Greetings to he who has subdued kings, and welcome

To the most honourable one whose sight dispelled sorrows

وبحاجِبِ الشَّمْسِ الَّذِي حَجَبَ الأَسى

عنَّا وحاشَ لِجُودِهِ أَنْ تُحَجَبا

To the eyebrow of the sun whose shade removed anguish from us

So it remains unveiled, for its generosity not to be veiled

وَالمُسْتَطارِ لسَيْفِهِ فِرَقُ العِدى

فَرَقاً فكانَ هُوَ السَّنا وَهُمُ الْهَبا

And to the one who unsheathed his sword, terror gripped the foes

Scattering them, while he remained glorious and they fled

مَلِكٌ نماهُ المُلْكُ يَتْبَعُ تُبَّعاً

فِيهِ ويُعرِبُ عَنْ مآثِرِ يَعْرُبا

A king raised by kingship, walking the path of Tubba

Through whom kingship was Arabized and its glories made Arabic

قادَ الجنودَ مُكاثِراً بِرِماحِها

شُهُبَ الدُّجى وبأُسْدِها عَدَدَ الدَّبا

He led armies, challenging with their spears

The darkness of night, and with its lions counted prey

وسَما فَعادى بَيْنَ آفاقِ الْعدى

خَسَفَ الدَّبُورِ وكَرَّ يَعْتَامُ الصَّبا

He charged through the horizons of foes

Eclipsing the fleeing and rolling back the darkness of dusk

بكَتائِبٍ تَرَكَتْ سَنا شَمْسِ الضُّحى

طَرْفاً سَجا للنَّوْمِ أَوْ بَرْقاً حَبا

With regiments that left the splendor of dawn

Drowsy-eyed or as a flash of lightning vanished

تَبْني عَلَى الآفاقِ مِنْ جَعْدِ الثَّرى

فَلَكاً بِزُرْقِ السَّمْهَرِيّ مُكَوْكَبا

They built upon the horizons, made of earth’s twisted locks

A revolving heaven with the blue of Suhail

فِي هِمَّةٍ أَوْرَتْ زِنادَ وقَائِعٍ

غادَرْنَ رأْسَ الدَّهْرِ أَشْعَثَ أَشْيَبا

With an ambition that equipped the combustibles of fate

And left the head of time disheveled and white-haired

حَتَّى تَجَلَّى فِي عَجَاجَةِ أَوْبَةٍ

آبَتْ إِلَى الدُّنْيا بأَيَّامِ الصِّبا

Until he emerged in the knolls of youth

Come to the world in the days of childhood

من بَعْدِ مَا وَصَلَ الأَصائِلَ بالضُّحى

تَحْتَ العوالي مُسْئِداً وَمؤَوِّبا

After connecting the roots to the dawn

Beneath the heights, hosting and sheltering

حَتَّى تَوَهَّمَهُ الدُّجى بَدْرَ الدُّجى

يَسْرِي أَوِ ابْناً لِلْكَواكِبِ أَوْ أَبا

Until the darkness imagined him a full moon

Moving or a son of stars, or their father

شَبَهاً بِهِ ناسَبْتَها مُتَعالِياً

ومُحَلِّقاً ومُشَرِّقاً ومُغَرِّبا

You likened him, elevating, soaring and radiant

Rising and setting with the most lofty determination

بِعَزَائِمٍ كَلَّفْتَها أَعلى العُلا

فتسابَقَتْ شَأْواً إِلَيْهِ مُغَرِّبا

Which vied to set towards him in decline

Too shy for their gaze to incline

مُسْتَحْيِيَاتٍ أَنْ يُعَرِّجَ لَحْظُها

لِقُبْولِ مَا أَدْنى الزمانُ وقَرَّبا

To accept what the nearest of eras offered

Kingship’s reins are not mounted by the submissive

لا يَرْكَبُ المُلْكَ الذَّلُولَ رِكابُهُ

حَتَّى يُذِلَّ لَهُ الزمانَ المُصْعَبا

Until time is humbled before him, however difficult

Until attaining the utmost heights of glory

حَتَّى يَنالَ العِزَّ أَعْلى مُرْتَقَىً

ويفُوزَ بالآمالِ أَبْعَدَ مَطْلَبا

And achieving the farthest of hopes

They surpassed the horizons, distance upon distance

جاوَزْنَ بالخَيْلِ المَدى بَعْدَ المَدى

وأَطَلْنَ إِظْماءَ الأَسِنَّةِ والظُّبى

And endured the thirst of tongues and gazelles

Never did your resources provide them a watering place

ما أَوْرَدَتْها من عُدَاتِكَ مَنْهَلاً

إِلّا ابْتَدَرْنَ أَمامَ ذَلِكَ مَشْرَبا

Except they hastened ahead, before that, a drinking place

Seeking in the orbit heights of loftiness

يطلُبْنَ فِي الأَفْلاكِ شاهِقَةَ العُلا

ويَدَعْنَ للأَوْعالِ شامِخَةَ الرُّبى

And leaving ruins heights of desolation

Scornful to clash with one who in the orbit of grandeur is a planet

مُتَكَرِّماتٍ أَن يُناطِحَ كَبْكَباً

من كَانَ فِي فَلَكِ المعالِي كوْكبا

Who can equal him? And the closest we see

When the clouds pour, is us

هَلْ مَنْ يُسامِيهِ وأَقْرَبُ مَا يُرى

مِنَّا إِذَا كَانَ الغَمامُ الصيِّبا

We sought refuge in him, from whom no refuge was taken

And so he became, in his sight, a refuge

عُذْنا بِهِ مَنْ لا تَعَوَّذَ مَرْقَباً

مِنْهُ فأَصْبَحَ فِي ذَرَاهُ مَرْقَبا

Rejoice - your winds blew no disappointment

Nor did your clouds burst unrewarding

فَابْشِرْ فما عَصَفَتْ رِياحُكَ حُسَّراً

فِيهِ ولا بَرَقَتْ سَحابُكَ خُلَّبا

See - a resolve you ignited with victory

Has shown, with near conquest, it's first fruits

وانظُرْ فإِنَّ عزيمَةً أَلقَحْتَها

بالنَّصْرِ قَدْ أَرْأَتْ بِفَتْحٍ مُقْرِبا

Know - a prisoner of your rule, shackled

Is one who sees no refuge in the world but you

واعْلَمْ بأَنَّ أَسيرَ مُلْكِكَ مُوثَقاً

مَنْ لا يَرى فِي الأَرْضِ دُونَكَ مَهْرَبا

If time protected places from you

Through them it will repent what it transgressed

ولئِنْ حَمى منك الزَّمانُ مَكامِناً

فَبِهَا يَتُوبُ إِلَيْكَ مِمَّا أَذْنَبَا

Tomorrow it will come to you, regretful and remorseful

No offender against you remains untroubled

وَغَداً يَجِيئُكَ مُنْشِداً مُتَذَمِّماً

لَيْسَ المُسِيءُ إِلَيْكَ عَبْداً أَعْتَبا

Though an appointed term still lingers, determination has not grown weak

Though destiny slept, the sword did not sleep

ولئِنْ دنا أَمَدٌ فلا عَزْمٌ رَنى

ولَئِنْ نبا قَدَرٌ فلا سَيْفٌ نَبا

And Allah chooses fate, though it refuses

Perhaps good lies in what hastened or held back

واللهُ مُختارُ القَضاءِ وإِنْ أبى

فَعَسى لِخَيْرٍ مَا تَعَجَّلَ أَوْ أَبى

How often victory has shown you its first glimpse

And perhaps greater than it lies in what is hidden

ولَكَمْ أَرَاكَ النَّصْرَ لَمْحاً باصِراً

ولَعَلَّ أَعْظَمَ منهُ فِيما غَيَّبا

My Lord, I pray you return victorious and loyal

And grant long life, for which I ask

رَبّاً بنصرِكَ عائداً ومُوَالِياً

ولِطُولِ عُمْرِكَ واهِباً مُسْتَوْهَبا

It is enough for one who sought refuge in you, wandering

The one who saw no home in the lands but you

وكَفى بِمَنْ آوى إِلَيْكَ مُشَرَّداً

قَلِقَ الرَّكائِبِ فِي البِلادِ مُغَرَّبَا

Until the destitute see your hospitality an unbreakable bond

And calamity a neck bound to set

حَتَّى يَرى البُؤْسى غُرَاباً أَعْصَماً

بَنَدَاكَ والضَّرَّاءَ عَنْقا مُغْرِبا