عزاءٌ فإن الشجو قد كان يُسرفُ

وبُشْرى بها الداعي على الغور يُشرفُ

Solace, for grief was excessive,

Good tidings with which the supplicant overlooks the abyss,

لَئِنْ غَرَبَ البدرُ المنيرُ محمّدٌ

لقد طلعَ البدرُ المكمّلُ يوسُفُ

If the bright full moon has set, Muhammad,

The perfect full moon has risen, Joseph.

وإن رُدَّ سيف الملك صوناً لغمدهِ

فقد سُلَّ من غمد الخلافة مُرْهَفُ

If the sword of the king was sheathed to protect its scabbard,

Then the polished sword has been drawn from the sheath of the caliphate.

وإن طَوَتِ البُرْدَ اليماني يدُ البلى

فقد نُشِرَ البُردُ الجديدُ المُفَوَّفُ

If the beautiful Yemeni fabric is worn out by time,

The new splendid fabric is unfurled.

وإن نضب الوادي وجف مَعينُهُ

فقد فاض بحر بالجواهر يقذف

If the valley runs dry and its spring dries up,

The sea of pearls overflows ceaselessly.

وإن صوح الروض الذي يثب الغنى

فقد أزهر الرّوض الذي هو يُخلِفُ

If the garden where prosperity promenades has withered,

The garden it replaces has blossomed.

وإن أقلعت سُحْبُ الحيا وتقشَّعت

فقد نشأَتْ منها غمائمُ وُكَّفُ

If the clouds of life disperse and shred,

From it rise other clouds folded up.

وإنْ صدعَ الشملَ الجميعَ يدُ النوى

بيوسُفَ فخرِ المنتدى يتألفُ

If the pact was broken by the separation of all,

Through Joseph the pride of assemblies it reconciles again.

وإن راعَ قلبَ الدين نعيُ إمامه

فقد هُزَّ منه بالبشارة مَعْطَفُ

If the heart of the faith was shaken by news of the death of its imam,

It was heartened by the good tidings of his successor.

وقد ملك الإسلام خير خليفة

من البدر أبهى بل من الشمس أشْرَف

For Islam has taken the best caliph,

More radiant than the full moon, loftier than the sun.

يُعير محياه الصباحُ إذَا بدا

وتُخجِل يُمناهُ الغمام وتَخْلُفُ

The dawn borrows its splendor when he appears,

The clouds are humbled by his right side and withdraw.

فمن نور مرآه الكواكبُ تهتدي

ومن فيض جَدْوَاهُ الحَيَا نتوكَّفُ

It is by the light of his mirror that the stars are guided,

By the stream of his cheeks we quench our thirst.

ولما قضى المولى الإمام محمدٌ

تحكم في الناس الأسى والتأسُّفُ

When the Master, Imam Muhammad, passed away,

Sorrow and regret took hold of the people.

فلا جفنَ إلاّ مرسلٌ سُحْبَ دمعه

ولا قلبَ إلا بالجوى يَتَلَهَّفُ

Not an eye but sheds the tears of its pain,

Not a heart but burns with sorrow.

وقد كادت الدنيا تميد بأهلها

وقد كادت الشُّمُ الشوامخ ترجُفُ

The world itself nearly collapsed with its people,

The lofty minarets nearly shook.

وقد كادت الأفلاك ترفضُّ حسرةً

وكادت بها الأنوار تخفو وتُكْسَفُ

The spheres themselves nearly refused in grief,

The lights nearly faded and dimmed.

ولكن تلافى اللهُ أمرَ عباده

بوارثِهِ واللهُ بالنّاسِ أَزأَفُ

But God made good the affairs of His servants,

With His heirs, and God is Most Compassionate to people.

فللدين والدنيا ابتهاجٌ وغبطة

وللثغر ثغرٌ بالمنى يُتَرَشَّفُ

So for the faith and the world there is joy and fortune,

And for the horizon a grin with glad tidings.

أمانٍ كما تندى الشبيبة نَضْرَةٌ

يمُدُّ له ظلٌّ على الأرض أَوْرَفُ

A safe haven blossomed like the freshness of youth,

With a shade covering the land, widespread.

طلعتَ على الإِسلام في دولة الرضا

فأَمَّنْتَهُ من كل ما يُتَخَوَّفُ

You rose over Islam in the state of al-Ridha,

And secured it from all that causes fear.

بوجه يُرينا البدرَ عند طلوعه

وفي وجنة البدر المنيرِ التكلُّفُ

With a face that shows us the moon at its rising,

And a cheek whose smoothness puts the clouds' folds to shame.

وَعزمٍ كما انشقَّ الصباح مُصَمِّم

ورأي به بيض الصوارم تُرْهَفُ

With resolve piercing the dawn with intent,

And wisdom by which white blades are bared.

وحولك من حفظ الإله كتائبٌ

وفوقَكَ من ظلِّ السعادة رَفْرَفُ

Around you battalions protective,

And over you the shade of good fortune fluttering.

فوالله ما ندري وللعلم عندنا

براهين عن وجه الحقائق تكشفُ

By God we know not, though knowledge we profess,

Proofs unveil from us the facts of certainties.

أوجْهُك أمْ شمس النهار تطلعت

وكَفَّكَ أمْ سُحْبَ الحَيَا نَتَوَكَّفُ

Are your faces the rising sun?

Or your palms the clouds from which we drink our fill?

فكم لك من ذكرٍ جميلٍ ومفخر

عميم على أوج الكواكب يُشْرُفُ

What abundant beautiful glory you have,

Lofty over the summit of the stars.

يُزار به البيتُ العتيقُ وزمزمٌ

ويعرفّه حتى الصّفا والمُعَرَفُ

By which the Ancient House and Zamzam are visited,

Recognized even by Safa and Marwa.

ومن يسألِ الأيامَ تخبرْهُ أنها

بقومك تُزهى في الفخار وتشْرُفُ

If you ask the days they will tell you,

That by your people they are adorned and ennobled.

وهل تهدُم الأيامُ بنيان مفخرٍ

تشيّده آيٌ كِرامٌ ومصحَفُ

Can time destroy a splendid edifice,

Built by verses and an honored scripture?

ولو كانت الأيام قبلُ تَنَكَّرَتْ

فباسمك يا بدرَ الهدى تَتَعَرَّفُ

Even if the days had once denied,

By your name, O guiding moon, they are recognized.

ألاَ إنْ تَرُعْنا الحادثات فإننا

عصابة توحيد به نَتَشَرَّفُ

Behold, if we contemplate occurrences,

We are a band who pride themselves on your creed.

وليس لنا إِلاَّ التوكلّ عادةٌ

وظنٌّ جميل وعدُهُ ليس يُخْلِفُ

For us is only trust in God, a habit,

A good assumption, and His promise does not fail.

فمَنْ مبلغٌ عنّا الغنيَّ بربه

وقد سار للفردوس يُحيا ويُتحفُ

Who can convey on our behalf to the Rich, His Lord,

When he travelled to Paradise, alive and granted?

بآية ما بلغت دين محمد

أمانيَّ للرحمن تُدني وتُزلفُ

With a sign that no wish for Muhammad’s faith,

God's wishes drawing near and intimate, has attained.

وعنك يُروِّي الناسُ كلَّ غريبةٍ

يُروَّى لنا منها الغريبُ المصَنَّفُ

From you people relate every marvel,

Related to us from the bound compilation.

فكسّرتَ تمثالاً وهدْمتَ بِيعَةً

وناقوسُها بالكفر يهوي ويهتفُ

You have smashed an idol and torn down a blasphemous pact,

Its bells collapsing with unbelief clamoring.

وكم من منار بالأذان عمرتَهُ

فصارت به الآذان بعدُ تُشَنَّفُ

You have rebuilt many a minaret with the call to prayer,

After which the call to prayer was refined.

وسرتَ وقد خلْفتّ خيرَ خليفةٍ

لك الفخر منه والثناءُ المخَلّفُ

You have left the best successor,

To you is the pride and legacy of praise.

أيوسُفُ قد أَرْضَيْتَهُ أجمل الرضا

وكان بما ترضى وتختار يكلَفُ

Joseph whom you have pleased with the finest pleasure,

He obliges with what you wish and choose.

وكنتَ له يا قُرَّةَ العين قرةٌ

على برّه المحتوم تحنو وترأفُ

To him you were most beloved,

For his righteous duty you care for and show mercy.

سَتجري على آثاره سابق المدى

فيُهدى له منك الثناءُ المضعَّفُ

He will follow your traces, far striding,

To him from you redoubled praise is guided.

سيلقى عدوُّ الدين منك عزائماً

إليه بجرّار الكتائب تزحفُ

The enemy of the faith will receive from you resolve,

Against him the regiments of troops march on.

ويأسف لما يُبصر البَرَّ يرتمي

بفرسانه والبحرَ بالسفُن يقذفُ

He will grieve when he sees the land throw itself

At his horsemen, and the sea launch its ships.

فما أرؤس الكفّار إلاّ حصائد

بسيفك سيف الله تُجنى وتُقْطَفُ

For the heads of the unbelievers are only harvests

To be reaped by your sword, God’s sword, and plucked.

حسامك رقراق الصفيح كأنه

بكفك من ماء السماء يُنَطّفُ

Your sword, its steel Indian watered, is as though

Plucked by your hand from the sky’s falling water.

ضعيف يَصِحُّ النصر من فتكاته

فيُروى لنا منه الصحيحُ المضعّفُ

The weak gains strength from its lethal blows,

From it the pure redoubled is related to us.

ورمحك مرتاح المعاطف هِزَّةٌ

كَأَنْ قد سقته من دم الكفر قَرْقَفُ

Your spear resting from fray a tremor,

As though it has drunk its fill of the blood of unbelief.

ولا عيبَ فيه غير أن سنانه

إذا شَمَّ ريح النقع في الحرب يرعُفُ

No fault in it but that when it senses

The stench of war its tip bellows.

فإن كعّت الأبطال في حومة الوغى

يشير لنا منه البنان المطَرْفُ

If the champions grow weary in the fray’s confusion,

Its straight blade gestures to us.

لقد فخر الإسلام منك ببَيْعَةٍ

وزال بها عنه الأسى والتخوّفُ

Indeed Islam was ennobled by your pledge,

By it sorrow and fear were removed.

وألبستّهُ بُرداً من الفخر ضافياً

على عطفه وشيُ المديح يُفوَّفُ

You clothed him in a cloak of pride, perfect,

Over his shoulder the garment of praise embroidered.

وقد نظمت فيه السّعود ميامناً

كما يُنظمُ العِقدُ النفيسُ ويُرصَفُ

You composed for it august pillars,

As necklaces of jewels are threaded and aligned.

قدمتّ قرير العين في كلِّ غبطةٍ

بما شئت من آمالِكَ الغُرِّ تُسعِفُ

You presented to him, delight of the eye, in every fortune,

All that you wished of your precious gifts.