صَدَقَ النَّعِيُّ وَرَدَّدَ الهَرَمَانِ

اللهُ أَكْبرُ كُلُّ حَيٍّ فَانِ

The prophet spoke truly, and the echoes reverberated,

God is Most Great, every living being shall perish,

مَا يَعْظِمِ الإِنْسَانُ لا تَعْصِمْهُ مِنْ

هَذَا المَصِيرِ عَظَائِمُ الإِنْسَانِ

What man holds great cannot protect him from,

This fate, the grandeur of man,

أَمُشَيِّدَ الدُّسْتُورِ حَسْبُ المَجْدِ مَا

أَدْرَكْتَ مِنْ جَاهٍ وَرِفْعَةٍ شَانِ

O drafter of the constitution, you have attained glory sufficient,

Of prestige and high station,

وَلأَنْتَ أَبْقَى مَنْ أَلَمَّ بِهِ الرَّدَى

إِنْ صَحَّ أَنَّ الذِّكْرَ عُمْرٌ ثَانِ

Yet you are more enduring than him wasted by vicissitudes,

If it be true that mention is a second life,

لَكِنَّ مِصْرَ وَقَدْ بَعُدَتْ مَرُوعَةٌ

تَزْدَادُ أَشْجَاناً عَلَى أَشْجَانِ

But Egypt though remote is even more grief-stricken,

Her sorrows redoubling upon sorrows,

مَنْ مُبْلغُ النَّائِي أَلُوكَ حَزِينَةٍ

لِنَوَاهُ وَالأَخَوَانِ يَنْتَحِرَانِ

Who will inform the distant Alwiya in her sadness,

And the brethren who took their lives?

أَلغِيلُ تَطْرُقُهُ الذِّئَابُ عَشِيَّةً

وَبِلُهْنَةٍ يَتَشَاغَلُ اللَّيْثَانِ

Al-Ghil wanders while jackals lurk at dusk,

And in Al-Lahuna the lions are preoccupied,

أَتُلِمُّ رُوحُكَ بِالحِمَى إِلمَامَةً

فَيَرَى الهُدَى فِي نُورِهَا الخَصْمَانِ

Does your spirit burn with zeal like a flame,

Whereby foes behold guidance in its light?

سِنَةٌ عَلَى عَيْنَيْكَ رَانَتْ دُونَهُ

وَإِلَيْهِ لَفْتَةُ قَلْبِكَ اليَقْظَانِ

A year above your eyes he took precedence,

And to him your heart’s stolen glances,

فَقَدَتْ بِثَرْوَتَ مِصْرُ ثَرْوَةَ حِكْمَةٍ

كَانَتْ ذَخِيرَةَ قُوَّةٍ وَصِيَانِ

Thus Egypt lost in you a treasure of wisdom,

A reserve of strength and protection,

مَأْمُولَةً فِي كَشْفِ كُلِّ مُلِمَّةٍ

أَلْقَتْ عَلَى صَدْرِ الحِمَى بِجِرَانِ

Hopefully unveiling every dilemma,

Cast upon the breast of zeal its bridle,

رَجُلٌ إِذَا وَازَنْتَ فِي مِيزَانه

مَنْ لا يُرَاجَحُ عَادَ بِالرَّجْحَانِ

A man whom if weighed in his balance,

None can equal, he exceeds all,

طَلْقٌ مُحَيَّاهُ سَرِيٌّ طَبْعُهُ

عَذْبُ الشَّمَائِلِ نَاصِعُ التِّبْيَانِ

Frank, his manner secretive, gentle natured,

Sweetly dispositioned, lucidly eloquent,

سَمْحُ السَّرِيرَةِ هَمُّهُ ألا يَرَى

مِنْ ثُلْمَةٍ فِي وَحْدَةِ الأَوْطَانِ

Tolerant, his care that no blemish be seen,

In the oneness of nations,

كِلَفٌ بِنَفْعِ بِلاده مُتَغَمِّدٌ

ذَنْبَ المُسِيءِ إِلَيْهِ بِالغُفْرَانِ

Concerned with benefiting his country, cloaking,

The faults of those who wronged him, in forgiveness,

لَوْلا هَوَاهُ لِقَوْمه لَمْ تَتَّقِدْ

فِيهِ لَظَى حِقْدٍ وَلا شَنَآنِ

Had he not loved his people, no fire of rancor,

Would have burned in him, nor any enmity,

تَبْلُوهُ عَنْ كَثَبٍ فَتُلْفِي النُّبْلَ فِي

إِسْرَارِه وَالنُّبْلُ فِي الإِعْلانِ

Test him closely and you find nobility in,

His intimacy, and nobility in the open,

وَتَرَى زَعِيماً تَتَّقِيهِ مَهَابَةً

وَتَرَى أَخاً مِنْ أَوْدَعِ الإِخْوَانِ

You see a leader to be feared in awe,

And a brother amongst the closest of siblings,

ثِقَةُ الثِّقَاتِ وَغَوْثُ كُلِّ مُهَذَّبٍ

أَوْدَى بِهِ رَيْبٌ مِنَ الحِدْثَانِ

Confidant of the trusted, refuge of all the refined,

To whom suspicion cleaves, from the trustworthy,

مَنْ بَعْدَهُ يُشْكِي إِذَا العَافِي شَكَا

بُرَحَاءهُ وَيَفَكُّ قَيْدَ العَانِي

After him whoever complains when well, he would relieve,

And loosen the bond of the troubled,

إِنْ أَكْبَرَتْ فِيهِ المُرُوءةُ خَطْبُهَا

فَالرُّزْءُ العَيْنِ فِي إِنْسَانِ

If manliness has raised its matters,

Then tearful eyes are the adornment of man,

كَانَتْ بِحَاجَاتِ الكِرَامِ بَصِيرَةً

وَاليَوْمَ تُخْطِيءُ مَوْقِعَ الإِحْسَانِ

She was aware of the needs of the generous,

Today she misses the place of kindness,

وَلِيَ الإِدَارَةَ وَالقَضَاءَ فَلَمْ يَكُنْ

بِمُفَرِّطٍ أَوْ مُفْرِطٍ فِي شَانِ

He assumed judiciary and administration so there was no,

Excess or negligence in his affair,

لَمْ يُرْضهِ التَّقْوِيضُ مُدَّةَ حُكْمِهِ

فَبَنَى وَخَيْرُ القَائِمِينَ أَلبَانِي

Destabilization did not please him during his rule,

So he built, and best are those who construct,

رَاضَ الصِّعَابَ العَاتِيَاتِ مُذَلِّلاً

عَقَبَاتِهَا بِالدَّأْبِ وَالإِحْسَانِ

He overcame the high obstacles, humbling them,

With perseverance and benevolence,

أَعَرَفْتَ إِذْ دَعَتِ البِلادُ إِلَى الفِدَى

إِقْدَامَ ذَاكَ المُسْعِدِ المِعْوَانِ

Do you remember when the country summoned all to sacrifice,

The resolve of that fortunate, supported one?

أَيَّامَ يَبْذُلُ فِي الطَّلِيعَة نَفْسَهُ

لِنَجَاتِهَا مِنْ ذِلَّةٍ وَهَوَانِ

Days he would risk himself in the vanguard,

For its deliverance from humiliation and abasement,

فِي الوَقْفَةِ الكُبْرَى لَهُ الأَثَرُ الَّذِي

يَبْقَى عَلَى مُتَعَاقِبِ الأَزْمَانِ

In the supreme stand his is the impact that,

Endures over succession of eras,

أَلسَّيْفُ يَلْمَعُ بِالوَعِيدِ حِيَالَهُ

فِي كُلِّ أُفْقٍ أَنْكَرَ اللَّمَعَانِ

The sword gleams threateningly toward him,

In every defiant horizon refusing to gleam,

مُتَبَسِّماً وَمِنَ النَّذِيرِ تَبَسُّمٌ

يَبْدُو قُبَيْلَ تَوَقُّدِ النِّيرَانِ

Smiling while the harbinger’s smile,

Emerges ere the kindling of fires,

لَكِنَّ مَنْ يَرْعَى الحَقِيقَةَ رَعْيَهُ

يَأْبَى بَقَاءٌ فِي مَقَامِ تَفَانِ

But he who tends truth in its pasture,

Refuses remaining in selflessness,

أَمَلٌ تَعَرَّضَتِ المَنَايَا دُونَهُ

فَمَضَى وَمَا يَثْنِيهِ عَنْهُ ثَانِ

A hope bodies stood before it,

And he passed on, nothing dissuades him,

لَوْ أَنَّ مَوْتاً جَازَ قَبْلَ أَوَانِه

أَيَكُونُ غَيْرَ المَوْتِ بَعْدَ أَوَانِ

As if a death before one’s time,

Could be other than death after one’s time,

أَلحِلْمُ مَا تَجْلُو صَبَاحَةٌ وَجْههِ

وَالعَزْمُ مَا تَذْكُو بِهِ العَيْنَانِ

Clemency what serenity of face it reveals,

And resolve what the eyes kindle,

وَوَرَاءَ مَا تُبْدِي الجِبَاهُ سَرَائِرٌ

وَوَرَاءَ مَا تُخْفِي القُلُوبُ مَعَانِ

Beyond what brows display are secrets,

And beyond what hearts conceal are meanings,

أَأَتَتْكَ أَنْبَاءُ المُنَابَذَةِ الَّتِي

رِيعَ الثِّقَاتُ لَهَا مِنِ اطْمِئْنَانِ

Did news reach you of the estrangement,

To which the trusted were exposed in their tranquility?

مَا زَالَ بِالَّلأُوَاءِ حَتَّى ذَادَهَا

وَقَضَى عَلَى التَّشْتِيتِ وَالخِذْلانِ

He remained with the loyal until he repelled it,

And ended disunity and abandonment,

وَوَفَى لِمِصْرَ بِرَدِّةِ مِنْ حَقِّهَا

مَا كَادَ يَسْتَعْصِي عَلَى الإِمْكَانِ

And fulfilled Egypt’s entitlement of her right,

What almost evaded possibility,

لَمْ يَنْسَ قَطُّ الشَّعْبِ فِي سُلْطَانِهَا

فَأَقَرَّهُ مُسْتَكْمِلَ السُّلْطَانِ

He never forgot the people in her rule,

So he settled them, completing authority,

وَأَضَافَ بِالدُّسْتُورِ أَرْوَعَ دُرَّةٍ

يُزْهَى بِهَا إِكْلِيلُهَا النُّورَانِي

And added with the constitution the most splendid pearl,

With which her diadem shone luminously,

أَشَهَدْتَهُ أَيَّامَ أُغْمِدَتِ الظُّبَى

وَتَلاقَتِ الآرَاءُ فِي المَيْدَانِ

You witnessed the days when swords were sheathed,

And views converged in the arena,

فَرَأَيْتَ فِي تَغْرِيبِهِ عَنْ قَوْمِهِ

آيَاتِ ذَاكَ الحُبَّ وَالإِيمَانِ

So in his isolation from his people you saw,

Signs of that love and faith,

يَجْلُو أَدِلَّتَهُمْ بِأَيِّ يَرَاعَةٍ

وَيقِيمُ حُجَّتَهُمْ بِأَيِّ لِسَانِ

Making clear their arguments with whatever caution,

And establishing their case in whichever tongue,

فِي الحِلِّ وَالتَّرْحَالِ يَنْضَحُ عَنْهُمُ

بِوُضُوحِ بُرْهَانٍ وَسِحْرِ بَيَانِ

In permitted and travel from him emanates,

With the lucidity of proof and magic of rhetoric,

فَيُحَاوِرُ القَهَّارُ غَيْرَ مُمَاذِقٍ

وَيُدَاوِرُ الجَبَّارَ غَيْرَ جَبَانِ

He dialogues with the Supreme without tasting,

And parleys with the Compeller without cowardice,

مُتَحَوِّلٌ لَكِنَّهُ مُتَمَكِّنٌ

مِنْ نَفْس فِي مِحْوَرِ الدَّوَرَانِ

Transforming yet firmly anchored,

A being at the axis of orbit,

وَانْ إِذَا نُهزُ النَّجَاحِ تَبَاطَأَتْ

فَإِذَا تَحَيَّنَهَا فَلَيْسَ بِوَانِ

If the attainment of success slows down,

Then seizes it without hesitation,

وَمِنَ التَّقَدُّمِ فِي المَجَالِ تَأَخُّرٌ

وَمِنَ البِدَارِ تَلَكُّؤٌ وَتَوَانِ

And from advancement in the arena is some delay,

And from initiation some reluctance and dawdling,

وَيُكَاتِمُ النَّاسَ الَّذِي فِي صَدْرِه

وَمِنَ القُوَى مَا نِيطَ بِالكِتْمَانِ

He hides from people what is in his heart,

For from faculties is what depends on concealment,

فِي مَعْشَرٍ مُتَفَرِّقٍ أَهْوَاؤُهُمْ

كَتَفَرُّقِ الأَذْوَاقِ وَالأَلْوَانِ

Amongst a dispersed multitude their whims,

Are as divergent as tastes and colors,

أَشَهِيدَ أَنْبَلِ مَا يُكَابِدُ مُغْرَمٌ

بِبِلادِهِ مِنْ حُبِّهَا وَيُعَانِي

I attest to the most noble of what one enamored,

Of his country endures for love of it and suffers,

تَبْكِيكَ مِصْرُ اليَوْمَ مِثْلَ بُكَائِهَا

يَوْمَ الرَّحِيلِ وَقَدْ مَضَى حَوْلانِ

Egypt cries over you today like her weeping,

The day you departed, a year having passed,

فَقَدَتْ بِفَقْدِكَ أَيَّ سَيْفٍ صَارِمٍ

عَزَّتْ بِهِ وَدَرِئيَةٍ فِي آنِ

So in losing you she lost what determined sword,

She prided herself on, and protection at a time,

عُنْوَنَ نَهْضَتِهَا وَخَيْرُ مُحَصَّلٍ

مِنْ مَجْدِهَا فِي ذَلِكَ العُنْوَانِ

The epitome of her renaissance and the best harvest,

Of her glory in that epitome,

هَيْهَاتَ يَسْلُبُهَا زَمَانٌ مَنْ لَهُ

فِيهَا مَآثِرُ مِلْءُ كُلِّ زَمَانِ

Alas, no time can rob her what for him,

Therein are exploits filling each time,

أَمَّا وَدِيعَتُكَ الَّتِي خَلَّفْتَهَا

فَالحَقُّ يَكْلَؤُهَا فَنَمْ بِأَمَانِ

As for your legacy you left behind,

Right will protect it, so sleep in security,

وَعَلَى اصْطِفَاقِ المَوْجِ فِيمَا حَوْلَهَا

هِيَ مَعْقِلٌ مُتَمَكِّنُ الأَرْكَانِ

And despite the storming sea around it,

It is an impenetrable stronghold,

يَرْتَدُّ رَيْبُ الدَّهْرِ عَنْهَا حَاسِراً

وَتُصَانُ بِالأَرْوَاحِ وَالأَبْدَانِ

Suspicion of fate recoils from it defeated,

As it is safeguarded by souls and bodies,

أَقْرَانُكَ الأَمْجَادُ فِي الشَّيبِ الأُولَى

يَرْعَوْنَهَا وَبَنُوكَ فِي الفِتْيَانِ

Your glorious peers in their prime,

Are pasturing it, and your sons in their youth,