1. لَقَد رَحَلَت سُعدى فَهَل لَكَ مُسعِدُ

    وَقَد أَنجَدت عَلواً فَهل لَكَ مُنجِدُ

    Su'da has departed; is there anyone to comfort you?

    She has climbed to the uplands; is there anyone to help you?

  2. لَقَد بِتُّ أَرجو الطَيفَ مِنها يَزورُني

    وَكَيفَ يَزورُ الطَيفُ مَن لَيسَ يَرقُد

    I spent the night hoping her dream-phantom would visit me;

    but how can a dream-phantom visit one who never sleeps?

  3. وَقد كانَ لي من مَدمَع العَينِ مَنبَع

    فَغار بِنار الوَحيد فَهيَ تَوَقَّد

    Once I had a spring flowing from the eye's tear-duct,

    but it sank away beneath the lonely one's fire, which keeps blazing.

  4. رَعيتُ بِطَرفي النجمَ لَمّا رَأَيتُها

    تَباعَدُ بُعدَ النَجم بَل هيَ أَبعَد

    I watched the star with my gaze when I saw her

    draw away to a star's distance—indeed, she is farther.

  5. تُنيرُ الثَريّا وَهيَ قَرطٌ مسلسلٌ

    وَإِن كرَّ فيها الطرفُ درٍّ مُبَدَّد

    The Pleiades shine, a chain-linked earring,

    and if the gaze returns to them, scattered pearls.

  6. وَتَعتَرِض الجَوزاءُ وَهي كَكاعِبٍ

    تَمَيَّلُ مِن سُكرٍ بِها وَتَمَيَّد

    Al-Jawza' crosses the sky like a young maiden,

    swaying and reeling from the drunkenness within her.

  7. وَتَحسَبُها طوراً أَسيرَ جَنايَةٍ

    تَرَنَّحَ عِندَ المثي وَهو مُقَيَّد

    At times you would take her for a prisoner of crime,

    swaying as he walks, though bound in fetters.

  8. وَلاحَ سُهَيلٌ وَهو لِلصُّبحِ راقِبٌ

    فَشوهِد مِنهُ طَرفُ باكٍ مسَهَّد

    Suhayl appeared, watching for dawn,

    and in him was seen the eye of a sleepless weeper.

  9. أَردُدُ عيني في النُجومِ كَأَنَّها

    دَنانيرُ لكِنَّ السَماءَ زبرجَد

    I turn my eye among the stars, as though they were

    dinars, while the sky is chrysolite.

  10. رَأَيتُ بِها وَالصُبحُ ما خانَ وِردُه

    قَناديلَ وَالخَضراءُ صرحٌ مُمَرَّد

    I saw in it, while dawn had not failed its appointed coming,

    lamps, and the green sky was a polished palace.

  11. وَقِيدَ لنا من مَربَطِ الخَيلِ أَشقَرٌ

    إِذا ما جَرى فَالريحُ تَكبو وَتركد

    A chestnut was led to us from the horses' tethering-ground;

    when it runs, the wind stumbles and stands still.

  12. وَصرتُ عَلى بُسطِ الرِياضِ أَنيقَةٍ

    وَأَنهارُها أَعلامُها تَتحرَّدُ

    I came upon the lovely carpets of the meadows,

    and their rivers, their banners, take their own courses.

  13. فَلَمّا رَأَيتُ الماءَ يَجري تَسَلسُلًا

    ظَنَنت سيوفَ الهِند فيهِ تُجَرَّد

    When I saw the water running in a chainlike flow,

    I thought Indian swords were being unsheathed in it.

  14. وَشاهَدتُ أَنواعَ الرِياح تُجتَلى

    فَيُحلى بِها بردٌ قَشيبٌ مُعَمَّد

    I beheld varieties of winds displayed,

    adorning with them a fresh, striped mantle.

  15. فَأَخضرُها يَحكيهُ عَضدٌ موَشَّمٌ

    وَأَحمرُها يَحكيهِ خَدٌّ مورَّد

    Their green is mirrored by a tattooed upper arm,

    and their red by a rosy cheek.

  16. وَقد زَهرت فيهِ الأَقاحي كَأَنَّها

    ثغورُ عَذارى بِالأَراكَ تُعَهَّد

    The daisies bloomed there, as though they were

    maidens' mouths tended with arak twigs.

  17. وَأَطرَبَني صوتُ الحمائِمِ بَينَها

    وَقد طَربت بَينَ الغُصون تَغرِّدُ

    The doves' voices delighted me among them,

    as they rejoiced and warbled among the branches.

  18. هنالِكَ يُنسى الموصليُّ وَزلزلٌ

    وَيَعبدُها من طيبَةِ الشَد وَمعبدُ

    There al-Mawsili and Zalzal are forgotten,

    and Ma'bad worships them for the sweetness of their singing.

  19. هنالك عاطيتُ المَدامَةَ سادَةً

    اولي مكرَماتٍ ساعَدوني فَأُسعِدوا

    There I exchanged wine-cups with noble men,

    possessors of noble deeds, who aided me and were made happy.

  20. كُمَيتاً كَأَنفاس الأَحِبَّةِ عرفُها

    مَتى مُزِجَت قلنا لُجَينٌ وَعَسجَدُ

    A dark-red wine, its fragrance like the breath of loved ones;

    whenever it is mixed, we say: 'Silver and gold.'

  21. إِذا انقَضَّ مِنها في الزُجاجَةِ كَوكَبٌ

    بَدا كَوكَبٌ من بَعده يَتَوَقَّد

    If a star from it falls within the glass,

    a star appears after it, blazing.

  22. يُناولُنيها ساحِرُ الطَرف أَهيَفٌ

    أَنامِلُه من شِدَّة اللينِ تُعقَد

    A slender one with enchanting eyes hands it to me,

    his fingers so soft they can be knotted.

  23. إِذا حَملت يُمناه ابريقَ فِضَّةٍ

    بَدا أَجيد يحذوه لِلشُّربِ أَجيد

    When his right hand carries a silver ewer,

    one long-necked figure appears, matched for drinking by another.

  24. وَإِن سجد الاِبريق لِلكَأس عُنوَةً

    فَنَحنُ لَهُ من شِدَّةِ الحُب نَسجُدُ

    And if the ewer bows by force before the cup,

    we prostrate ourselves to it from the intensity of love.

  25. وَقد أَغتَدي لِلصَّيدِ غَدوَةَ أَصيَد

    أُعاجِلُ فيها الوَحش وَالوَحشُ هُجَّدُ

    I may go out early to hunt, at a hunter's dawn,

    hurrying upon the wild beasts while they sleep.

  26. فَعارَضَ عَيرٌ قُلتُ للمَرح هاكَهُ

    فَعاجَلَهُ قَصداً لَهُ العَيرُ مُقصَدُ

    Then a wild ass crossed my path; I told the spirited one, 'Take him!'

    He rushed straight at him, and the wild ass was felled.

  27. وَعَنَّت ظِباءٌ حينَ تَحتيَ مُطلَقُ ال

    يَدَينِ بِهِ أَيدي الوُحوشُ تَقيد

    Gazelles appeared, while beneath me was one with unfettered

    forelegs, through whom the beasts' forelegs are bound.

  28. فَأَورَكتُها وَالسَيفُ لَمعَة بارِقٍ

    وَلم يُغنِها احضارُها وَهيَ تَهجدُ

    I struck their haunches, my sword a flash of lightning,

    and their galloping did not avail them as they slumbered.

  29. فَجَدَّلتُها حَتّى حَسِبتُ لِسُرعَتي

    حُسِمتُ وَكَفّي البَرق ساعَةَ أَعقد

    I hurled them down, until, for my speed, I thought

    I was cut off, with lightning in my palm as I tied a knot.

  30. لَقَد رعتُها أَزمانُ شَعريَ راتِعٌ

    وَطرفُ مشيبي عَن عَذاريَ أَرمَدُ

    I frightened them in days when my hair flourished,

    and grayness's eye was too bleary to notice my cheek-down.

  31. وَما بِلَغت حدَّ الثَلاثينَ مُدَّتي

    وَهذا طَراز الشَيب فيه يُمَدَّدُ

    My years have not reached the threshold of thirty,

    yet this embroidery of gray is spreading through it.

  32. سَأوضح نَهجَ الحَق إِن كانَ سامِعٌ

    وَأُرشِدُ مَن يُصغي إِلَيَّ وَيُرشَد

    I shall make plain the path of truth, if there is a listener,

    and guide whoever listens to me and accepts guidance.

  33. وَمَن كان يَخفيهِ فانِّيَ مُظهِرٌ

    وَمَن لَم يجرِّده فَإِنّي مُجَرِّدُ

    If anyone conceals it, I shall reveal it;

    and if anyone has not laid it bare, I shall lay it bare.

  34. وَمَن كان بِالتَشبيهِ وَالجَبرِ دائِناً

    فَإِنِّيَ في التَوحيدِ وَالعَدل أَوحَدُ

    Whoever professes anthropomorphism and compulsion,

    I am unrivaled in divine unity and justice.

  35. أُنَزِّه ربَّ الخَلقِ عن حَدِّ خلقِهِ

    وَقد زاغَ راوٍ في الصِفاتِ وَمُسنَدُ

    I exalt the Lord of creation above the limits of His creatures,

    though a transmitter and a transmitted report have strayed concerning His attributes.

  36. فَهذا يَقولُ اللَهُ يَهوى وَيَصعَدُ

    وَهذا لَدَيهِ اللَهُ مُذ كانَ أَمرَدُ

    One says, 'God descends and ascends,'

    and another holds that God has always been beardless.

  37. تَبارَكَ ربُّ المُرد وَالشِيب انَّهُم

    لَأكفَرُ من فِرعَون فيهِ وَأَعنَد

    Blessed is the Lord of the beardless and the gray-haired! They are

    more unbelieving toward Him than Pharaoh, and more obstinate.

  38. وَآخَرُ قالَ العَرشُ يَفضل قَدرَهُ

    وَأَوهَم ان اللَهَ جِسمٌ مُجَسَّدُ

    Another said, 'The Throne exceeds His size,'

    suggesting that God is an embodied body.

  39. وَآخرُ قالَ اللَهُ جسمٌ مجسَّمٌ

    وَلم يَدرِ أَنَّ الجِسمِ شَيءُ مُحَدَّد

    Another said, 'God is a corporeal body,'

    not knowing that a body is a bounded thing,

  40. وَأَنَّ الَّذي قَد حُدَّ لا بُدَّ مُحدِث

    إِذا مَيَّزَ الأَمرَ اللَبيبُ المؤيَّدُ

    and that whatever is bounded must have an originator,

    when the discerning, rightly aided man considers the matter.

  41. لَقَد زَعَموا ما لَيسَ يَعدوهُ مُشرِك

    وَقد أَثبَتوا ما لَيسَ يَخطوهُ ملحِدُ

    They have claimed what no polytheist goes beyond,

    and affirmed what no heretic surpasses.

  42. وَقُلنا بِأَن اللَهَ لا شَيء مِثلُهُ

    هُوَ الواحِدُ الفَردُ العليُّ المُمَجَّدُ

    We said that nothing is like God:

    He is the One, the Unique, the Exalted, the Glorified.

  43. هو العالِمُ الذاتِ الَّذي لَيسَ مُحوَجاً

    إِلى العِلم وَالأَعلامُ تَبدو وَتَشهدُ

    He knows by His essence and has no need

    of knowledge; the signs appear and bear witness.

  44. وَلَيسَ قَديماً سابِقاً غَيرُ ذاتِهِ

    وَان كانَ أَبناءُ الضَلال تَبَلَّدوا

    Nothing but His essence is eternal and preexistent,

    even if the children of error have grown dull.

  45. أَتانا بِذِكرٍ مُحكَمٍ من كَلامِهِ

    هو الحَجَّةُ العليا لِمَن يَتَسَدَّدُ

    He brought us a firmly established Reminder from His speech,

    the supreme proof for whoever seeks the right course.

  46. وَان قالَ أَقوامٌ قَديم لأَنَّهُ

    كَلام لَهُ فَاِنظُر إِلى أَينَ صَعَّدوا

    And if some people say, 'It is eternal because it is

    His speech,' see how high they have climbed!

  47. كَذاكَ النَصارى في المَسيحِ مَقالُها

    وَقد شَرَّدوا عَن دينِنا فَتَشَرَّدوا

    Such is the Christians' assertion about the Messiah;

    they scattered from our religion and wandered away.

  48. فَتَبّاً لَهُم إِذا عانَدوا فَتَنَصَّروا

    وَوَيلًا لَهُم إِذ كايَدوا فَتَهَوَّدوا

    Perdition to them when they resist and turn Christian!

    Woe to them when they scheme and turn Jewish!

  49. وَإِن سقتُ ما قالوهُ في الجبر ضلَّةً

    خَشيتُ جِبالَ الأَرضِ مِنهُ تهدَّدُ

    If I recounted what they said, in error, about compulsion,

    I would fear the earth's mountains would crumble from it.

  50. يَقولونَ أَنَّ اللَهَ يَخلِقُ سَبَّهُ

    لِيُشتَمً كَلّا فَهو أَعلى وَأَمجَد

    They say that God creates abuse of Himself,

    so that He may be reviled. No! He is higher and more glorious.

  51. وَقالوا أَرادَ الكفرَ وَالظَلمَ وَالزِنا

    وَقَتلَ النَبِيِّينَ الَّذينَ تَعَبَّدوا

    They said He willed unbelief, injustice, and fornication,

    and the killing of the prophets who worshipped Him.

  52. فَكَلَّفَ مَن لَم يَستَطع فِعلَ مُحنَقٍ

    عَلى عَبدِهِ حاشاهُ مِمّا تَزَيَّدوا

    So He burdened those unable, in the manner of one enraged

    at his servant—far be He from their exaggerations!

  53. وَعاقَبه عَن تَركِهِ الفِعلَ لَم يُطَق

    عِقاباً لَهُ من بِالجَحيمُ مُخَلَّدُ

    And He punished him for leaving undone an act beyond his power,

    with the punishment of one confined in Hell forever.

  54. يَقولونَ عَدلٌ أَن يكلِّفَ مُقعَداً

    قِياماً وَعَدواً مُسرِعاً وَهوَ مُقعَد

    They call it justice to command a cripple

    to stand and run swiftly, though he is crippled.

  55. وَقُلنا بِأَنَّ اللَهَ عَدلٌ وَأَنَّهُ

    يُكَلِّفُ دونَ الطَوق ما هو أَحمدُ

    We said that God is just, and that He

    enjoins what is more praiseworthy, below the limit of capacity.

  56. وَأَنَّ ذُنوبَ الناسِ أَجمَع كَسبُهُم

    بِاِحداثِها من دونِهِ قَد تَفَرَّدوا

    And all people's sins are their own earning;

    they alone create them, apart from Him.

  57. وَلَيسَ يُريدُ اللَهُ إِلّا صَلاحَهُم

    وَإِن أَفسَدوا في دينِهِم وَتَمَرَّدوا

    God wills nothing but their well-being,

    even if they corrupt their religion and rebel.

  58. وَيُرجىءُ ذا الارِجاءُ وَالقَولُ وارِد

    بِاِنجازِه كلَّ الَّذي قَد تُوُعِّدوا

    The advocate of postponement delays, though the pronouncement declares

    His fulfillment of all that they have been threatened with.

  59. وَأخلَصُ مَدحي لِلنَبِيِّ محمَّدٍ

    وَذريَّةٍ مِنها النَبِيُّ مُحَمَّدُ

    I dedicate my praise to the Prophet Muhammad,

    and to a lineage that includes the Prophet Muhammad.

  60. نَبِيٌّ أَقامَ الدينَ وَالدينُ مائِل

    وَأَوهى قَناةَ الكُفرَ وَهي تشدَّدُ

    A prophet who set religion upright when it was leaning,

    and weakened unbelief's spear-shaft as it stiffened.

  61. فَلَولاهُ لم يُكشَف سجافُ ضَلالَةٍ

    وَلَولاهُ لم يُعرَف من الحَقِّ مَقصَدُ

    But for him, the curtain of error would not have been lifted,

    and but for him, no goal of truth would have been known.

  62. دَعا وَهدى مُستَنقِذاً مِن يَد الرَدى

    وَصَلّى عَلَيهِ اللَهُ ما دامَ فَرقَدُ

    He called and guided, rescuing from destruction's hand;

    may God bless him as long as Farqad endures.

  63. وَأَوصى إِلى خَيرِ الرِجال اِبن عَمِّه

    وَان ناصَبَ الأَعداءُ فيهِ فَما هُدوا

    He entrusted his charge to the best of men, his cousin,

    though enemies opposed him over this and were not guided.

  64. تَجَمَّع فيهِ ما تَفَرَّقَ في الرَدى

    مِنَ الخَيرِ فَاِحصوهُ فَإِنّي أُعَدِّدُ

    In him gathered what lay scattered amid destruction,

    of goodness—count it, for I shall enumerate.

  65. فَسابِقهُ الاِسلام قَد سُلِّمَت لَهُ

    سِوى أُمَّةٍ من بُغضِهِ تَتقدَّدُ

    His precedence in Islam has been conceded to him,

    except by a faction torn apart by hatred of him.

  66. وَقَد جاهَدَ الأَعداءَ ابدءاً وَعودةً

    وَكان سِواهُ في القِتالِ يُمَرِّدُ

    He fought the enemies, at first and once again,

    while others balked at battle.

  67. هو البَدرُ في هَيجاءَ بَدرٍ وَغيرُهُ

    فَرائِضُهُ من ذُكرة السَيف ترعُدُ

    He is the full moon in Badr's battle-fury, while another's

    flanks tremble at the mention of the sword.

  68. وَكم خَبَرٍ في خَيبَرٍ قَد رويتُمُ

    وَلكنَّكم مثل النعام تشرَّد

    How many reports about Khaybar you have related!

    Yet you scatter like ostriches.

  69. وَفي أُحُدٍ َلّى رِجالٌ وَسيفُهُ

    يُسَوِّد وَجهَ الكُفرِ وهو يُسَوَّدُ

    At Uhud men fled, while his sword

    blackened unbelief's face, as he was raised to mastery.

  70. وَيَوم حنينٍ حنَّ لِلفَرِّ بَعضُكُم

    وَصارِمُهُ عَضبُ الغُرار مُهَنَّد

    On the day of Hunayn, some of you longed to flee,

    while his keen sword was Indian steel with sharp edges.

  71. عليّ عَلِيّ في المَواقِف كُلِّها

    وَلكِنَّكُم قَد خانَكم فيه مَولد

    Ali is exalted in every encounter,

    yet your birth has betrayed you regarding him.

  72. عَلي أَخو خَير النَبِيّينَ فَاِخرسَوا

    أَو اِستَبصروا فَالرُشدُ أَدنى وَأَقصَدُ

    Ali is brother to the best of prophets: be silent,

    or gain insight, for right guidance is nearer and straighter.

  73. عليٌّ له في الطَيرِ ما طارَ ذِكرُهُ

    وَقامَت بهِ أَعداؤُهُ وَهيَ تَشهَدُ

    Ali has, concerning the bird, what has flown abroad in fame,

    and his enemies upheld it, bearing witness.

  74. عَلي لَهُ في هَل أَتى ما تَلوتُمُ

    عَلى الرُغمِ مِن آنافَكم فَتفرَّدوا

    Ali has, in 'Has There Come,' what you have recited,

    in spite of your noses—go your separate ways!

  75. وَباتَ عَلى فَرشِ النَبِيِّ تَسَمُّحاً

    بِمُهجَتِهِ إِذ أَجلَبوا وَتَوَعَّدوا

    He spent the night on the Prophet's bed, freely offering

    his life's blood, when they rallied and threatened.

  76. وَما عَرف الأَصنامَ وَالقَومُ سُجَّدٌ

    لَها وَهو في اثر النَبِيِّ يُوَحِّدُ

    He never acknowledged idols, while the people prostrated themselves

    to them, and he followed the Prophet affirming God's unity.

  77. وَصَيَّره هارونَه بَينَ أَهلِهِ

    كَهارون موسى فَاِبحَثوا وَتَأَيَّدوا

    He made him his Aaron among his people,

    like Moses' Aaron; investigate and find confirmation.

  78. تَوَلّى امورَ الناسِ لم يَستَقِلهُمُ

    إِلّا رُبَّما يَرتابُ مَن يَتَقَلَّدُ

    He governed people's affairs without asking them to release him,

    though an officeholder may sometimes doubt.

  79. وَلم يَكُ مُحتاجاً إِلى عِلم غَيرِهِ

    إِذا اِحتاجَ قَومٌ في القَضايا فَبُلِّدوا

    He had no need for another's knowledge,

    when others needed help in judgments and were left bewildered.

  80. وَلا اِرتَجَعت مِنهُ وَقَد سارَ سورَةٌ

    وَغُضّوا لَها أَبصارَكُم وَتَبَدَّدوا

    No surah was recalled from him once he had set out;

    lower your eyes before it, and scatter.

  81. وَلا سُدَّ عَن خَيرِ المَساجِدِ بابُهُ

    وَأَبوابُهُم إِذ ذاكَ عَنه تُسَدَّد

    His door into the finest of mosques was not barred,

    while their doors into it were then being closed.

  82. وَزَوجَتُه الزَهراء خَيرُ كَريمَةٍ

    لِخَير كَريمٍ فَضلُها لَيسَ يُجحَدُ

    His wife, al-Zahra', is the finest noble daughter

    of the finest noble man; her excellence cannot be denied.

  83. وَبِالحَسنَين المَجدُ مَدَّ رَواقَهُ

    وَلَولاهُما لَم يَبقَ لِلمَجدِ مَشهَدُ

    Through Hasan and Husayn, glory spread its pavilion;

    but for them, no place would remain for glory to appear.

  84. تَفَرَّعت الأَنوارُ للأَرضِ مِنهُما

    فَلِلَّهِ أَنوارٌ بَدت تَتَجَدَّدُ

    Lights branched out from them across the earth;

    God's are the lights that appeared, ever renewed.

  85. هُم الحُجَجُ الغُرُّ الَّتي قَد تَوَضَّحَت

    وَهم سُرُجَ اللَه الَّتي لَيسَ تَخمَدُ

    They are the radiant proofs that have become clear,

    and God's lamps that never go out.

  86. أُواليكُمُ يا أَهلَ بَيتِ محمدٍ

    وَكُلُّكُمُ لِلّدينِ وَالعِلم فَرقَد

    I give you my allegiance, O household of Muhammad,

    and each of you is a Farqad for religion and knowledge.

  87. وَأَتركُ مَن ناواكُمُ وهو أَكمةٌ

    يُبادي عَلَيهِ مولِد لَيس يُحمَدُ

    I forsake whoever opposes you, blind from birth,

    his unworthy birth showing openly upon him.

  88. إِذا سمع السِحرَ الَّذي قَد عَقدتُهُ

    يَكادُ لَهُ من شِدَّة الحُزنِ يَفأد

    When he hears the enchantment I have woven,

    he is almost stricken in the heart by the intensity of grief.

  89. اِلَيكُم ذَوي طه وَيسَ مدحةً

    تَغورُ إِلى أَقصى البِلادِ وَتُنجِد

    To you, people of Ta-Ha and Ya-Sin, a song of praise

    that descends to the farthest lands and climbs into the uplands.

  90. تَوَخّى اِبنُ عَبادٍ بِها آلَ أَحمدٍ

    لِيَشفَع في يَوم القِيامَةِ أَحمَد

    With it, Ibn Abbad sought the family of Ahmad,

    so that Ahmad might intercede on the Day of Resurrection.

  91. فَدونكَ يا مَكِّيُ أَنشِد مُجوِّداً

    فَلَيسَ يَحوزُ السَبقَ إِلأّا المَجَوِّدُ

    Take it, O Makki, and recite it skillfully;

    only one who excels wins first place.