1. أَبَدرٌ بَدا أَم وَجهُ مَن كُنتُ أَهواهُ

    بَدا فأضاءَ اللَّيلَ يا سِحرَ مَرآهُ

    Has a full moon appeared, or the face of the one I loved?

    He appeared and lit up the night—how enchanting his appearance!

  2. وَذا البَدرُ أَم هذا ضِياءُ جَبينِهِ

    وذَا البَرقُ أَم هذا بَرِيقُ ثَناياهُ

    And is this the full moon, or the radiance of his brow?

    And is this lightning, or the gleam of his front teeth?

  3. وَذا اللَّيلُ مُسوَدٌّ أَمِ الشَّعرُ ضافِيٌ

    عَلَى جِسمِهِ الفِضِّيِّ يا طِيبَ مَنشاهُ

    And is this the night turned black, or hair cascading

    Over his silvery body—how sweet his origin!

  4. عَلَى مِثلِهِ جِسمِي يَذُوبُ صَبابَةً

    وأَمَّا فُؤادِي وَالحَشا فهوَ مَرعاهُ

    For one like him, my body melts with yearning;

    As for my heart and innermost being, they are his pasture.

  5. إِذَا ما جَفَا فالقَلبُ مِنِّيَ طائِرٌ

    وَإِن زارَنِي زالَ السِّقامُ بِرُؤيَاهُ

    Whenever he is aloof, my heart flies from me;

    And if he visits me, sickness departs at the sight of him.

  6. لهُ حاجِبٌ كالقَوسِ وَالأَنفُ مُرهَفٌ

    وَثَغرٌ حَكَى الصَّهباءَ ما زِلتُ أَرعاهُ

    His eyebrow is like a bow, and his nose finely tapered,

    And a mouth resembling tawny wine, which I never cease to watch.

  7. وَجِيدٌ وَصَدرٌ كالحَرِيرِ مُفَضَّضٌ

    بِهِم قد سَبا ذُو العِشقِ مَن كانَ يَهواهُ

    And a neck and chest, silvery as silk,

    With these, the passionate one has captivated whoever loved him.

  8. وَجِسمٌ كما الدِّيباجُ وَالساقُ مُدمَجٌ

    وَوَجنَتُهُ كالوَردِ إِذ طابَ مَجناهُ

    And a body like brocade, and a smoothly rounded calf;

    And his cheek is like a rose when it is sweet to gather.

  9. وما الدُّرُّ إِلا مِن تَلَفُّظِ ثَغرِهِ

    وَلَيسَ دَمُ الغِزلانِ إِلا شَفَاياهُ

    And pearls are nothing but what his mouth utters;

    And gazelles’ blood is nothing but his lips.

  10. فيا حُسنَهُ مِن شادِنٍ لم أَزَل بِهِ

    أَسِيرَ هُمُومٍ والِهَ القَلبِ مضنَاهُ

    How lovely he is, a young gazelle! Because of him I remain

    A captive of cares, distraught at heart, worn out by him.

  11. أُسائِلُهُ أَن يَمنَحَ الوصلَ عاجِلاً

    وَيُبرِدَ ناراً في الحشاءِ بِلُقياهُ

    I ask him to grant union without delay,

    And cool the fire in my breast by meeting him.

  12. وَإِن رُمتُ مِنهُ القُربَ قالَ أَلا تَخَف

    رقيباً وواشٍ نَتَّقِيهِ وَنَخشاهُ

    And if I seek closeness to him, he says, “Do you not fear

    A watcher and a tale-bearer whom we avoid and dread?”

  13. فقُلتُ لحا اللَّه الوُشاةَ وَراعَهُم

    بِبَينٍ مُشِتٍّ لا تُنيخُ مَطاياهُ

    So I said, “May God curse the tale-bearers and terrify them

    With a scattering separation whose mounts never kneel to rest.”

  14. وَإِنِّيَ أَرجُو اللَّه ذا الجُودِ أَن يُلِن

    فُؤادَ حَبيبٍ بالجَفا قد عَرَفناهُ

    And I hope God, the Bountiful, will soften

    The heart of a beloved we have known for aloofness,

  15. فيَرحَمُ صَبّاً لا يَزالُ أَخا جَوىً

    وَيُسعِفُهُ وَصلاً وَيَرثُو لِشَكواهُ

    So he may pity a lover forever a companion of burning heartache,

    And grant him union and pity his lament.

  16. عَساهُ لِمُضنَاهُ يَرِقُّ بِرَحمَةٍ

    وَيَسقِيهِ مِن رِيقٍ حكى المِسكَ رَيَّاهُ

    May he show compassionate tenderness to the one he has worn out,

    And give him a drink of saliva whose fragrance resembles musk.

  17. فقَد صارَ صَبّاً في هَواهُ مُوَلَّعاً

    وَيَسألُ رَبَّ الناسِ ذا العَرشِ يَرعَاهُ

    For he has become a lover, utterly devoted to love of him,

    And asks the Lord of mankind, Possessor of the Throne, to watch over him.

  18. وَلَم يتَبَدَّل مُذ سَباهُ بِحُسنِهِ

    وَلا شاقَهُ ظَبيٌ سِواهُ فَيَنساهُ

    And he has not changed since his beauty took him captive,

    Nor has another gazelle stirred his longing so that he forgets him.

  19. لَقَد فاقَ أَربابَ الجَمالِ جَمِيعَهُم

    وَقَد خَضَعُوا لِلحُبِّ قَهراً وَما تاهُوا

    Indeed, he has surpassed all the masters of beauty;

    And they have bowed to love, compelled, without haughtiness.

  20. كَما أَنَّ ذا الوَجهَ المُنيرَ إِمامَنا

    وَسَيِّدَنا مَن لِلعُلا شادَ مَبنَاهُ

    Just as the radiant-faced one, our imam,

    And our master, who built his edifice for glory,

  21. تَعَلَّى عَلَى أَهلِ الكَمالِ بِهِمَّةٍ

    وَصارِمِ عَزمٍ تَفلِقُ الهَامَ حَدَّاهُ

    Has risen above the people of perfection through lofty aspiration,

    And a sword of resolve whose two edges cleave heads.

  22. وَقَد طبَّقَ الآفاقَ عِلماً وَحِكمَةً

    وَأَحيى دُرُوسَ العِلمِ وَالشَّرعَ أَفشَاهُ

    And he has filled the horizons with learning and wisdom,

    And revived the lessons of learning and spread the sacred law.

  23. وَمَرَّ عُمَاناً فاستَفَادُوا بِعِلمِهِ

    وَأَمَّا أَوَالٌ فهيَ تَشدُو بِذِكرَاهُ

    And he passed through Oman, and they benefited from his learning;

    And as for Awal, it sings in remembrance of him.

  24. وَقد أَصبَحَ القُطرُ العِراقِيُّ باسِماً

    يَجُرُّ عَلى الأَقطارِ فَخراً بِسُكنَاهُ

    And the Iraqi land has become smiling,

    Trailing pride over other lands because he dwells there.

  25. وَهَجرٌ لِفَقدِ الحَبرِ ثَكلَى حَزِينَةٌ

    وَحُقَّ لها تَبكِي دَماً فهيَ مَنشَاهُ

    And Hajar, at the scholar’s loss, is a bereaved, grieving mother;

    And rightly does she weep blood, for she is his birthplace.

  26. إِمامٌ يَرى بَثَّ العُلُومِ فَرِيضَةً

    أَبِيٌّ تَقِيٌّ زاهِدٌ ثُمَّ أَوَّاهُ

    An imam who regards spreading knowledge as a duty,

    Proud-spirited, pious, ascetic, and ever sighing in prayer.

  27. وَلَيسَ لهُ في عَصرِهِ مِن مُمَاثِلٍ

    وَلا يَستَطِيعُ الفَهم يُحصِي مَزاياهُ

    And he has no equal in his age,

    Nor can understanding count his merits.

  28. لهُ اللَّه مِن ذِي همَّةٍ قد سَمَت بِهِ

    إِلَى شَرَفٍ ما نالَهُ قَطُّ إِلَّاهُ

    God bless him—a man whose aspiration has borne him aloft

    To an honor that none but he has ever attained.

  29. فَيا راشِداً قَد كُنتَ لِلخَيرِ مَقصِداً

    فشُكراً لِمَا أَعطاكَ رَبِّي وَأَولاهُ

    So, Rashid, you have indeed been a destination for goodness;

    So thanks for what my Lord has given and bestowed upon you.

  30. وَيا شَيخَنا إِنَّ الفِراقَ أَذابَنا

    وَهَدَّ قُوانا وَالتَّصَبُّرَ أَفناهُ

    And, O our sheikh, separation has indeed melted us,

    And shattered our strength and consumed our patient endurance.

  31. وَأَورَثَنا هَمّاً يَزِيدُ وَلَوعَةً

    وَصاحَ النَّوى بالصَّبرِ قِدماً فَلَبَّاهُ

    And bequeathed us mounting grief and burning anguish;

    And separation called to patience long ago, and patience answered its call.

  32. فصِلنا وَعامِلنا بِبرٍّ وَرَحمَةٍ

    فَأَنتَ الذي تُولِي الجَميلَ وَتَرضاهُ

    So keep ties with us, and treat us with kindness and mercy;

    For you are the one who bestows kindness and delights in it.

  33. وَلا زِلتَ يا بَدرَ الزَّمانِ بِنِعمَةٍ

    وَجاهُكَ بَينَ الناسِ ما فَوقَهُ جاهُ

    And may you always remain in blessing, O full moon of the age,

    And may your standing among people have none above it.

  34. ولا زِلتُمُ آلَ المُبارَكِ قادَةً

    إلى الخَيرِ ما حنَّ الغَريبُ لِمَرباهُ

    And may you ever remain leaders, O family of Al-Mubarak,

    To goodness, as long as the stranger yearns for his childhood home.

  35. فَأَنتُم نُجومٌ تَهتَدِي بِكُمُ الوَرَى

    إِلى سُنَنِ المُختارِ مَن خَصَّهُ اللَّهُ

    For you are stars by which mankind is guided

    To the ways of the Chosen One, whom God singled out

  36. بِعِزٍّ وَتأَييدٍ وَرِفعَةِ مَنصِبٍ

    إِلَى أن عَلا فَوقَ السَّماءِ وَناجاهُ

    With might, support, and exalted station,

    Until he rose above the sky and communed with Him.

  37. عليهِ صلاةُ اللَّهِ ثُمَّ سَلامُهُ

    كَذا الآلُ والأصحابُ يَغشاهُمُ اللَّهُ

    Upon him be God’s blessing, then His peace;

    Likewise his family and companions—may God enfold them.