نار شوقي وهول يوم بعادي

شيّبا في الهوى رضيع فؤادي

The fire of my longing and the terror of my day of separation

Have turned the infant of my heart gray in love.

إنّ يوم البعاد يوم طويل

قصر الله عمر يوم البعاد

The day of separation is indeed a long day;

May God shorten the lifespan of separation's day.

فريا رائد الهنا فبقلبي

لفحت حرب داحس الأنكاد

So hasten, O herald of happiness, for in my heart

The woes' war of Dahis has scorched.

أقطع الليل والنهار كئيبا

بين شوق مبرح وسهاد

I pass the night and day sorrowfully,

Between agonizing longing and sleeplessness.

فسروري وسلوتي في انتقاض

وغرامي ووشحتي في ازدياد

My happiness and consolation are diminishing,

While my passion and loneliness are increasing.

لست أدري وقد جرت سحب دمعي

ما الذي شاب مزنها بمرادي

I do not know, as the clouds of my tears have flowed,

What mingled their rain clouds with my desire,

غير أني أخال إنسان عيني

جاد إذ شح دمعه لسوادي

Except that I imagine the pupil of my eye

Gave freely, when its tears were scarce, for my darkness.

علّ ماء الدموع تطفىء نارا

تحرق القلب أو يروي الصادي

Perhaps the water of tears will extinguish a fire

That burns the heart, or quench the thirsty.

يا عذولي في الحب لست رشيدا

لا ولا العذل في الهوى بالهادي

O you who reproach me for love, you are not wise;

No, nor does reproach guide anyone in love.

ليس حبي حرمته بفساد

رب حب فيه صلاح فساد

My love, though you forbid it, is no corruption;

Many a love contains a remedy for corruption.

لا تلمني فلست أول حب

صار عبدا في طاعة الأسياد

Do not blame me: I am not the first lover

To become a slave obeying masters.

إن نومي وحسن صبري فرا

إذ رويت الجوى عن ابن زياد

My sleep and my fine patience have fled

Since I related heartache from Ibn Ziyad.

ليت شعري وهل لشعري علم

بفؤاد بهيم في كل وادي

Would that I knew—and does my knowing have knowledge

Of a dark heart in every valley?

يا فؤادي في تيه فرع وفرق

أبغي ضللت أم برشاد

O my heart, lost among tresses and their parting,

Did you stray through transgression, or through guidance?

أم بليلي فتة أم برباب

أم بسلمى شغفت أم بسعاد

Were you smitten with Layla, or with Rabab,

Or enamored of Salma, or of Su‘ad?

يا خليلي عللاني سحيرا

بنسيمات حاجر والواد

O my two friends, comfort me before dawn

With the little breezes of Hajir and the valley.

وقفاني على الربوع قليلا

واطرحاني في ظل ذاك النادي

Let me stand a little at the former dwellings,

And lay me beneath the shade of that gathering-place.

وابكياني فقد بكى لبكائي

باسم البرق بالغيوم الغوادي

And weep for me, for at my weeping there has wept

The smiling lightning amid the morning clouds.

واسعداني على السهاد فليلي

طال والله إذ حرمت رقادي

And help me bear sleeplessness, for my night

Has lengthened, by God, since I was denied my sleep.

واخبراني عن الصباح فسعى

ضل فيه ولم يجد من هادي

And tell me of morning, for a quest

Has strayed within it and found no guide.

طال ليلي وقد فقدت صباحي

آه هل للصباح من ميعاد

My night has lengthened, and I have lost my morning;

Ah, does morning have an appointed time?

لو يكون الصباح حيا يرجى

ما اكتسى الجو سابغات حداد

Were morning alive and something to hope for,

The sky would not have donned full robes of mourning.

يا نسيم الشمال سر بسلام

كم ليمناك عندنا من أيادي

O north wind, travel in peace;

How many favors your right hand has bestowed upon us!

واسأل البان والحمى عن حبيب

حل من مهجتي محل ودادي

Ask the ban trees and the sanctuary about a beloved

Who occupies in my soul the place of my affection.

يا رعى الله عهده من حبيب

شأنه الصدق في وفا الميعاد

Ah, may God preserve that beloved's pledge,

Whose practice is truthfulness in keeping promises.

فوق خديه جنة وجحيم

كيف يؤخذ ملتقى الصداد

Upon his cheeks are a garden and a hell;

How can the meeting-place of repulsions be grasped?

لاح في ليل شعره وعجيب

مطلع الشمس في الليالي الحداد

He shone within the night of his hair—how wondrous

Is the sunrise in the blackest nights!

وتجلى فمن رأى روض حسن

أثمر البدر في القنا المياد

He revealed himself: who has seen a garden of beauty

Where the full moon bears fruit among swaying spears?

نجم خديه في المطالع يروي

عن جميل السنا عن الوقاد

The star of his cheeks, at its risings, relates

From the beautiful radiance, from the blazing one.

وكذا ريقه المبرد أبدى

كامل الحسين في سناه البادي

Likewise his cooling saliva revealed

The perfection of al-Husayn in its manifest radiance.

ياله شادنا سطا بجفون

كن فيها كواسر الأساد

What a young gazelle, attacking with eyelids

Within which were fierce, ravening lions!

ساحر اللحظ هاجني بفتور

ترك القلب موريا كالزناد

Enchanting in his glance, he stirred me with languor

That left my heart sparking like a fire-striker.

يا هلالا أظل عابد طرف

إنما أنت فتنة العباد

O crescent moon overshadowing a worshipper of your gaze,

You are nothing but the temptation of the servants.

فتنة الحسن قيس خدك أضحى

من يمان الجفون تحت العباد

O temptation of beauty, the Qays of your cheek has become

Through the Yemen of your eyelids, beneath the servants.

إتّق الله في أسير عيون

ما له من عذابها من فادي

Fear God concerning the captive of eyes

Who has no one to ransom him from their torment.

وأكفف اللحظ والعذار فعقلي

منهما صار نهب لام وصادي

Restrain your glance and cheek-down, for my reason

Through them has become the plunder of lam and sad.

ما احتيالي وقد ظمئت لثغر

صير الصد شرعة الوراد

What resource have I, thirsting for a mouth

That made rejection the watering-place of those who come to drink?

يا لقومي آنست في الحيّ نارا

أضرمتها لواعج الأكباد

O my people, I have perceived a fire in the encampment,

Kindled by the burning anguish of hearts.

فلعلي أرى هداي لديها

أو عسى الدهر أن يفكّ قيادي

Perhaps I shall see my guidance beside it,

Or perhaps time will undo my fetters.

ضقت ذرعا وما وجدت اهتداء

لسبيل يقين بالإسعاد

My endurance has failed, and I have found no guidance

To a sure path toward happiness.

بلغي يا نسمية البان شوقي

لبلاد فديتها من بلاد

Convey, O little breeze of the ban trees, my longing

To a land I would ransom above all lands.

واحثثي للسير في الغدو وروحي

بين يمنى مسيرة ورشاد

Hasten your journey in the morning, and travel at evening,

Between a blessed passage and right guidance.

وإذا جئت طيبة فتهادى

بسلام إلى النبي الهادي

And when you reach Tayba, move gently

With a greeting of peace to the guiding Prophet:

أحمد الرسل ركن بيت المعالي

سرحة الدين كعبة العباد

The most praiseworthy of messengers, pillar of the house of eminence,

The great tree of religion, the Kaaba of the servants;

مظهر الحق مظهر الحق طه

حجة الرب شمس أفق المعاد

Revealer of Truth, manifestation of Truth, Ta-Ha,

The Lord's proof, sun of the horizon of the return;

علة الكون روح جسم المعالي

نقطة البدء سر معنى المعاد

The cause of existence, the spirit of eminence's body,

The point of beginning, the secret meaning of the return;

ناظر العين زهر روض المحيا

نكتة السمع غصن دوح الفؤاد

The pupil of the eye, blossom of life's garden,

The essence of hearing, branch of the heart's great tree;

أشبب الثغر أدعج العين أقنى

رحب الصدر أريحي الأيادي

Bright of mouth, dark-eyed, aquiline-nosed,

Broad-chested, generous-handed;

جوهري الحسن برهمان التصافي

معدن المجد عسجد الأمجاد

A jewel in beauty, a Brahmin of purity,

The mine of glory, the pure gold of noble deeds;

روضة الجود مجمع الفضل أضحى

غاية الشم تحفة الأجواد

The garden of generosity, gathering-place of excellence, he became

The pinnacle of the lofty, the treasure of the generous;

مرسل شافع بشير نذير

منتهى القصد غاية القصاد

A messenger, intercessor, bearer of good tidings and warning,

The ultimate aim, the destination of seekers;

مصطفى مرتضى سراج منير

هاله الرشد كوكب الإرشاد

Chosen, approved, a shining lamp,

The halo of right guidance, the star of direction;

أكمل العالمين خلقا وخلقا

فهو ملء العيون والأكباد

Most perfect of all beings in form and character,

He fills both eyes and hearts.

صاغه الله قبل كل وجود

من جمال وعزة ورشاد

God fashioned him before all existence

From beauty, might, and right guidance.

طاب جسما ولم وقد صيغ مما

لم تصغ منه طينة الأجساد

Pure was his body—and why not, fashioned as he was from that

Of which the clay of bodies was not fashioned?

فهو أصل لادم في ابتداء

وهو فرع بمقتضى الميلاد

He is therefore Adam's origin at the beginning,

Though a branch of him by the circumstance of birth;

من أضا نوره بواضح شيت

فتبدّى لحاضر ولبادي

He whose light shone through the brightness of Seth,

Appearing to townsman and desert-dweller;

من به إدريس قد تبوأ مرقى

أزهريّ السنا رفيع عماد

He through whom Idris attained an ascent

Of radiant brilliance and lofty support;

من به نوح في السفينة عوفي

إذ طمى لما على الربا والوهاد

He through whom Noah was kept safe in the ark

When the flood surged over hills and hollows;

من به صالح نجا من ثمود

وكذا هود من قبائل عاد

He through whom Salih escaped Thamud,

And likewise Hud the tribes of ‘Ad;

من به لوط قد أباد سدوما

حيث رواموا طريقه الإلحاد

He through whom Lot destroyed Sodom,

Where they pursued his path in unbelief;

من به أنقذ الخليل ووفى

كيد نمروده الشديد العادي

He through whom the Friend was rescued and shielded from

His Nimrod's fierce, aggressive plotting;

من به قد فدى المهيمن إسما

عيل واختاره لسكنى الوادي

He through whom the Guardian ransomed Isma-

‘il, and chose him to dwell in the valley;

من به اسحاق الغيور ويعقو

ب ولسباط أتحفوا بأيادي

He through whom zealous Isaac and Ya‘qu-

b, and the Tribes, were endowed with favors;

من به سخر الإلاه لداو

د حبالا وطيرا وغوادي

He through whom God subjected to Dawu-

d ropes, birds, and morning clouds;

من به الجن والوحوش أنابت

لسليمان والصبا والهوادي

He through whom jinn and wild beasts submitted

To Solomon, together with the east wind and the guides;

من به يونس نجا حين ناجى

باعتراف وفاقة واجتهاد

He through whom Jonah escaped when he prayed privately,

With confession, need, and earnest striving;

من به أنقذ الإلاه شعيبا

وشفى أيوب من ضنى الأنكاد

He through whom God rescued Shu‘ayb

And healed Job of the wasting misery of woes;

من به أصبح الكليم موقى

كيد فرعون صاحب الأوتاد

He through whom the one addressed by God was protected from

The plotting of Pharaoh, master of the stakes;

من به الخضر والعزيز إليا

س ويحيى اكتفوا شرور الأعادي

He through whom al-Khidr and mighty Ilya-

s and Yahya were spared the evils of enemies;

من به إسكندر الزمان تصدى

لرشاد الورى وفتح البلاد

He through whom Iskandar of the age undertook

To guide mankind and conquer lands;

من به بشر المسيح وحيا

وهو في المهد بالسلام ينادي

He through whom the Messiah gave good tidings and greetings,

Calling out peace while still in the cradle;

من به بشر ابن جدل وشق

وسطيح الحمى وقش أيادي

He through whom Ibn Jadl and Shaqq gave good tidings,

And Satih of the sanctuary, and Qash of Iyad;

من توالت بشرى الهواتف أن قد

ولد المصطفى الكريم الأيادي

He whose glad announcement the unseen voices repeated:

The Chosen One, generous-handed, has been born;

من رأت أمه معالم بصراي

وقصور الشام في الميلاد

He at whose birth his mother saw the landmarks of Busra

And the palaces of Syria;

من حبا بالحبا حليمة لما

رامت الخصب بعد محل البوادي

He who favored Halima with gifts when

She sought abundance after the barrenness of the deserts;

من تداعى إيوان كسرى وخرّت

لسناه شوامخ الأطواد

He for whom Chosroes' palace crumbled, and fell

Before his radiance the towering mountains;

من أزاح الظلام نور هداه

بعد ما ظل كل هاد وحاد

He whose guiding light dispelled darkness

After every guide and camel-driver had strayed;

من به غيض ماء ساوة لما

أصبحت نار فارس كالرماد

He through whom the water of Sawa subsided when

The fire of Persia became like ashes;

من به الشهب أحرقت كل حن

يسرق السمع مؤذن بالفساد

He through whom meteors burned every spirit

That stole a hearing, heralding corruption;

من غدا الذئب مخبرا عنه لما

منع الشاة منه راعي النادي

He about whom the wolf became a messenger when

The encampment's shepherd withheld the sheep from it;

من أتاه البعير يأنس بشرا

بعدما كان أشرس الشراد

He to whom the camel came, friendly and joyful,

After being the fiercest of runaways;

من حمى الضب إذ شكا بأمان

وحماه من العدو العادي

He who granted the lizard protection when it complained,

And defended it from the attacking enemy;

من أعيدت له الغزالة لما

إن أرادت رضاعة الأولاد

He to whom the gazelle was returned when

She wished to nurse her young;

من دعاها من الغروب فعادت

وكفاها حبائل الصياد

He who called her back from sunset, and she returned,

And kept her safe from the hunter's snares;

من وقاه الغمام حر هجير

وحباه بوابل مستجاد

He whom clouds shielded from the heat of noon

And favored with an excellent downpour;

من له البدر شق شوقا لقرب

وله الجذع حن خوف البعاد

He for whom the full moon split, longing for nearness,

And for whom the trunk moaned, fearing separation;

من أعاد القضب في الكف سيفا

وبها أنبع الزلال لصادي

He who turned a branch in his hand into a sword,

And with that hand made clear water spring for the thirsty;

من بيمناه سبح الصلد جهرا

وبها فاض فاضل الأزواد

He in whose right hand hard stone praised God aloud,

And through it abundant provisions overflowed;

من رمى بالحصى فأسقط جيشا

لا يخافون سطوة الآساد

He who threw pebbles and brought down an army

That did not fear the onslaught of lions;

من بها شاد أوجها وبيوتا

قد تداعى أقواؤها للسناد

He who with that hand raised countenances and households

Whose strongest supports had crumbled and needed propping;

من كفى الألف بالصواع وأروى

بقليل الحليب سار وغادي

He who satisfied a thousand with a measuring-cup and quenched

With a little milk the traveler and the morning wayfarer;

من به صدق الرضيع ونادى

أنت حقا رسول رب العباد

He through whom the suckling affirmed the truth and cried:

You are truly the messenger of the Lord of the servants;

من دعاه الذراع وهو حنيذ

أحذر السم يا سما الأجواد

He whom the foreleg addressed while roasted:

Beware the poison, O pinnacle of the generous;

من شفى العين وامتطاهه وأغنى

يوم سلم بها ويوم جلاد

He who healed the eye, mounted it [unclear], and supplied abundance

With it on a day of peace and a day of combat;

من حمى الغار بالحمامة لما

نسج العنكبوت وفق المراد

He who protected the cave with a dove when

The spider wove in accordance with the intended purpose;

من دعا للعدق فاستجاب منيبا

واشتياقا لغدة المنادي

He who summoned the palm-cluster, and it answered submissively,

Longing for the caller's morrow [unclear];

من أتاه قتادة يشتكى

فقد عين فردها لمعاد

He to whom Qatada came complaining

Of losing an eye, and he restored it to its place;

من بنفث شفى لحاظ علي

وحباه بأيّما إسعاد

He who with a breath healed ‘Ali's eyes

And favored him with wondrous success;

من بتفل أعاد شق خبيب

وبنفث كفى كف الأعادي

He who with spittle restored Khubayb's torn part,

And with a breath checked the enemies' hands;

من كفاه الإله غورث لما

رام إطفاء نوره الوقاد

He whom God protected from Ghawrath when

He sought to extinguish his blazing light;

من حبته الصبا مسيرة شهر

بانتصار يبيد حزب التعادي

He whom the east wind favored across a month's journey

With victory that destroys the faction of hostility;

من له الأرض مسجدا وطهورا

حيث نادى إلى الصلاة المنادي

He for whom the earth is a mosque and a means of purification

Wherever the caller calls to prayer;

من رقى للعلا فحل محلا

جل مقداره عن الأنداد

He who ascended to the heights and occupied a station

Whose greatness surpasses all peers;

من رأى الحق كيف شاء بلا كيف

ونودي أهلا بزين العباد

He who saw the Truth as He willed, without a how,

And was called: Welcome, adornment of the servants!

أنت عبدي فاشفع تشفع وقل كي

أستمعه وسل تجد إندادي

You are My servant: intercede, your intercession is accepted; speak, that

I may hear it; ask, and you will find My aid.

كم ظلام أزاحه وضلال

كم صباح أناره ورشاد

How much darkness and error he dispelled!

How many mornings and paths of guidance he illuminated!

كم سؤال أجابه ونوال

كم مراد أناله وداد

How many requests he answered, and gifts bestowed!

How many wishes he granted, and affection!

كم ذليل أعزّه بارتقاء

كم عماد أماله باعتماد

How many a humbled man he ennobled by raising him!

How many a pillar he bent by leaning upon it!

كم سقام شفى بتفل بصاق

كم مقام كفى بطعن صعاد

How many illnesses he healed with a little spittle!

How many situations he mastered with thrusting spears!

كم ضرير شفى فساد بصيرا

كم بصير عمى لفرط عناد

How many a blind man he healed of affliction, restoring sight!

How many a sighted man he blinded for excessive obstinacy!

كم طريد أوى بوسع محل

كم فقير أغنى بفاضل زاد

How many an outcast he sheltered in a spacious abode!

How many a poor man he enriched with surplus provisions!

لو تذكرت ما يحد ويمضي

لم تعظم فعل المواضي الحداد

If you recalled what sharpens and cuts,

You would not magnify the work of sharp, cutting swords.

أو تأمّلت ما ينيل ويكفي

لم تعرج على السوار الغوادي

Or if you considered what he bestows and supplies,

You would not turn to the night rains and morning showers.

شرف الله بلدة حل فيها

واصطفاها على جميع البلاد

God honored the town in which he settled

And chose it above all lands.

هو زين لها وليس ببدع

أن يزين الرياض صوب العهاد

He is its adornment, and it is no strange thing

That showers of repeated rain should adorn gardens.

شقّ جبريل قلبه وحشاه

حكمة العالم العليم الهادي

Gabriel opened his heart and filled it with

The wisdom of the Knowing, All-Knowing Guide.

فلذا كان إن غفت مقلتاه

يقظ القلب في رضا الجواد

Thus, even when his two eyes slept,

His heart was wakeful in the Generous One's pleasure.

كرمت راحتاه في أزمات

كان فيها الغمام صفر الأيادي

His palms gave generously during crises

When the clouds themselves were empty-handed.

في ضرام من الوغى واشتعال

أكسب الجو حمة الإرعاد

Amid the blaze and conflagration of battle,

He gave the air the heat of thunder.

ما تجلى لظلمة الليل إلا

أطفأ الزهر نوره باتقاد

Whenever he appeared to the darkness of night,

His blazing light extinguished the stars.

لو رأى الفيلسوف نجم علاه

ما قضى للنجوم بالمرصاد

Had the philosopher seen the star of his eminence,

He would not have judged for the stars from his lookout.

أو درى الغيث جوده لعفاة

لا أستحي أن يجود فوق الوهاد

Or had rain known his bounty toward supplicants,

It would have felt ashamed to pour above the hollows.

أو كسا الشمس من سناه شعاعا

لأضا الكون في الليالي الحداد

Or had he clothed the sun with a ray of his radiance,

The universe would have shone through the blackest nights.

رب رحب أثاره بجواد

تؤذن الأرض تحته بارتعاد

Many a broad expanse he stirred upon a steed,

Beneath which the earth announced its trembling.

ويرى خطبه المهول بسيف

أبيض الوجه صادق الميعاد

He meets his terrifying crisis with a sword,

Bright-faced and true to its promise,

في نهار من الصفاح منير

تحت ليل من مستشار الجلاد

In a shining day made of sword-blades,

Beneath a night of roused combat [unclear].

وخميس عرمرم قد حماه

فزها يومه على الأعياد

A vast army has defended him,

And his day has outshone the festivals.

بأبي بكر الخليفة من جا

ء بتصديقه الكتاب الهادي

By Abu Bakr, the caliph, who ca-

me with his affirmation of the guiding Book;

وأبي حفص المفرق الأضلا

ل بعزم وصارم واعتقاد

And Abu Hafs, who scattered misguid-

ance with resolve, a sharp sword, and conviction;

وبعثمان من حباه ببنتيه

الرسول الشفيع يوم التنادي

And ‘Uthman, whom with his two daughters favored

The Messenger, intercessor on the Day of Calling;

وببعل البتول ليث هشام

صاحب السيف واللوا والجواد

And the husband of al-Batul, the lion of Hisham,

Master of sword, banner, and steed;

وبعميه والصحابة والآ

ل والأزواج ثم والأولاد

And his two uncles, the Companions, and the House-

hold, and the wives, then the children.

فهم ما هم وهل هم إلا

أعين الحرب ألجم الأرفاد

They are—what men they are! Are they anything but

The eyes of war, the bridles of bounty?

لا يخافون في الإله مهولا

لا ولا يرقبون غير الجواد

They fear no terror in God's cause;

No, nor do they look to anyone but the Generous One.

أيدوا دينه وعزوا حماه

بصفاح الظبا وسمر الصعاد

They strengthened his religion and fortified his sanctuary

With broad sword-blades and dusky spear-shafts.

ورعوا عهده وشادوا علاه

ورعوا قوله وكاد الأعادي

They guarded his pledge and built up his eminence,

Guarded his words and thwarted the enemies.

وشروا طائعين جنة عدن

بنفوس تباع يوم الجهاد

They willingly purchased the Garden of Eden

With souls sold on the day of holy striving:

مظهرو الدين بالسيوف المواضي

مرغم الشرك بالفنا المياد

Those who make religion prevail with cutting swords,

Who humble idolatry with swaying spears [unclear reading].

شرف الله نورهم وحماهم

وحياهم باليمن والأنجاد

God honored their light and protected them,

And greeted them with blessing and aid.

صدقوا القول والفعال ودانوا

بالتزام الخلوص في الأوراد

They were true in speech and deeds, and devoted themselves

To steadfast sincerity in their devotions.

يا هناهم وبشرهم حيث أضحوا

أنجم الدين أصفيا الجواد

How blessed and glad they are, having become

The stars of religion, chosen friends of the Generous One!

نادهم للهدى بمحكم ذكر

صيّر الصعب لين الإنقياد

He called them to guidance with a firmly wrought Remembrance

That made the intractable gently obedient.

املإ السمع من حلاه وحره

ما تلاه الإنشاء في الإنشاد

Fill your hearing with his adornment and pure excellence,

As composition recites it in chanting.

تجد الغيث في سماء المعالي

وترى الليث في متون الجياد

You will find rain in the sky of eminence

And see the lion upon the backs of steeds.

قد بلته الحروب بأسا ورايا

فأتته السعود بالإسعاد

Wars have tested his valor and judgment,

And good fortune has come to him with success.

وحباه الجهاد فتحا ونصرا

أرغما أنف كل ذي إلحاد

Holy striving favored him with conquest and victory,

Both humbling every unbeliever.

وسع العالمين علما وحلما

فهو غيث الندى وبحر النادي

He encompassed all beings in knowledge and forbearance;

He is the rain of generosity and the sea of the assembly.

صبح فضل قد حقق الظن فيه

أنه الصبح في علا واتقاد

A morning of excellence, confirming the belief

That he is morning in loftiness and brilliance.

تتقي بأسه الكماة فأعلى

حا لجبارها أطراح العناد

Champions fear his might; the highest

State for their tyrant is to cast off obstinacy.

إن لله فيه سرا غريبا

أظهرته عوالم الأضداد

God has placed within him a wondrous secret,

Revealed by worlds of opposites:

غرة في تواضع واقتدار

في عفاف ولينة واعتداد

Splendor in humility, and power

In chastity, gentleness, and self-respect.

أم بالرسل والأملاك جمعا

في مقام حباه بالأفراد

He led all the messengers and angels together

At a station that favored him with uniqueness.

يا رسولا إلى هداه أوينا

فأوينا من الضلال لهادي

O Messenger, to whose guidance we sought shelter,

And thus escaped error to a guide,

حاش لله أن يرى لك شبها

يا إمام العلا وخير العباد

God forbid that anyone should be seen resembling you,

O leader of eminence and best of the servants!

ضل من رام حصر ما فيك مما

حزته بالحساب والأعداد

Astray is whoever seeks to encompass what is in you, what

You have attained, through calculation and numbers.

هل تحاط السماء والأرض قيسا

أن توفى البحار بالأمداد

Can heaven and earth be encompassed by measurement,

And the seas exhausted by measures?

أم يحد التراب كما وتحصى

مفردات الجود بالتعداد

Or can dust be bounded in quantity, and can one count

The individual acts of generosity by enumeration?

حاش لله الأمر أمر عظيم

ليس قدر الألوف كالأحاد

God forbid! The matter is a mighty matter;

The measure of thousands is not that of single units.

قمت بالحق والأنام قعود

وطردت العناد يوم الطراد

You stood for truth while mankind sat,

And drove away obstinacy on the day of pursuit.

ودرى الشرك كنه بأسك لما

سفه أحلامه هداك البادي

Idolatry learned the essence of your might when

Your manifest guidance exposed the folly of its notions.

وشدا الجن بامتداحك حتى

أطرب الانس صوت ذاك الشاد

The jinn sang your praises until

That singer's voice delighted humankind.

لي إليك اشتياق ضاح لظل

وقريب من ورده وهو صادي

My longing for you is a sun-stricken man's for shade,

One near his watering-place, yet thirsty.

ومن الشعر في جنابك مدح

هو ذخري وعدتي لمعادي

Among my poetry is praise in your presence,

My treasure and preparation for my return.

ما أبالي وقد وثقت بحبل

منك يمتد إن تنكر عادي

I do not care, having trusted a rope

Extending from you, if my adversary turns hostile.

حاش لله بعدما نلت رحبا

منك في النوم أن يخيب مرادي

God forbid, after I received welcome

From you in sleep, that my desire should fail.

يا شفيع الأنام جد بقبول

يا كريم الورى أفىء برشاد

O intercessor for mankind, grant acceptance;

O generous one of creation, bestow guidance.

يا حبيب الإله من يعفو

يا نجي الإله فك قيادي

O beloved of God, grant pardon [unclear reading];

O intimate of God, undo my fetters.

ليت شعري ما حيلتي واعتذاري

أم بماذا أجيب يوم التنادي

Would that I knew my resource and my excuse,

Or how I shall answer on the Day of Calling,

يوم لا تملك النفوس خلاصا

لنفوس تسام بالأبعاد

The day when souls have no power to deliver

Other souls subjected to banishment.

غير أني اتخذت مدح حبيب

نقطة الكون علة الإيجاد

Yet I have adopted praise of a beloved,

The center of existence, the cause of creation,

من عليه الجماد صلى وحيّى

فحظى بالقبول والإسعاد

To whom inanimate things prayed and offered greetings,

And thereby attained acceptance and happiness.

يا هناه بما حوى من فخار

ليتني كنت بعض هذا الجماد

How blessed that lifeless thing in the glory it possessed!

Would that I were a part of that lifeless thing!

يا ملاذي وعمتدي وغياثي

يا أماني ومنيتي وعمادي

O my refuge, my reliance, and my succor,

O my safety, my desire, and my support;

يا مجيري ومعتقي ونصيري

يا شفيعي منقذي ورشادي

O my protector, my liberator, and my helper,

O my intercessor, my rescuer, and my guidance;

يا سراجي ومنجدي وطبيبي

يا حبيبي وكعبتي واعتقادي

O my lamp, my aid, and my physician,

O my beloved, my Kaaba, and my belief:

ليس إلا بفضل جاهك أرجو

رجعة نحو طيبة وسعاد

Only through the favor of your standing do I hope

For a return toward Tayba and Su‘ad.

بعدت بي مسافة وتمادي

أمد قد قضى بقلة زاد

Distance and the prolongation of

Time have carried me far, decreeing scant provisions.

وسئمت المقام حتى لقد صا

ر منامي مبدلا بسهاد

I have wearied of remaining, until indeed my sleep has beco-

me exchanged for sleeplessness.

كل يوم يسومني الدهر خسفا

بفراق الأوطان والأولاد

Every day time subjects me to humiliation

Through separation from homelands and children.

وإذا الظلام جن رماني

بسهام الإنكال الأنكاد

And when darkness covers everything, it shoots me

With the arrows of grievous torments.

يا رحيما بالمؤمنين إذا لم

يسأل الأمهات عن الأولاد

O merciful one toward believers, when no one

Asks mothers about their children;

يا شفيعا في المذنبين إذا لم

يسأل الأمهات عن الأولاد

O intercessor for sinners, when no one

Asks mothers about their children:

أنت غيثي إذا ظمئت لورد

أنت غوثي إذا افتقرت لزاد

You are my rain when I thirst for a watering-place;

You are my succor when I lack provisions.

أنت ذخري إذا دعيت لعرض

أنت عوني على الأمور الشداد

You are my treasure when I am summoned for presentation;

You are my help against difficult affairs.

فأجزني من الذنوب لأني

عاجز أن أنوء بالأطواد

So carry me past my sins, for I am

Unable to bear the weight of mountains.

وأغثني من الهوان فقلبي

ليس يقوى على الزمان المعادي

Rescue me from humiliation, for my heart

Cannot withstand hostile time.

يا إله الورى ومولى العطايا

يا مجيب الندا وغوث المنادي

O God of creation and master of gifts,

O answerer of calls and succor of the caller:

أكشف الكرب واشف كل سقيم

واغفر الذنب واصح ليل العناد

Dispel distress and heal every sick person;

Forgive sin and brighten the night of obstinacy.

وصن الملك بالملك أبي عمر الرضا

الأشمخ الرفيع العماد

Protect the realm through King Abu ‘Umar al-Rida,

The loftiest, of exalted support.

وأعنه وانصره نصرا عزيزا

وأجره من كيد كل معادي

Help him and grant him a mighty victory,

And protect him from every adversary's plotting.

وأطل عمره وبارك عليه

وأدم ذكره مدى الآبادي

Prolong his life and bless him,

And perpetuate his remembrance through eternity.

وأنله من كل خير جزيل

واحم علياه من يد الحساد

Grant him abundance of every good,

And protect his eminence from the hand of enviers.

واعطه في الجنان خير مقام

بعد عمر ممتع بسداد

Give him the best abode in the gardens

After a life blessed with sound judgment.

واحم بالسعد نجله خير وال

يرتضى بعده لعهد العباد

Protect with good fortune his son, the best ruler

Approved after him to govern the servants:

ذا المعالي المسعود كهف بني

حفص السرى الحفيل ليث الطراد

The fortunate possessor of eminence, refuge of the sons of

Hafs, noble and bountiful, lion of pursuit.

وأقم بنده بنصر وفتح

وارتقاء وعزة ورشاد

Uphold his banner with victory and conquest,

Elevation, might, and right guidance.

وارحم المسلمين وامنن عليهم

بقبول الإصدار والإيراد

Have mercy on the Muslims and favor them

With acceptance in their departures and arrivals.

واعف عن والدي واحسن قواهم

بجميل مواصل الإمداد

Pardon my parents and strengthen them

With gracious, continuing assistance.

وامنح ابن الخلوف منك بطول

وسماح يمن بالإنجاد

Grant Ibn al-Khaluf favor from You

And generosity that bestows succor.

من أنا في جناب عفوك ربي

وهل العفو غير فعل الجواد

Who am I before Your pardon, my Lord?

Is pardon anything but the deed of the Generous One?

وأدم منا سح سحب صلاة

وسلام على شفيع العباد

Perpetuate from us the pouring clouds of blessings

And peace upon the intercessor for the servants,

وعلى الآل والصحابة طرا

وعلى التابعين بالإرشاد

Upon all the Household and Companions,

And upon those who follow with guidance,

ما شفى بالرقى حكيم ونادى

رب سلم من أعين الحساد

As long as a healer cures with incantations and calls:

Lord, preserve us from the eyes of enviers.