Sol 6.1

  1. I congratulate Ibrahim on the rank that

    has come to one worthy of it in merit and abundant refinement.

  2. And I speak of one whose place in every heart

    was his before the chair of ministry and rule.

  3. And I honor the due of one whose favors I have received,

    And from his standing comes mine, and in his resolve lies mine.

  4. You have won the favor of the king of the two lands, an honor

    to the title and name you bear in both lands.

  5. And it is nothing but glory; beside it, paltry is

    the conquering warriors' wealth of spoils.

  6. And today the scope for speech is wide,

    And would that its breadth lay within my mind and understanding!

  7. Were it not for the sickness and wasting I suffer,

    I would fill this splendid place with my splendid verse.

  8. Perhaps my joy at what you have attained will cure me,

    And in the heart's ease lies the body's health.

  9. And today I hold this gathering in high esteem,

    And it is nothing but a meeting of judgment and resolve.

  10. And if free men have honored your person, they have honored

    the seat of noble men's virtues and lofty qualities.

  11. And the party in its homelands is but a band of brothers,

    who owe those lands what is owed to a kind father and mother.

  12. They made preparations for those lands in the thick of war,

    And their preparations for peace are greater still.

  13. And they led those lands onward until they were secure, and reached

    the furthest bounds of endeavor in their rich, vast history.

  14. And today I surely hope, from those lands and from them,

    for both, what my knowledge cannot encompass.

  15. And most entitled to settle affairs and undo them

    for his nation is he who sacrifices himself for it, and he who protects it.

Sol 6.1