Sol 6.1

  1. O nation of faith, the final outcome is yours,

    in every place of turmoil and every place of rest.

  2. The days have wronged you; claim redress, then,

    for your existence, with your iron and fire.

  3. And pass judgment for yourselves, for you have no need

    of any witnesses or decrees of fate.

  4. The gulf was spared the blaze, and this

    is indeed safety for the lands and cities.

  5. And the two Easts received what was sanctioned

    for the two shores by the justice of the lands.

  6. And you defeated the well-prepared foe, and this

    is indeed a defeat for his hidden backer.

  7. And you turned those who had gloated over you

    for a time, to admiration and esteem.

  8. It is enough for the victor that his enemies become

    a band of helpers and supporters.

  9. Is there any matter in the world today other than what

    you have sent winging in wondrous tidings?

  10. Your warning filled the cities and frontier strongholds,

    as it had earlier filled ears and eyes.

  11. And after your enemy's terms, you secured

    the terms of one proud of his might and free to choose.

  12. You added to the right of the innocent who relies

    on God alone, the right of the overpowering victor.

  13. You dealt with them through debate, but they persisted;

    and their cure lies in the mighty one's fierce blow.

  14. And you ended the greatest of wars with a deadly blow,

    in which you settled an old blood-debt.

  15. Among men, one forced to serve is not like one who fights

    for sanctity, dignity, and what he must defend.

  16. The excuse of one who surrenders to you after his calamity

    is the excuse of one resigned to unfolding fate.

  17. The dismissed commander is not, as he races

    against his troops toward defeat and flight,

  18. more abased than that fleeing man, who suffers

    a wound more grievous than death and captivity.

  19. You have accustomed them to this outcome; so there is no

    shame in what they suffered before you.

  20. The days have never known a kingdom to fall

    before theirs, in a single night and day.

  21. The latest of the harsh trials—and he has seen

    in it, the stubborn one, the punishment for persistence.

  22. You have accustomed me to glory in your victory,

    and you have grown accustomed to hearing my poems.

  23. Be gentle with one ailing within; sorrow has taken its toll

    on him and neared the seat of secrets,

  24. and twisted the path to his aims; nothing

    dispels it but the vast, mighty host.

  25. So restore my health through victory, for your sake,

    that I may fittingly commemorate these deeds.

  26. Indeed, I am bound to you by faith,

    and by character, kinship, and neighborly ties.

  27. And I safeguard God's covenant concerning you, holding it dear,

    with a young man's devotion to righteous youths.

  28. And I wish for your lands, from His blessings,

    what I hope for my clan and my lands.

  29. And I attain, as long as the crescent remains sacred,

    what I seek: the goal of free men.

Sol 6.1