في كل جنس من الأجناس معلومِ

في كل جنس من الأجناس معلومِ

لا بد من خادم فيهم ومخدومِ

لا بد من خادم فيهم ومخدومِ

In every known kind among the kinds,

In every kind of people it is known

There must be among them a servant and one served,

There must be a servant and one served

وثالثٍ هو بالإفساد بينهما

وثالثٍ هو بالإفساد بينهما

يسعى بعقل من الخيرات معدومِ

يسعى بعقل من الخيرات معدومِ

And a third who, to sow discord between the two,

And a third who with evil between them

Strives with a mind devoid of goodness.

Strives, with a mind devoid of good

وكل طائفة تخشى أفاضلهم

وكل طائفة تخشى أفاضلهم

تبدو أراذلهم بالقبح والشوم

تبدو أراذلهم بالقبح والشوم

And every group fears its finest;

And every group fears its virtuous ones

Its basest appear in ugliness and ill omen.

Its wicked are shown as foul and ominous

فكم رأيت أناساً لا خلاق لهم

فكم رأيت أناساً لا خلاق لهم

وظالماً ظاهراً في زيِّ مظلوم

وظالماً ظاهراً في زيِّ مظلوم

So many people have I seen with no share of goodness,

So how many people I've seen without morals

And an oppressor appearing in the guise of one oppressed.

And an oppressor, openly in the guise of one oppressed

وكم عرفت بربي مشكلاً قصرت

وكم عرفت بربي مشكلاً قصرت

عنه العقول عقول العرْب والروم

عنه العقول عقول العرْب والروم

And how many a mystery I have known through my Lord, beyond the grasp

And how many perplexing affairs of my Lord I've known

Of minds—the minds of Arabs and Romans.

Beyond the minds, the minds of Arabs and non-Arabs

وكم بليت بأقوام سواسية

وكم بليت بأقوام سواسية

في حكم أمر بعين الحس موهوم

في حكم أمر بعين الحس موهوم

And how often I have been tried by people all alike

And how many smooth-tongued people I have endured

In judging a matter imagined by the eye of sense.

In a matter clear to the eye yet imagined

وليس من يأكل الأكوان عذْبَ جنىً

وليس من يأكل الأكوان عذْبَ جنىً

كمثل آكلها أشجارَ زقوم

كمثل آكلها أشجارَ زقوم

And one who eats the worlds as sweet fruit is not

Not alike are those who eat fruits fresh picked

Like one who eats them as trees of Zaqqum.

And those who eat the bitter tree of zaqqum

كل امرئ عقله ميزان حالته

كل امرئ عقله ميزان حالته

فليس صوت هزار الدوح كالبوم

فليس صوت هزار الدوح كالبوم

Each person's mind is the scale that weighs his state;

Every person's mind is the balance of his state

For the nightingale's voice in the spreading trees is unlike the owl's.

Not alike are the howls of wolves and owls

كلامنا الحق لا تخفى فوائده

كلامنا الحق لا تخفى فوائده

إلا على منكرٍ للحقِّ محروم

إلا على منكرٍ للحقِّ محروم

The benefits of our true speech are hidden from none

Our words of truth, their benefits are not hidden

Except a denier of the truth, bereft.

Except from one who denies the truth, deprived

به نخاطب أهل الإتفاق على

به نخاطب أهل الإتفاق على

سر عظيم من الأسرار مكتوم

سر عظيم من الأسرار مكتوم

With it we address those who agree upon

With them we address the people of agreement upon

A great secret, concealed among the secrets.

A mighty secret of secrets concealed

هم المراد به لا غيرهم أبداً

هم المراد به لا غيرهم أبداً

بالقول في كل منطوق ومفهوم

بالقول في كل منطوق ومفهوم

They are the ones meant by it, never anyone else,

They alone are meant by it, none other

In speech, in all that is uttered and understood.

In every utterance and meaning

مَنُّ العلومِ وسلوَى الغيرِ أهلُهُما

مَنُّ العلومِ وسلوَى الغيرِ أهلُهُما

في الشكلِ من عصبةِ القثَّاءِ والثوم

في الشكلِ من عصبةِ القثَّاءِ والثوم

Knowledge's manna and the quails of otherness—the people of both

Refuge of knowledge and solace of strangers are they

In outward form belong to the company of cucumbers and garlic.

In form, of the tribe of chaff and garlic

أبو هريرة حيث الإختلاف رأى

أبو هريرة حيث الإختلاف رأى

في الحق ما بين ممدوح ومذموم

في الحق ما بين ممدوح ومذموم

Abu Hurayra, when he saw disagreement

Abu Huraira, seeing disagreement

Over truth between the praised and the condemned—

In truth between praised and blamed

لو قال ما عنده من علم خالقه

لو قال ما عنده من علم خالقه

عن النبي دهاه قطعُ بلعوم

عن النبي دهاه قطعُ بلعوم

Had he spoken the knowledge of his Creator that he held,

Had he said what knowledge of his Creator

From the Prophet, the cutting of his gullet would have befallen him.

He got from the Prophet, it would have silenced the glutton

ومثلُه شعرُ زين العابدين أتى

ومثلُه شعرُ زين العابدين أتى

يا ربَّ جوهرِ علمٍ قولَ منظوم

يا ربَّ جوهرِ علمٍ قولَ منظوم

And likewise came the verse of Zayn al-Abidin:

The like of it is the poetry of Zain al-Abideen which says

'Ah, many a jewel of knowledge'—a saying set in verse.

"O Lord, essence of knowledge, articulated verse”

فلتترك القاصرون الخوض في كلمي

فلتترك القاصرون الخوض في كلمي

هم أهل عقل من الأغيار مكلوم

هم أهل عقل من الأغيار مكلوم

So let those of limited understanding cease delving into my words;

So let those of narrow minds leave off wading into my words

They are people whose minds are wounded by otherness.

They are people of reason from strangers, banned

ونحن قلنا عن السر المصون وعن

ونحن قلنا عن السر المصون وعن

نطق الوجود وأمر منه معلوم

نطق الوجود وأمر منه معلوم

And we have spoken of the guarded secret, and of

While we have spoken of the guarded secret and

Existence's speech, and a matter known from it,

The speech of existence and its known matter

لا عن خيال ولا فكر وشاهده

لا عن خيال ولا فكر وشاهده

كنت اللسان له في قرب قيوم

كنت اللسان له في قرب قيوم

Not from imagination or thought; and its proof is:

Not of imagination or thought, and witness of it

'I was his tongue,' in nearness to the Ever-Sustaining One.

My tongue was, in the vicinity of the Eternal