حبيب تراءى وهو يأبى لثامه — Abdelmoneim Al Jilani

حَبيبٌ تَراءى وَهوَ يَأَبى لِثامُهُ

وَلا حَظَهُ صَبٌّ يَثورُ هُيامُهُ

A beloved came into view, though his veil resisted;

And a lovesick lover beheld him, his passion surging.

رَآهُ فَلَم يُسلِم هَواهُ لِشَركَةٍ

وَأَربى عَلَيهِ ما جَلاهُ قَوامُهُ

He saw him and would not let his love be shared,

And what his stature revealed overwhelmed him.

بِقَدٍّ رَهيفٍ شارَكَ الغُصنُ مُزهِراً

أَعاليهِ إِذا أَجنى وَأَحيا غَمامُهُ

With a slender form, rivaled by a blossoming bough

In its upper reaches, when it bears fruit and its cloud revives it;

وَخَدَّ نَهارٍ في بِهارٍ وَفاتِرٍ

مِنَ الطَرفِ يَأسو ما يَسوءُ اِجتِرامُهُ

And a cheek of daylight amid yellow blossoms, and a languor

In the gaze, healing the hurt its transgression brings;

وَوَعدٍ يُضيءُ الداجِياتِ تَكاءَت

مِطالاً فَوافى عافِياً مُستَهامُهُ

And a promise lighting dark nights that dragged

On in delay; his lovesick admirer came seeking bounty.

كَما دانَ هَذا الناسِرُ المَلِكُ وَفدَهُ

بِما هالَ إِذ تَرقى التِلالَ قِيامُهُ

As this king, al-Nasir, rewarded his delegation

With gifts that awed them, as his stature rose above the hills.

أَحالَ مُناويهِ وَأَنمى وَلِيَّهُ

وَدارَ عَلَيهِم جودَهُ وَاِعتَزامُهُ

He ruined his foes and made his ally prosper,

And his bounty and resolve encompassed them.

فَيا صائِدَ الأَقماطِ طَولُكَ زَندُهُم

فَقاتِل فَريقَ الشِركِ يَخبُ اِضطِرامُهُ

Then, O hunter of counts, your bounty is their firestick;

So fight the faction of polytheism, and its blaze will die down.

لَدَيكَ لِواءُ الحَمدِ واقٍ بِيَقظَةٍ

شِماتَ عِدىً لا مِثلَ لاوٍ مَنامُهُ

In your keeping, praise's banner vigilantly wards off

The gloating of foes—unlike one whom sleep diverts.

فُديتَ فَهَل بَعدَ الصَحابَةِ آمِرٌ

سِواكَ اِزدِراعُ الباقِياتِ مَرامُهُ

May I be your ransom! After the Companions, is there a ruler

Other than you whose aim is to sow enduring deeds?

وَمَن لَيلُهُ فِكرٌ وَصِدقُ عِنايَةٍ

تَناهى لِيُحيي أُمَّةُ مُستَدامُهُ

And who spends his night in thought and earnest care,

Striving to the utmost, unceasingly, to revive a nation?

فَإِن أَظلَمَ الإِسلامُ أَشرَقَ مِنكَ ما

أَجالَ بِهِ شَمساً فَذابَ اِرتِكامُهُ

So if Islam darkens, from you shines a light

With which it sets a sun in motion, and its gathered gloom melts.

فَبِالصِدقِ يَقادُ المُلوي مُسابِقاً

بِطاعَتِهِ وَالفَتحُ مُرخىً زَمامُهُ

Through sincerity, the reluctant man is led to vie

In obedience to him, while conquest's rein hangs loose.

وَما وارِثُ الأَملاكِ غَيرُ أَخي وَغىً

أَفاضَ يَداً يَقوا الأَنامَ حُسامُهُ

And kings have no heir but a brother of battle,

Who gave with open hand, his sword prevailing over mankind.