أيا ابنَ رجاءٍ وابنَهُ الخيرَ لا يزلْ

أيا ابنَ رجاءٍ وابنَهُ الخيرَ لا يزلْ

رجاءٌ نحيفٌ يَغْتَدي بكَ بادنا

رجاءٌ نحيفٌ يَغْتَدي بكَ بادنا

O son of Rajāʾ and his worthy son, may there always be

O son of hope, and his virtuous son, may hope

a frail hope that grows stout through you at dawn.

Never cease being a lean meal that fattens because of you both

مَنَحْتُكَ من وُدِّي مُقيماً مكانَهُ

مَنَحْتُكَ من وُدِّي مُقيماً مكانَهُ

يُبارِي ثَناءً لم يزلْ فيكَ ظاعنا

يُبارِي ثَناءً لم يزلْ فيكَ ظاعنا

I have given you of my love what abides in its place,

I have given you my affection to stay in its place

vying with praise that ever journeys in your honor.

Rivaling praise that has never stopped blaming you

أَعُدُّكَ في الزُّهْر التي هي سبعةٌ

أَعُدُّكَ في الزُّهْر التي هي سبعةٌ

بديئاً ويأبَى الحقُّ عَدِّيكَ ثامنا

بديئاً ويأبَى الحقُّ عَدِّيكَ ثامنا

I count you among the radiant stars, which are seven,

I count you among the seven planets

foremost; truth refuses to let me count you eighth,

As the eighth, though the truth refuses my counting you

وإنْ كان فيها المشتري وهو سعدُها

وإنْ كان فيها المشتري وهو سعدُها

وشمسُ الضُّحى والبدرُ غُرَّاً أَيامِنا

وشمسُ الضُّحى والبدرُ غُرَّاً أَيامِنا

even though Jupiter is among them, their lucky star,

And though among them is the Buyer, its luck,

and the forenoon sun and full moon, radiant and auspicious.

And the sun of morning, and the full moon of our days

ولا بدَّ مِن صِدْقيكَ والصِّدقُ واجبٌ

ولا بدَّ مِن صِدْقيكَ والصِّدقُ واجبٌ

لكل صديقٍ يَسْتصِحُّ البطائنا

لكل صديقٍ يَسْتصِحُّ البطائنا

I must be truthful with you, for truth is a duty

Truthfulness towards you is a must, and truthfulness is a duty

to every friend who seeks trustworthy confidants.

For every sincere friend who examines the essence

بشعرِكَ عَيْبٌ فاحشٌ غيرَ أَنَّهُ

بشعرِكَ عَيْبٌ فاحشٌ غيرَ أَنَّهُ

إذا عُدَّ زَيْن لم يزل لك زائنا

إذا عُدَّ زَيْن لم يزل لك زائنا

Your poetry has a glaring flaw—yet

Your poetry has a glaring fault, except

if counted an adornment, it ever adorns you:

That if counted as ornament, it has never ceased adorning you

أُبوَّة آباء إذا قِيسَ مجدُهُمْ

أُبوَّة آباء إذا قِيسَ مجدُهُمْ

بشعرِكَ عفَّى منه تلك المحاسنا

بشعرِكَ عفَّى منه تلك المحاسنا

Your parentage: when your fathers’ glory is measured

The glory of fathers, if compared

against your verse, it effaces those beauties from it,

To your poetry, has absolved those virtues

وإن كان شعراً للضمير ملائماً

وإن كان شعراً للضمير ملائماً

حلالاً ولطفاً للنظيرِ مُبائنا

حلالاً ولطفاً للنظيرِ مُبائنا

even though it is poetry congenial to the mind,

And if it is poetry conforming to conscience

lawful, and unlike its peers in subtlety.

Lawful and gentle towards its matching peer

أُدِقَّتْ معانيهِ وفُخِّمَ لفظُه

أُدِقَّتْ معانيهِ وفُخِّمَ لفظُه

فغادر أشتاتَ القلوبِ قرائنا

فغادر أشتاتَ القلوبِ قرائنا

Its meanings were made subtle, its wording grand,

Its meanings were refined, and its words made grand,

and so it left scattered hearts joined together.

So it deserted the scattered hearts, a reciter

غدا غيرَ ملحون غُدوَّ مُلَحَّنٍ

غدا غيرَ ملحون غُدوَّ مُلَحَّنٍ

وراح بأسرارِ البلاغة لاحنا

وراح بأسرارِ البلاغة لاحنا

At dawn it went forth without grammatical fault, like verse set to music,

Became unsung after being sung, and carried away

and at evening went forth, hinting at eloquence’s secrets.

The secrets of rhetoric, chanting,

فألهَى امْرَأً تسكينُهُ متحركاً

فألهَى امْرَأً تسكينُهُ متحركاً

وأبكى امرَأً تحريكهُ منه ساكنا

وأبكى امرَأً تحريكهُ منه ساكنا

Its stilling of something moving beguiled a man,

Alluring a restless man to be calmed,

and its stirring of something still within it made a man weep.

And making a calm man weep from its movement

فَمُلِّئْتَهُ لا باذلاً حُرَّ وَجههِ

فَمُلِّئْتَهُ لا باذلاً حُرَّ وَجههِ

ومُلِّئتُما فَضلاً من الله صائنا

ومُلِّئتُما فَضلاً من الله صائنا

So may you be blessed with him, his noble face never abased,

You have filled it, not wastefully showing its face,

and may you both be filled with protective grace from God.

And filled it with God’s grace, guarded