قد اهتزت الأكوان وارتعد الملا

لقتل امام قامَ اللّه فيصَلا

The worlds have shuddered, and the multitude has trembled

at the killing of an imam who stood as God's arbiter.

على سيرة الفاروقعدلاً وحكمةً

يسير بها للّه ليسَ لما خَلا

Upon al-Faruq's path, in justice and wisdom,

he walked for God, not for anything else.

إمام حباه اللّه نصراً مؤزراً

ولم يتخذ شيئاً سوى اللّه مَوْئلا

An imam whom God endowed with mighty victory,

who took nothing but God as his refuge.

وقام بقسط اللّه في أهل أرضه

بخارقة من أمره تعجز الملا

He upheld God's justice among the people of His earth

through a marvel of His command that confounded the multitude.

على سُنة ذا همّةٍ مشمخرة

لاظهار حكم اللّه حتى تهللا

Following the sacred way, possessed of towering resolve,

he sought to manifest God's rule until it shone.

تجرد يُعلي كلمة اللذه همُّةُ

ليصبح مغزى كلمة الكفر أسفلا

He devoted himself with resolve to exalting God's word,

so that the purport of unbelief's word would sink lowest.

بسطوة مقدام إذا الحرب ألهبت

ولا ينثنى إلا وقد أدرك العلى

With a daring champion's might when war blazed,

he would not turn back until he had attained the heights.

يفلق هامات الخطوب بعزمه

إذا قام قرن البغي أعلاه مقصلا

He cleaves the heads of calamities with his resolve;

when oppression's horn rises, he raises a cleaving sword above it.

رأى الجور أربى فاستقام لقطعه

وما كان وَهْناً رايُه متزلزلا

He saw injustice grow excessive and stood firm to cut it off;

he was neither feeble nor wavering in judgment.

لقد باع في ذات الجهادين نفسه

فما أربح البيعَ العظيم وأفضلا

He sold his soul in the cause of the two holy struggles:

how profitable and excellent that mighty bargain!

فعاش على التحريض في ذات ربّهِ

مخافة حد اللّه أن يتعطلا

He lived exhorting others for his Lord's sake,

fearing that God's prescribed law might fall into neglect.

رأى حرمات اللّه لا من يصونها

قوي ولا عدل يرد المبدلا

He saw God's sacred bounds with none to guard them—

none strong, nor a just man to repel their corrupter.

فشمر ذيل العزم تشميرَ غيرة

فأصبح عرش البغي عرشاً مثللا

So he tucked up resolve's hem with ardent zeal,

and oppression's throne became a throne cast down.

له سيرة الأبرار لا متكبراً

ولا واهناً في العدل أو متعللا

His was the conduct of the righteous, without arrogance,

without feebleness in justice or excuses.

يبيت يناجي اللّه خوفاً ورغبةً

كان عليه للمهابَة أفكلا

He spent the night in intimate prayer to God, in fear and longing;

reverent awe would set him trembling.

إلى أن أراد اللّه اكرام ذاته

بنقل ونعم الدار فيها تنقلا

Until God willed to honor his person

by transferring him—blessed the abode to which he moved!

فأصبح في بحبوحة الخلد ناعماً

وطوبى لمن جوزي بها وتقبلا

He came to dwell at ease in eternity's spacious heart;

blessed is whoever is rewarded with it and accepted.

كما جد في احيائه الدين جده

وفارق دنياه رضياً مكملا

He had labored with all his zeal to revive the faith,

and departed his earthly life content and perfected.

سقى اللّه قبراً ضمه رَوح رحمةٍ

توالى عليه بارقاً متهللا

May God water the grave that holds him with mercy's solace,

coming upon it unceasingly, gleaming and radiant.

بروحي أفديهِ طعيناً ممزقاً

وكان مُفدَى الحور ساعةَ جُدّلا

With my soul I would ransom him, stabbed and torn;

the houris would have ransomed him when he was felled.

يجود بنفس طيَّبَ اللّه ذاتها

إلى يَدربّ العرش تبغي تحولا

He surrendered a soul whose essence God had purified,

seeking passage into the hand of the Lord of the Throne.

تقبلها الرحمن بالروح جاعلاً

لها بين من حازوا الشهادة منزلا

The All-Merciful received it with solace, granting

it a dwelling among those who attained martyrdom.

لقد فاض مظلوماً بطعنة فاجرٍ

له الويل لا زال الشقيَّ المبهلا

He died wronged, from a wicked man's thrust;

woe to that man—may he remain a forsaken wretch!

هنيئاً أمين الله نلتَ شهادة

وأبقيت ذكر الطيبين مبجلا

Blessed are you, God's trustee: you attained martyrdom

and preserved the memory of the virtuous in honor.

ولو فوديت نفس فديناك طيبةً

ولكنها الآجال تمضي إلى البلى

Had a soul been able to ransom you, we would gladly have ransomed you;

but appointed lifetimes pass onward to decay.

عزاء لأهل الحق إن مصابكمْ

جليل ولكن يلزم الصبر في البلا

Consolation to the people of truth: your affliction

is grievous, yet patience is required amid trials.

لنا خلف في الله عنه وسلوة

بأن امام المسلمين له تلا

In God we have a successor in his stead, and consolation

in that the imam of the Muslims has succeeded him.

جزى الله عنا المسلمين جَزآءَهُ

بساعة لم يُلغوا حمى الدين مهملا

May God reward the Muslims on our behalf with His recompense

for the hour when they did not leave the faith's sanctuary neglected.

راوا فتنةً صماء جاشَتْ جيوشها

فقاوَمَها عيسى فطاشت كلاولا

They saw unyielding turmoil, its armies surging;

Isa resisted it, and it scattered in an instant.

وثايَرَهُ من عصبة الدين أسرَةٌ

لهم غيرة من يوم عمار تجتلى

A clan from the fellowship of faith rose with him,

their zeal shining clearly since Ammar's day.

قياماً بحق الله فانتخبوا لها

هماماً لكل المكرمات تقيلا

Upholding God's right, they elected for it

a resolute man, weighty in every noble deed.

مجيد عظيم الهم سبط نجادُهُ

إذا أقبلت كبرى العظائم أقبلا

Illustrious, great in purpose, his sword-belt long,

when the greatest of grave affairs approach, he comes forward.

تقلدها لا قاصراً عن شئونها

ولكنها جَلت فلاقَتْ مجللا

He assumed its charge, not unequal to its concerns;

it proved momentous and met a man of majesty.

تردَّ أمينَ الله ثوباً كساكَهُ

الَهُكَ لم يدنس ولا بلغ البلى

Don, God's trustee, a robe bestowed upon you

by your God: unstained and untouched by decay.

تناولتَه عن عاهٍن بعدَ عاهن

ملوك بني قطحان أول أولا

You received it from one established holder after another,

the kings of the sons of Qahtan, predecessor after predecessor.

فلله سربال من النور جاءَ مِنْ

خليل بن شاذان وَصَلتٍ ومن خلا

God's is a robe of light that came from

Khalil ibn Shadhan, and Salt, and those who passed before.

فلا زال سربالاً تزين بوشيهِ

على محور القرآن حِيكَ وهلهلا

May it ever remain a robe; adorn yourself with its embroidery,

woven and finely textured on the Qur'an's spindle.

شكرنا رجالاً قلدوك حسامَها

فراسة ايمانٍ وسر تسَلسَلاَ

We thank the men who girded you with its sword,

through faith's discernment and a secret handed down.

فقد صدقت فيك الفراسة منهمْ

فما وقعَت إلا على الحق والجلا

Their discernment has proved true concerning you:

it fell upon nothing but truth and clarity.

فيا لرجال الله حقاً نَصَرتُمُ

وعزرتمُ هذا الامام المفضلا

O men of God, truly you have given aid

and upheld this favored imam.

تنورتموه وهو نجمٌ لأفقها

فأصبح هذا الكون بالنور مشعلا

You discerned his light, a star upon its horizon,

and this universe became ablaze with light.

لدى ملكوت الله يُتلى ثناؤهُ

وللملأ الأعلى لأمثاله ولا

Within God's kingdom his praise is recited,

and the highest assembly bears allegiance to his like.

أمام غدا في جبهة الدهر غُرةً

له قَدَمٌ في الصالحات وفي العُلى

An imam who became a radiant mark upon time's brow,

with a firm footing in righteous deeds and in the heights.

هو الباسل الضرغام في حَومة الوغى

وقد عرفت منه الكوارث مَبهَلا

He is the valiant lion amid the thick of battle,

and calamities have known him unrestrained.

محمد المعروف في الأرض والسما

بصِيتٍ على لسن الملائك أسبلا

Muhammad, known on earth and in heaven,

with renown poured forth upon the angels' tongues.

صبور على العلات أما خلاله

فزُهر وأما المال فالويل في الملا

Patient through afflictions; as for his virtues,

they are blossoms; as for wealth, woe to it among the multitude!

حليم على جهل الجهول مُرَزَّءٌ

يصادي الرزابا ثابتاً متوكلا

Forbearing with the foolish man's folly, beset by losses,

he confronts calamities, steadfast and trusting in God.

يُدبر ما لا يوهن الجيش صعبه

ولو لم يجرد فيه رمحاً وفيصلاً

He directs affairs so their difficulty does not weaken the army,

even without drawing a spear or a cleaving sword.

ويبرم روعات الأمور بحكمةٍ

ويصدر في الأزمات راياً مؤصَّلا

He resolves the terrors of affairs with wisdom

and in crises issues well-grounded counsel.

كأنَّ سديد الرأي وحيٌ منزل

وحاشا ولكن قله وهباً مرسلا

His sound judgment seems a revelation sent down—

far be it! Rather, call it a gift bestowed.

لكم حل منه الرأي صعباً فأصبَحَتْ

مصاعب ذاك الأمر أمراً مسهّلا

How often his counsel resolved a difficulty, so that

the hardships of that affair became an easy matter!

وكم صادمته من لياليهِ نكبة

ففكك أغلالاً وكشف معضلا

How many calamities from his nights struck him,

and he unfastened shackles and cleared away a knotty problem!

حرام عليه أن يبيتَ لحادث

إذا لم يُصَبحّه الجلاءَ معجلا

He will not spend the night over a crisis

without bringing it swift relief at dawn.

إليك أمير المؤمنين رسالةً

وحسبي فخراً أن أكن لك مرسلا

To you, Commander of the Faithful, a message:

it is pride enough for me to be your messenger.

تيقن بأن سر الخليلي قد بَدا

على وجهك الميمون بَرقاً تهللا

Be certain that al-Khalili's secret has appeared

upon your blessed face as a radiant flash.

تيقن بأن سرّ الخليلي إذ دعا

أتيح له نصر على لوحه انجلى

Be certain that al-Khalili's secret, when he prayed,

was granted victory, revealed upon his tablet.

دعا دعوة يا قدس الله سرَّهُ

أجيب بها حياً ومن بعد ما خلا

He uttered a prayer—O, may God sanctify his secret!—

which was answered in his lifetime and after his passing.

سموط ثناء جُرّدت من ضميره

فكانت على أعداء ذا الدين مقصلا

Strands of praise were drawn from his heart

and became a cleaving sword against this faith's foes.

فيا دعوةً لم يغلق الله بابها

بها ركن عرش الظالمين تزلزلا

O prayer whose gate God did not close!

Through it, the pillar of the oppressors' throne was shaken.

فقضى بها سُودَ الليالي زواهراً

بصوت لعرش الله قطعاً توصلا

He spent black nights in its radiance,

with a voice that surely reached God's throne.

يغوث والأكوان تحت جبينه

يغوثن تأميناً إذا ما تبتلا

He cries for aid, and the worlds beneath his brow

cry 'Amen' whenever he devotes himself to prayer.

ومن لي بأنصار إلى الله وحده

ومن لي بسيف يقطع الهامَ والكلا

Who will give me helpers toward God alone?

Who will give me a sword that cleaves heads and kidneys?

فأصبحت في ذاك الدعاء إجابَةً

وأصبحتَ ذاك السيف ذو كان أملا

You became the answer within that prayer,

and you became that sword which had been hoped for.

لكان رسول الله دعوة جده

وكنتَ أمينَ الله في ذاك من تلا

God's Messenger was indeed his forefather's prayer,

and you, God's trustee, followed him in that.

تناول عقود الدر من خير ناظمٍ

نعم هو نور مجتنى منك مجتلى

Receive necklaces of pearls from the finest stringer:

yes, a light gathered from you and displayed.

لقد طال ما أوعيتَ أذني جواهراً

رجعناه منا كن له متقبلا

Long have you filled my ears with jewels;

we have returned it from ourselves: accept it.

وأوليتني فضلاً لو الشمّ طوّقت

لقد كان منها في الموازين أثقلا

You bestowed on me a bounty which, were lofty mountains garlanded with it,

would outweigh them in the scales.

ومن أسف إني أودع مَربَعاً

أنيقاً بهِ كنتم ربيعاً ومعقلا

Regretfully, I bid farewell to a dwelling

lovely, where you were springtime and a refuge.

ومالي صبر عنكم باستطاعةٍ

ولكن رأيت الصبر بالحرّ أجملا

I have no power to bear separation from you,

but I judged patience more becoming to a free man.

عسى نفحة الرحمن تجمعُ بيننا

فيصبح ما بالقلب خَطباً مسهلا

May a breath from the All-Merciful bring us together,

and make the trouble in my heart easy to bear.

ولولا فروض الزمتني أداءها

لشيخ عسى لا يستطيع التنقلا

Were it not for duties whose fulfillment bound me

to an old man who perhaps can no longer travel,

حليف العصا يمشي الهوينا أصابَهُ

مُصابُ بني الستين وهناً فحوقلا

companion to his staff, walking slowly, afflicted

with the weakness of sixty-year-olds, grown feeble with age,

وصية ربي فيه أرعى حقوقها

ولولاه لم أنصب لنفسي مزحلا

I observe the rights of my Lord's injunction concerning him;

but for him, I would not have chosen a place of departure for myself.

رحلت إليه كي أفوز بقربهِ

فألفيت منهُ المنزل المتخولا

I journeyed to him to gain the joy of his nearness,

and found from him a dwelling generously provided.

ولولا خطوب ضعضعت من جناحه

لسابق سير الريح نحوكَ مذملا

Were it not for hardships that weakened his wing,

he would race the wind's course toward you at a swift pace.

فهل لكم فيه وقد نجمت لَهُ

نواجم دهر بالشدائد والبَلا

Will you take thought for him, now that there have arisen for him

the outbreaks of time, with hardships and trials?

ولم يبق في الدنيا له من معول

سواك ونعم الركن أنتَ معوّلا

He has no support left in the world

but you—and how excellent a pillar you are to lean upon!

فلا تنبذنه بين أسْدٍ عوابسٍ

وبين بلاء حيث ادْبَرَ أقبلا

Do not cast him among scowling lions

and amid affliction that advances wherever he retreats.

فلا يبطئن تدبيركم في رجوعه

فلا زلتَ في الاحسان يمناك أطولا

Do not let your plans for his return be delayed;

may your right hand ever reach farthest in beneficence.

وما كان شيخي واهناً في اصطباره

ولا طائشاً في أمره متخذلا

My elder was never feeble in his patient endurance,

nor reckless in his affairs, nor faltering.

ولكن ريب الدهر صعب مراسه

ترى كل حُرٍّ تحته متزلزلا

But time's misfortunes are hard to contend with:

you see every free man shaken beneath them.

يعاند جَرْىَ الحر حتى يثلَّهُ

ويترك روض النبل والفضل ممحلا

They resist the free man's course until they lay him low

and leave the garden of nobility and virtue barren.

بشينمتك الزهراء لا تنسينهُ

حنانيك عقبى الخير لن تتحولا

By your radiant character, do not forget him;

have mercy: goodness's reward will never change.

حنانيك يا سبط الخليلي إنها

ذخيرة خيرٍ قصَّرَتْ دونها الملا

Have mercy, O grandson of al-Khalili; this is

a store of goodness beyond the multitude's reach.

أغث عانياً أربح ثواب فكاكه

فلا زلتَ للإسلام حصناً وَمَوئلا

Aid a captive; gain the reward of freeing him;

may you ever be Islam's fortress and refuge.

أتاح لك الرحمن نصراً مؤيداً

ولا زال خصم الدين خصماً مكبلا

May the All-Merciful grant you sustaining victory,

and may the faith's foe ever remain a shackled foe.