1. أعدد لضيفك أهبة الإِكرامِ

    وتحية موصولة بسلام

    Prepare the means of honoring your guest,

    And a greeting accompanied by peace.

  2. وتلقَ أياماً له وليالياً

    بصيام راعي ذمّة وقيام

    And welcome its days and nights

    With the fasting of one who keeps faith, and with prayer.

  3. واعكف على الأذكار في آنائه

    ما بين مبتدإِ له وختام

    And devote yourself to remembrance throughout its hours,

    From its beginning to its end.

  4. رمضان شهر الصَّوم فاغنم قربَهُ

    تغنم أجلّ دعائم الإِسلام

    Ramadan, the month of fasting—make the most of its nearness,

    And you will gain the noblest of Islam's pillars.

  5. إكليلُ مفرق دهره بل تاجُهُ

    والدَّرةُ الوسطى لسلك العام

    The wreath upon the head of its age—nay, its crown,

    And the central pearl upon the year's string.

  6. ومُقامُ بذل رغائب ومواهب

    لو أنه يحتل دار مقام

    And a place for bestowing cherished blessings and gifts—

    If only it would settle in a lasting abode!

  7. فاشدد له عقد الوفاءِ فإنما

    أيامُهُ غُرَرٌ من الأيام

    So draw tight the knot of your faithfulness to it, for

    Its days are the brightest among days.

  8. وإذا ظفرت بظلمةٍ من ليلهِ

    فالنّور باطن ذلك الأظلام

    And when you gain a stretch of darkness from its night,

    Light lies within that darkness.

  9. لو أن مقدمه يباع ويشتري

    بُذلت له الأرواح في الأسوام

    If its coming could be sold and bought,

    Lives would be offered for it in the bidding.

  10. إن الرّجال على لاحقيقة زمرةٌ

    قطعته نائمة على الأقدام

    Men, in truth, are a company

    That passed it sleeping upon their feet.

  11. علمت وشيك زواله فسمت لهُ

    منقادةً منه بخير زمام

    They knew its passing was near, and rose toward it,

    Obediently led by it with the finest rein.

  12. والجسمُ لا يأوي للذة راحةٍ

    والجفنُ ليس يذوق طيب منام

    And the body seeks no refuge in the pleasure of rest,

    And the eyelid tastes no sweetness of sleep.

  13. طوبى لمن وافاه واجب حقه

    من حرمةٍ فُرضت له وذمام

    Blessed is whoever renders it its rightful due

    Of reverence ordained for it and binding obligation.

  14. طوبى لمن غضَّ الجفون بشهره

    عن لحظ مكروه له وحرام

    Blessed is whoever lowers his eyelids in its month

    From gazing at what is disapproved or forbidden to him.

  15. طوبى لمن خطم اللسان عن الخنا

    واللّغو والتّقوى أكفَّ خطام

    Blessed is whoever bridles his tongue against obscenity

    And idle talk; piety is the firmest bridle.

  16. يا صائمين وقائمين بشارة

    بسلامة فيه ودار سلام

    O you who fast and stand in prayer, glad tidings

    Of safety in it and an abode of peace!

  17. في شهركم هذا مواسم رحمةٍ

    كُتبت لصائمه على الإِلزام

    In this month of yours are seasons of mercy,

    Written down as a binding decree for those who fast in it.

  18. شتَّان بين لاقائمين بليله

    للخوف أو للشوق والنّوام

    How far apart are those who stand in prayer through its night

    Out of fear or longing, and those who sleep!

  19. صبروا قليلاً فاستعاضوا راحةً

    في دار خلد ناعم ودوام

    They endured a little, then gained repose in return,

    In an abode of blissful immortality and permanence.

  20. عجباً لمن وجد الشّفاء لذنبه

    وأقام مرتبكاً مع الآثام

    How strange that one who has found the cure for his sin

    Should remain entangled in sins!

  21. طبعُ بهيمي وأكثر من ترى

    يعتدده العقلاء في الأنعام

    A brutish nature! And most of those you see

    The wise count among the cattle.

  22. من لم يعظهُ الموتُ وهو معاين

    لم ينتفع أبداً بنقل كلام

    Whoever is not admonished by death while witnessing it

    Will never benefit from words passed on.

  23. وإذا انقضى شهرُ الصّيام ولم تَتُب

    فمن البعيد متاب باقي العام

    And if the month of fasting ends and you have not repented,

    Repentance during the rest of the year is unlikely.

  24. وإذا تعدّيت الطبيب لغيره

    فات الطبيبُ وفزت بالآلام

    And if you pass the physician by for someone else,

    You miss the physician, and pain is your prize.

  25. خذها نصيحة قائل بحقيقةٍ

    لو وافقت عوناً من الإفهام

    Take it as counsel from one who speaks the truth—

    If only it found help from understanding!