طائِرُ الفِكرِ قَد شَدا وَتَغَنّى

طائِرُ الفِكرِ قَد شَدا وَتَغَنّى

مُذ هَصَرتَ القَريضَ نَحيوَ غُصنا

مُذ هَصَرتَ القَريضَ نَحيوَ غُصنا

The bird of thought has warbled and sung,

The bird of thought has sung and soared

Since you bent a branch of verse [toward me?].

Since you crafted the ode towards a branch

لَيسَ نُكراً فَأَنتَ رَوضُ نِظامٍ

لَيسَ نُكراً فَأَنتَ رَوضُ نِظامٍ

مِن فُروعٍ لَهُ الأَزاهِرُ تُجنى

مِن فُروعٍ لَهُ الأَزاهِرُ تُجنى

No wonder, for you are a garden of verse,

You are no stranger, for you are Nizam's garden

From whose branches the blossoms are gathered.

With blossoms its branches bear

وَإِذا كُنتَ لِلبَيانِ سَحاباً

وَإِذا كُنتَ لِلبَيانِ سَحاباً

فَجَديرٌ بِأن نَرى مِنكَ مُزناً

فَجَديرٌ بِأن نَرى مِنكَ مُزناً

And if you are a cloud of eloquent expression,

If you are a cloud of eloquence

Then it is fitting that we see rain clouds from you.

You deserve that we see rain from you

ذاكَ شِعرٌ لضهُ البَلاغَةُ تاجٌ

ذاكَ شِعرٌ لضهُ البَلاغَةُ تاجٌ

وَبِسِحرِ البَيانِ كُحِّلَ جَفناً

وَبِسِحرِ البَيانِ كُحِّلَ جَفناً

That is poetry [for which?] eloquence is a crown,

That is poetry which rhetoric has crowned

And its eyelid was lined with kohl through the magic of expression.

And which magic of expression has kohl-lined its eyelid

شاكَلَ الخَطُّ حُسنَهُ فاِهتَدَينا

شاكَلَ الخَطُّ حُسنَهُ فاِهتَدَينا

أَيّ حالٍ كَسى المُعَطَّل حُسناً

أَيّ حالٍ كَسى المُعَطَّل حُسناً

The script matched its beauty, and so we understood

Your handwriting matched its beauty so we were guided

What condition clothed the unadorned in beauty.

What beauty has the disabled dressed in

وَيُرى مِنهُ ذو اِختِفاء بِلَفظٍ

وَيُرى مِنهُ ذو اِختِفاء بِلَفظٍ

فَحَسِبنا الهِلالَ دُجنا

فَحَسِبنا الهِلالَ دُجنا

And what is hidden in it is seen through an utterance,

And in it one of disappearance is seen in an expression

So we took the crescent moon for gloom.

So we thought the crescent was a full moon

أَنتَ بَحرُ النِظامِ تَلفِظُ دُرّا

أَنتَ بَحرُ النِظامِ تَلفِظُ دُرّا

اِعتَلى قيمَةً وَشَنَّفَ أذنا

اِعتَلى قيمَةً وَشَنَّفَ أذنا

You are the sea of verse, casting forth pearls

You are the sea of composition pouring pearls

That rose high in worth and adorned an ear.

Rising in value and delighting the ear

وَلِحُرِّ الكَلامِ تَملِكُ رِقاً

وَلِحُرِّ الكَلامِ تَملِكُ رِقاً

وَعَلى غَيرِكَ القَريضُ تَجَنّى

وَعَلى غَيرِكَ القَريضُ تَجَنّى

And you hold freeborn speech in bondage,

And you possess gentleness for the heat of speech

And verse has wronged those other than you.

While upon others the ode bears fruit