1. أيا راكباً نحو المدينةِ جَسْرَةً

    عُذافِرَةً يَطوي بها كلَّ سبسب

    O rider of a sturdy she-camel toward Medina,

    powerfully built, on which he crosses every desert plain,

  2. إذا ما هداكَ الله عايَنت جَعفراً

    فقل لوليِّ اللهِ وابن المهذبِ

    when God guides you and you behold Ja'far,

    then say to the friend of God and son of the refined one:

  3. ألا يا أمينَ الله وابنَ أمينِه

    أتوبُ إلى الرحمن ثُمّ تأوُّبي

    Behold, O God's trusted one and son of His trusted one,

    I repent to the All-Merciful; then my return

  4. إليك من الأمر الذي كنتُ مُطنِباً

    أحاربُ فيه جاهداً كلَّ مُعْرِبِ

    is to you, away from the matter in which I went to great lengths,

    fighting strenuously over it against every articulate speaker.

  5. إليكَ رددتُ الأمرَ غيرُ مخالِفٍ

    وفِئتُ إلى الرحمنِ من كلّ مذهبِ

    To you I have referred the matter back, without dissent,

    and I have returned to the All-Merciful from every doctrine,

  6. سوى ما تراه يا ابن بنتِ محمدٍ

    فإنّه بِهِ عَقدي وزُلفى تَقرُِّبي

    except what you deem right, O son of Muhammad's daughter,

    for in it lie my creed and the nearness I seek.

  7. وما كان قولي في بن خولةَ مُبطِناً

    معاندةً منّي لنسلِ المطيَّبِ

    Nor did my words about the son of Khawla conceal

    any defiance on my part toward the descendants of the purified one.

  8. ولكنْ رَوينا عن وصيِّ محمدٍ

    وما كان فيما قال بالمتكذِّبِ

    But we transmitted from Muhammad's appointed successor—

    and he was no liar in what he said—

  9. بأن وليَّ الأمر يُفقد لا يُرى

    ستيراً كفعل الخائف المترقِّبِ

    that the holder of authority would go missing, unseen,

    hiding, as someone fearful and watchful would do.

  10. فيقسِم أموالَ الفقيدِ كأنّما

    تغيُّبه بينَ الصفيحِ المُنَصَّبِ

    Then he divides the missing man's wealth, as though

    he were hidden between upright slabs of stone.

  11. فيمكثُ حيناً ثم يُنْبعُ نَبعةً

    كنَبعة جَدِّيٍّ من الأفق كوكبِ

    Then he remains for a time, then is made to rise,

    like the rising of the star Jady from the horizon.

  12. يسيرُ بنصرِ اللهِ من بيت ربّهِ

    على سؤدُدٍ منه وأمر مسبَّبِ

    He marches with God's aid from his Lord's House,

    with eminence from Him and an undertaking duly arranged.

  13. يسير إلى أعدائه بلوائه

    فيقتلهم قتلاً كحران مغضب

    He marches toward his enemies with his banner,

    then kills them, like a man burning with thirst and rage.

  14. فلمّا روى أنّ ابنَ خولةَ غائبٌ

    صَرفنا إليه قولَنا لم نُكذِّبِ

    So when he reported that the son of Khawla was absent,

    we applied our assertion to him, without rejecting the report.

  15. وقلنا هو المهديُّ والقائمُ الذي

    يَعيش به من عِدْلِه كلُّ مُجْدِبِ

    And we said: 'He is the Mahdi and the Qa'im, the one

    through whom, by his justice, every drought-stricken person lives.'

  16. فإن قلتُ لا فالحقُّ قولُك والذي

    أمرتَ فَحتمٌ غيرُ ما مُتَعَصَّبِ

    So if I say 'No,' your word is the truth, and what

    you command is binding, without obstinate partisanship.

  17. وأُشهِدُ ربّي أنّ قولَك حُجّةٌ

    على الخَلق طُرّاً من مُطيعِ ومُذْنبِ

    And I call my Lord to witness that your word is proof

    binding upon all creation, obedient and sinful alike:

  18. بأنّ وليَّ الأمرِ والقائمَ الذي

    تَطَلَّعُ نَفسي نَحوَهُ بِتَطَرُّبِ

    that the holder of authority and the Qa'im, the one

    toward whom my soul looks with joyful yearning,

  19. له غيبةٌ لا بدّ من أن يَغيبها

    فصلّى عليه اللهُ من مُتَغَيِّبِ

    has a period of absence that he must undergo;

    so may God bless him, the one in hiding.

  20. فيمكثُ حيناً ثم يظهرُ حِينُه

    فيملأُ عدلاً كلَّ شرقٍ ومَغْرِبِ

    Then he remains for a time; then his hour dawns,

    then he fills every east and west with justice.

  21. بذاك أدين اللهَ سِرّاً وجَهرةً

    ولستُ وإنْ عُوتبتُ فيهِ بمُعْتِبِ

    By this I worship God, in secret and openly,

    and even if reproached for it, I will not recant.