نَجيئُكَ عائِدينَ وَكانَ أَشهى

نَجيئُكَ عائِدينَ وَكانَ أَشهى

إِلَينا لَو تُزارُ وَلا تُعادُ

إِلَينا لَو تُزارُ وَلا تُعادُ

We come to visit you in illness; it would be dearer

We shall return to you though it were

to us if you received visits, but not in illness.

Sweeter to us, wert thou visited no more.

قَدَرتَ عَلى المَكارِمِ لا اِنتِقاصٌ

قَدَرتَ عَلى المَكارِمِ لا اِنتِقاصٌ

يُفيتُكَ قَدرَهُنَّ وَلا اِزدِيادُ

يُفيتُكَ قَدرَهُنَّ وَلا اِزدِيادُ

You have mastered noble virtues; neither deficiency

Thy generosity is fixed and suffers no

nor excess makes you miss their proper measure.

Diminution or increase.

وَما يَتَخالَجُ القاضي اِرتِيابٌ

وَما يَتَخالَجُ القاضي اِرتِيابٌ

بِأَنَّكَ طِرفُ حَلبَتِهِ الجَوادُ

بِأَنَّكَ طِرفُ حَلبَتِهِ الجَوادُ

And no doubt troubles the judge

No doubt besets the judge that thou art

that you are the swift, noble steed of his racecourse.

A steed whose sire was nobly bred.

أَعَدتَ خِلالَهُ فينا وَلَولا

أَعَدتَ خِلالَهُ فينا وَلَولا

كَمالُكَ لَم تَكُن مِمّا يُعادُ

كَمالُكَ لَم تَكُن مِمّا يُعادُ

You have revived his virtues among us; but for

Thou sowedst benefits among us, else,

your perfection, they could not have been revived.

But for thy perfection, they were not renewed.

وَأَنتَ خَليفَةٌ مِنهُ تَسودُ ال

وَأَنتَ خَليفَةٌ مِنهُ تَسودُ ال

بَنينَ الأَشرَفينَ وَلا تُسادُ

بَنينَ الأَشرَفينَ وَلا تُسادُ

And you are his successor, lord over the

Thou art the Caliph's vicegerent; thee

noblest sons, and ruled over by none.

The princes of lofty race obey, unbidden.

وَبَعضُهُمُ يَكونُ أَبوهُ مِنهُ

وَبَعضُهُمُ يَكونُ أَبوهُ مِنهُ

مَكانَ النارِ يَخلُفُها الرَمادُ

مَكانَ النارِ يَخلُفُها الرَمادُ

And for some of them, their father is to them

And one of them—his father sprang

as fire is to the ashes that succeed it.

From thy fire's ashes when the flame was quenched.