صرفتَ لِسبكِ النَّظم والنثر همّةً

صرفتَ لِسبكِ النَّظم والنثر همّةً

تُرينا بها ما يَسْحَرُ الفِكرَ حُسْنُهُ

تُرينا بها ما يَسْحَرُ الفِكرَ حُسْنُهُ

I devoted my ambition to the forging of verse and prose;

You devoted your resolve to forging verse and prose.

through it, you show us something whose beauty enchants the mind.

Through it you show us that whose beauty enchants the mind.

وأضحَتْ سماء الملكِ منك منيرةً

وأضحَتْ سماء الملكِ منك منيرةً

فأنتَ سنَاء الملكِ قُلْ لي أم ابنُهُ

فأنتَ سنَاء الملكِ قُلْ لي أم ابنُهُ

And through you, the king’s heaven has become a source of light to me;

And the sky of the realm has become radiant through you.

for you are the king’s radiance—tell me, or are you his son?

So are you Sanāʾ al-Mulk—tell me—or his son?