شعارُ المدح من كرَمِ الطبيعهْ

شعارُ المدح من كرَمِ الطبيعهْ

ونارُ الذم من حطب الوقيعهْ

ونارُ الذم من حطب الوقيعهْ

The emblem of praise springs from a generous nature,

The motto of praise stems from the generosity of nature,

And the fire of blame from the firewood of slander.

While the fire of blame stems from the kindling of defamation.

فإن تُبغضْ تَذُمَّ بغير شرعٍ

فإن تُبغضْ تَذُمَّ بغير شرعٍ

أخاً يحميه صمصامُ الشريعهْ

أخاً يحميه صمصامُ الشريعهْ

For if you hate, you revile without lawful right

If you hate and blame without religious law,

A brother whom the keen sword of sacred law protects.

A brother protected by the helmet of Sharia.

فَسَدُّ الأُذنِ عن ثلبٍ وذمٍّ

فَسَدُّ الأُذنِ عن ثلبٍ وذمٍّ

بشرع اللَه أَحكَمُها صنيعه

بشرع اللَه أَحكَمُها صنيعه

So shutting the ear to slander and blame

Then close your ears to slander and blame,

Is, by God's law, the wisest of deeds.

With God's law, He perfected its making.

لسان المرء عضبٌ قد أُعِدَّت

لسان المرء عضبٌ قد أُعِدَّت

بمتنيه الرزايا كالوديعه

بمتنيه الرزايا كالوديعه

A person's tongue is a keen sword; already stored

A person's tongue is a lethal weapon,

Along its two sides are calamities, like a deposit.

Prepared with the evils of transgressions like a trust.

متى جرَّدته جردت شرّاً

متى جرَّدته جردت شرّاً

كأن الموت في فيه طليعه

كأن الموت في فيه طليعه

Whenever you unsheathe it, you unsheathe evil,

When you unleash it, you unleash evil,

As though death were a vanguard in his mouth.

As if death were in its vanguard.

فعنوان الشرور لسانُ مؤذٍ

فعنوان الشرور لسانُ مؤذٍ

ترى آفاتِه عنه مذيعه

ترى آفاتِه عنه مذيعه

So the hallmark of evils is the tongue of one who harms;

So the harbinger of evils is a harmful tongue,

You see its faults proclaiming what it is.

You see its harms broadcasted from it.

تراه الدهر موتوراً فيُصمي

تراه الدهر موتوراً فيُصمي

بسهم نفاقه نفساً وديعه

بسهم نفاقه نفساً وديعه

You see it forever aggrieved, so it strikes dead

You see it paralyzed by the era, so it deafens

With the arrow of its hypocrisy, a gentle soul.

A gentle soul with the arrow of its hypocrisy.

فشهرتُه تعلِّمُ كلَّ فحشٍ

فشهرتُه تعلِّمُ كلَّ فحشٍ

يهوديٍّ ورؤيتُه مُريعه

يهوديٍّ ورؤيتُه مُريعه

For its notoriety teaches every obscenity

Its fame teaches every abomination,

That is Jewish; and the sight of it is terrifying.

Jew, and its sight is appalling.

مذاقتُه وحدَّتُهُ كنارٍ

مذاقتُه وحدَّتُهُ كنارٍ

مؤجَّجةٍ ولهجتُه سريعه

مؤجَّجةٍ ولهجتُه سريعه

Its taste and its sharpness are like a fire,

Its taste and its sharpness are like a flaming fire,

Blazing; and its speech is swift.

Its tongue quick like lightning.

فكم من موكبٍ الحبِّ زاهٍ

فكم من موكبٍ الحبِّ زاهٍ

يمزِّقُه ولا يخشى القطيعه

يمزِّقُه ولا يخشى القطيعه

And how many a splendid procession of love

So how many processions of love collapsed,

It tears apart, without fearing estrangement!

Which it tore without fearing separation.

أعاد الحلو مرّاً بعد عكسٍ

أعاد الحلو مرّاً بعد عكسٍ

ورَدَّ الحسنَ سَحْنَتُهُ شنيعه

ورَدَّ الحسنَ سَحْنَتُهُ شنيعه

It turned the sweet bitter after a reversal,

It made the sweet bitter again after change,

And made beauty's countenance hideous.

And its vileness distorted the beautiful.

لقد كاد الملوكَ بكل فنٍّ

لقد كاد الملوكَ بكل فنٍّ

ودكَّ عواصماً كانت منيعه

ودكَّ عواصماً كانت منيعه

Indeed, it schemed against kings by every art,

It almost destroyed kings in every art,

And leveled capitals that were impregnable.

And razed impregnable citadels.

فلو أن الشرور مكوَّناتٌ

فلو أن الشرور مكوَّناتٌ

لقلت هي اللسان مع الوقيعه

لقلت هي اللسان مع الوقيعه

So if evils were given form,

If evils were created,

I would say: they are the tongue together with slander.

I would say it is the tongue and defamation.

إلهي وقِّني من حتف نطقي

إلهي وقِّني من حتف نطقي

فكم نفسٍ هوت منه صريعه

فكم نفسٍ هوت منه صريعه

My God, protect me from death brought by my speech,

My God protect me from the doom of my speech,

For how many a soul has fallen, slain by it!

For how many souls have fallen dead from it.