وَقافِيَةٍ عَجَّت بِلَيلٍ رَزينَةٍ

وَقافِيَةٍ عَجَّت بِلَيلٍ رَزينَةٍ

تَلَقَّيتُ مِن جَوِّ السَماءِ نُزولَها

تَلَقَّيتُ مِن جَوِّ السَماءِ نُزولَها

And a weighty ode rang out through the night;

And many a weighty verse that rang out by night

I received its descent from the very midst of heaven.

I received as it descended from the expanse of heaven.

يَراها الَّذي لا يَنطِقُ الشِعرَ عِندَهُ

يَراها الَّذي لا يَنطِقُ الشِعرَ عِندَهُ

وَيَعجِزُ عَن أَمثالِها أَن يَقولَها

وَيَعجِزُ عَن أَمثالِها أَن يَقولَها

Even one with no voice for verse can recognize it,

He who utters no poetry sees it before him,

yet he is powerless to utter anything like it.

And is unable to utter verses like it.

مَتاريكُ أَذنابِ الحُقوقِ إِذا اِلتَوَت

مَتاريكُ أَذنابِ الحُقوقِ إِذا اِلتَوَت

أَخَذنا الفُروعَ وَاِجتَثَثنا أُصولَها

أَخَذنا الفُروعَ وَاِجتَثَثنا أُصولَها

We let go the trailing ends of claims when they twist into knots;

We leave aside the tails of claims; when they grow tangled,

we seize the branches and tear out their roots.

We take the branches and uproot their roots.

مَقاويلُ بِالمَعروفِ خُرسٌ عَنِ الخَنا

مَقاويلُ بِالمَعروفِ خُرسٌ عَنِ الخَنا

كِرامٌ مَعاطٍ لِلعَشيرَةِ سولَها

كِرامٌ مَعاطٍ لِلعَشيرَةِ سولَها

Eloquent in speaking good, but mute before obscenity—

We speak freely of goodness, but are mute to foul speech;

noble, generous givers, granting the clan its heart’s desire.

Generous, we lavish on the clan what it desires.