1. نهاني الحق في الغّطّطْ

    عن المطّاط والسقّطْ

    The Real warned me in slumber

    against the swaggering and the base.

  2. وإني لا أجالس مَنْ

    يكون بمثلِ ذا النَّمَط

    And indeed, I do not sit with anyone

    who is of such a kind.

  3. وأفهمني بأنْ أحظى

    به في العالم الوسَط

    And He made me understand that I would attain

    Him in the middle world.

  4. قل للشخيص الذي بالحقِّ يعرفني

    من كان يعرفني بالحقِّ ينصفني

    Tell the imposing man who knows me through the Real:

    Whoever knows me through the Real treats me fairly.

  5. ولستُ فيه بمعصوم وإن غلطتْ

    ألفاظنا فعلى التحقيقِ يوقفني

    I am not infallible in this; if errors mar

    our words, he leads me to sound understanding.

  6. فصاحبي من أراه في تقلبه

    في كلِّ حال من الأحوال ينصحني

    My companion, then, is one whom I see, through his changing states,

    counseling me in every state of being,

  7. في خلوة إن نصح الشخص في ملأ

    فضيحة وخليلي ليس يفضحني

    in private; for counseling a person before a gathering

    is disgrace, and my dear friend does not disgrace me.

  8. فالله يمنحُ ما أملت منه وما

    يعطيني إلا الذي في الوقت يصلحني

    God grants what I have hoped from Him, and does not

    give me anything but what sets me right at the time.

  9. نعم ويصلح بي فالنفسُ واثقة

    به على كلِّ ما يرضى وينفعني

    Yes, and He sets things right through me; the soul is confident

    in Him, in all that pleases Him and benefits me.

  10. فإن الله جلَّ الله ذو كرمٍ

    المنعُ منه عطاءٌ حين يمنعني

    For God—exalted is God—is generous;

    His withholding is a gift when He withholds from me.

  11. المنعُ منه عطاءٌ فيه منفعةٌ

    للعبد من حيث لا يدري ويحجبني

    His withholding is a gift containing benefit

    for the servant, from where he does not know; and He veils me

  12. عنه واعلم قطعاً أنه ملك

    وإنني نائبٌ عنه فيكرمني

    from Him. Know with certainty that He is a king,

    and that I am His deputy; so He honors me

  13. برفعِ غاشية يقول مطّرقاً

    هذا خليفتنا في السرّ والعلن

    by lifting a covering, saying with bowed head:

    This is Our vicegerent, in secret and in public.

  14. بروحه القدسيّ العال أيدني

    وبالظلال التي في الحر ظللني

    With His lofty, holy spirit He strengthened me,

    and with shades in the heat He sheltered me.

  15. وجاءنا منه توقيعٌ بأنَّ لنا

    ختمَ الولايةِ والختمانِ في قرن

    And from Him came to us a decree that ours is

    the seal of sainthood; the two seals are bound together.

  16. روحٌ لروحٍ وتيجانُ مكللةٌ

    من النضار الذي الرحمن يزجرني

    A spirit for a spirit, and adorned crowns

    of pure gold, which the All-Merciful restrains me

  17. عنها وعن حللِ الديباج فاعتبروا

    فيما أتاكم به ذو المنطقِِ الحسنِ

    from, and from robes of brocade; so reflect

    on what the man of fine speech has brought you.

  18. الواهبُ الألفَ والآلافُ جائزة

    لكلِّ طالبِ رفد أو لذي لسنِ

    The giver of a thousand—and thousands are a reward

    for every seeker of bounty, or one endowed with eloquence.

  19. شبهتُ نفسي في عصري وحالتها

    بعصرِ سيدنا سيفِ بن ذي يزن

    I likened myself in my age, and my soul's condition,

    to the age of our lord Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan.

  20. لا علم لي بالذي في الغيب من عَجَبٍ

    ولستُ أدري بنعمان ولا المزني

    I have no knowledge of the wonders in the unseen,

    nor do I know Nu'man or al-Muzani,

  21. حتى رأيتُ الذي بالعلمِ بشرني

    والملك وهو مع الأنفاس يطلبني

    until I saw the one who brought me glad tidings of knowledge

    and kingship, while he seeks me with every breath.

  22. إنَّ الذي قد دعاني في بشائره

    فلا يزال مع الأحيان يخطبني

    Indeed, the one who has called me in his glad tidings

    still courts me as time passes.

  23. فقلت يا ربّ أمّا العلمُ أقبله

    والملك لستُ أراه فهو يخدعني

    So I said: My Lord, as for knowledge, I accept it;

    and kingship—I do not see it, so it deceives me.

  24. إنْ كان عَرَضاً فما لي فيه من أربٍ

    أو كان أمراً فإن الأمر يطمعني

    If it is a transient thing, I have no desire for it;

    or if it is a command, then the command makes me hope

  25. في عصمةِ عصم الله الحفيظ بها

    نفسي فأعلم أنَّ الله يحفظني

    for protection with which God, the Preserver, has guarded

    my soul; thus I know that God guards me.

  26. إذا سمعت كلاماً لا يوافقني

    منه أسلمه وليس يحفظني

    When I hear speech that does not accord with me

    from Him, I accept it, yet it does not guard me.

  27. له التصرفُ في مولاه كيف يرى

    مولاه فهو له من أعصمِ الجنن

    He has power over his master, however

    his master sees fit; he is among his surest shields.

  28. أجسامُ كلِّ رسولٍ مصطفى نَدسْ

    له المكانةُ والزُّلفى بلا محن

    The bodies of every chosen, discerning messenger—

    he has high standing and nearness, without trials.

  29. أتى بمألكة من عند مرسله

    مبلغاً بلسانِ القومِ واللحن

    He came with a message from the one who sent him,

    conveying it in the people's tongue and idiom.

  30. قد طهرَّ الله نفساً منه زاكية

    من كلِّ سوءٍ كمثلِ الحقدِ والإحن

    God has indeed purified his pure soul

    of every evil, such as rancor and grudges.