ما لقومي عن حديثي في عما

ما لقومي عن حديثي في عما

ثم قالوا نحن فيكم علما

ثم قالوا نحن فيكم علما

Why are my people blind to my discourse?

My people turn from my discourse in blindness,

Then they said, “We are scholars among you.”

Then said: "We surpass you in knowledge."

صَدقوا في نصف ما قالوا وما

صَدقوا في نصف ما قالوا وما

صَدقوا في نصفه الثاني لِما

صَدقوا في نصفه الثاني لِما

They spoke truly in half of what they said, but did not

They spoke true in half of what they said, not

speak truly in its second half, because of what

True in the other half, for

يقتضيه حكمُ ما جئتُ به

يقتضيه حكمُ ما جئتُ به

من علومٍ جهلتها الحكما

من علومٍ جهلتها الحكما

the ruling of what I have brought entails—

What the judgement of what I brought

sciences of which the sages were ignorant.

Of sciences they knew not, though wise.

عزَّ علمُ الذَّوقِ أنْ يدركه

عزَّ علمُ الذَّوقِ أنْ يدركه

عالم جانبنا ما احترما

عالم جانبنا ما احترما

Knowledge of tasting is beyond the grasp

The knowledge of taste is too proud to be grasped

of a scholar who shunned us and showed no respect.

By a scholar who turned from us, never polite.

ولهذا يخطىء الحكمَ الذي

ولهذا يخطىء الحكمَ الذي

يطلبُ الحال إذا ما حكما

يطلبُ الحال إذا ما حكما

And so he misses the judgment that

And so the judge errs whom

the situation calls for whenever he judges.

Events seek when he judges.

تضحك الأزهار بالأرض إذا

تضحك الأزهار بالأرض إذا

بكت الزهر التي فوق السما

بكت الزهر التي فوق السما

The flowers on earth laugh when

The flowers on earth laugh when

the bright stars above the sky weep.

The flower on high weeps.

وكذا العلمُ الذي أظهره

وكذا العلمُ الذي أظهره

عندنا تضحكُ منه العُلما

عندنا تضحكُ منه العُلما

Likewise, the knowledge I reveal

And so the knowledge I revealed

among us is laughed at by the scholars.

Among us makes their knowledge laugh.

عُلماء السَّوء لا كانوا ولا

عُلماء السَّوء لا كانوا ولا

كانوا بالتقوى لديه كرما

كانوا بالتقوى لديه كرما

Evil scholars—may they be no more! Nor

Evil scholars were they not, nor

have they been noble in His sight through piety.

Were they with piety bound to generosity.

إن شخصاً جهلَ الأمرِ الذي

إن شخصاً جهلَ الأمرِ الذي

قلت في نظمي هذا في عما

قلت في نظمي هذا في عما

Indeed, a person ignorant of the matter that

If someone was ignorant of the matter

I spoke of in this poem of mine is blind.

I said in this, my poem, in blindness,

إنما الكيِّس مَن دانَ به

إنما الكيِّس مَن دانَ به

نفسَه حين أراه القدما

نفسَه حين أراه القدما

The discerning one is only he who judges by it

The sensible one is he who

his own soul, when it showed him the foot—

Humbled himself when I showed him the ancient.

قدم الصدق الذي نعرفه

قدم الصدق الذي نعرفه

كلُّ من يشهده محتكما

كلُّ من يشهده محتكما

the foot of truth that we recognize—

The truth of sincerity we know

all who witness it while seeking judgment.

All who witness it will submit.

فترى الحقَّ كما أنزله

فترى الحقَّ كما أنزله

في نزولٍ واستواء وعما

في نزولٍ واستواء وعما

Thus you see the Real as He revealed Himself:

You see the truth as He revealed it

in descent, enthronement, and the Cloud.

In revelation, level and blindness.

وإذا كان وجودي عينه

وإذا كان وجودي عينه

لم أزل في عين كوني عدم

لم أزل في عين كوني عدم

And if my existence is His very essence,

And if my existence was its essence

I have never ceased to be nothingness in my very being.

I would not cease to be in my essence negation.

أعلم الله الذي نحن به

أعلم الله الذي نحن به

من أمور لوحه والقلما

من أمور لوحه والقلما

I know God, through whom we exist,

God knows what we are by it

from the workings of His Tablet and the Pen,

Of the matters of His tablet and pen.

حين أجرى الحياة نهراً

حين أجرى الحياة نهراً

من بخارٍ فيه سماه دما

من بخارٍ فيه سماه دما

when He made life flow as a river

When He made life a river

from vapor within it, which He named blood.

Of vapor in which He called it blood.

عجباً إني على صورته

عجباً إني على صورته

ولذا أصبح أمري مبهما

ولذا أصبح أمري مبهما

How wondrous! I am indeed in His image.

Strangely, I am in His image

And so my condition has become obscure.

And thus my matter remains ambiguous.

فله التنزيه عن وصفي وقد

فله التنزيه عن وصفي وقد

جاء في القرآن علماً محكما

جاء في القرآن علماً محكما

Thus He transcends my description; indeed, this has

To Him belongs transcendence from describing me, and

come in the Qur’an as firmly established knowledge.

He came in the Qur'an with established knowledge.

هو في الأرض ِإله قادر

هو في الأرض ِإله قادر

ومعي في كلِّ وجه وسما

ومعي في كلِّ وجه وسما

He is a mighty God on earth,

He on earth is the Able God,

and with me in every face and sky.

And with me in every face and attribute.

أمهلوا ما أهملوا إنهم

أمهلوا ما أهملوا إنهم

عندنا والله قومٌ حكما

عندنا والله قومٌ حكما

They were given respite, not neglected; indeed, they

Pardon what they pardoned, they

are, in our eyes—by God—a wise people,

Are with God, assuredly, a wise people.

حين أبقونا وفي عقدهم

حين أبقونا وفي عقدهم

أنهم فينا رؤوسٌ زُعما

أنهم فينا رؤوسٌ زُعما

when they spared us, while believing

When they left us, and in their pact

that they are heads and leaders among us.

Claimed to be over us chiefs, supposedly,

إنما نحن عبيدٌ كلنا

إنما نحن عبيدٌ كلنا

عندنا وعندهم ليس كما

عندنا وعندهم ليس كما

We are only servants, all of us,

We are only slaves, all of us,

in our eyes and theirs; it is not as

With us and with them it is not so.

قلتُ فيهم إنهم قد زعموا

قلتُ فيهم إنهم قد زعموا

أكذبَ الله الذي قد زعما

أكذبَ الله الذي قد زعما

I said of them: they have indeed made claims.

I said of them that they claimed

God has belied the one who made such a claim,

To belie God, who they claimed.

في كتابِ الله إذ جاء به

في كتابِ الله إذ جاء به

مُخبراً عنهم لهم مستفهما

مُخبراً عنهم لهم مستفهما

in God’s Book, when He brought it,

In God's book when it came with it

reporting about them and questioning them.

Informing of them, questioning them.