أَستَغفِرُ اللَّهَ لا فَخرٌ وَلا شَرَف

أَستَغفِرُ اللَّهَ لا فَخرٌ وَلا شَرَف

وَلا وَفاء وَلا دينٌ وَلا أَنُفُ

وَلا وَفاء وَلا دينٌ وَلا أَنُفُ

I seek God's forgiveness: there is neither glory nor honor,

I seek forgiveness from Allah, no pride or glory

Nor loyalty, nor faith, nor self-respect.

No loyalty, no faith, no zeal either

كَأَنَّما نَحنُ في ظَلماء داجِيَةٍ

كَأَنَّما نَحنُ في ظَلماء داجِيَةٍ

فَلَيسَ تُرفَعُ عَن أَبصارِنا السُّجُفُ

فَلَيسَ تُرفَعُ عَن أَبصارِنا السُّجُفُ

It is as though we are in pitch-black darkness,

As if we are in deep darkness

And the curtains are not lifted from our eyes.

And the veils are not lifted from our eyes

تَزيدُ بِالبَحثِ جَهلاً إِن طَلَبتَ هُدى

تَزيدُ بِالبَحثِ جَهلاً إِن طَلَبتَ هُدى

وَهَل تُضيء لِعَينِ المُدلِجِ السُّدُفُ

وَهَل تُضيء لِعَينِ المُدلِجِ السُّدُفُ

You grow more ignorant through inquiry if you seek guidance.

You increase ignorance if you seek guidance

And can darkness illuminate the night-traveler's eye?

Can the lantern enlighten the eyes of the blind?

وَفي الفَلاسِفَةِ الماضِينَ مُعتَبَرٌ

وَفي الفَلاسِفَةِ الماضِينَ مُعتَبَرٌ

فَطَالَما قَصَدوا فيها وَما عَسَفوا

فَطَالَما قَصَدوا فيها وَما عَسَفوا

In the philosophers of old there is a lesson,

And the ancient philosophers are exemplary

For long they followed a straight course in it and did not stray.

They strived in this path and did not transgress

وَقَد أَتُوكَ بِمَينٍ مِن حَديثِهمُ

وَقَد أَتُوكَ بِمَينٍ مِن حَديثِهمُ

يَكادُ يَضحَكُ مِنهُ الحِبرُ وَالصُّحُفُ

يَكادُ يَضحَكُ مِنهُ الحِبرُ وَالصُّحُفُ

And they have brought you falsehood from their discourse,

And they have brought you strange tales

At which the ink and pages almost laugh:

That make the ink and pages laugh

ظَنٌّ بَعيدٌ وَأَقوالٌ مُلَفَّقَةٌ

ظَنٌّ بَعيدٌ وَأَقوالٌ مُلَفَّقَةٌ

تَخفى عَلى الغمرِ أَحياناً وَتَنكَشِفُ

تَخفى عَلى الغمرِ أَحياناً وَتَنكَشِفُ

Far-fetched conjecture and patched-together sayings,

Far-fetched conjectures and fabricated words

Sometimes hidden from the naive, sometimes laid bare.

That sometimes are hidden and sometimes exposed

الأَمرُ أَكبَرُ مِن فِكرٍ يُحيطُ بِهِ

الأَمرُ أَكبَرُ مِن فِكرٍ يُحيطُ بِهِ

وَالعُمرُ أَقصَرُ أَن يُلقى لَهُ طَرَفُ

وَالعُمرُ أَقصَرُ أَن يُلقى لَهُ طَرَفُ

The matter is too great for thought to encompass it,

The matter is greater than any enclosing thought

And life is too short for its limit to be found.

And life is too short to be fully grasped

فاعظِم بِدائِكَ إِن حاوَلتَ واضِحَةً

فاعظِم بِدائِكَ إِن حاوَلتَ واضِحَةً

وَمُت بِهِ فَعَلى هَذا مَضى السَّلَفُ

وَمُت بِهِ فَعَلى هَذا مَضى السَّلَفُ

So how grave your affliction, if you strive for clarity!

So exalt your Creator if you attempt the absolute

And die with it, for thus did the forebears pass away.

And die for Him - for so the predecessors passed

جاءَت أَحاديثُ عَن قَوم أَظُنُّهُمُ

جاءَت أَحاديثُ عَن قَوم أَظُنُّهُمُ

عاشُوا طَويلاً وَقالوا بَعدَ ما خَرَقوا

عاشُوا طَويلاً وَقالوا بَعدَ ما خَرَقوا

Accounts have come from people who, I think,

Strange accounts have come about a people I believe

Lived long and spoke after fabricating lies.

Lived long and spoke nonsense after they declined

سَخيفَةٌ وَيَزيدُ المُخبِرونَ بِها

سَخيفَةٌ وَيَزيدُ المُخبِرونَ بِها

فَقَد تَجَمَّع سُوء الكَيلِ وَالحَشَفُ

فَقَد تَجَمَّع سُوء الكَيلِ وَالحَشَفُ

They are flimsy, and those who recount them add more,

Absurdities to which the narrators add more

So short measure and shriveled dates have come together.

Evil measuring and recklessness abound

يا حاكِمَ المِصرِ لا تَحفَل بِذَمِّهِمُ

يا حاكِمَ المِصرِ لا تَحفَل بِذَمِّهِمُ

فَإِنَّ كُلَّ قَضاء عِندَهُم جَنَفُ

فَإِنَّ كُلَّ قَضاء عِندَهُم جَنَفُ

O judge of the city, pay no heed to their blame;

O Governor of Egypt, do not heed their condemnation

For every judgment, to them, is an injustice.

For with them all judgment is crooked

وَلا يَغُرُّكَ مِن دَعواهُمُ قَسَمٌ

وَلا يَغُرُّكَ مِن دَعواهُمُ قَسَمٌ

فَالقَومُ أَكذَب ما كانوا إِذا حَلَفو

فَالقَومُ أَكذَب ما كانوا إِذا حَلَفو

And let no oath in their claims deceive you:

And let not their oaths deceive you

For these people are most deceitful when they swear.

They are the most mendacious when swearing vows

يَدِينُ قَومٌ بِأَنَّ الشُّهبَ خالِدَة

يَدِينُ قَومٌ بِأَنَّ الشُّهبَ خالِدَة

وَعِندَ قَوم لَها وَقتٌ وَتَنصَرِفُ

وَعِندَ قَوم لَها وَقتٌ وَتَنصَرِفُ

Some profess that the stars are everlasting;

Some claim the meteors are eternal

Others hold they have an appointed time and then depart.

Others say they have a time and then disappear

وَما رَضيتُ بِعَقلي في جِدالِهِمُ

وَما رَضيتُ بِعَقلي في جِدالِهِمُ

وَلا تَوَهَّمتُ إِلّا غَيرَ ما وَصَفوا

وَلا تَوَهَّمتُ إِلّا غَيرَ ما وَصَفوا

And I was not content with my own reason in their debates,

I did not trust my intellect in their quarrel

Nor did I imagine anything but what differed from their descriptions.

Nor imagined anything but what they described

يا أُمَّ ذُفرٍ جَزاكِ الله صالِحَةً

يا أُمَّ ذُفرٍ جَزاكِ الله صالِحَةً

وَإِن أَضافَ إِلَيكِ القَومُ ما اقتَرَفوا

وَإِن أَضافَ إِلَيكِ القَومُ ما اقتَرَفوا

O Umm Dhufr, may God reward you with good,

O Mother of Dhufr, may Allah reward you with goodness

Even if people attribute to you what they have committed.

Even if the people ascribe to you what they fabricated

قالوا يُغَرُّ بِهِم جَهلاً وَعِندَهُمُ

قالوا يُغَرُّ بِهِم جَهلاً وَعِندَهُمُ

مِنَ المَواعِظِ فيكِ المَوتُ وَالخَرَفُ

مِنَ المَواعِظِ فيكِ المَوتُ وَالخَرَفُ

They spoke; in ignorance one is deceived by them, yet before them lie

They say you are foolishly deceived by them

Death and senility among the admonitions in you.

While the lessons of death and senility are within you

وَما تَرَكتِ قَبيحاً تُعرَفينَ بِهِ

وَما تَرَكتِ قَبيحاً تُعرَفينَ بِهِ

لَو كانَ يَأَنَفُ مِنكِ الهائِمُ الدَّنِفُ

لَو كانَ يَأَنَفُ مِنكِ الهائِمُ الدَّنِفُ

And you have held back none of the ugliness you are known for—

You left no disgrace that you could be identified by

If only the love-maddened, ailing lover would disdain you!

Even if the roaming beast disdained you

وَرُبَّ قَوم أَضاعوني وَقَد فَهِموا

وَرُبَّ قَوم أَضاعوني وَقَد فَهِموا

قَدري فَما أَنكَروا فَضلي وَلا عَرَفوا

قَدري فَما أَنكَروا فَضلي وَلا عَرَفوا

And many have neglected me, though they understood

Many a people made me lose my way though they understood

My worth: they neither denied my merit nor acknowledged it.

My worth, yet neither recognized my merit nor knew me