1. لم يكد يسبق الفضاء نذير

    ونقضي عمر وتم مصير

    A warning herald had scarcely outstripped the expanse,

    And we spend a lifetime, and a destiny is fulfilled.

  2. إن رزء الجميل العلم الفرد

    لرزء في المشرقين كبير

    The loss of al-Gemayel, that peerless luminary,

    Is a great loss in both Easts.

  3. إن بكته وأجمعت أمم الضاد

    فمن مثله بذاك جدير

    If the peoples of ḍād mourned him with one accord,

    Who is as worthy of that as he?

  4. كم فتى كان في فتاها المسجى

    يملأ العين فضله الموفور

    How many youths were embodied in her shrouded youth,

    Whose abundant merit filled the eye!

  5. ويح قلبي طال الثواء وحولي

    دائرات على الرفاق تدور

    Alas, my heart! My sojourn has grown long, and around me

    Calamities circle over my companions.

  6. لا اعتراض على القضاء ولكن

    كل يوم أصاب هذا كثير

    No objection to fate—but

    Every day I am stricken: this is too much.

  7. ما ذمامي ما نجدتي ما وفائي

    إن يك النوح فالفداء يسير

    What is my pledge, what my aid, what my loyalty,

    If it is only lamentation? The sacrifice is slight.

  8. أسفا أيها الرفيق المولي

    والأخ البر والصفي الأثير

    Alas, O departing companion,

    And virtuous brother, and cherished confidant!

  9. قد تقدمت في الحياة فهلا

    سرنا في بقائك التأخير

    You took the lead in life; why, then,

    Did delay not gladden us by prolonging your stay?

  10. أخلا المجلس الذي كان يغشاه

    أديب ونائب ووزير

    Has the gathering-place fallen empty, once frequented

    By a man of letters, a deputy, and a minister?

  11. يلتقيهم حلو الفكاهة طلق الوجه

    ثبت الجنان سمح وقور

    He met them with sweet humor and a cheerful face,

    Steadfast of heart, gracious and dignified.

  12. أين تلك الأسمار كانت بها تصفو

    الليالي وأين ذاك السمير

    Where are those evening talks that brought serenity to

    The nights, and where is that evening companion?

  13. يا لقومي مثال أنطون لو صورته

    لم يحط به التصوير

    O my people! Were I to depict Anton's likeness,

    No depiction could encompass it.

  14. كيف وصفي ما جل أو دق منه

    والفنا مقعدي فمن لي عذير

    How can I describe what was great or subtle in him,

    While decay keeps me helpless—who will excuse me?

  15. خلق كامل وطبع رقيق

    وذكاء جم وجاه وفير

    Perfect character and a gentle nature,

    And abundant intelligence and ample prestige.

  16. وخلال من معدن الأدب الزاهي

    بأنواره لهن صدور

    And virtues from the mine of culture, radiant

    With its lights—there those virtues have their source.

  17. كاتب نسج وحده وخطيب

    ما له من المناظرين نظير

    A writer of a weave all his own, and an orator

    With no peer among debaters.

  18. لم يزاول نظم القريض ولكن

    بز أسمى النظيم منه النثير

    He did not practice composing poetry, but

    His prose surpassed the loftiest verse.

  19. إن علا منبرا لقول فما في الحشد

    إلا التهليل والتكبير

    If he mounted a pulpit to speak, there was nothing in the crowd

    But acclamations of God's oneness and greatness.

  20. شأنه في الشيوخ بلغه غاية

    ما يبلغ الحصيف الصبور

    His stature in the Senate took him to the utmost

    That a discerning, patient man can attain.

  21. واسع الصدر والحوادث قد تشتد

    حتى بها تضيق الصدور

    Broad of heart, though events could grow so harsh

    That hearts grew constricted by them.

  22. في الأمور الصعاب يمضي فما يثني

    عنانا حتى تراض الأمور

    Through difficult affairs he pressed on, never turning

    A rein until those affairs were tamed.

  23. صحفي في كل مطلع شمس

    يبعث الرأي بالهدى وينير

    A journalist who, at every sunrise,

    Roused opinion with guidance and shed light.

  24. تخذ الصدق في السياسة نهجا

    وعداه التضليل والتغرير

    He adopted truthfulness as his path in politics,

    And deceit and beguilement passed him by.

  25. لا يجاري على افتئات ولا يعدم

    منه نصيره التفكير

    He would not acquiesce in arbitrary injustice, nor did

    Thought lack its champion in him.

  26. ومجال النضال للحق رحب

    حيث يدعو اللهيف والمستجير

    And wide is the field of struggle for justice,

    Wherever the distressed and the refuge-seeker call.

  27. في الأعاصير فكله تتهادى

    فإذا ما اهتدت فليست تجور

    In hurricanes, his vessel glides serenely,

    And once it finds its course, it never strays.

  28. كم بكاه في كل معهد إحسان

    عليل وعاجز وفقير

    How many mourned him in every house of charity:

    The sick, the helpless, and the poor!

  29. إن فاروقنا المعظم لا يفتأ

    للنابغين نعم النصير

    Indeed, our revered Farouk never ceases to be

    An excellent champion of the gifted.

  30. منح الرتبة الرفيعة أحجاهم

    بها وهو بالكفاة خبير

    He granted the lofty rank to the most deserving among them

    Of it; he is well acquainted with the capable.

  31. في جلال العطاء منه لعالي

    رأيه في المقدمين ظهور

    In the splendor of his giving, the loftiness

    Of his judgment regarding those advanced is revealed.

  32. وأولو الأمر في العروبة لم يخطئهم

    في الجميل التقدير

    And those in authority in the Arab world were not mistaken

    In their esteem for al-Gemayel.

  33. بين من كافأوا بأسنى حلاهم

    من له ذلك المقام الخطير

    Among those they rewarded with their finest decorations

    Was he who held that eminent station.

  34. يا فقيدا مثاله خالد في

    كل قلب وذكره مبرور

    O departed one, whose image lives forever in

    Every heart, and whose memory is honored,

  35. لا ثواب كفاء فضلك إلا

    ما يثيب الله العلي القدير

    No reward is equal to your merit except

    What God, the Most High, the All-Powerful, bestows.