1. كتابكمُ وافَى إلينا فسرّنَا

    سروراً عظيماً يبرئُ القلبَ من سقمِ

    Your letter reached us and brought us joy,

    a great joy that heals the heart of sickness.

  2. ذكرتمْ لنَا أنا تركنا ديارَنا

    وأصحابَنا أهلَ القرابةِ والرحمِ

    You mentioned to us that we had left our homes

    and our companions, our kin and relations.

  3. فلا تحسِبُوا أنا سلونا ربوعَنا

    ولا دارَ أهلِ الودّ والخال والعمِّ

    So do not think we have forgotten our dwelling places,

    nor the home of loved ones, maternal and paternal uncles;

  4. ولا جيرةَ بالهوب خنا وِدادهمُ

    لفرقتنا عنهم زماناً بلا جُرْمِ

    nor that we betrayed our neighbors' affection in al-Hub

    because we were parted from them for a time, without wrongdoing.

  5. خرجْنا من الْهُوبِ التي هي دارُنا

    طلاباً لرزق الله من غير ما إِثْمِ

    We left al-Hub, which is our home,

    seeking God's provision without any sin.

  6. على أننا الأولادُ والهوب أمّنا

    ولا يستوى نسلُ الرجالِ بلا أمِّ

    Though we are its children, and al-Hub is our mother,

    and the offspring of men cannot be whole without a mother.

  7. ولكن خرجْنا نطلبُ الرزقَ أينما

    يكونُ ومن برٍّ بسيطٍ ومن يَمِّ

    But we went out seeking livelihood wherever

    it may be, from open land and from the sea.

  8. وأنّا بخير في سرورٍ ونعمةٍ

    وأنهارنا تجرى وأرزاقُنا تَنْمِى

    And we are well, in happiness and blessing,

    and our rivers flow, and our livelihoods grow.

  9. لأنَّا جعلنا الهوبَ رأساً لمالِنا

    كذلك رأس المال يَحمى عن الغُرْمِ

    For we have made al-Hub the capital of our wealth;

    thus the capital is protected from loss.

  10. سنضرب في الآفاقِ شرقاً ومغرباً

    ونقطعُ أجبالا وبيداً بلا رَغْمِ

    We shall journey through the horizons, eastward and westward,

    and cross mountains and deserts without reluctance,

  11. طلابُ رضى البارِى لكسب عيالِنا

    ولا بدَّ للإنسانِ من مَطْلبِ القَسْمِ

    seeking the Creator's pleasure by earning for our dependents.

    A person must seek his allotted share.

  12. علينا التماسُ الرزقٍ من كل وجهةٍ

    ونَرْضَى بما يقضِى به اللهُ مِنْ حُكْمِ

    We must seek livelihood from every quarter

    and accept whatever judgment God decrees.

  13. ولا تحسبن الرزقَ فاتَك وادعاً

    بلا حركاتٍ منك بالجد والحَزْمِ

    And do not think livelihood has eluded you while you sit at ease,

    without making any diligent, resolute effort.

  14. نَزَلْنا بكُرشا بلدة العزّ والغنى

    وأصحابُها أهلُ الشجاعةِ والحَزْمِ

    We settled in Kursha, the town of honor and wealth,

    whose people possess courage and resolve.

  15. أولئك قومٌ قد أطاءوا إمامَهم

    وهُمْ سادةٌ حادُوا عن الجَوْرِ والغَشْمِ

    Those are a people who have obeyed their imam,

    and they are noble leaders who have shunned injustice and oppression.

  16. وهُمْ أهلُ ودٍّ للأَئمةِ كلهم

    وأجدادُهم من قبل في الحرب والسِّلْمِ

    They cherish all the imams,

    as did their ancestors before them, in war and peace.

  17. دَعِ الهوب والرستاق والجو والع

    لو سواءٌ بتقديرِ العزيزِ على عِلْمِ

    Leave aside al-Hub, al-Rustaq, al-Jaw, and al-ʿUluw;

    all are equal under the Almighty's knowing decree.

  18. وكلُّ بحمدٍ اللهٍ جامعُ شملِهم

    إمام البرايا سيدُ العرب والعجمِ

    All, praise be to God, have their ranks united by

    the imam of creation, lord of Arabs and non-Arabs.

  19. هو العدلُ سيف بحلُ سلطان سيفنا

    فتى مالك نجلُ الجحاجحة الشُّمِّ

    He is justice itself: Saif, [son of?] Sultan, our sword,

    a young man of Malik's line, scion of lofty chieftains.

  20. عليهِ صلاةُ الله ما لاحَ باقٌ

    وحنّتَ رعودٌ في انهطال من الوسْمِى

    May God's blessing be upon him as long as a [lightning flash?] gleams,

    and thunder moans amid a downpour of early-season rain.