1. خليليّ إنَّ الهمَّ والحزنَ خيمّا

    بقلبي على رَغْمى فما الرأي فيهمَا

    My two friends, care and sorrow have pitched their tents

    in my heart against my will; what counsel have you concerning them?

  2. يريدانِ ألا يتركا لِيَ سلوة

    وأن يتركاني ناحلَ الجسمِ مسقما

    They mean to leave me no solace

    and leave me wasted in body and sickly.

  3. فإن تسئداني شمِّرا وتقدَّما

    وإن كُنْتُما لا تسعداني فأحْجِمَا

    If you two will aid me, gird yourselves and advance;

    if you two will not aid me, then hold back.

  4. لقد أجمعا أمريهما وتخالَفا

    وقد جيَّشا جَيْشاً علينَا عَرَمْرَمَا

    They have settled their plans and differed,

    and have mustered a vast army against us.

  5. نلاقيهما بالذُّلِّ والصغر عنوةً

    أم الحرب أحرَى خوف أن تَنَدَّمَا

    Shall we face them in humiliation and abasement, compelled,

    or is battle more fitting, lest you two regret it?

  6. فأمَّارتِي بالجُبن قالتْ ليَ ارْعَوِى

    فلسنا بذِي عزٍّ لنرميَ مَنْ رَمَى

    Then my soul, urging cowardice, told me: Desist!

    For we have no might to strike whoever strikes.

  7. ولسْنَا على البأساءِ أصحابَ قوةٍ

    ولسنا بأبناء الملوكِ لنِقدمَا

    Nor have we strength in the face of adversity,

    nor are we sons of kings, that we should advance.

  8. وقال لي القلبُ استعدَّ فإنني

    أراني معدّاً في أمورِك قيمِّا

    And my heart told me: Make ready, for I

    see myself prepared, a steward of your affairs.

  9. ألم ترني في النائباتِ أخا قوىً

    حَمُوى وفي البأساء عضْباً مُصمِّمَا

    Have you not seen me amid calamities, endowed with strength,

    a fierce defender, and in adversity a keen, cleaving sword?

  10. ولا أتشكى للورَى من رزيَّةٍ

    رزئْت بها لو أَنَّ جِسْمي تَحطَّمَا

    I do not complain to humankind of a calamity

    that has afflicted me, even if my body were shattered.

  11. ألا قل لأهلِ الدهرِ والدهر إنني

    ثبوتٌ ولو رَضْوَى عَلَىَّ تَهَدَّمَا

    Tell the people of this age, and the age itself, that I

    am steadfast, even if Radwa were to collapse upon me.

  12. سواءٌ معي حربُ الزمانِ وسِلْمه

    إذا كان عندي الصبرُ لم أتألمَا

    Time's war and peace are alike to me;

    if patience is with me, I do not suffer.

  13. ولستُ أبالي إن سقتني صروفهُ

    كؤوسَ مُدَامٍ أو سقتنيَ عَأْتَمَا

    I do not care whether its vicissitudes give me to drink

    cups of wine, or give me ʿaʾtam to drink [word unclear].

  14. أنا المرءُ قلبي لا يراعُ بنبأةٍ

    ولا صوت ذى ضغن إذا ما تَهَمْهَمَا

    I am a man whose heart is not startled by a sound,

    nor by the voice of one nursing rancor as he mutters.

  15. ولا يطَّبيني حسنُ تغريد معبد

    ولا صوتُ شادٍ في الغصونِ تَرَنَّمَا

    Nor does the beauty of Maʿbad's singing lure me,

    nor a songbird's voice warbling among the branches.

  16. ولم يشجني شوقاً فراقُ أحبةٍ

    إذا لم يذوقوا من فراقي تَنَدُّمَا

    Nor does parting from loved ones sadden me with longing,

    if they feel no regret at parting from me.

  17. وأقنعُ من دهري بأيسرِ بُلْغة

    إذا لم أجدْ يوماً سِوى التمر مَطْعَمَا

    I am content with the smallest sustenance my days afford,

    if one day I find nothing to eat but dates.

  18. سأصرِفُ نفسي عن مطَامعَ جمةٍ

    وإن لم أجد لي قطُّ في الكفِّ درهمَا

    I will turn my soul away from many desires,

    even if I never find a dirham in my hand.

  19. ومهما قضَى الرحمنُ لي بقضيةٍ

    رضيتُ بها طوعاً ولم أتظلمَا

    Whatever judgment the All-Merciful decrees for me,

    I accept it willingly and do not complain of injustice.

  20. لِعلمِي بأني لستُ أملكُ درهماً

    ولم تنفع الشكوى فأدفعُها بِمَا

    For I know that I do not possess a dirham,

    and complaint avails nothing; with what, then, can I ward it off?

  21. سأحنى لها ظَهْري وأحملُ ثقلها

    ولو حطمتَ مِنّي قناةً وأعظمَا

    I will bend my back to it and bear its weight,

    even if you shatter my spine and bones.

  22. سأصبرُ صبراً يقصرُ الصبرُ دونَه

    إلى أنْ يصيحَ الصبرُ مني تألُّمَا

    I will endure with a patience that patience itself falls short of,

    until patience cries out in pain because of me.

  23. وإلا فلستُ الباسلَ البطل الذي

    تردَّى بأثوابِ الردَى وتعمَّمَا

    Otherwise, I am not the valiant champion who

    draped himself in death's robes and donned its turban.

  24. ولو قَصَّ مني الدهر ريشَ قوادِمي

    فلا أتشكَّى للعدوِّ فيبسَما

    Even if Time clipped my primary wing-feathers,

    I would not complain to an enemy and make him smile.

  25. ولا أتشكى للصديقِ مكاشِفاً

    فيبقى حزيناً لا يطيق تكلّمَا

    Nor would I lay bare my troubles in complaints to a friend,

    leaving him sad and unable to speak.

  26. سأسترُ سرى عن قريبٍ وشاسعٍ

    ولو أَنَّ قلبي بالسمومِ تسمَّما

    I will hide my secret from those near and far,

    even if my heart were poisoned with venom.

  27. فكلٌّ له عمرٌ وللعمرِ غايةٌ

    إذا انتهتْ لم ينتفعْ بلعلّ مَا

    Everyone has a lifespan, and every lifespan an end;

    once that end is reached, no 'perhaps' can help.

  28. تمرسْتُ بالآفاتِ حتى ألفتها

    فلما دهتني لم تزدني تحلُّمَا

    I have grappled with afflictions until I grew accustomed to them;

    when they struck me, they added nothing to my forbearance.

  29. فها أنا ذَا ما شاء ربي فإنني

    لراضٍ بما أوتيتُ قدَّرَ أمْ نَمَا

    Here I am, as my Lord has willed, for I

    am content with what I have been given, whether restricted or increased.

  30. يقولونَ لا تبكى لموتِ أقاربٍ

    أعندكَ قد صارَ البكاءُ محرَّمَا

    They say: You do not weep for relatives' deaths;

    has weeping now become forbidden to you?

  31. فقلتُ لهم لا بلْ فإن كان نافِعاً

    بكيت على فِقدان أحبابنا دَمَا

    I told them: No; indeed, if it were useful,

    I would weep blood over the loss of our loved ones.

  32. أبكِي على غيري وإني لَعَالِمٌ

    يقينا بأني لاحقٌ من تَقَدَّمَا

    I weep for others, though I know

    for certain that I will follow those who went before.

  33. فإن كنتُ ذَا عقلٍ فأبكى بعَبْرةٍ

    على عُمر ضيَّعته فتصرَّمَا

    If I have any reason, let me shed a tear

    over a life I wasted until it came to an end.

  34. فإن أبكه في بعض الأحاحايين لا غنىً

    فكمْ مسلمٍ منا بكى قبلُ مُسْلِمَا

    If I weep for him from time to time, there is no avoiding it;

    for how many a Muslim among us has wept for a Muslim before!

  35. وإن أبك محبوباً فيعقوبُ قبلنا

    بكى يوسفاً حتى أضرّ به الممَا

    And if I weep for a loved one, Jacob before us

    wept for Joseph until affliction harmed him.

  36. ولما رأيتُ العقل والقلبَ أجمعَا

    على حرب أضدادٍ وللهِ سلّما

    When I saw that reason and heart had agreed

    to fight their foes and submit to God,

  37. نبذتُ الونَى والعجز عن فتى وقد

    جعلتُ جميلَ الصبر والفوز سلمّا

    I cast sloth and helplessness away from a youth, and

    made noble patience and victory my ladder.

  38. عَزَمتُ فجيَّشْنا جيوشاً من الأسَى

    هَزمْنا بها جيش الهموم تَجَشُّمَا

    I resolved, and we mustered armies out of sorrow;

    with them we routed the army of cares through strenuous effort.

  39. فمن كانَ عند اللهِ فاللّهُ عندَه

    وفازَ بما يرجُوه فوزاً معظمَا

    Whoever is with God has God with him,

    and gains what he hopes for in a mighty triumph.

  40. ظفرنا وأُبْنا سَالمِين بعونه

    بنصرٍ عزيزٍ قد رجوناهُ قبل مَا

    We triumphed and returned safely, with His help,

    with a glorious victory we had hoped for before.

  41. ومن يتقِ الرحمنَ يجعل له حمىً

    منيعاً ويرزقه التقى والتنعُّمَا

    Whoever fears the All-Merciful, He grants him a refuge

    that is impregnable, and provides him piety and bliss,

  42. معَ الحورِ والولدان في روض جنة

    مقيما بها يُسقَى الرحيق المختّما

    among houris and youths in a garden of Paradise,

    dwelling there, offered sealed nectar to drink.

  43. وإن يَعْصِه عمداً جَهاراً ولم يتب

    ومات مصرّاً يَصْلَ نار جهنما

    But whoever deliberately disobeys Him openly and does not repent,

    and dies persisting in sin, will burn in Hell's fire.

  44. يعذبُ فيها دائماً أبداً ولم

    يجدْ وَزَراً يأوى إليه فَيَسْلَما

    He is tormented there continually, forever, and does not

    find a refuge to shelter in and be safe.

  45. فمن آثر العصيانَ هذا جزاؤهُ

    وكلُّ امرئٍ يجزي بما هو قَدَّمَا

    Whoever chooses disobedience, this is his recompense;

    each person is requited for what he has sent ahead.

  46. أعوذُ بك اللهمَّ من شرِّ ماردٍ

    غوىٍّ يرى إن مسَّنا الضر مَغْنَما

    I seek refuge in You, O God, from the evil of a rebel,

    a wayward one who counts our suffering as his gain,

  47. ومن شرِّ وسواسٍ ألمِّ بخاطرِي

    ومن همزاتِ للشياطينِ كلَّما

    and from the evil of a whisper that visits my mind,

    and from the devils' incitements, whenever they come.

  48. وعفواً لعبدٍ أقرَّ بذَنْبهِ

    وإنّك غفارُ الذنوبِ تكرُّمَا

    And grant pardon to a servant who acknowledges his sin;

    You are the Forgiver of sins, in Your generosity.

  49. وإنكُ ذُو عفوٍ وصفحٍ عن الذي

    أقرَّ اعترافاً بعد ما كان أجرما

    You possess pardon and forgiveness for him who

    confesses in acknowledgment after having sinned.

  50. ودونَكمُ من ذِي ودادٍ بصحبةٍ

    حكت في حواشي الطِّرْسِ درّاً منظما

    Here, from one devoted in friendship, is a poem

    resembling strung pearls along the margins of the page.

  51. هيَ الشهدُ بلْ أحلى على كل سامع

    واشهى من الماء الزلالِ عل الظمَا

    It is honey—indeed, sweeter to every listener,

    and more desirable than crystal-clear water in thirst.

  52. تسلِّى قلوب الفاقدين أحبّة

    وتنسى الوليد الوالد المكرِّمَا

    It consoles the hearts of those who have lost loved ones,

    and makes a child forget his generous father.

  53. على أنها تطهيرُ كل نجاسةٍ

    وتنفى عن القلب القذَى والتوهُّمَا

    For it is a cleansing of every impurity,

    and clears debris and delusion from the heart.

  54. وسميتها للقلبِ والعين سلوة

    وتقوية عند المصائبِ عندمَا

    I called it solace for the heart and the eye,

    and strength amid calamities, whenever they come.

  55. وما قلت عنها من قوىً وتشجع

    وتزكية للنفسِ إلا تفهَّمَا

    And what I have said of its strength and courage,

    and its purification of the soul—only understand it, you two.

  56. وما نيتي إلا رضَى اللّهِ وحْدَه

    وسلوة عبدٍ للغُمومِ تَجشَّما

    My intention is only the pleasure of God alone,

    and solace for a servant who has borne burdens of grief.

  57. ألا فادرسُوها كلَّ حينٍ فإنها

    تصير تعاويذاً وللقلبِ مَرْهَما

    Study it at every moment, for it

    serves as protective charms and a balm for the heart.

  58. تؤرثُ في قلب الجبانِ تشَجعا

    ويزدادُ قلبُ الشخص منها تَعَلُّمَا

    It instills courage in a coward's heart,

    and a person's heart gains more learning from it.

  59. فَمْن كانَ ذَا عقلٍ وإن كانَ جاهِلاً

    يصيرُ إذا استولى عليها مُعَلّما

    Whoever possesses reason, even if ignorant,

    becomes a teacher once he has mastered it.

  60. لها قصيبات السبقِ في كلِّ حليةٍ

    إذا حضرتْ فاقت كُميتاً وأَدْهَمَا

    It takes the winner's little prize-reeds in every adornment;

    when it appears, it outstrips bay and black steeds.

  61. إذا خلتها يوماً توهمتَ أنها

    ملاءة نورٍ قد توافت من السَّمَا

    If one day you picture it, you fancy it is

    a sheet of light that has come from heaven,

  62. أو الحور من جناتِ عدنٍ تنزلت

    جزاؤُكم مِن فعلِ خيرٍ تقدّمَا

    or houris descending from the gardens of Eden,

    your reward for a good deed done before.

  63. وصلِّ إلهَ العرشِ ما هبَّت الصَّبَا

    على أحمدٍ خيرِ الأنامِ وسلِّما

    And, God of the Throne, bless, as long as the east wind blows,

    Ahmad, the best of mankind, and grant him peace.