أَلاَ قُلْ لعبد اللهِ واخصُصْ مُحَمّداً

أَلاَ قُلْ لعبد اللهِ واخصُصْ مُحَمّداً

وفارِسَنَا المأمونَ سعدَ بنَ مالكِ

وفارِسَنَا المأمونَ سعدَ بنَ مالكِ

Listen! Tell ʿAbd Allāh, and single out Muḥammad,

Say to Abdullah and single out Muhammad

and our trusted horseman, Saʿd ibn Mālik:

And our knight al-Ma'mun, Sa'd ibn Malik

ثلاثةُ رَهْطٍ من صِحابِ مُحَمّدٍ

ثلاثةُ رَهْطٍ من صِحابِ مُحَمّدٍ

نجومٌ ومَأْوىً للرجالِ الصّعَالكِ

نجومٌ ومَأْوىً للرجالِ الصّعَالكِ

three men among Muḥammad’s companions,

Three comrades of the companions of Muhammad

stars, and a refuge for destitute men.

Stars and refuge for gallant men

أَلاَ تُخْبِرُونا والحوادثُ جَمّةٌ

أَلاَ تُخْبِرُونا والحوادثُ جَمّةٌ

وما الناسُ إلاّ بين ناجٍ وهَالكِ

وما الناسُ إلاّ بين ناجٍ وهَالكِ

Will you not tell us, while calamities abound,

Say, will you not inform us while calamities abound

and people are divided only between survivors and the doomed:

And people are either saved or doomed

أَحِلٌّ لَكُمْ قَتْلُ الإمامِ بِذَنْبِهِ

أَحِلٌّ لَكُمْ قَتْلُ الإمامِ بِذَنْبِهِ

فَلسْتُمْ لأَهْلِ الجَوْرِ أَوّلَ تاركِ

فَلسْتُمْ لأَهْلِ الجَوْرِ أَوّلَ تاركِ

Is it lawful for you to kill the imam for his sin?

Is it lawful for you to kill the imam for his sin?

Then you are not the first to forsake the unjust.

You were not the first to abandon the unjust

وإلاّ يَكُنْ ذَنباً أحاطَ بقتلهِ

وإلاّ يَكُنْ ذَنباً أحاطَ بقتلهِ

ففي تركه واللهِ إحدَى المهالكِ

ففي تركه واللهِ إحدَى المهالكِ

And if no sin warranted his killing,

Unless it was a sin that mandated his murder

then, by God, abandoning him is one of the ways to ruin.

Then in leaving him, by God, is one of the pitfalls

وإمّا وَقَفْتُمْ بَيْنَ حَقّ وباطلٍ

وإمّا وَقَفْتُمْ بَيْنَ حَقّ وباطلٍ

تَوَقُّفَ نِسْوانٍ إماءٍ عَواركِ

تَوَقُّفَ نِسْوانٍ إماءٍ عَواركِ

And if instead you have stood between truth and falsehood,

And if you stood between right and wrong

hesitating like menstruating slave women,

Like the hesitation of slave girls, the sheltered

وَمَا القولُ إِلاّ نَصْرَهُ أو قِتالَهُ

وَمَا القولُ إِلاّ نَصْرَهُ أو قِتالَهُ

أمانَةُ قوْمٍ بُدّلَتْ غَيْرَ ذلكِ

أمانَةُ قوْمٍ بُدّلَتْ غَيْرَ ذلكِ

the only position is to support him or fight him;

And speech is nothing but aiding or fighting him

a people’s trust has been changed to something other than that.

A trust of a people exchanged for other than that

فإنْ تنصرونا تنصروا أهلَ حُرْمةٍ

فإنْ تنصرونا تنصروا أهلَ حُرْمةٍ

وفي خُذْلنا يا قومِ جَبُّ الحواركِ

وفي خُذْلنا يا قومِ جَبُّ الحواركِ

For if you support us, you support people whose honor is inviolable;

If you aid us, you aid the people of sanctity

and in forsaking us, my people, lies the severing of the withers.

And in leaving us, O people, is the abyss of devastation