Harful 'Ayn · حَرْفُ الْعَيْنِ

عَجِبْــتُ لِصَبٍّ مُغْرَمِ الْقَلْبِ مُولَــــعِ
قَرِيبٍ مِنَ الْمَحْبُوبِ بِالْبُعْدِ مُــــوجَعِ

‘Ajibtu li-ṣabbin mughrami al-qalbi mūla‘ī
Qarībin mina al-maḥbūbi bil-bu‘di mūja‘ī

I marvel at a lover whose heart is infatuated and tormented; close to the Beloved, yet pained by the [seeming] distance.

وَذَلِكَ إِبْـــرَاهِيمُ يَهْوَى مُحَمَّــــدًا
وَأَمْرُ وُجُودِ الْكَوْنِ غَيْرُ مُوَقَّـــعِ

Wa-dhālika Ibrāhīmu yahwā Muḥammadan
Wa-amru wujūdi al-kawni ghayru muwaqqa‘ī

That is Ibrahim, who loves Muhammad since before the very existence of the universe was decreed.

وَلاَ زَالَ يَشْكُو الْبَينَ وَالْحَــــالُ إِنَّــهُ
حَبِيبِي مَعِي فِي الْبَيْتِ أَوْ وَسْطَ بَلْقَعِ

Wa-lā zāla yash-kū al-bayna wal-ḥālu innahu
Ḥabībī ma‘ī fī al-bayti aw wasṭa bal-qa‘ī

He continues to complain of separation, while the reality is that my Beloved is with me in the house or in the midst of a wasteland.

إِذَا لاَحَ بَرْقٌ شَوَّقَ الْقَلْبَ أَوْ حَدَا
لَهُ مُتَغَـــــنٍّ كَالْحَمَـــامِ الْمُسَجِّــعِ

Idhā lāḥa bar-qun shawwaqa al-qalba aw ḥadā
Lahu mutaghannin kal-ḥamāmi al-musajji‘ī

Whenever lightning flashes, it stirs the heart with longing, or whenever a singer chants for him like a cooing pigeon.

تَرَانِي وَإِنِّي غَائِبٌ فِيــــهِ حَاضِــرًا
أُحَاكِي رُقُودًا سَاهِرًا فَوْقَ مَضْجَعِي

Tarānī wa-innī ghā’ibun fīhi ḥāḍiran
Uḥākī ruqūdan sāhiran fawqa maḍ-ja‘ī

You see me—and indeed I am absent in him while being [physically] present—resembling one asleep, yet I am wide awake upon my bed.

فَدَائِي الَّذِي أَعْيَا الْأَطِبَّا انْفِصَالُ مَنْ
يُوَاصِلُنِي فِي كُـــلِّ تَـيْـهَـا وَمَرْبَــعِ

Fa-dā’ī al-ladhī a‘yā al-aṭibbā infiṣālu man
Yuwāṣilunī fī kulli tay-hā wa-mar-ba‘ī

My illness, which has exhausted the doctors, is the [perceived] separation from the one who connects with me in every desert and dwelling.

فَتِيكَ فَتِيـــــكٌ مَا سَبَانِـــيَ غِيدُهَـــا
فَغُرُّ الْمَعَـــالِي آخِـــذَاتٌ بِمَجْمَعِــي

Fatīka fatīkun mā sabāniya ghīdu-hā
Fa-ghurru al-ma‘ālī ākhidhātun bi-maj-ma‘ī

Vatika (the world/distractions) is lethal; its fair ones have not captivated me, for the splendors of the heights have taken hold of my being.

مُوَاجَهَــةُ الْـهَــادِي وَشَمِّــي أَرِيجَــهُ
وَفَهْمِي الَّذِي يُوحِي وَيُلْقِي لِمَسْمَعِي

Muwājaha-tu al-Hādī wa-shammi arījahu
Wa-fah-mī al-ladhī yūḥī wa-yulqī li-mas-ma‘ī

My goal is the face-to-face meeting with the Guide, smelling his fragrance, and the understanding that he inspires and casts into my hearing.

كَــذَا رَفْـــعُ رَايَاتِ الْحَنِيفَةِ مُعْلِنًـــا
بِإِبْطَـــالِ آرَا كَرْدَنَـــالَ الْمُضَيَّـــعِ

Kadhā raf-‘u rāyāti al-ḥanīfati mu‘linan
Bi-ib-ṭāli ārā Kar-da-nāla al-muḍayyi‘ī

Likewise, the raising of the banners of the Primordial Faith (Islam), announcing the nullification of the opinions of the wasteful Cardinal.

أُزِيـــلُ خِلاَفًـــا بَيْـــنَ قَوْمِ مُحَمَّــدٍ
فَيَرْبُطُنَا التَّوْحِيدُ مِــنْ كُلِّ مَوْضِـعِ

Uzīlu khilāfan bayna qawmi Muḥammadin
Fa-yar-bi-ṭunā al-tawḥīdu min kulli mawḍi‘ī

I remove the disagreement between the people of Muhammad; thus Unity (Tawhid) binds us from every place.

فَنَمْشِي عَلَى نَهْــــجِ الْأَمِينِ سَوِيَّــةً
نُـتَابِعُــــــهُ فَالْكُــــلُّ جِـــدُّ مُتَبَّــــعِ

Fa-nam-shī ‘alā nahji al-Amīni sawiyyatan
Nutābi‘uhu fal-kullu jiddu mutabba‘ī

So we walk upon the path of the Trustworthy One together; we follow him, for everyone is truly a follower.

فَـــإِنْ عَزَّ لُقْيَـــاهُ فَالْأَقْـــدَامُ دَائِمًــا
عَلَى سُنَّةِ الْـهَادِي عَلَى خَيْرِ مَهْيَـعِ

Fa-in ‘azza luq-yāhu fal-aqdāmu dā’iman
‘Alā sunnati al-Hādī ‘alā khayri mah-ya‘ī

And if meeting him [physically] is difficult, our feet are always upon the Sunnah of the Guide, upon the best of paths.

نُصَلِّي كَمَــا كَــانَ النَّبِـــيُّ مُصَلِّياً
نَصُومُ كَـــذَا نَقْفُــو سَبِيلَ سُمَيْدَعِ

Nuṣallī kamā kāna al-nabiyyu muṣalliyan
Naṣūmu kadhā naq-fū sabīla Sumay-da‘ī

We pray just as the Prophet used to pray; we fast and follow the way of the noble leader.

وَنُنْفِـــقُ لاَ نُبْقِـــي نُرِيدُ صِرَاطَــهُ
نَحُـــجُّ كَحَـــجِّ الْهَاشِمِـــيِّ الْمُتَبَّـــعِ

Wa-nun-fiqu lā nubqī nurīdu ṣirāṭahu
Naḥujju ka-ḥaj-ji al-Hāshimiyyi al-mutabba‘ī

We spend [in charity] and keep nothing back, desiring his path; we perform Hajj just like the Hajj of the followed Hashemite.

نُكَـــرِّرُ حَقًّــا لاَ إِلَــهَ سِوَى الَّـــذِي
لَهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالْأَمْـــرُ الْعَظِيمُ التَّمَنُّـــعِ

Nukar-riru ḥaqqan lā ilāha siwā al-ladhī
Lahu al-khal-qu wal-amru al-‘aẓīmu al-tamannu‘ī

We repeat the truth: "There is no god but the One" to whom belongs the creation, the command, the Great, the Invincible.

عَلَيْــــهِ صَـــــلاَةُ اللّٰهِ ثُـــمَّ سَلاَمُــهُ
وَآلٍ وَصَحْبِ الْهَاشِمِيِّ الْمُشَــرِّعِ

‘Alayhi ṣalātu Allāhi thumma salāmuhu
Wa-ālin wa-ṣaḥ-bi al-Hāshimiyyi al-mushar-ri‘ī

Upon him be the prayer of Allah and then His peace, and upon the family and companions of the Hashemite Lawgiver.