The Most Beautiful Arabic Poem of the 7th Century, an eloquent summary of Islamic Philosophy... by Imam Ali (as)
النفسُ تبكي على الدنيا وقد علمت
The Soul Cries over this world and yet acknowledges,
أن السعادة فيها ترك ما فيــها
that the happiness within it is to abandon what is within it.
لا دارٌ للمرءِ بعد الموت يسكُنها
There is no house for the individual to live in after death,
إلا التي كانَ قبـل الموتِ بانيـها
except for the one that he built before his death.
فإن بناها بخير طاب مسكنُه
And if he built it with goodness, pleasing his settlement will become,
وإن بناها بشر خـــــــاب بانيـــها
And if he built it with evil, dissapointed its builder will be.
أموالنا لذوي الميراث نجمعُها
Our money for our heirs we collect it,
ودورنا لخراب الدهـــر نبنـيــها
and our homes for the corruption of time we build it.
أين الملوك التي كانت مسلطنةً
Where are the kings that were proudly dictating?
حتى سقاها بكأس الموت ساقيــــها
Till the pourer of death poured death upon them.
فكم مدائنٍ في الآفاق قد بنيت
And how many cities were built upon the horizon?
أمست خرابا وأفنى الموتُ أهليـــها
Which eventually became devastated while its citizens tasted death.
لا تركِنَنَّ إلى الدنيا وما فيها
Don’t submit to this world and what’s within it,
فالموت لا شـــك يُفنينا ويُفنيــها
for surely, without a doubt, death will end us and end it
لكل نفس وان كانت على وجلٍ
For every soul, even if it was powerful,
من المَنِيَّةِ آمــــــالٌ تقويـــــــها
had hopes that were overcome by death.
المرء يبسطها والدهر يقبضُها
The individual entertains it [the soul] while time kills it,
والنفس تنشرها والموت يطويـــــها
And the individual opens it, while death puts an end to it.
إنما المكارم أخلاقٌ مطهرةٌ
Surely the perfection of morals is pure,
الدين أولها والعقـــــــل ثانيـــها
Religion is its first, intellect is its second,
والعلم ثالثها والحلم رابعها
And knowledge is its third, and tolerance is its fourth,
والجود خامسها والفضل سادســــها
And generous is its fifth, and graciousness is its sixth,
والبر سابعها والشكر ثامنها
And activity serving the people is its seventh, and thankfulness is its eighth,
والصبر تاسعها واللين باقيـــــها
And patience is its ninth, and gentleness is its preserver,
والنفس تعلم أنى لا أصادقها
And the Soul knows that I do not befriend it,
ولست ارشدُ إلا حين اعصيـــــــــــها
And I won’t take the wise step to disobey it,
واعمل لدار ٍغداً رضوانُ خازنها
And I work for tomorrow [Hereafter] to the satisfaction of its ower,
والجار احمد والرحمن ناشيـــــها
And the neighbour is Ahmed [saaw] [in heaven] and the Merciful [SWT] is its Creator.
قصورها ذهب والمسك طينتها
Its palaces are golden, and its heavenly perfume is its mud,
والزعفران حشيشٌ نابتٌ فيــــــــــها
And the saffron is its lushed grasses, graffitied upon it.
أنهارها لبنٌ محضٌ ومن عسل
Its rivers are yoghurt, purified and of honey,
والخمر يجري رحيقاً في مجاريـــــــها
And heavenly wine flows, of sweet nectar, in its canals.
والطير تجري على الأغصان عاكفةً
And the birds fly between their branches,
تسبحُ الله جهراً في مغانيـــــــها
praising Allah [SWT] loudly in their songs
من يشتري الدار في الفردوس يعمرها
And whoever wants to own a home here he should build it,
بركعةٍ في ظلام الليل يحييـها
with a sincere prayer in the darkness of the night.
