Qasidah Ghousia

الْقَصِيدَةُ الْغَوْثِيَّةُ

Qasidah Ghousia

Fully Vocalized Arabic Transliteration and Modern English Translation

Traditionally attributed to Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī

About This Edition

This edition follows the complete 30-couplet recension printed in Qasaid e Ghousia (2002), with its opening and closing lines checked against the catalogue record for manuscript MS3859.2. Each numbered unit presents one fully vocalized Arabic couplet, one scholarly transliteration, and one modern English translation.

The Arabic preserves the adopted wording of the base text. Full case vowels are supplied where the syntax permits, while the final rhyme may naturally be read in pause. The transliteration uses macrons for long vowels and standard scholarly signs for Arabic consonants.

Several lines survive in unstable or grammatically compressed forms. Their translations remain close to the transmitted wording, and the most consequential difficulties are recorded after the poem. The speaker’s ecstatic claims are translated as poetic speech rather than restated as doctrinal propositions.

Transliteration Key

Long vowels ā ī ū   Hamza ʾ   Ayn ʿ   Emphatics ḥ ṣ ḍ ṭ ẓ   Other consonants kh dh sh gh

The Poem

﴿١﴾  سَقَانِي الْحُبُّ كَأْسَاتِ الْوِصَالِ — فَقُلْتُ لِخَمْرَتِي نَحْوِي تَعَالَيْ

Saqānī al-ḥubbu kaʾsāti al-wiṣāli — fa-qultu li-khamratī naḥwī taʿālay.

Love gave me the cups of union to drink, and I said to my wine, “Come toward me.”

﴿٢﴾  سَعَتْ وَمَشَتْ لِنَحْوِي فِي كُؤُوسٍ — فَهِمْتُ بِسَكْرَتِي بَيْنَ الْمَوَالِي

Saʿat wa-mashat li-naḥwī fī kuʾūsin — fa-fahimtu bi-sakratī bayna al-mawālī.

It hastened and came toward me in cups; in my intoxication, among the masters, I came to understand.

﴿٣﴾  وَقُلْتُ لِسَائِرِ الْأَقْطَابِ لُمُّوا — بِحَانِي وَادْخُلُوا أَنْتُمْ رِجَالِي

Wa-qultu li-sāʾiri al-aqṭābi lummū — bi-ḥānī wa-udkhulū antum rijālī.

I said to all the spiritual poles, “Gather in my tavern and enter; you are my men.”

﴿٤﴾  وَهِيمُوا وَاشْرَبُوا أَنْتُمْ جُنُودِي — فَسَاقِي الْقَوْمِ بِالْوَافِي مَلَا لِي

Wa-hīmū wa-ishrabū antum junūdī — fa-sāqī al-qawmi bi-al-wāfī malā lī.

Lose yourselves in ecstasy and drink—you are my soldiers; the people’s cupbearer has filled a brimming cup for me.

﴿٥﴾  شَرِبْتُمْ فَضْلَتِي مِنْ بَعْدِ سُكْرِي — وَلَا نِلْتُمْ عُلُوِّي وَاتِّصَالِي

Sharibtum faḍlatī min baʿdi sukrī — wa-lā niltum ʿuluwwī wa-ittiṣālī.

You drank what overflowed from me after my intoxication, but you did not attain my elevation or my union.

﴿٦﴾  مَقَامُكُمُ الْعُلَا جَمْعًا وَلَكِنْ — مَقَامِي فَوْقَكُمْ مَا زَالَ عَالِي

Maqāmukumu al-ʿulā jamʿan wa-lākin — maqāmī fawqakum mā zāla ʿālī.

All your stations are lofty, yet my station above you has always remained high.

﴿٧﴾  أَنَا فِي حَضْرَةِ التَّقْرِيبِ وَحْدِي — يُصَرِّفُنِي وَحَسْبِي ذُو الْجَلَالِ

Anā fī ḥaḍrati al-taqrībi waḥdī — yuṣarrifunī wa-ḥasbī Dhū al-Jalāli.

Alone in the Presence of Nearness, the Lord of Majesty directs me and is enough for me.

﴿٨﴾  أَنَا الْبَازِيُّ أَشْهَبُ كُلِّ شَيْخٍ — وَمَنْ ذَا فِي الرِّجَالِ أُعْطِيَ مِثَالِي

Anā al-bāziyyu ashhabu kulli shaykhin — wa-man dhā fī al-rijāli uʿṭiya mithālī.

I am the Grey Falcon of every shaykh; who among the spiritual men has been given a likeness such as mine?

﴿٩﴾  كَسَانِي الْخِلْعَةَ بِطِرَازِ عَزْمٍ — وَتَوَّجَنِي بِتِيجَانِ الْكَمَالِ

Kasānī al-khilʿata bi-ṭirāzi ʿazmin — wa-tawwajanī bi-tījāni al-kamāli.

He clothed me in a robe embroidered with resolve and crowned me with the crowns of perfection.

﴿١٠﴾  وَأَطْلَعَنِي عَلَى سِرٍّ قَدِيمٍ — وَقَلَّدَنِي وَأَعْطَانِي سُؤَالِي

Wa-aṭlaʿanī ʿalā sirrin qadīmin — wa-qalladanī wa-aʿṭānī suʾālī.

He disclosed an ancient secret to me, invested me, and granted what I asked.

﴿١١﴾  وَوَلَّانِي عَلَى الْأَقْطَابِ جَمْعًا — فَحُكْمِي نَافِذٌ فِي كُلِّ حَالِ

Wa-wallānī ʿalā al-aqṭābi jamʿan — fa-ḥukmī nāfidhun fī kulli ḥāli.

He placed me over all the spiritual poles, so my command takes effect in every state.

﴿١٢﴾  وَلَوْ أَلْقَيْتُ سِرِّي فِي بِحَارٍ — لَصَارَ الْكُلُّ غَوْرًا فِي الزَّوَالِ

Wa-law alqaytu sirrī fī biḥārin — la-ṣāra al-kullu ghawran fī al-zawāli.

If I cast my secret into the seas, every one of them would sink into the depths and vanish.

﴿١٣﴾  وَلَوْ أَلْقَيْتُ سِرِّي فِي جِبَالٍ — لَدُكَّتْ وَاخْتَفَتْ بَيْنَ الرِّمَالِ

Wa-law alqaytu sirrī fī jibālin — la-dukkat wa-ikhtafat bayna al-rimāli.

If I cast my secret into mountains, they would be crushed and disappear among the sands.

﴿١٤﴾  فَلَوْ أَلْقَيْتُ سِرِّي فَوْقَ نَارٍ — لَخَمَدَتْ وَانْطَفَتْ فِي سِرِّ حَالِي

Fa-law alqaytu sirrī fawqa nārin — la-khamadat wa-inṭafat fī sirri ḥālī.

If I cast my secret upon a fire, it would die down and be extinguished by the secret of my state.

﴿١٥﴾  وَلَوْ أَلْقَيْتُ سِرِّي فَوْقَ مَيِّتٍ — لَقَامَ بِقُدْرَةِ الْمَوْلَى مَشَى لِي

Wa-law alqaytu sirrī fawqa mayyitin — la-qāma bi-qudrati al-mawlā mashā lī.

If I cast my secret upon a dead person, he would rise by the Lord’s power and walk toward me.

﴿١٦﴾  وَمَا مِنْهَا شُهُورٌ أَوْ دُهُورٌ — تَمُرُّ وَتَنْقَضِي إِلَّا أَتَى لِي

Wa-mā minhā shuhūrun aw duhūrun — tamurru wa-tanqaḍī illā atā lī.

No month or age passes and comes to an end without its account reaching me.

﴿١٧﴾  وَتُخْبِرُنِي بِمَا يَأْتِي وَيَجْرِي — وَتُعَلِّمُنِي فَأَقْصُرُ عَنْ جِدَالِي

Wa-tukhbirunī bi-mā yaʾtī wa-yajrī — wa-tuʿallimunī fa-aqṣuru ʿan jidālī.

It tells me what is to come and what will unfold; it teaches me, so I refrain from argument.

﴿١٨﴾  مُرِيدِي هِمْ وَطِبْ وَاشْطَحْ وَغَنِّ — وَافْعَلْ مَا تَشَا فَالِاسْمُ عَالِي

Murīdī him wa-ṭib wa-ishṭaḥ wa-ghanni — wa-ifʿal mā tashā fa-al-ismu ʿālī.

My disciple, lose yourself in love, rejoice, speak from ecstasy, and sing; do as you wish, for the Name is exalted.

﴿١٩﴾  مُرِيدِي لَا تَخَفْ، اللَّهُ رَبِّي — عَطَانِي رِفْعَةً نِلْتُ الْمَنَالَ

Murīdī lā takhaf, Allāhu rabbī — ʿaṭānī rifʿatan niltu al-manāla.

My disciple, do not fear: God is my Lord. He granted me elevation, and I attained my desire.

﴿٢٠﴾  طُبُولِي فِي السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ دُقَّتْ — وَشَاوِيشُ السَّعَادَةِ قَدْ بَدَا لِي

Ṭubūlī fī al-samāʾi wa-al-arḍi duqqat — wa-shāwīshu al-saʿādati qad badā lī.

My drums have been beaten in heaven and on earth, and the herald of felicity has appeared to me.

﴿٢١﴾  بِلَادُ اللَّهِ مُلْكِي تَحْتَ حُكْمِي — وَوَقْتِي قَبْلَ قَلْبِي قَدْ صَفَا لِي

Bilādu Allāhi mulkī taḥta ḥukmī — wa-waqtī qabla qalbī qad ṣafā lī.

God’s lands are my domain beneath my rule; before my heart was formed, my spiritual moment had already been made clear to me.

﴿٢٢﴾  نَظَرْتُ إِلَى بِلَادِ اللَّهِ جَمْعًا — كَخَرْدَلَةٍ عَلَى حُكْمِ اتِّصَالِي

Naẓartu ilā bilādi Allāhi jamʿan — ka-khardalatin ʿalā ḥukmi ittiṣālī.

I beheld all God’s lands as a single mustard seed, by virtue of the power of my spiritual connection.

﴿٢٣﴾  وَكُلُّ وَلِيٍّ لَهُ قَدَمٌ وَإِنِّي — عَلَى قَدَمِ النَّبِيِّ بَدْرِ الْكَمَالِ

Wa-kullu waliyyin lahu qadamun wa-innī — ʿalā qadami al-nabiyyi badri al-kamāli.

Every saint has a prophetic footing; I stand upon the footing of the Prophet, the full moon of perfection.

﴿٢٤﴾  دَرَسْتُ الْعِلْمَ حَتَّى صِرْتُ قُطْبًا — وَنِلْتُ السَّعْدَ مِنْ مَوْلَى الْمَوَالِي

Darastu al-ʿilma ḥattā ṣirtu quṭban — wa-niltu al-saʿda min mawlā al-mawālī.

I studied knowledge until I became a spiritual pole, and I received felicity from the Master of all masters.

﴿٢٥﴾  فَمَنْ فِي أَوْلِيَاءِ اللَّهِ مِثْلِي — وَمَنْ فِي الْعِلْمِ وَالتَّصْرِيفِ حَالِي

Fa-man fī awliyāʾi Allāhi mithlī — wa-man fī al-ʿilmi wa-al-taṣrīfi ḥālī.

Who among God’s saints is like me? Who shares my state in knowledge and spiritual authority?

﴿٢٦﴾  رِجَالٌ فِي هَوَاجِيرِهِمْ صِيَامٌ — وَفِي ظُلَمِ اللَّيَالِي كَاللَّآلِي

Rijālun fī hawājīrihim ṣiyāmun — wa-fī ẓulami al-layālī ka-al-laʾālī.

Men fast through the scorching noons; in the darkness of the nights, they are like pearls.

﴿٢٧﴾  مُرِيدِي لَا تَخَفْ وَاشٍ فَإِنِّي — عَزُومٌ قَاتِلٌ عِنْدَ الْقِتَالِ

Murīdī lā takhaf wāshin fa-innī — ʿazūmun qātilun ʿinda al-qitāli.

My disciple, do not fear any slanderer; I am resolute, a fighter when battle comes.

﴿٢٨﴾  أَنَا الْجِيلَانِيُّ مُحْيِي الدِّينِ اِسْمِي — وَأَعْلَامِي عَلَى رَأْسِ الْجِبَالِ

Anā al-Jīlāniyyu Muḥyī al-Dīni ismī — wa-aʿlāmī ʿalā raʾsi al-jibāli.

I am al-Jilani; Muhyi al-Din is my name, and my banners stand on the peaks of the mountains.

﴿٢٩﴾  أَنَا الْحَسَنِيُّ وَالْمَخْدَعُ مَقَامِي — وَأَقْدَامِي عَلَى عُنُقِ الرِّجَالِ

Anā al-Ḥasaniyyu wa-al-makhdaʿu maqāmī — wa-aqdāmī ʿalā ʿunuqi al-rijāli.

I am a descendant of al-Hasan, and the inner chamber is my station; my feet rest upon the necks of the spiritual men.

﴿٣٠﴾  وَعَبْدُ الْقَادِرِ الْمَشْهُورُ اِسْمِي — وَجَدِّي صَاحِبُ الْعَيْنِ الْكَمَالِ

Wa-ʿAbdu al-Qādiri al-mashhūru ismī — wa-jaddī ṣāḥibu al-ʿayni al-kamāli.

Abd al-Qadir is my well-known name; my forefather is the possessor of the eye of perfection.

تَمَّتِ الْقَصِيدَةُ

Notes on Difficult Readings

Verse 4 The base printing joins ملالي. It is read here as مَلَا لِي, representing the ordinary form مَلَأَ لِي, because that division supplies the intelligible sense “filled for me.”

Verse 8 The transmitted syntax is compressed. The translation follows the established epithet al-bāz al-ashhab, “the Grey Falcon,” while retaining every consonant of the adopted Arabic line.

Verse 20 شَاوِيش is an Ottoman-period loanword used for an officer, usher, or herald. “Herald” best fits its association with felicity appearing or being announced.

Verse 21 The reading قَبْلَ قَلْبِي is preserved from the base text. Because the phrase is obscure, the translation gives its most plausible temporal and mystical sense without adopting the variant قَبْلَ قَبْلِي.

Verse 27 وَاشٍ means a slanderer, informer, or talebearer. The transmitted construction is grammatically irregular, but its intended sense is clear.

Verse 29 الْمَخْدَع literally means an inner or private chamber. Its precise mystical referent is not explained in the consulted witnesses, so the translation remains close to the wording.

Verse 30 صَاحِبُ الْعَيْنِ الْكَمَالِ is syntactically compressed in the transmitted text. “Possessor of the eye of perfection” preserves its wording and honorific force.

Sources Consulted

1. Qasaid e Ghousia. Iftikhar Ahmad Hafiz Qadri, 2002, Qasida No. 1, printed pp. 12–15. Base witness for the 30 consecutively numbered couplets.
2. Iraqi Knowledge Portal manuscript record. al-Abbas Holy Shrine Library, MS3859.2. The catalogue supplies the incipit and the closing signature couplet.
3. al-Qasidah al-Ghawthiyyah maʿa sharhiha. 1818, University of Michigan copy. Consulted as an early printed control witness.
4. Sirr al-Asrar wa Mazhar al-Anwar. Ahl al-Bayt Library digital text, p. 175. Consulted for comparison readings.
5. Saqani al-hubbu kasat al-wisal. Arabic Wikisource. Used only to compare the expanded recension and its vocalization.

Sources accessed 23 September 2026. Translation prepared for this edition.