And my heart burns more than the heart of one whose heart is cold.

And my heart burns with longing for one whose heart is cold

and for one whose body and condition are afflicted by illness

Why should I conceal a love that has consumed my body

while nations claim to love Saif al-Dawla? If love for his noble countenance unites us,

then let us share it in proportion to that love

I visited him while the swords of India were sheathed,

and I gazed upon him while the swords were dripping with blood.

He was the most handsome of all God's creation,

and the most beautiful of the most handsome were his noble qualities.

He was the enemy I had targeted. Victory within it lies sorrow,

within it lies bounty. A fierce fear has taken your place,

and awe has bestowed upon you what even beasts cannot.

You have obligated yourself to something not obligatory: that no land should conceal them,

nor any banner. Whenever you sought an army and it turned back in flight,

did ambition pursue you in its wake? It is your duty to defeat them in every battle,

and you bear no shame if they are defeated.