Homeland
THE CODE OF TIMUR IN VERSE
Translated from Uzbek · Original text
Praise of Allah2Praise of the ProphetTo pass through life fulfilling God’s commandIs better than to be the khan of all the earth.To lay your face upon the ground, saying “Kiss it,”Is better than to die in the embrace of crown and throne.For this is the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah,And in his Sunnah there is no flaw at all.Fourteen centuries bear sincere witness to this —Dear is the person who follows the Sunnah.It was a time of hardship, a time of oppression —In Mecca the believers were swallowing blood.A Muslim’s life was like the cheapest of goods,And faith filled people with fear.The nobles of Mecca gathered togetherAnd, at their wits’ end, they held council:“What can we do so that Muhammad’s helpless followersTurn away from his religion and live in regret?!To crush the serpent’s head is a fine deed,If only we could block the spring at its source.What an enchanting chant Muhammad’s word is,If only we could find the way to his tongue as well!Let us ask him what it is he wants,Perhaps he has a desire to be rich?!If it is gold and silver that he dreams of,Let us give it, and with that let him be quiet, after all.A man’s joy is surely a woman,Beautiful sweethearts are the delight of the soul.If Muhammad desires beauties,Let us give them, so he may find his heart’s delight.If wealth and slave girls are not enough,If he demands a crown, a throne and a state,If only he stops holding to his religion, calling it revelation,Let him be king, let him ascend the throne, he is welcome!Before him, without a doubt, in obedience will bowThe very core of the Arabs — the tribes of Quraysh.Only we have no need of revelation and of tawhid,If he gives that up, enough — whatever he wants!We will make it all ready for him —He will find glory and fame, power and might.Our word is our word — it will never be broken,If only he gives up his religion this very moment!”To such offers, the Messenger of GodWithout even troubling his thoughts,Deprived of rest by night and day,Sought a way forward for the religion of the Truth.That is, compared to servanthood to the Truth, dear soul,Can sovereignty over the world be equal, strange to say?!Is there any fortune greater than this, O man,If the love of the Truth is granted to you!O Beloved of God, O Prophet,Essence of the world, Seal of the Prophets!Whoever follows you with love,The world is never what he seeks!You are the mercy of the Merciful, the light of guidance,The sun that lit up all the darkened roads.You are a grace from the Truth to all the world,The realms of kings and angels are in need of you.Let kings sit on their thrones even a thousand years,Let them wear crowns and rule for a thousand years.But ages without you are counterfeit,Worms will devour their beys and lords.For Timur showed his respect to you,Bowing his head just as slaves do.Sending his greetings everywhere he went,In truth, he spent his life in your shade.That is, he upheld your Sunnah,He always held your word on high.That is why the world trembled at his feet,That is why old Samarkand rose high.He always held above his head, O Messenger,The pure descendants of the line of sayyids.That is why the Lord acceptedTimur’s plea as he lay in his final hour.That is, the Lord of the Auspicious Conjunction wishedTo lie with his head — a gift from the Truth —At the feet of the Prophet’s descendant, Sayyid Baraka,Even within his grave.However much we praise you, it is too little,If only we could always walk upon your path!First of all, may there reach you every moment, and thenYour family and companions, a thousand blessings and peace!Akrom MALIK
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