Bushrā Lanā

Bushrā Lanā (بشرى لنا), “Glad Tidings to Us!”, is a heartfelt Arabic poem expressing the joy felt upon arriving at Medina into the company of the Prophet ﷺ. It is widely known and sung throughout the Arab world, especially Syria and Morocco where it features in devotional gatherings of the Shadhili and Qadiri–Boutchichi tariqas respectively. The poem has been attributed to Sayyid Salīm al-Kaylānī, known by the moniker “al-Baḥrāwī”. This appears to be the father of Shaykh ‘Abd al-Qādir al-Iskandarānī (d. 1943), a distinguished Damascene jurist and scholar of Arabic language, literature and prosody originally from Alexandria. Al-Iskandarānī was a teacher to several great contemporary Syrian scholars, including Muḥammad Sa‘īd al-Burhānī and Shaykh Ḥasan Ḥabannaka. A poetry collection titled al-Jawāhir al-Baḥrāwiyya fī Madḥ Khayr al-Bariyya (The Baḥrāwian Gems in Praise of the Best of Creation), attributed to Salīm al-Kaylānī and published in Damascus in 1934, may be the original written source for this poem. If you have access to this book or any further information about its author, please feel free to reach out or leave a comment below.

Lyrics

– chorus –

بُشْرَى لَنَا نِلْنَا الْمُنىَ
زَالَ الْعَنَا وَافَى الْهَنَا
وَالدَّهْرُ أَنْجَزَ وَعْدَهُ
وَالْبِشْرُ أَضْحَى مُعْلَنَا

Bushraa lanaa nilnal–munaa
zaalal–‘anaa waafal–hanaa
Wad-dahru anjaza wa‘dahu
wal-bishru aḍḥaa mu‘lanaa

Glad tidings to us! We have reached our destination!
Gone is the hardship, and joy has come!
Time has delivered on its vow,
and our exuberance shines aloud.

– verse 1 –

يَا نَفْسِي طِيْبِي بِاللِّقَا
يَا عَيْنُ قَرِّي أَعْيُنَا
هٰذَا جَمَالُ الْمُصْطَفَى
أَنْوَارُهُ لاَحَتْ لَنَا

Yaa nafsee ṭeebee bil–liqaa
yaa ‘aynu qarree a‘yunaa
Haadhaa jamaalul–Muṣṭafaa
anwaaruhu laaḥat lanaa

O soul, delight in this meeting!
O eye, find comfort in this sight!
This is the beauty of the Chosen One,
whose light shines for us.

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– verse 2 –

يَا طَيْبَةُ مَاذَا نَقُولْ
وَفِيكِ قَدْ حَلَّ الرَّسُولْ
وَكُلُّنَا نَرْجُو الْوُصُولْ
لمُِحَمَّدٍ نَبِيِّنَا

Yaa Ṭaybatu maadhaa naqool
wa feeki qad ḥallar–rasool
Wa kullunaa narjul–wuṣool
li-Muḥammadin nabiyyinaa

O Blessed Earth, we have no words –
within you the Messenger rests!
We all long to be united
with Muḥammad, our Prophet.

– verse 3 –

يَا رَوْضَةَ الْهَادِي الشَّفِيعْ
وَصَاحِبَيْهِ وَالْبَقِيعْ
اُكْتُبْ لَنَا نَحْنُ الْجَمِيعْ
زِيَارَةً لِحَبِيبِنَا

Yaa rawḍatal–haadish–shafee‘
wa ṣaaḥibayhi wal–Baqee‘
Uktub lanaa naḥnul–jamee‘
ziyaaratan li-ḥabeebinaa

O Meadow (Rawḍa) of the Guide and Intercessor
and his two Companions, and O Baqīʿ,
Record for us
this visit to our beloved.

– verse 4 –

حَيْثُ الْأَمَانِي رَوْضُهَا
قَدْ ظَلَّ حُلْوَ الْمُجْتَبَى
وَبِالْحَبِيْبِ الْمُصْطَفَى
صَفَا وَطَابَ عَيْشُنَا

Ḥaythul–amaanee rawḍuhaa
qad ẓalla ḥulwal–mujtabaa
Wa bil-ḥabeebil–muṣtafaa
wal-bishru aḍḥaa mu‘lanaa

Ṭayba’s Meadow, where hopes are fulfilled,
retains the sweetness of the Distinguished One.
Thanks to the Beloved, the Chosen One,
our life is made pure and delightful.

– verse 5 –

صَلَّى عَلَيْهِ دَاىِٔمًا
فِي كُلِّ حِينٍ رَبُّنَا
وَآلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ
أَهْلِ الْمَعَانِي وَالْوَفَا

Ṣallaa ‘alayhi daa’iman
fee kulli ḥeenin Rabbunaa
Wa aalihi wa ṣaḥbihi
ahlil–ma‘aanee wal-wafaa

May our Lord bless him constantly,
and in every moment,
And his Family and his Companions
– people of true substance and loyalty.

Audio Samples

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