اللَّهُمَّ قَدِ انْصَاحَتْ جِبَالُنَا،
O my God! Surely our mountains have dried up
وَاغْبَرَّتْ أَرْضُنَا،
and our earth has become dusty.
وَهَامَتْ دَوَابُّنَا،
Our cattle are thirsty
وَتَحَيَّرَتْ في مَرَابِضِهَا
and are bewildered in their enclosures.
وَعَجَّتْ عَجِيجَ الثَّكَالَى عَلَى أَوْلاَدِهَا،
They are moaning like the moaning of mothers for their (dead) sons.
وَمَلَّتِ التَّرَدُّدَ في مَرَاتِعِهَا،
They are tired of going to their meadows
وَالحَنِينَ إِلَى مَوَارِدِهَا .
and longing for their watering places.
اللَّهُمَّ فَارْحَمْ أَنِينَ الاْنَّةِ وَحَنِينَ الْحَانَّةِ
O My God! Have mercy on the groan of the groaning and yearn of the yearning.
اللَّهُمَّ فَارْحَمْ حَيْرَتَهَا فِي مَذَاهِبِهَا، وَأَنِينَهَا في مَوَالِجِهَا.
O My God! Have mercy on their bewilderment and their passages and their groaning in their yards.
اللَّهُمَّ خَرَجْنَا إِلَيْكَ حِينَ اعْتَكَرَتْ عَلَيْنَا حَدَابِيرُ السِّنِينَ،
O My God! We have come out to Thee when the years of drought have crowded over us like (a herd of) thin camels,
وَأَخْلَفَتْنَا مَخَايِلُ الْجُودِ
and rain clouds have abandoned us.
فَكُنْتَ الرَّجَاءَ لِلْمُبْتَئِسِ،
Thou art the hope for the afflicted
وَالْبَلاَغَ لِلْمُلْتَمِسِ.
and succour for the seeker.
نَدْعُوكَ حِينَ قَنَطَ الاْنَامُ،
We call Thee when the people have lost hopes,
وَمُنِعَ الْغَمَامُ،
cloud has been denied
وَهَلَكَ الْسَّوَامُ
and cattle have died,
أَلاَّ تُؤَاخِذَنَا بَأَعْمَالِنَا،
that do not seize us for our deeds
وَلاَ تَأْخُذَنَا بِذُنُوبِنَا،
and do not catch us for our sins,
وَانْشُرْ عَلَيْنَا رَحْمَتَكَ بِالسَّحَابِ الْمُنْبَعِقِ
and spread Thy mercy over us through raining clouds,
وَالرَّبِيعِ الْمُغْدِقِ
rain-fed blossoming,
وَالنَّبَاتِ الْمُونِقِ
amazing vegetation,
سَحّاً وَابِلاً
and heavy down-pours
تُحْيِي بِهِ مَا قَدْ مَاتَ،
with which all that was dead regains life
وَتَرُدُّ بِهِ مَا قَدْ فَاتَ
and all that was lost returns.
اللَّهُمَّ سُقْيَا مِنْكَ
O My God! Give rain from Thee
مُحْيِيَةً مُرْوِيَةً،
which should be life giving, satisfying,
تَامَّةً عَامَّةً،
thorough, wide-scattered,
طَيِّبَةً مُبَارَكَةً،
purified, blissful,
هَنِيئَةً مَرِيعَةً
plentiful and invigorating.
زَاكِياً نَبْتُهَا،
Its vegetation should be exuberant,
ثَامِراًفَرْعُهَا،
its branches full of fruits
نَاضِراً وَرَقُهَا،
and its leaves green.
تُنْعِشُ بِهَا الضَّعِيفَ مِنْ عِبَادِكَ،
With it Thou reinvigorates the weak among Thy creatures
وَتُحْيِي بِهَا الْمَيِّتَ مِنْ بِلاَدِكَ.
and bringeth back to life the dead among Thy cities.
اللَّهُمَّ سُقْيَا مِنْكَ
O My God! Give rain from Thee with which
تُعْشِبُ بِهَا نِجَادُنَا
our high lands get covered with green herbage,
وَتَجْرِي بِهَا وِهَادُنَا
streams get flowing,
وَيُخْصِبُ بِهَا جَنَابُنَا
our sides grow green,
وَتُقْبِلُ بِهَا ثِمَارُنَا،
our fruits thrive,
وَتَعِيشُ بِهَا مَوَاشِينَا،
our cattle prosper,
وَتَنْدَى بِهَا أَقَاصِينَا
our far-flung areas get watered
وَتَسْتَعِينُ بِهَا ضَوَاحِينَا
and our dry areas get its benefit,
مِنْ بَرَكَاتِكَ الْوَاسِعَةِ،
with Thy vast blessing
وَعَطَايَاكَ الْجَزِيلَةِ،
and immeasurable grant
عَلَى بَرِيَّتِكَ الْمُرْمِلَةِ
on Thy distressed universe
وَوَحْشِكَ الْمُهْمَلَةِ.
and Thy untamed beasts.
وَأَنْزِلْ عَلَيْنَا سَمَاءً مُخْضِلَةً
And pour upon us rain which is drenching,
مِدْرَاراً هَاطِلَةً،
continuous and heavy;
يُدَافِعُ الْوَدْقُ مِنْهَا الْوَدْقَ،
wherein one cycle of rain clashes with the other
وَيَحْفِزُ الْقَطْرُ مِنْهَا الْقَطْرَ،
and one rain drop pushes another (into a continuous chain),
غَيْرَ خُلَّبٍ بَرْقُهَا
its lightning should not be deceptive,
وَلاَ جَهَامٍ عَارِضُهَا
its cheek not rainless,
وَلاَ قَزَعٍ رَبَابُهَا،
its white clouds not scattered
وَلاَ شَفَّانٍ ذِهَابُهَا
and rain not light,
حَتَّى يُخْصِبَ لاِمْرَاعِهَا الْمجْدِبُونَ،
so that the famine-stricken thrive with its abundant herbage
وَيَحْيَا بِبَرَكَتِهَا المُسْنِتُونَ
and the drought stricken come to life with its bliss.
فَإِنَّكَ تُنْزِلُ الْغَيْثَ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا قَنَطُوا،
Certainly, Thou pourest down rain after the people lose hopes
وَتَنْشُرُ رَحْمَتَكَ،
and spreadest Thy mercy,
وَأَنْتَ الْوَلِيُّ الْحَميدُ.
since Thou art the Guardian, the praiseworthy.
قال السيد الشريف: تفسير ما في هذه الخطبة من الغريب.
As-Sayyid ar-Radi says: The wonderful expressions of this sermon:
قولُهُ عَلَيْهِ السَّلامُ: «انْصاحَتْ جِبالُنا» اَىْ تَشَقَّقَتْ مِنَ الْمُحُولِ، يُقالُ: «انْصاحَ الثَّوْبُ» اِذا انْشَقَّ. وَ يُقالُ اَيْضاً: «انْصاحَ النَّبْتُ» وَ «صاحَ وَ صَوَّحَ» اِذا جَفَّ وَيَبِسَ. كلّه بمعنىً.
Amir al-mu'minin's words "insahat jibaluna" means the mountains cracked on account of drought. It is said "insaha'ththawbu" when it is torn. It is also said "insaha'n-nabtu" or "saha" or "sawwaha" when vegetation withers and dries up.
وَقَوْلُهُ: «وَ هامَتْ دَوابُّنا» اَىْ عَطِشَتْ، وَالْهُيامُ: الْعَطْشُ.
His words "wa hamat dawabbuna" means became thirsty, as "huyam" means thirst.
وَ قَوْلُهُ: «حَدابيرُ السِّنينَ» جَمْعُ «حِدْبار» وَ هِىَ النّاقَةُ الَّتى اَنْضاها السَّيْرُ، فَشَبَّهَ بِهَا السَّنَةَ الَّتى فَشا فيها الْجَدْبُ. قالَ ذُوالرُّمَّةِ:
His words "hadabiru's-sinin". This is plural of "hidbar". It means the camel whom treading has made thin. So Amir al-mu'minin likened with such a camel the year in which drought had occurred. The Arab poet Dhu ar-Rummah has said:
حَدابيرُ ما تَنْفَكُ اِلاّ مُناخَةً *** عَلَى الْخَسْفِ اَوْ نَرْمى بِها بَلَداً قَفْرا
These thin camels remain in their places, facing hardships and move only when we take them to some dry area.
وَ قَوْلُهُ: «وَلا قَزَع رَبابُها» الْقَزَعُ: الْقِطَعُ الصِّغارُ الْمُتَفَرِّقَةُ مِنَ السَّحابِ.
His words "wa la qaza’in rababuha". Here "al-qaza" means small pieces of cloud scattered all round.
وَ قَوْلُهُ: «وَلا شَفّان ذِهابُها» فَاِنَّ تَقْديرَهُ وَلا ذاتِ شَفّان ذِهابُها. وَالشَّفّانُ: الرَّيحُ الْبارِدَةُ، وَالذِّهابُ: الاْمْطارُ اللَّيِّنَةُ. فَحَذَفَ «ذاتَ» لِعِلْمِ السّامِعِ بِهِ.
His words "wa la shaffanin dhihabuha". It stands for "wa la dhata shaffanin dhihabuha". "ash-shaffan" means the cold wind and "adh-dhihab" means light rain. He omitted the world "dhata" from here because of the listener's knowledge of it.
Alternative Sources for Sermon 115: Al-Saduq, Man la yahduruh, I, 335; al-Tusi, Misbah, adab salat al-'istisqa', see Kashif al-Ghita', Madarik, 250; al-Zamakhshari, Rabi’, bab al-sahab wa al-matar; al-Kulayni, Usul al-Kafi, V, 53; Ibn ‘Abd Rabbih, al-’Iqd, IV, 338; al-Mufid, al-Jamal, 190, from al-Waqidi, al-Jamal; al-Mufid, al-'Irshad, 139, 159; Ibn Miskawayh, Tajarib al-'umam, see Ta'sis al-Shi’ah, 415; al-Tusi, al-'Amali, I, 220.
