Fortress of the Muslim
Hisn al-Muslim 158
اللهُـمِّ إِنَّ فُلانَ بْنَ فُلانٍ في ذِمَّـتِك ، وَحَبْـلِ جِـوارِك ، فَقِـهِ مِنْ فِتْـنَةِ الْقَـبْرِ وَعَذابِ النّـار ، وَأَنْتَ أَهْلُ الْوَفـاءِ وَالْـحَقِّ ، فَاغْفِـرْ لَهُ وَارْحَمْـهُ ، إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الغَـفورُ الـرَّحيم
O Allah, so-and-so son of so-and-so is under Your protection and the covenant of Your guardianship. Protect him from the trial of the grave and the punishment of the Fire. You are worthy of fulfilling promises and upholding the truth. Forgive him and have mercy on him; You are the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
Translation notes
اللهُـمِّ إِنَّ فُلانَ بْنَ فُلانٍ في ذِمَّـتِك
The witness converts the generic placeholder into an instruction to name the person; the Arabic source itself says ‘so-and-so son of so-and-so.’
Should the placeholder be preserved as written or converted into an instruction for the reader?
وَحَبْـلِ جِـوارِك
The phrase literally refers to the rope of Your protection/neighborly security; the witness renders it as the rope of Your security.
Which natural English rendering best preserves this protective image?