1. Why did you not ask us when you were a bride
In the valley on the day your breast swelled

2. With life from every cur and vile thing
In the valley on the day your skin was whipped

3. At al-Kawr on the day al-Husayn saw
The bondsman of Ma’dan, their steeds galloping

4. With the helmets of the brave protectors upon them
The polish of their coats adorned with plate armor

5. Which of the knights was it who toiled in the fray
For the people when the struggle wore him out?

6. When I saw their chief I left him as prey
For the beasts, as if he were a fallen antelope

7. And Rabī'ah returned from the raid ragged
So the funeral wail rose over what the marriage procession had been

8. This is my stand, you asked and this is my station
About the journey you can question me later

9. You asked my people about Ziyād when he brought down
Upon it the spearheads, and about ‘Abd when he brought down

10. And about a man, Zayd, whom I left leading
To the plateau, while behind it was our goal