1. O dwellings of kings, where are the kings
Whose blessings filled you, O abodes of joy?
١. يا مَحَلَّ المُلوكِ أَينَ ملوكٌ
ظافَرتهُم خِلالَكَ النعماءُ
2. They revelled, and time laughed at them -
Many a laugh leads on to weeping and woe.
٢. نَعِمُوا والزَّمَانُ يَضحَكُ مِنهُم
رُبَّ ضَحكٍ يَكُونُ مِنهُ بُكَاءُ
3. They were laid low, yet their edifices remain,
Would that they had built, and destruction destroyed!
٣. هُدِموا وَالبِنَاءُ بَاقٍ مشيدٌ
ليتَهُم شُيّدوا وَهُدّ البِناءُ