1. For whom is the long night with dark eyes,
For whom is sorrow an uninvited guest,

2. No wrong was done to a man with a slender waist,
And legs full of fetters and chains.

3. Alas! Your mother brought you up, O Amr, after me
You sit still, neither struggling nor raging.

4. Does it not grieve you that your father is in distress
While you are absent and devoured by injustice.

5. Locusts sing to you amidst a bridge
With a dog your companion and adversaries all around.

6. If you were the captive and I were not,
Then you would know, O Ma'dd, what I say.

7. When I fell short of seeking glory,
So death may shorten me or prolong me.

8. If I die, I would have tested my people,
With an ordeal, all of which is good and beautiful.