1. What use is standing at the abode of one with a ladder,
Whether unintelligible or stripped bare by the veil of tears,

2. Time has changed it from what you used to tend,
And its inhabitants have departed to the tribes of nations,

3. Until after them it grew dark, and truly
They sang of it while they were the moons in the darkness,

4. They met the same fate as their ruins, and how much
Has time destroyed of home and family of old,

5. Fortune allotted them a time and deluded them
With what they were allowed of this life, but it did not last,

6. They passed away, taking with them no money or bounty,
And they were questioned about the account of money and bounty,

7. When their destiny came upon them,
From all they had gained they gained nothing but regret,

8. And people's intoxication with this life and their preoccupation
With what will vanish and not last of sorrows.