1. If only the prince had obeyed me, I would have cured him
Of all who embarrass poetry and sing out of tune

2. Twisted, babbling words as if
His nostrils were smeared with grease and stank

3. And he built them a prison, so I became their prince
For a time, striking whom I wished and imprisoning them

4. Say to Ibn Arkilah Muhammad
If you seek closeness through cowardice

5. You have flung yourself into painful verse
And to reap your nose with sickles is better

6. You are a man in your mother’s land, so boast
And our boasting here is humming

7. By the right of your mother, who is truly a part of you
With kindness and gentleness that does not decay

8. Do not come near the prince, and guide him
Until he heals what ails your nose

9. If the magpie has a rotten nest
Then your nose, O Muhammad, is more rotten

10. So ask the prince, though you are not fortunate
The sons of his father are a source of eloquence

11. And ask Ibn Dhi'kwan, you’ll find him knowledgeable
Of the Arabs' natural disposition that does not sadden

12. If you make a 'sliding' every day
You will excel at what your hands have done and improve

13. You resemble your mother in every way but one
That she is circumcised yet you are not

14. If you earn dirhams and bury them
And are tempted by them - and man is tempted

15. By what I see of you, penniless
As you scrape the bow and resin and play

16. Since your only capital is your white vision
Pale, upon which are violets