1. I have become a prisoner of time, as though
I am verses of long meter whose grasp cannot extend
١. غَدَوتُ أَسيراً في الزَمانِ كَأَنَّني
عَروضُ طَويلٍ قَبضُها لَيسَ يُبسِطُ
2. And if I was unjust in some rule
Others in this wilderness are more unjust
٢. وَإِن كُنتُ في بَعضِ الحُكومَةِ قاسِطاً
فَغَيرِيَ مِن هَذي البَريَّةِ أَقسطُ
3. And pegs of verses of poetry held
Like pegs of a nomad's tent when pitched
٣. وَأَوتادُ أَبياتٍ مِنَ الشِعرِ حُزتُهُ
كَأَوتادِ بَيتِ الشَعرِ حينَ تَوَسَّطُ