1. The sons of Asad, two men - one whose allegiance wavered,
And one who was brought to us by the camels’ litters.

2. Not for religion did you endeavor, but hunger called you
To religion - hunger that no wakeful sleeper can ignore.

3. O sons of Asad, my pledge was tested before yours
By those of great distances and destructive wars.

4. Never in the length of distances did I stumble
Nor trip - truly it is slowness that causes one to stumble.

5. O Khnajar, had you been Quraysh, you'd be sated
And would not have perished from the pangs of hunger that torment.

6. Then you'd shoot arrows in the valleys with perfect aim
And the birds of Mecca would be your catch.

7. But you were infested with parasites -
Inside, diseased; outside, appearing healthy.

8. As for your wish to be Quraysh, it is but
Lamps that a watcher casts with his eyes.

9. When An-Nawfal camped at Zamzam with camel-litters
And Abd Manaf where offerings are guided.

10. Those were Quraysh at that time, while you
Were in front of them like the nostrils in front of the snout.

11. You are not of them; rather you are their slaves
As long as there is oil for which to press.

12. Nor were your shoulders sealed with prophecy,
And your master never sat upon a pulpit.

13. O sons of Asad! You are not noble to be insulted,
Rather, it is the Sii'i - Sulaym and Aamir.

14. O sons of Asad! Do not boast of glory among yourselves,
For you are the worst of people, sedentary and nomadic.

15. O sons of Asad! Do not mention glory and highness,
For in the market you are liars and swindlers.

16. If you call upon Saad he will not answer you, and below him
Is Lujaym ibn S'ab and the galloping horses.

17. They on the day of Dhi Qar tethered and fought
The next morning when the horsemen came to them.

18. You spend the evening by the banks of the Euphrates as fools
And harvest along its edges proliferating.

19. If you wish to meet a boy of Nuza'ah
The sons of Kahil are his uncles and defenders.

20. The sons of Muddafat who were driven back by the curse
Of the club-bearers and the piercing, long spears.

21. O Khnagar, you have disgraced your people with her
Who tossed you the brow-raising glance.

22. If you had any honor you'd have used some of it
To prevent your brow being bloodied by the looks.

23. So pretend to those who saw your face and confess
To the ugliness which leads the wolves to their doom.

24. With glance removing the eyeliner I see her
As if upon her are armies with bright blue eyes.

25. Is it from lack of names you were called Khnagar?
Daggers are the worst weapons of Muslims.

26. We submerged you in Islam - and if there remains deviance
It would be a fox around which fates revolved.

27. Had you seen the bombs, the spears
And the fervor of a day stirred by the horses

28. At Rabee'ah al-Khaboor, Khuzaymah would not have linked
Herself to us when she went out to us and Aamir.

29. A man blames Waa'il, impudent corruptor,
To what's between his eyes though he's blind and immoral.

30. You see the uncouth Bedouin around their homes -
Miserable settlements from which throats are fed.

31. You have no allies in the valley of Khuzaymah
Nor among Qais ibn Ailan's helpers.