1. Slow down, O you who claim the honor of nobility
For you are a man neither wise nor sensible

2. You started a war you were not fit for
So when it brought you harm, you inclined towards peace

3. And you request what you divorced of my friendship
Yet you continue to conceal deceit upon deceit

4. You mix harm with favor, and bitterness with passion
And the vileness of your heart with intimacy, deceit, and advice

5. You envy those whose hearts are pure even if
They are poor, living on bread and salt

6. And you cannot restrain your tongue from backbiting
Foolishly, nor extend a hand generously

7. You distort the nature of forbearance with recklessness
And instill the spirit of seriousness in the guise of jest

8. So it is inevitable that I cast off from your morals at daybreak
Scorpions that creep from your deception into wings

9. You escaped unharmed not because I
Looked and found you unfit for satire or praise

10. So the Merciful did not pair your efforts with guidance
Or your deeds with goodness, or your aims with prosperity

11. And my soul grew weary of a place inhabited by you
So there is no death but the departure of your caravan from my camp

12. My friend, depart though the night be gloomy
Perhaps the journey will lead to the smiling dawn

13. Set out the chests of the beasts of burden briskly
With every noble steed like a towering spear

14. Pain to the horsemen of cowardice and impotence
And greetings to the sons of munificence and generosity

15. For I am not the first to lower his spear alone
To remove the cloak of darkness from the rising of victory and conquest