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If my words fall short, your generosity has been long

إن قصر لفظي فإن طولك قد طال

1. If my words fall short, your generosity has been long
Not alike are those who do good and those who merely extol

١. إِن قَصَّرَ لَفظي فَإِنَّ طَولَكَ قَد طال
ما مَن فَعَلَ البِرَّ الجَميلَ كَمَن قال

2. Or if my burden felt lighter, your kindness seems great to me
For you have loaded my back with heavy favours

٢. أَو خَفَّفَ نَهضي جَميلُ صُنعِكَ عِندي
قَد حَمَّلَ ظَهري لِفَرطِ مِنِّكَ أَثقال

3. O you who has made charity restrictions for the careless
You have added shackles to the neck of your slave from kindness

٣. يا مَن جَعَلَ البِرَّ لِلعُفاةِ قُيوداً
قَد زِدتَ مِنَ المَنِّ عُنقَ عَبدِكَ أَغلال

4. You have shown us traits of generosity
If my words fall short in describing them, the case itself speaks

٤. أَظهَرتَ عَلَينا مِنَ السَماحِ سِماتٍ
إِن قَصَّرَ نُطقي بِوَصفِها نَطَقَ الحال

5. You have built high houses but they became ruins
From generosity, thus your houses became remnants

٥. شَيَّدتَ بُيوتَ العُلى وَكُنَّ طُلولاً
بِالجودِ فَأَمسَت بُيوتُ مالِكَ أَطلال

6. Unjust is he who compares your comfort to clouds
Where do your hands have forms in the clouds?

٦. ما أَنصَفَ مَن قاسَ راحَتَيكَ بِسُحبٍ
مِن أَينَ لِكَفّيكَ في السَحائِبِ أَشكال

7. Clouds pour down and weep
With water while you smile with money

٧. السُحبُ إِذا ما سَخَت تَجودُ وَتَبكي
بِالماءِ وَتَسخو وَأَنتَ تَضحَكُ بِالمال

8. O you who made the eloquent scholar seem dumb
In research just as you made philosophers seem ignorant

٨. يا مَن جَعَلَ العالِمَ الفَصيحَ بَليداً
بِالبَحثِ كَما صَيَّرَ الفلاسِفَ جُهّال

9. Be not surprised if they erred in your presence in prosody
For poetry has its champions like battlefields

٩. لا تَعجَب إِن أَخطَأوا لَدَيكَ بِوَزنٍ
في النَظمِ فَلِلشِعرِ كَالمَعارِكِ أَبطال

10. If poetry were not difficult for the aspiring
Houses would have not been locked without it

١٠. لَو لَم يَكُنِ الشِعرُ لِلمُحاوِلِ صَعباً
ما أَصبَحَ مِن دونِهِ البُيوتُ بِأَقفال