1. I said, inform me, so he said briefly,
Not all news is frail,

2. There was in Egypt a baker,
Whoever passed by, he would spurn with rejection,

3. And every morning he would open,
His shop at the bridge when dawn emerges,

4. Then he would stand and give a sermon,
And praise the ruler, then prolong,

5. And curse al-Qadir openly,
Not concealing his sin,

6. For twenty years, and when Baghdad was mentioned,
His heart almost ruptured,

7. For his hatred of it and who built it,
And everyone wished they could see it,

8. And in Baghdad there was a prudent baker,
But he was known there for his devotion,

9. So al-Qadir ordered when he brought him,
And said this is an ingenious scheme,

10. Go to Egypt and leave behind the illnesses,
And set upon the baker the snares of tricks,

11. Perhaps you can make him long for Iraq,
For he has caused me great torment and schism,

12. So that elder set out seeking Egypt,
Until he reached its strait and bridge,

13. And the baker awoke, then handed,
A dinar to him and made a cunning effort,

14. The baker noticed insulting al-Qadir,
So he flared up in rage like an enraged lion,

15. And struck the elder until he wounded him,
And cursed al-Qadir, then damned him,

16. And flung the dinar from his hands,
Flying away when he saw his name on it,

17. So the elder sat weeping nearby,
With the beating in his ribs and jaw,

18. And said words while dejected,
The evil of dispositions is the hatred of a stranger,

19. A wretched stranger poor Kufan,
A monotheist, a Shiite in creed,

20. You have beaten him, it is wondrous,
That the likes of you make such a misstep in religion,

21. I came to you for the religion from my lands,
Loathing the company of enemies,

22. So when the baker heard this, he wept,
And came hastily toward him in devotion,

23. Apologizing for what happened,
Kissing his feet for his sin,

24. Saying, I thought you were from Baghdad,
And did not think you a faithful Kufan,

25. And I hated that damned name,
So what I did was for the religion,

26. And he sought absolution for what he did,
And repented his harshness, so he pardoned him,

27. And said, I am like you, a baker,
And I deserve respect and honor,

28. So they reconciled and agreed, and became friends,
And cooperated, traded, and earned,

29. And the Egyptian married him his daughter,
And the elder schemed upon him his plot,

30. And he kept on deceitfully displaying,
Excessive hypocrisy and pretense,

31. Until when a year passed,
And Shaaban came, worry befell him,

32. So he plunged into crying and wailing,
He said why do you weep my dear?

33. He said to him, my longing for visiting,
And serving the chosen shrines,

34. And the descending blessings in them,
And he kept enticing them persistently,

35. Mentioning the corrupt and right,
Of their virtues, and excessively praising,

36. Until the Egyptian desired to visit them,
And said I intend to be present at them,

37. But I fear the might of al-Qadir,
For I know his hatred of the intoxicated,

38. And I insult him openly,
So I deserve to be cautious,

39. The elder said, what does he know,
Of our condition, and who informs him?

40. Many like us visit each year,
From the Hejaz and Syria,

41. And he is oblivious to that, not knowing,
Because of his ignorance, drunk,

42. So he kept enticing him with his words,
And dragging him to his bath,

43. Until when he arrived in Iraq,
And parted from his companions and friends,

44. He wrote to al-Qadir the truth,
So his horses took his route,

45. And brought him while shackled,
For the evil of his schism and defiance,

46. Until when al-Qadir was done with him,
He revealed to him the guile of the deceitful,

47. And said, “Release his shackles and bonds,
And deny the deed about him,” so he was released,

48. And he did not cease to visit him in his room,
Witnessing and finding him in his care,

49. Then he gifted him one night a thousand,
And increased in honoring him and kindness,

50. And said, “Do not insult who you do not know,
You do not do him justice in defaming him,”

51. And he returned him from his time to the homeland,
And his hatred had become love and yearning,

52. Until when he opened his shop,
And saw his brethren and neighbors,

53. He stood as was his custom speaking,
And he was not right in his action,

54. And praised al-Qadir - what praise!
Apologizing for his wounding and derision,

55. And he did not cease to pray for him and thank him,
And mention him well in his prayers,

56. Until this reached the ruler about him,
So he disliked what had come to him from him,

57. And he was enraged by what they told him and was angry,
And the baker awoke while crucified,

58. With a paper hanging from his throat,
“We crucified him, so leave the masked pretender,

59. By the hand of whoever allies with him,
And that is of the good deeds,

60. To not cover himself with his disgrace and shame,
Patience in adversities is best,

61. And leniency in planning and kindness,
For what he wishes while you are not violent,”

62. The youth returned to his habit in the morning,
And he is a truthful narrator.

63. He said, so when the news spread,
And those traces circulated,

64. The prince denied them all,
Since it is his transcription,

65. But he confirmed them openly,
In order to reach the secrets,

66. So he beautified the blessing and examined it,
And obliged with the tribulation when he kept it,

67. And said denial is better for me and you,
And whoever denies his land, then he is destroyed,

68. I came to this foreign land,
And did not find in its expanse a relative,

69. The peacock said to him, I know him,
And everything you explained I understood,

70. And he is of mixed origin when tracing his lineage,
And the lowly lineage pulls him,

71. His mother was one of the crows,
Resembling her in these traits,

72. Lineages pull the branches,
And the lowly lineage when obeyed,

73. No branch prospers if its origin is wicked,
Nor is praised from it a new talk,

74. The hoopoe said to him, you spoke truth,
Yes, my friend, what you mentioned,

75. But when the lineages converge,
And his ancestors were generous,

76. He is apt for sublimity and generosity,
And the best traits emerged in his origin,

77. The peacock said to him, let the past go,
And mention it, for it has ended,

78. And make for us a scheme that saves us,
From the evil of what we face, for we are ruined.

79. He said, I have a wondrous scheme,
With which we escape this tribulation,

80. We play dead, so when he sees us,
Lifeless, with no benefit, he will toss us away,

81. And the hunter came gloating,
So that trick delivered us from him,

82. So they pretended death, and the owl threw,
Himself down and said, “Who takes this ill-omened one?”

83. And the peacock plucked himself until he dropped,
Out of love for his feathers and tuft,

84. So he suffered pain and torture,
Who consults enemies - what befell them!

85. And the hunter went from him while he remained,
Sprawled in confusion at what he faced,

86. And said, “If only when what happened occurred to me,
From the treachery of the companion I would see,

87. I would not have done what I did, fearing,
Them, so I became miserable, ruined.

88. Thus whoever brings enemies,
They return him with deceit and corruption.”

89. The owl came to him and took his revenge,
And cooled the anguish of his chest,

90. And came pecking and beating him,
And did not stop torturing him,

91. Saying, “Woe to you! What is my sin? I,
You wrongfully take with the sin of he who sinned?

92. Is the innocent taken for the diseased?
And the good man for the villain?”

93. The owl said to him, “I got my revenge,
From you and cooled my chest’s anguish,

94. And she said to him, “Strange what occurred,
Its superiority is clear to whoever contemplates,

95. The owl deceives you in the time of affliction,
While he is a fool with no insight,

96. And you deceived the fox, and he is,
Not one of ignorance or foolishness,

97. When fortune and happiness came to you,
Your scheme and will were completed,

98. Superiority diminishes in the time of hatred,
And inferiority is superior in the time of seriousness.”

99. She said to him, “Truly you spoke,
You knew, O this, and did not ignore,

100. But in companionship there are other flaws,
And you know more than me about that,

101. Their disbelief in their Lord, and their debauchery,
Killing themselves, and their foolishness,

102. And their stinginess, and wealth does not last,
And their greed, and living on sustenance,

103. And their hoarding, and they know they will die,
And their sorrow when decline and loss come,

104. The breeze said, “Do you prove the worshipped?
Or are you of those who show disbelief?”

105. She said, “Do I know in minds,
That I would deny your Maker, my friend?”

106. She said, “I know He is Wise,
And He is Knowledgeable in His action.”

107. He said, “Yes, I have no doubt in His wisdom,
Knowledge, forbearance, and power.”

108. He said, “So all that occurs and will occur,
Is by wisdom He destined for the matter.”

109. So he said, “Increase me, this does not suffice,
I am not to be tasked while unbenefiting.”

110. He said, “You are ignorant of the truth, benefit
Is obvious - its secrets are seasoned,

111. For He separated between creations,
In general conditions - what a separation!

112. So He created mineral, vegetation,
And animals - created diversely,

113. And the animal - silent and speaking,
And superior in its creation and perishing,

114. And negligent - He neglected it, not tasking it,
And speaking - He ennobled it and tasked it,

115. So creation would not be one thing,
For ability to be deficient, increasingly,

116. So the True Able absolutely,
Of creating opposites in natures,

117. Your creation the opposites,
Maneuvering through them as He wished,

118. Likewise, know creating kinds,
All differ diversely,

119. It is best creating elephant and mosquito,
With wisdom displayed to prohibitions,

120. And their souls killing themselves - thus,
Some face harm from others,

121. For in beasts and birds,
There is what you wish of injustice and evils,

122. And the previous answer and its excuse went,
And it is clear if you contemplate its secret,

123. So the hoopoe was certain the truth,
Was with the breeze, and said, “You spoke truth.”

124. So he submitted to the truth and said mankind
Is a noble genus - there is no doubt in that,

125. Then he called me in privacy and apologized,
And repented from blaming them and sought forgiveness,

126. And said, tell the Great King,
I have repented from my sinful words,

127. And what was hidden from me is evident,
And my assumption in blaming people has failed,

128. But I wonder about his actions,
In supporting mankind though they are his enemies in nature,

129. And all of them intend him harm,
And some of them deny the existence of jinn,

130. And some curse them generally,
And some criticize their morals,

131. And some take refuge from their wiles,
And some attribute every evil,

132. To them when scheming deceit,
And some blame them for sins and disgraces,

133. Mankind do not deserve support from Him,
But rather deserve His hatred and estrangement.”

134. She said to him, “Take the answer from me,
And convey what I mention about me,

135. The wise and virtuous is not rewarded,
With evil desires from the condemnable,

136. If you acted like an ignorant one's actions,
You would equal him in nature’s measures.

137. Be superior to your peer - your superiority appears,
Do good to who wronged you - your nobility emerges,

138. Be just to the oppressed - you will leave a master,
And give your enemies - you will gain the most glorious,

139. The Prophet’s bequest - reconcile who severed you,
Be superior over him, and gain from who deprived you.

140. Do a good deed - receive it and be rewarded for it,
For people's actions are not confusing,

141. Pardon the sinner and promise with your forbearance,
The ignorance in his hiddenness appears with your knowledge,

142. And we repay about them in this tongue,
We meet evil with good action,

143. And lineages between us also necessitate,
Our zeal over them when they became crooked.”

144. He said, “Clarify that lineage to me,
For you have come with what you said is wondrous.”

145. “Are you not fire, and they of clay?
The black is not like the white of eye.”

146. She said, “Yes, but the close lineage,
The wise realized with insight,

147. Is kinship of assignment and address,
Between us more intrinsic than lineages,

148. We are all people of God’s covenant,
He addressed us with orders and prohibitions,

149. And speech and mind - so have you spoken truth,
O King of birds, in what you mentioned?

150. And man gives life exerting for his brother,
Though when he counts him among enemies,

151. Have you not heard the story of the two just?
That it is true without inclination?”