1. I recalled the prime of days gone by
And was aggrieved by their change into gloom

2. But I accepted the decree of fate
And resigned my affair to the will of destiny

3. I was patient with the days though belittled
For God is with those who endure

4. What do you see in them of realities?
And what do you see in them of expectations?

5. A day passes, then darkness comes
A sun sets, then the moon arises

6. And between that, Zayd stays
For a time and Amr intends to travel

7. And between this and that, you see
Eyes pass as their traces fade

8. And nothing on earth remains
Except the treasures of piety in human souls

9. The rule of delusion has turned on people
So they strayed into misguidance and lowered their sights

10. The preacher’s sermon is trivial to them
Though the lesson of admonition’s discourse has become cheap

11. One who cares not for spearpoints’ stabs
How can he care for needles’ pricks?

12. We see some desire the charm of nomads
While others desire the attainment of full moons

13. And rare is one who loved knowledge
No rule can be built on what is scarce

14. Suleiman felt passion for her
And cast towards her his intense gaze

15. And he had plunged since his youth
In seas of poetry, seeking pearls

16. Eloquent in his diction
Delicate in his meanings, delightful in conversation

17. He gratifies our hearing with arts
When he composes verse or prose

18. His mind readily answers his call
As Arabs of the deserts answer alarms

19. And he seeks softness for his words
As urban poets seek

20. He clothed me in the mantle of praise that
Had exaggerated beyond my merit

21. So he renewed what had passed of my youth
And made familiar in my mind what had seemed strange

22. He stirred in my heart the talent
That rouses the clouds but forgets the rain

23. He is a lute, no fruit in him
And what use is a lute without fruit?