1. My friend, plunge into the darkness of night, for I
Have donned obscurity while the horses flutter their wings.

2. How many a gloomy day have I been its sun,
And how many a dark night have I been its dawn.

3. Beneath me is a bird loosening its reins as though
It were a wild dove that fluttered its wings to hunt.

4. And lofty ambition carries me to glory,
As if it would make its robe an ornament.

5. I have the finest of Quraysh, sheathed and stored,
To help the winds blow fiercely within me.

6. Noble ones who humiliate the riffraff when they desire,
And the steeds have taken up their weapons.

7. With hands that, when the dog disowns its people,
I know how to thrust a piercing lance.

8. And here I strive for the heights, for my ancestors
Have always toasted victory in the mead-cups.

9. If I attain it, I will have gained my right, but if I fail,
The steps of one who strives have not led to success.