1. ألا يا مستنِيصَ العِيسِ كدّاً

    لكَ الويلات ماذا تستنيص

    Ah, you who drive the pale camels so hard,

    Woe upon you—what are you trying to gain?

  2. تُرى للحرص تلهث كلّ يوم

    يطير رعابلاً عنكَ القميص

    You are seen panting from greed each day,

    Your shirt flies off you in tatters.

  3. ومالكَ غيرُ ما قد خطَّ رزق

    وإن كثر التقلب والشخوص

    And no sustenance is yours but what has been decreed,

    However much you move about and journey.

  4. وقد يأتي المقيمُ المال عفواً

    ويطلبه فيُحرَمُه الحريص

    And wealth may come effortlessly to one who stays put,

    While the greedy man seeks it, only to be denied it.

  5. رأيت معيشةَ الدنيا بواراً

    تباعدُنا وإياها نليص

    I have found worldly livelihood ruinous:

    It draws away from us, and we pursue it.

  6. وليس كحرصنا حرص عليها

    ولا غوص يكون كما تغوص

    And no craving for it matches ours,

    Nor is there any dive like yours.

  7. فأقوام بجمتها رواء

    وقوم بالثَّماد لهم مصيص

    So some people drink their fill from its abundant waters,

    And others get only a sip from scant pools.

  8. وقوم يحسبون لها مِراضاً

    وإن يستمكنوا فهمُ اللصوص

    And some are thought too sickly for it,

    Yet if they get the chance, they are the thieves.