ولي أصدقاء كثيرو السلام

ولي أصدقاء كثيرو السلام

عليَّ وما فيهم نافعُ

عليَّ وما فيهم نافعُ

I have friends prodigal with greetings

And I have friends lavish with greetings

toward me—yet not one of them is useful.

To me, yet not one of them is useful.

إذا أنا أدلجت في حاجة

إذا أنا أدلجت في حاجة

لها مطلب نازحٌ شاسعُ

لها مطلب نازحٌ شاسعُ

When I set out by night on an errand

Whenever I set out by night on an errand

whose goal lies far and distant,

Whose goal lies distant and far away,

فلي أبداً معهم وقفة

فلي أبداً معهم وقفة

وتسليمة وقتها ضائع

وتسليمة وقتها ضائع

I must forever stop with them

I must always stop with them

and exchange a greeting—its time thrown away.

And give a greeting—a waste of time.

وفي موقف المرء عن حاجة

وفي موقف المرء عن حاجة

تيممها شاغل قاطع

تيممها شاغل قاطع

To hold a man back from a need

And holding a man back from an errand

he has set his course for is a consuming barrier.

He has sought is a distraction that thwarts him.

ترى كل غث كثير الفضو

ترى كل غث كثير الفضو

ل مصحفُهُ مصحفٌ جامع

ل مصحفُهُ مصحفٌ جامع

You see every vapid man, full of meddle—

You see every worthless fellow, full of idle talk,

—someness; his book is a whole compendium.

His book an all-embracing volume.

يقول الضمير له طالعا

يقول الضمير له طالعا

ألا قُبِّح الرجل الطالع

ألا قُبِّح الرجل الطالع

The inward voice says as he appears:

The inner voice says to him as he appears:

“Ah, cursed be the man who has appeared!”

“Ah, may the approaching man be disgraced!”

يحدثني من أحاديثه

يحدثني من أحاديثه

بما لا يلذ به السامع

بما لا يلذ به السامع

He tells me, out of his tales,

He tells me, from among his tales,

things in which the listener finds no pleasure—

Things in which the listener takes no delight.

أحاديث هن كمثل الضري

أحاديث هن كمثل الضري

ع آكله أبداً جائع

ع آكله أبداً جائع

tales like the bitter thorn, ḍarī—

Tales like the thorny darīʿ plant—

—ʿ, whose eater remains forever hungry.

Its eater is forever hungry.

غدوت وفي الوقت لي فسحة

غدوت وفي الوقت لي فسحة

فضاق بي المَهَلُ الواسع

فضاق بي المَهَلُ الواسع

I set out in the morning with time to spare,

I went out in the morning with time to spare,

but my ample span of time closed tight around me.

But that ample time grew tight for me.

تقدمت فاعتافني أسرُهُ

تقدمت فاعتافني أسرُهُ

إلى أن تقدَّمني التابع

إلى أن تقدَّمني التابع

I pressed ahead, but his hold detained me

I went ahead, but his hold detained me,

until the one following passed ahead of me.

Until the one following went ahead of me.

وفاتت بلقيانه حاجتي

وفاتت بلقيانه حاجتي

ألا هكذا النكد البارع

ألا هكذا النكد البارع

Through meeting him, my errand slipped away.

And meeting him made my errand come to nothing.

Ah, such is consummate ill fortune!

Ah, this is vexation at its finest!

أولئك لا حيُّهم مؤنسٌ

أولئك لا حيُّهم مؤنسٌ

صديقاً ولا مَيتُهم فاجع

صديقاً ولا مَيتُهم فاجع

Those men: not one alive among them brings comfort

Those men: neither their living comfort

as a friend, nor does one dead bring grief.

A friend, nor do their dead cause grief.