1. ما لمن حَسَّنَهُ اللَّـ

    ـهُ وأعْلَى دَرَجاتِهْ

    Why should one made beautiful by

    God, who has raised his rank,

  2. أنْ يرى مَلْهَاهُ إلا

    آخذاً بعضَ صفاتِهْ

    see his diversion as anything but

    taking on some of his qualities?

  3. أيهذا السيِّدُ المُصْـ

    ـغي إلى نُصْح ثقاتِهْ

    O you, the lord

    attentive to his trusted men's counsel,

  4. لا تجهَّمْ بشراء الـ

    ـخير واصدِفْ عن بُغاتِهْ

    do not scowl at buying

    good, and turn away from those who seek it.

  5. واستمعْ في اللهو منّي

    إنني رأسُ دعاتِهْ

    And listen to me concerning amusement:

    I am the chief of its advocates.

  6. لا تُفَرِّطْ في نعيمٍ

    بعد تكميل أَداتِهْ

    Do not neglect bliss

    once its means have been perfected.

  7. لا يَفُوتَنَّك في ده

    رك كبرى مُسمِعاتِهْ

    Do not miss, in

    your lifetime, its greatest songstress.

  8. إنَّه لا يصلح الإحـ

    ـسانُ إلا لِوعاتِهْ

    Indeed, beneficence is fitting

    only for those who appreciate it.

  9. لا تُضِعْ إحسانَ ذي الإحـ

    ـسانِ يا خير رعاتِهْ

    Do not squander the kindness of the

    benefactor, O best of its guardians.

  10. أنت في بستان عَيْشٍ

    فَتَخَيَّرْ ثمراتِهْ

    You are in a garden of life,

    so choose its fruits.

  11. قَدْ جلاك الدهر للأعْـ

    يـُنِ يا خير ولاتِهْ

    Time has revealed you to the

    eyes, O finest of its rulers,

  12. في ربيعٍ من شباب

    وربيع من نباتِهْ

    in the springtime of youth

    and a springtime of its greenery.

  13. فتنزَّهْ في رياض الـ

    ـلَهْوِ واشممْ زهراتِهْ

    So wander in the gardens of

    amusement, and smell its blossoms.

  14. وائْتَنِفْ مُؤْتَنفَ العيـ

    ـش وباكر غدواتِهْ

    And begin afresh the new course of

    life, and greet its mornings early.

  15. إنَّ تلك النَّفْسَ كفءٌ

    لصَفايا مُتُعاتِهْ

    Indeed, that soul is a worthy match

    for the choicest of its pleasures.

  16. أمتع اللَهُ بك الدهـ

    ـرُ إلى حين وفاتِهْ

    May God gladden, through you,

    Time, until the hour of its death,

  17. ووقى نفسك من شَر

    رِ بَنِيهِ وبناتِهْ

    and protect your soul from the evil

    of its sons and daughters,

  18. في هنيءٍ ومَرِيءٍ

    وسَنيٍّ من هباتِهْ

    amid pleasant, wholesome,

    and splendid gifts from it,

  19. وكسا الدنيا بك الزَّيْـ

    ـنَ إلى أخرى إناتِهْ

    and clothe the world, through you, in

    beauty until the last of its hours.