عَذيري مِن بَني مِصرٍ فَإِنّي

عَذيري مِن بَني مِصرٍ فَإِنّي

أَفَدتُهُمُ العُلومَ وَلا فَخارُ

أَفَدتُهُمُ العُلومَ وَلا فَخارُ

Who will vindicate me against the sons of Egypt? For I

My excuse from the people of Egypt, for I

have taught them the sciences—and this is no boast.

Enriched them with knowledge, yet no pride

أَقَمتُ بِمِصرِهِم سِتِينَ عاماً

أَقَمتُ بِمِصرِهِم سِتِينَ عاماً

فَلَم يخلص لِيَ فيهِنَّ جارُ

فَلَم يخلص لِيَ فيهِنَّ جارُ

I lived in their Egypt for sixty years,

I stayed in their country for sixty years

Yet in those years no neighbor was true to me.

But no true friend emerged by my side

وَفارَقتُ الأَنامَ وَفارَقوني

وَفارَقتُ الأَنامَ وَفارَقوني

فَها أَنا لا أَزورُ وَلا أُزارُ

فَها أَنا لا أَزورُ وَلا أُزارُ

And I parted from humankind, and they parted from me.

I parted from people and they parted from me

So here I am: I neither visit nor am visited.

So here I am, no longer sharing their plight

فَإِن ماتُوا فَلا أَسَفٌ عَلَيهم

فَإِن ماتُوا فَلا أَسَفٌ عَلَيهم

وَإِن مُتنا فَقَد ماتَ الخيارُ

وَإِن مُتنا فَقَد ماتَ الخيارُ

So if they die, there will be no sorrow for them;

If they die, I shall not grieve over them

And if we die, then the best will have died.

If I die, the best of men have lost their light