أَلا لَيتَ شِعري هَكَذا أَنتَ لِلناسِ

أَلا لَيتَ شِعري هَكَذا أَنتَ لِلناسِ

فَأَقدِعَ عَنكَ القَلبَ يا صاحِ بِالياسِ

فَأَقدِعَ عَنكَ القَلبَ يا صاحِ بِالياسِ

Ah, if only I knew: is this how you are with everyone?

Alas, if only I had known you were like this with people

Oh, would that I knew—is this the way you deal with all mankind?

Then I could restrain my heart from you, my friend, through despair.

I would have hardened my heart against you, O companion of despair

That I might rein in my heart from you, O friend, through sheer despair.

فَقَد كُنتَ دَهراً لا تَروقُ لِمُعجَبٍ

فَقَد كُنتَ دَهراً لا تَروقُ لِمُعجَبٍ

سِوايَ وَلا تُنمي إِخاءِ إِلى باسِ

سِوايَ وَلا تُنمي إِخاءِ إِلى باسِ

For long you pleased no admirer

For you had long been unpleasing to an admirer

For you remained, for an age, unpleasing to any suitor,

but me, nor did you ascribe friendship to might.

Other than me, nor did you nurture affection towards the downcast

Save for me, nor did you look upon my bond with scorn.

وَلَكِنَّني لَمّا بَدا مِنكَ ما بَدا

وَلَكِنَّني لَمّا بَدا مِنكَ ما بَدا

وَقُستُ أُموري عِندَ ذاكَ بِمِقياسِ

وَقُستُ أُموري عِندَ ذاكَ بِمِقياسِ

But when what emerged from you came to light,

But when your true colors shone through

But when there appeared from you what has now appeared,

and I measured my affairs then against a standard,

And I weighed my affairs in light of that with a measure

And I weighed my affairs, in that moment, upon the scales,

إِذَن لَيسَ تُزري بي لَدَيكَ مَوَدَّتي

إِذَن لَيسَ تُزري بي لَدَيكَ مَوَدَّتي

وَلكِن يُزري بِوِدَّيكَ إِفلاسي

وَلكِن يُزري بِوِدَّيكَ إِفلاسي

then it is not my affection that lowers me in your eyes;

Then my love for you cannot be held against me

I realized it is not my affection that you hold in contempt,

rather, my pennilessness diminishes your affections.

Rather, your love for me exposed my destitution

But rather, what devalues me to you is my bankruptcy.