1. الدَهرُ يَومانِ ذا أَمنٌ وَذا خَطَرُ

    وَالعَيشُ عَيشانِ ذا صَفوٌ وذا كَدَرُ

    Time has two days: one of safety, one of peril.

    And life is of two kinds: one serene, one troubled.

  2. أَما تَرى البَحرَ تَعلو فَوقَهُ جِيَفٌ

    وَتَستَقِرُّ بِأَقصى قاعِهِ الدُرَرُ

    Do you not see the sea, with carcasses floating upon it,

    While pearls rest in the deepest reaches of its bed?

  3. وَفي السَماءِ نُجومٌ لا عِدادَ لَها

    وَلَيسَ يُكسَفُ إِلّا الشَمسُ وَالقَمَرُ

    And in the sky are stars beyond number,

    Yet only the sun and the moon are eclipsed.