أَلا إِنَّما الإِنسانُ غِمدٌ لِقَلبِهِ

أَلا إِنَّما الإِنسانُ غِمدٌ لِقَلبِهِ

وَلا خَيرَ في غِمدٍ إِذا لَم يَكُن نَصلُ

وَلا خَيرَ في غِمدٍ إِذا لَم يَكُن نَصلُ

Take heed: a person is but a sheath for his heart.

O heart! The body's but a blade's abiding sheath,

And there is no good in a sheath if there is no blade.

And has no good, except the blade it keeps,

وَإِن تَجمَعِ الآفاتِ فَالبُخلُ شَرُّها

وَإِن تَجمَعِ الآفاتِ فَالبُخلُ شَرُّها

وَشَرُّ مِنَ البُخلِ المَواعيدُ وَالمَطلُ

وَشَرُّ مِنَ البُخلِ المَواعيدُ وَالمَطلُ

And if you gather the faults together, miserliness is the worst of them.

Of all man's vices, avarice is the worst,

And worse than miserliness are promises and stalling.

Worse than withholding is the breach of trusts.