إِنَّ عَبدَ المَلِكِ السَيِّدَ قَد

إِنَّ عَبدَ المَلِكِ السَيِّدَ قَد

زَيَّغَ اِبنَيهِ فَلَم يَزَّيَّغا

زَيَّغَ اِبنَيهِ فَلَم يَزَّيَّغا

Indeed, ʿAbd al-Malik al-Sayyid has

Indeed, the lord ʿAbd al-Malik has

adorned his two sons—yet they gained no beauty.

sought to lead his two sons astray, but they were not led astray.

قُلتُ لِلشَيطانِ إِذ بَينَهُما

قُلتُ لِلشَيطانِ إِذ بَينَهُما

بِتَأتيهِ وَبَيني نَزَعا

بِتَأتيهِ وَبَيني نَزَعا

I said to Satan, when between the pair

I said to Satan, when between the two of them

and me, through his cunning, he had driven a wedge:

and me he pulled us apart through his cunning:

قَد لَعَمري وَقَعا لَو عَلِما

قَد لَعَمري وَقَعا لَو عَلِما

مِن هِجائي في خَرا ما مَضَغا

مِن هِجائي في خَرا ما مَضَغا

“By my life, the pair fell to his lot and recognized,

“By my life, they have fallen—if only they knew—

through my lampoon, in the shit, what they had chewed.”

through my satire, into shit they had not chewed.”