أَعَن عُفرٍ تُلِمُّ بِسِربِ عُفرِ

أَعَن عُفرٍ تُلِمُّ بِسِربِ عُفرِ

وَتَغفِرُ في الشَكاةِ لِأُمِّ غُفرِ

وَتَغفِرُ في الشَكاةِ لِأُمِّ غُفرِ

Do you, after a long absence, visit a herd of tawny gazelles,

Regarding a hoopoe that reproaches a flock of hoopoes

and, in your lament, forgive the mother of a wild-goat kid?

And pardons in distress the mother of pardons

أَما في الأَرضِ مِن رَجُلٍ لَبيبٍ

أَما في الأَرضِ مِن رَجُلٍ لَبيبٍ

فَيَفرُقَ بَينَ إيمانٍ وَكُفرِ

فَيَفرُقَ بَينَ إيمانٍ وَكُفرِ

Is there no discerning man on earth

Is there not in the land a reasonable man

to distinguish between faith and unbelief?

Who can distinguish between faith and blasphemy

وَجَدتُ أَباكَ مُفتَرِياً حَديثاً

وَجَدتُ أَباكَ مُفتَرِياً حَديثاً

فَأَنتَ عَلى مَقَصِّ الشَيخِ تَفري

فَأَنتَ عَلى مَقَصِّ الشَيخِ تَفري

I found your father fabricating a tale;

I found your father a fabricator of false tales

so you cut to the old man's pattern.

So you follow in the footsteps of the old fool

تَأَمَّل هَل تَرى في الدارِ شَفراً

تَأَمَّل هَل تَرى في الدارِ شَفراً

كَأَنَّ العَينَ ما سُتِرَت بِشُفرِ

كَأَنَّ العَينَ ما سُتِرَت بِشُفرِ

Look closely: do you see a soul in the dwelling?

Consider, do you see a nail in the house

As though no eyelid had covered the eye.

As if the eye was not veiled by a nail

خُطوبُ الدَهرِ مِن بيضٍ وَسودٍ

خُطوبُ الدَهرِ مِن بيضٍ وَسودٍ

عَصَفنَ بِكُلِّ ذي بيضٍ وَصُفرِ

عَصَفنَ بِكُلِّ ذي بيضٍ وَصُفرِ

Time's calamities, white and black,

The vicissitudes of fate, black and white

have swept away all who owned white silver and yellow gold.

Blew away all that’s black and yellow

إِذا أوتيتَ مِلءَ يَدٍ طَعاماً

إِذا أوتيتَ مِلءَ يَدٍ طَعاماً

فَأَطعِم مَن عَراكَ وَلَو كَظُفرِ

فَأَطعِم مَن عَراكَ وَلَو كَظُفرِ

If you are given a handful of food,

If your hand is filled with food

then feed whoever comes to you, even if only a fingernail's worth.

Feed those in need, even if they are ungrateful