ضَحِكنا وَكانَ الضِحكُ مِنّا سَفاهَةً

ضَحِكنا وَكانَ الضِحكُ مِنّا سَفاهَةً

وَحُقَّ لِسُكّانِ البَسيطَةِ أَن يَبكوا

وَحُقَّ لِسُكّانِ البَسيطَةِ أَن يَبكوا

We laughed, and our laughter was folly.

And it was fitting for the earth's inhabitants to weep.

يُحَطِّمُنا رَيبُ الزَمانِ كَأَنَّنا

يُحَطِّمُنا رَيبُ الزَمانِ كَأَنَّنا

زُجاجٌ وَلَكِن لا يُعادُ لَهُ سَبكُ

زُجاجٌ وَلَكِن لا يُعادُ لَهُ سَبكُ

Time's vicissitudes shatter us, as though we were

glass, yet it is never cast anew.