1. We planted, and when God allowed our planting to be complete
And a floodwater carried off more of it than locusts and pestilence,

2. We were afflicted by a starving beggar of Kufa,
Who did us more harm than locusts and floods,

3. He came fully prepared, with none to gainsay him,
And settled in by compulsion, imposing himself on us.

4. At times importunate and rude, at times constantly erratic and corrupt,
And were it not for Abu al-Abbas - I mean Ibn Hamid -

5. I would have evicted him from his unauthorized dwelling amid the shadows.
So refrain from harming your neighbor, and learn

6. That I am for you in the two worlds a warner.