1. By my life! On the day of Unayzah, I yearned
For something, had I pursued my bitter desire,

2. But the weakness of the matter is not to go through with it
And no good is he who is spiteful and does not change it

3. The outcomes of matters become clear when they pass
And their fronts turn to you

4. Souls desire what they cannot attain
And fear what does no harm to them

5. Know that it suffices souls when they are pious
To be protected by God from what they dread, so He will protect them

6. Of staffs, only their firmness is good
And of birds that hunt, only their falcons

7. A caller who calls but the darkness of night prevents him
With its heavy, black coverings

8. I raised my fire for him, so when he found his way to it
I scolded my dogs lest their howling terrify him

9. He spent the night traveling a distance of the night
In a truthful night, free of any evil

10. The guests knew that their lodging with us
Is roasted meat and its cooking pot

11. If Saad boasts, he will find nothing
Except what we built, which he counts as pride

12. And I hold back my hatred which has appeared
From my Master, so I do not provoke it

13. Fearing it will bring me harm, though only
Minor matters provoke momentous ones

14. If the blind says “I wish” I hear it
By myself and do not hear her secret

15. I fulfilled a soul’s need and left another
When the soul was stingy and narrowed its breast

16. Modestly and patiently in precarious places, I
Am modest with the likes of those and cover it

17. And restrain noble deeds, though only
The patient stand by the rights of deputies

18. I befriend the living who are not concerned by them
And count the dead whose graves are their homes

19. Do you not see that we are a people's light even though
Our light makes clear to people in the darkness?