يا أيها المولى الذي وجهه

يا أيها المولى الذي وجهه

أبهى سناً من فلق الصبح

أبهى سناً من فلق الصبح

O lord, whose face

O Lord whose face

is more radiant than the breaking dawn,

Is brighter than the dawn's cleavage,

ومن إذا قيس ندى حاتم

ومن إذا قيس ندى حاتم

بجوده عير بالشح

بجوده عير بالشح

and you, if Hatim's bounty is measured

And when Hatem's dew is compared

against your generosity, he is reproached for stinginess;

To his generosity, it is found stingy,

ولو تبدى لفتح بحترٍ

ولو تبدى لفتح بحترٍ

قطع بالنعل قفا الفتح

قطع بالنعل قفا الفتح

and were you to appear before Buhtur's Fath,

And if victory showed itself to be conquered,

al-Fath's nape would be slashed with a sandal.

It would cut off the heels of conquest with a slipper,

يا ابن الملوك الصيد من فارسٍ

يا ابن الملوك الصيد من فارسٍ

ورب ذاك الخلق السمح

ورب ذاك الخلق السمح

O son of the proud kings of Persia,

O son of kings, hunting is from a horseman

and possessor of that gracious nature,

And the Lord of that generous nature,

يا طود عزي وغنى فاقتي

يا طود عزي وغنى فاقتي

وبدر ليلى وسنا صبحي

وبدر ليلى وسنا صبحي

O mountain of my honor and wealth for my poverty,

O pillar of my pride and riches

and full moon of my night and radiance of my dawn,

And full moon of my nights and sun of my mornings,

إن ابن عيسى قال ما قلته

إن ابن عيسى قال ما قلته

وربما قصر في الشرح

وربما قصر في الشرح

indeed, Ibn Isa said what I have said,

Indeed the son of Eisa said what you said

and perhaps fell short in explaining it.

And perhaps fell short in explaining,

هاك حديثي بحذافيره على

هاك حديثي بحذافيره على

طريق الجد لا المزح

طريق الجد لا المزح

Take my tale in all its details, in

On the path of seriousness, not jest,

earnest, not in jest:

Yesterday a wise man came to me

أمس أتاني رجلٌ عاقلٌ

أمس أتاني رجلٌ عاقلٌ

جم العطايا صائب القدح

جم العطايا صائب القدح

Yesterday a sensible man came to me,

Bountiful in gifts, hitting the mark,

lavish in gifts, his arrow unerring.

Blaming me for ceasing to praise him

يلومني في ترك مدحي له

يلومني في ترك مدحي له

والعتب في كائدة النصح

والعتب في كائدة النصح

He reproaches me for withholding my praise of him,

While the rebuke comes from a plotter of good advice,

and reproach lay in counsel's guile.

And he tries to buy praise from me

ويشتري الحمد محيلاً علي

ويشتري الحمد محيلاً علي

بروقه الصادقة اللمح

بروقه الصادقة اللمح

And he buys praise, drawing on

With his sincere flashes of light,

his lightning flashes, true in their gleam.

And you know that my response to him

وأنت تدري أن ردي له

وأنت تدري أن ردي له

وإن أتى في غاية القبح

وإن أتى في غاية القبح

And you know that my refusal of him,

Even if it comes to the height of ugliness,

even though utterly ungracious,

Does not come from stinginess, but he came

لم يك عن بخلٍ ولكنه جاء

لم يك عن بخلٍ ولكنه جاء

وقد تبت عن المدح

وقد تبت عن المدح

was not from stinginess; but he came

While I had repented from praise,

when I had already repented of praise.

O deal of loss after

يا صفقة الخسران من بعد ما

يا صفقة الخسران من بعد ما

تبينت لي صفقة الربح

تبينت لي صفقة الربح

Alas for the losing bargain, after

It became clear to me the deal of profit.

the profitable bargain had become clear to me!