1. مَن كان عند الله غالبْ

    لا شكَّ بالخيرات آيبْ

    Whoever is victorious in God's sight

    Returns, without doubt, with blessings.

  2. ومَن اتَّقاه فاز فَوْ

    زاً لا يخافُ من العواقبْ

    And whoever fears Him wins

    A victory, with no fear of consequences.

  3. مَن لا يفكَّرُ في العواقبْ

    دهراً يعيشُ بغير صاحبْ

    Whoever gives no thought to consequences

    Lives for a long time without a companion.

  4. وقلاهُ كل مُساعدٍ

    وجفاه أولادُ الأقاربْ

    And every helper detests him,

    And his relatives' children forsake him.

  5. وأهانَهُ كل الأنا

    مِ من الأباعِدِ والأقاربْ

    And all humankind humiliates him,

    Strangers and relatives alike.

  6. فتراه كالغَرَضِ الذي

    يرمونه من كل جانبْ

    So you see him like a target that

    They shoot at from every side.

  7. عما قليلٍ سوفَ ينشُبُ

    في براثنها المخالبْ

    Before long he will be caught

    In their talons and claws.

  8. لا يستطيعُ لدفعِ ما

    هو فيه من دفعِ المصايبْ

    He cannot ward off

    The calamities in which he finds himself.

  9. لا عَمَّ ينفُعه ولا

    خالٌ ولا خِلٌّ مُصاحبْ

    No paternal uncle helps him, nor

    A maternal uncle, nor a friend at his side.

  10. أُوصيكَ لا تصحبْ فتىً

    ينحو إلى طلب المثالبْ

    I counsel you: do not befriend a youth

    Who inclines toward the pursuit of vices.

  11. واختر لنفسك صاحباً

    حُرّاً كريماً ذا مراتبْ

    And choose for yourself a companion,

    Noble and generous, a man of distinction,

  12. فطناً لبيباً صادِقاً

    نَدْباً حليماً ذا تجاربْ

    Perceptive, discerning, truthful,

    Ready to help, forbearing, and experienced.

  13. أنت المعظَّمُ لم تزلْ

    تسمو به فرق الثواقبْ

    You are held in honor, and never cease

    To rise through him above the piercing stars.

  14. لا يستبدُّ برأْيه

    أبداً يُشَاوِرُ في النوائبْ

    He never insists on his own judgment alone,

    But takes counsel in times of adversity.

  15. فمن استبدَّ برأْيه

    لا زالَ يأتي بالعجائبْ

    For whoever follows only his own opinion

    Never ceases to do strange things.

  16. لا شكَّ ذلك أحمقٌ

    فالبُعدُ منه عليك واجبْ

    No doubt, such a man is a fool;

    So keeping away from him is your duty.

  17. فالحُمق داءٌ لا دواءَ

    له فأَهْمِلْهُ وجانبْ

    For foolishness is an illness with no cure;

    So leave him alone and keep away.

  18. كالبالِ إن رَقَّعْتَهُ

    من جانبٍ ينحلُّ جانبْ

    Like a worn-out garment: if you patch it

    On one side, another side unravels.

  19. أتعبتَ نفسك إن تصا

    حب صاحباً أعمى المذاهبْ

    You weary yourself if you befriend

    A companion blind in his ways.

  20. لا زالَ يلقى نفسه

    بين المتالف والمعاطبْ

    He continually finds himself

    Among places of ruin and mortal peril.

  21. يُسْدِى ويُلْحِمُ ساكناً

    طرق المخاوف والمتاعِبْ

    He weaves warp and weft, dwelling

    On paths of fear and hardship.

  22. بل كلما نَهْنَهْتَهُ

    عن حالةٍ أبدى غرائبْ

    Rather, whenever you restrain him

    From a course of action, he produces oddities.

  23. يُمسى ويُصبح في المضي

    قِ ودمعُه في الخَدِّ ساكبْ

    He spends evening and morning in distress,

    With his tears streaming down his cheek.

  24. لا يَرْعَوِى عن جهله

    ويقول ما قد خَطَّ صائبْ

    He will not desist from his ignorance,

    And says what he has written is right.

  25. وإذا الصبيُّ اعتادَ طبعاً

    في الشبيبة فهْوَ راسبْ

    And if a boy grows accustomed to a disposition

    In youth, it becomes deeply rooted.

  26. ليس التطبُّعُ ثابتاً

    كالطبعِ إن الطبعَ لازبْ

    An assumed disposition is not as firm

    As innate nature, for innate nature clings fast.

  27. إن لم يُؤَدَّبْ فهْوَ با

    خِعُ نفسِه والطبعُ غالبْ

    If he is not disciplined, then he is destroying

    Himself, while his innate nature prevails.

  28. ما ضَرَّهُ لو أنَّهُ

    من ذنبه أن جاءَ تائبْ

    What harm would it do him if he

    Came repentant of his sin?

  29. فلعلَّ ربِّ العرش يق

    بَلُ توبة العدلِ المواظبْ

    So perhaps the Lord of the Throne will accept

    The repentance of the upright, steadfast one.

  30. فهو الرحيم بخَلْقِه

    ولخلقِه جَمُّ المواهبْ

    For He is merciful toward His creatures,

    And is lavish in His gifts to His creatures.

  31. فارجوه في العُقْبَي فمن

    يرجو سواه فهو خائبْ

    So hope in Him for the hereafter, for whoever

    Hopes in anyone else is disappointed.

  32. وعليك بالتقْوَى فتقْوَى

    الله من خير المكاسبْ

    And hold fast to piety, for fear of

    God is among the finest gains.

  33. وتعلّم القرآنَ وادرُسْه

    وأكرمْه وواظبْ

    And learn the Qur'an and study it,

    And honor it and persevere.

  34. فهو الصراطُ المستقي

    مُ ودرسُه خير المآدِبْ

    For it is the straight path,

    And studying it is the finest of banquets.

  35. والنحوَ لا تُهْمِلْهُ فهْ

    وَ أساسُ كل بيانِ كاتبْ

    And do not neglect grammar, for it

    Is the foundation of every writer's expression.