إِذا كانَ مالي مالَ مَن يَلقُطُ العَجَم

وَحالِيَ فيكُم حالَ مَن حاكَ أَو حَجَم

If my money is like money picked up by strangers,

And my status among you is like that of a weaver or cobbler,

فَأَينَ اِنتِفاعي بِالأَصالَةِ وَالحِجى

وَما رَبِحَت كَفّي مِنَ العِلمِ وَالحِكَم

Where then is the benefit of my ancestry and prestige?

What have my hands earned from knowledge and wisdom?

وَمَن ذا الَّذي في الناسِ يُبصِرُ حالَتي

فَلا يَلعَنُ القِرطاسَ وَالحِبرَ وَالقَلَم

Who among the people can see my state,

And not curse the paper, the ink and the pen?