ما لي وللحاسدينَ لا بَرِحَتْ

تذوبُ أكبادُهمْ وتنفَطِرُ

I care not for the envious, whose livers

Melt and whose hearts break with envy unabated,

يغتابُنِي عند غيبتي نَفَرٌ

جباهُهم إنْ حضرتُ تنعَفِرُ

A group backbites me in my absence,

Their brows wrinkle in antipathy if I attend,

ألسنةٌ في مَساءَتِي ذُلُقٌ

يعتادها من مَهابتي حَصَرُ

Their sharp tongues spare no effort to find fault with me,

Having grown accustomed through fear of my prestige,

أنامُ عنهم مِلءَ الجفونِ إِذا

أسهرهمْ في المضاجِعِ الأِبَرُ

I sleep with eyes sealed, while

They lie awake resentful on their beds,

يكفيهمُ ما بهم إِذا نظروا

إِلَيَّ مِلءَ العيونِ لا نظروا

When they look at me, their eyes filled, it suffices them,

Though they do not look at all,

تغيظُهمْ رتبِتي وَيكْمَدُهُمْ

جاهي فصفوي عليهمُ كَدَرُ

My status enrages them, and my glory burns them,

My eminence above them is disturbing,

فنعمةُ اللّهِ وهيَ سابغَةٌ

عندي من الحاسدينَ تنتصرُ

For God’s bounty is perfect towards me,

And through it I prevail over the envious,

يُعجِبُنِي أنهمْ إِذا كَثُروا

قَلُّوا غَناءً وإِنْ هم كَثروا

It pleases me, the more numerous they are,

The less they avail, however numerous.