أشابَ الصّغيرَ وأفْنى الكبيـ

ـرَ كَرُّ اللّيالي ومَرٌّ العَشِيِّ

The young perish and the old pass away

The nights roll on and the evenings go by

إذا لَيْلَةُ هرّمَتْ يَومَها

أتى بَعْدَ ذلِكَ يومٌ فَتِي

When a night grows old, its day comes after

A youthful day follows thereafter

نَروحُ وَنَغْدو لحاجاتِنا

وحاجَةُ مَنْ عاشَ لا تَنْقَضيْ

We come and go for our needs

But the needs of one alive are endless

تموتُ مَعَ المَرْءِ حاجاتُه

وتَبْقى له حاجةٌ ما بَقيْ

A man's needs die with him

Yet one need stays as long as he lives

إذا قُلتَ يوماً لمنْ قد تَرى

ألم ترَ لُقمانَ أوصى أبنه

If you say to one you see someday

"Have you not seen how Luqman advised his son?"

وأوصَيتُ عمراً ونِعمَ الوَصي

بُنَي بدا خِبُّ نَجوى الرجالِ

I advised Umar, and how excellent was my advice:

"My son, men's secret talk has shown its evil,

فَكُن عِنْدَ سِركَ خِبَّ النَّجي

وسِرُّكَ ما كان عِنْد امْرئٍ

So match their talk with guarded speech,

And let your secret be with no other man,

وسِرُّ الثلاثةِ غيرُ الخفِي

فَكُلًّ سوادٍ وأن هِبتَهُ

For the secret of three is no secret.

All gloom equals the night you dread.

من اللّيل يُخشى كما تَختشي

أرِدْ محكمَ الشعر إنْ قُلتَه

Seek rhyming verse if you speak it out,

For much speech lacks cadence.

فإن الكلامَ كثيرُ الروي

أرُوني السَّريَّ أرَوْكَ الغَني

Show me the mysteries, and I'll show you riches,

As silence is nearer than some speech.

كما الصَّمتُ أدنْى لِبَعْضِ اللسانِ

فَبَعْضُ التكلُّم أدْنى لِعِي

Let the soul shun following desire,

For the youth gets not all he craves."

دَعِ النّفْسَ اتّباعِ الهّوى

فَما للفتى كُلُّ ما يَشتهي