إذا ما الشخص أظهر ما يراه

وما سبر الفهومَ ولا الزمانا

If a person shows what he sees,

And fathoms neither the intellect nor time,

فإنَّ اللوم يلحقه عليه

ويسلب من إذاعته الأمانا

Then blame befalls him,

And his broadcasting is deprived of security.

فمن شرط الأمانة أن يراه

بخيلا في أمانته عيانا

For the condition of honesty is that he sees himself

As miserly in his honesty and clear.

فغنَّ لها إذا فكرت أهلاً

وإنَّ لها المكانةَ والزمانا

So sing to it if you thought of people,

And indeed it has status and time.

لقد جاء الرسولُ به صريحاً

وقد كنا تلوناه قرانا

The Messenger came with it explicitly,

And we used to recite it as verses.

هوان الذوق من هذا وهذا

إذا كنا بحضرته قرانا

The lowness of taste is from this and that,

When we were in his presence as verses.

أراه مع الزمانِ بكلِّ وقتٍ

يدور بحكمةٍ وكذا يرانا

I see it with time at every moment,

Circling with wisdom and thus showing us.

فنزه عن معارضةِ الليالي

كلامَك إن حكمَ الدهر بانا

So abstain from opposing the nights,

Your words, if the fate of time ruled us decayed.

به ربُّ البريّة قد تسمى

لذلك قد علا مجداً وشانا

The Lord of creation was named by it,

Thus its glory became high and noble.

لقد جاد الإله عليَّ إذ لم

أكن من أهله كرماً ودانا

God has been generous to me when

I was not of its people, generous and humbling.