لَمّا أَتاني وَأَهلي مِن طِياتِهُمُ

بالجِزعِ بَينَ كُباثاتٍ وَطابانا

When there came to me—while my family were at one of their way-stations—

at al-Jizʿ, between Kubāthāt and Ṭābānā—

ناعٍ نَعى ليَ إِبراهيمَ قُلتُ لَهُ

شُلَّت يَداكَ وَعشتَ الدَهرَ عُريانا

a death-messenger announcing Ibrahim to me, I said to him:

May your hands be paralyzed, and may you live all your days naked;

وَالناسُ قَد ثَقُلَت يَوماً مَضاجِعُهُم

إِلّا ابنَ هَرمَةَ أَحيا اللَيلَ يَقظانا

while people's beds, one night, lay heavy,

Ibn Harma alone kept the night alive, wide awake.

وَلا رَجَعتَ إِلى مالٍ وَلا وَلَدٍ

ما كُنتَ حَيّاً وَما سُمّيتَ إِنسانا

May you never return to wealth or child,

as long as you live, nor ever be called a human being.

تَنعى الإِمامَ وَخَيرَ الناسِ كُلِّهُمُ

أَخنَت عَلَيهِ يَدُ الجَعديِّ مَروانا

You announce the Imam—the best of all people—dead,

whom the hand of al-Jaʿdi—Marwan—laid low.

وَكادَ لَولا دِفاعُ اللَهِ يَقتُلُني

وَما رَجَوتُ مِن النَصرِ الَّذي كانا

He nearly killed me too, had God not defended me,

and I had not hoped for the victory that came.

فاِستَدرَجَ اللَهُ مَرواناً بِقوتَّهِ

سُبحانَ مُستَدرِجِ الجَعدي سُبحانا

Then God, by His might, drew Marwan step by step to ruin—

glory to Him who drew al-Jaʿdi on; glory!

فاِعتَزَّ بِالقَومِ لَم تُطلَل دِماؤُهُمُ

وَكانَ حينُ بَني مَروانَ قَد حانا

Then take pride in the people: their blood was not left unavenged,

and the hour of the house of Marwan had come.