أَيُّها الماهر اللَبيب أَفدْنا

عَن لفيظ مَقلوبه مِنهُ جئنا

O skillful and clever one, help us

With the meaning of a word spelled backwards from which we came

وَهُوَ بِالمدّ في لِسان فرنجٍ

اسمُ شيء إِن فارق الجسم متنا

And which in the Frankish tongue is pronounced long

It's the name of something - if it leaves the body we die

وَلَديهم إِن حرّفوه اسمُ شيءٍ

جاءَ في النحل ثالثاً وَفهمنا

And if they add a letter it becomes the name of something

That comes third in bees and we understood

وَإِذا ما حذفت الأَخير فحرف

ما أَتى في كَلام قَومي لِمَعنى

And if you remove the last letter, it remains a letter

That came in my people's speech with a meaning

وَهوَ أَصل لَدى أُناسٍ بَسيطٌ

وَلَدى أَهله الثقات مُثنَّى

And it is for some people a simple origin

And for its people, the trusted ones, it is dual

وَهوَ في الأَرض وَالسَماء مُقيمٌ

باتفاق الوَرى كَما قَد علمنا

It dwells fixedly in the earth and sky

By consensus of mankind, as we have known

وَبِهِ أَهلك الإِله عِباداً

تَخذوا غَيره ملاذاً وحصنا

And by it God destroyed servants

Who took other than Him as refuge and shelter

وَهوَ لِلناس نافعٌ وَمضرٌّ

بَيد أَنّا نَموت إِن بانَ عَنا

And it is beneficial and harmful to mankind

Except we die if it goes from us

وَهوَ كَالريح في أُمورٍ وَإِن شئ

ت فَذاكَ اللجين إنا كشفنا

And it is like the wind in some matters, and if you wish

That muddy one - behold, we have uncovered it

فَتأمَّل في حله فهوَ سهلٌ

لَيسَ يَخفى مَعناه عَمَّن تَأنَّى

So ponder its solution, for it is easy

Its meaning cannot be obscure to one who is patient