يا مَلكَ الأرضِ وكَهفَ الوَرى

وَمَن إِلى سَاحتهِ الَمهرَبُ

O king of the earth and cave of the blind

And he to whose court there is no escape

ما لَسعَت كَفَّكَ عَن هَفوَةٍ

أَغنَمَ منها هذهِ العَقرَبُ

Your hand never refrained from striking

So that this scorpion gained nothing from it

لكن رأتهُ وهوَ سُمٌّ على

مالِكَ لا يُربي ولا يَذهبُ

But she saw him, deadly poison

To an owner who does not graze animals or slaughter them

فأقبلت تستافُ مِن بَعضِهِ

باللَّسعِ شيئاً عَلَّها تَرحَبُ

So she came hastening to sip

A little of it with her sting, hoping to profit