عَفَا اللَه عما قد جَنَتهُ يَدُ الدَّهرِ

فقد بَذَلَ المجهُودَ في طلب العُذرِ

God forgive what the hands of fate have done

For he has made every effort seeking excuse

أيحسنُ أن أشكو الزمانَ الذي غَدَت

صنائعهُ عندي تَجِلُّ عن الشُّكرِ

Is it good that I complain of time which has made

Its works shine to me beyond all thanks

لقد كنتُ في أسر الخمول فلم يزَل

بِتَدريجِهِ حتى خَلَصتُ من الأَسرِ

I was truly in the shackles of inaction until

Gradually it freed me from those shackles

فشكراً لأيَّامِ وفَتُ لي بوعدها

وأبدت لعيني فوق ما جالَ في فكري

So thanks to the days that kept their promise to me

And showed my eyes more than what wandered in my thoughts

وكم ليلةٍ قد بتُّها مُعسِراً ولى

بزخرف آمالي كنورٌ من الفَقرِ

And how many nights have I spent destitute and they passed

With the adornments of my hopes like light in the darkness

أقول لقلبي كلما اشتقت للغنى

إذا جاء نصر الله بُتَّت يَدُ الفَقرِ

I say to my heart whenever I long for wealth

When God’s help comes, the hands of poverty are tied

وإن جئتَهُ بالمدح يلقاك باللَّهَى

فكم مرةٍ قد قابل النظم بالنثرِ

And if you come to him with praise, he meets you with grace

So how many times has he replied to verse with prose

ويهتزُّ للجدوى إذا ما مدحته

كما اهتزَّ حاشى وصفه شاربُ الخَمرِ

And he trembles with fervor when you praise him

As the cupbearer of wine trembled when his attributes were described