نُبِّئتُ عُتبَةَ يَعوي كَي أُشاتِمَهُ

اللَهُ أَكبَرُ أَنّى اِستَأسَدَ النَقَدُ

I warned Utbah as he defamed me so I could insult him

God is greatest! How valorous satire has become!

ما كُنتُ أَحسِبُ أَنَّ الدَهرَ يُمهِلُني

حَتّى أَرى أَحَداً يَهجوهُ لا أَحَدُ

I never thought time would give me respite

Until I saw someone satirize him, no one.

بِحَسبِ عُتبَةَ داءٌ قَد تَضَمَّنَهُ

لَو كانَ في أَسَدٍ لَم يَفرِسِ الأَسَدُ

For Utbah, a malady has afflicted him

Had it afflicted a lion, even lions would shun him

لَوِ اِعتَدى أَعوَجٌ يَعدو بِهِ المَرَطى

أَو لاحِقٌ لَتَمَنّى أَنَّهُ وَتَدُ

Had a lame person attacked him with verses

Or a chatterbox, he would have wished to be abandoned

لَو كانَ يَكرَهُ أَن تَبدو فَضيحَتُهُ

ما كانَ أَكثَرَ ما في شِعرِهِ العَمَدُ

Had he disliked his shame being exposed

There would not be so many flaws in his poetry

فَإِن سَمِعتَ لَهُ نَعتَ القَنا عَبَثاً

فَقَد أَرادَ قَناً لَيسَت لَها عُقَدُ

If you hear him wrongly describe “qina”

He meant a qina without rhymes

إِنّي لَأَعجَبُ مِمَّن في حَقيبَتِهِ

مِنَ المَنِيِّ بُحورٌ كَيفَ لا يَلِدُ

I am astonished by one whose satchel

Contains volumes yet does not give birth!

لَو أَنَّ عُشرَ الَّذي أَمسى وَظَلَّ بِهِ

بِالعالَمينَ مِنَ البَلوى إِذَن فَسَدوا

Had a tenth of what he did last night and still does

With both worlds of distress befallen them, they would have perished

لا يَدعُوَنَّ عَلى الأَعداءِ مُجتَهِداً

إِلّا بِأَن يَجِدوا بَعضَ الَّذي يَجِدُ

They do not persistently invoke against enemies

Unless they experience some of what he feels

وَقائِلٍ ما لَهُم يُغضونَ عَنكَ إِذا

أَتأَرتَ قُلتُ لَهُ إِنّي أَنا الرَمَدُ

And one who says “Why do they overlook you when

You are satirized?” I say to him “I am the smallpox- the rabies- I am the

أَنا الحُسامُ أَنا المَوتُ الزُؤامُ أَنا ال

نارُ الضِرامُ أَنا الضِرغامَةُ العَبِدُ

Fire- the fierce lightning bolt- I am the scabies- the obedient servant