أَلَم تَغتَمِض عَيناكَ لَيلَةَ أَرمَدا

وَعادَكَ ما عادَ السَليمَ المُسَهَّدا

Did you not shed tears when your eyes were inflamed one night,

And what afflicted you was not like what afflicts the placid sleeper,

وَما ذاكَ مِن عِشقِ النِساءِ وَإِنَّما

تَناسَيتَ قَبلَ اليَومَ خُلَّةَ مَهدَدا

This is not from love of women, but rather

You forgot the cradle of Mahadda before this day,

وَلَكِن أَرى الدَهرَ الَّذي هُوَ خاتِرٌ

إِذا أَصلَحَت كَفّايَ عادَ فَأَفسَدا

But I see time which is a trickster,

If I fixed my affairs, it returned and made them corrupt,

شَبابٌ وَشَيبٌ وَاِفتِقارٌ وَثَروَةٌ

فَلِلَّهِ هَذا الدَهرُ كَيفَ تَرَدَّدا

Youth and old age and poverty and wealth,

How this time wanders aimlessly!

وَما زِلتُ أَبغي المالَ مُذ أَنا يافِعٌ

وَليداً وَكَهلاً حينَ شِبتُ وَأَمرَدا

And I have not ceased to seek money since I was a young man

As a lad and when I grew old and became senile,

وَأَبتَذِلُ العيسَ المَراقيلَ تَغتَلي

مَسافَةَ ما بَينَ النَجيرِ فَصَرخَدا

And I make the nimble camels kneel down, they trample

The distance between al-Najir and Sarakhad,

فَإِن تَسأَلي عَنّي فَيا رُبَّ سائِلٍ

حَفِيٍّ عَنِ الأَعشى بِهِ حَيثُ أَصعَدا

So if you ask about me, O questioner,

About al-A’sha in the places where he climbed,

أَلا أَيُّهَذا السائِلي أَينَ يَمَّمَت

فَإِنَّ لَها في أَهلِ يَثرِبَ مَوعِدا

Do not be, O questioner, where are you heading?

For it has an appointment with the people of Yathrib,

فَأَمّا إِذا ما أَدلَجَت فَتَرى لَها

رَقيبَينِ جَدياً لا يَغيبُ وَفَرقَدا

As for when night falls, you see it has

Two guards keeping continual vigil and slumbering,

وَفيها إِذا ما هَجَّرَت عَجرَفِيَّةٌ

إِذا خِلتَ حِرباءَ الظَهيرَةِ أَصيَدا

And in it, when dawn breaks hot and sultry,

A she-camel at noon bolts at the prey,

أَجَدَّت بِرِجلَيها نَجاءً وَراجَعَت

يَداها خِنافاً لَيِّناً غَيرَ أَحرَدا

Moving briskly with her feet, then turning back

Her smooth, gentle hands not roughed or chapped,

فَآلَيتُ لا أَرثي لَها مِن كَلالَةٍ

وَلا مِن حَفىً حَتّى تَزورَ مُحَمَّدا

I vowed I will not mourn her out of yearning,

Nor pity her, until she visits Muhammad,

مَتى ما تُناخي عِندَ بابِ اِبنِ هاشِمٍ

تُريحي وَتَلقَي مِن فَواضِلِهِ يَدا

Whenever she stops at the door of the son of Hashim,

She rests and receives generously from his hands,

نَبِيٌّ يَرى ما لا تَرَونَ وَذِكرُهُ

أَغارَ لَعَمري في البِلادِ وَأَنجَدا

A prophet who sees what you do not see, and the mention of him

Spread with pride in the towns and gave victory,

لَهُ صَدَقاتٌ ما تُغِبُّ وَنائِلٌ

وَلَيسَ عَطاءُ اليَومِ مانِعَهُ غَدا

He has ongoing charities that do not cease,

And the gifts of today do not prevent those of tomorrow,

أَجِدَّكَ لَم تَسمَع وَصاةَ مُحَمَّدٍ

نَبِيِّ الإِلَهِ حينَ أَوصى وَأَشهَدا

You were heedless, you did not hear the testament of Muhammad,

Prophet of God, when he enjoined and took witnesses,

إِذا أَنتَ لَم تَرحَل بِزادٍ مِنَ التُقى

وَلاقَيتَ بَعدَ المَوتِ مَن قَد تَزَوَّدا

If you did not set forth with provision of piety,

And after death you meet the one who stocked provisions,

نَدِمتَ عَلى أَن لا تَكونَ كَمِثلِهِ

وَأَنَّكَ لَم تُرصِد لِما كانَ أَرصَدا

You will regret that you were not like him,

And that you did not prepare for what had been prepared.

فَإِيّاكَ وَالمَيتاتِ لا تَأكُلَنَّها

وَلا تَأخُذَن سَهماً حَديداً لِتَفصِدا

So beware of carrion, do not eat it,

And do not take an iron arrowhead to hunt game,

وَذا النُصُبِ المَنصوبَ لا تَنسُكَنَّهُ

وَلا تَعبُدِ الأَوثانَ وَاللهَ فَاِعبُدا

And the standing pillar, do not leave it,

And do not worship idols, and worship God alone,

وَصَلَّ عَلى حينِ العَشِيّاتِ وَالضُحى

وَلا تَحمَدِ الشَيطانَ وَاللَهَ فَاِحمَدا

And pray at the times of evening and morning,

And do not praise Satan, and praise God instead,

وَلا السائِلَ المَحرومَ لا تَترُكَنَّهُ

لِعاقِبَةٍ وَلا الأَسيرَ المُقَيَّدا

And do not neglect the beseeching outcast,

Or the chained prisoner, due to consequences,

وَلا تَسخَرَن مِن بائِسٍ ذي ضَرارَةٍ

وَلا تَحسَبَنَّ المَرءَ يَوماً مُخَلَّدا

And do not ridicule a wretched man of ill fate,

Or think a man will live forever,

وَلا تَقرَبَنَّ جارَةً إِنَّ سِرِّها

عَلَيكَ حَرامٌ فَاِنكِحَن أَو تَأَبَّدا

And do not approach a neighbor's wife, for her privacy

Is forbidden to you, so marry or remain celibate!