1. His infatuation with the folly of youth grows,

    As though whoever restrains him only spurs him on.

  2. And when you say, "Patience will restrain him,"

    His anguish sweeps away a love-stricken man's patience.

  3. And indeed, he has been warned—if he would take heed—

    By a temple where balding vies with gray hair.

  4. How long can the bloom of youth endure, when

    The portents of gray hair emerge in swift succession?

  5. Yet disappointment in it, paradoxically,

    Is a sorrowing man's solace and restraint.

  6. Lightning at Dhu Salam keeps me sleepless

    With its flickering; its flashes stir my longing.

  7. And many a revel has been celebrated by

    Dhu Salam's summering grounds and spring pastures.

  8. Poverty may be the means of gaining

    Wealth; satiety has subdued a ravenous beast.

  9. And the weak-willed man is robbed of his resolve

    By the least provision sufficient to sustain him.

  10. When you seek what is withheld, it will not be long

    Before what was withheld of it returns to you.

  11. And bounty is a debt by which one is enslaved;

    So choose to whom you entrust your servitude.

  12. And I see no lack of strength in the mounts

    For Samarra's night, which they don as armor.

  13. They seek from the young man of Rabi'a what

    Spring possesses, when its fields display their splendor.

  14. And greenery fills both your hands, from a generosity

    He displays as bounty and brings into being.

  15. His character has made for al-Khattab,

    So he urges it onward and follows him.

  16. He rejects the miser's choices, and out of

    Love of high honor, he relinquishes what he relinquishes.

  17. His true nature has borne out his promising signs,

    Like autumn's offering, shown to you by its scattered clouds.

  18. He is peerless, though his clan is rich

    In resources, and his supporters aid one another.

  19. The reins are feared where he musters them,

    And the torrent is feared where it gathers.

  20. So you see the enemies, occupied with nothing

    But guessing the place he will strike.

  21. And a radiant noble is exalted by his father—how often

    A noble among his people has a father who debases him!

  22. If it pleases you to grasp his eminence in full,

    By reason, probing it and drawing it out,

  23. Then seek with your eye—whichever reaches

    The sun's light—where that light ends.

  24. His Araqim have built him lofty honor,

    That rises, its summit never sinking.

  25. And a sword, if its iron is pure

    When forged, proves sound, with no fear of its rusting.

  26. And one who follows men points toward

    A moon with many of them in his train.

  27. He shines before the gazes of their eyes,

    A sight surpassed by what is heard of him.

  28. His successes follow his promises,

    As the month's dark-opening nights follow its white ones.

  29. Should I fear hesitation over a thousand from one

    Who bore thousands, and whose lameness was never feared?

  30. And someone other than you, O son of the noblest in honor,

    Gave bounty, then turned back to reclaim it.

  31. Your bounty is not to be hoped for from him, nor

    Is your renowned kindness bestowed by

  32. A miser who sees the money he parts with

    In giving as a molar tooth he pulls out.

  33. Wealthy, yet his riches are of little use

    To one who makes for his bounty, seeking him out.

  34. And the sea is barred by its bitterness

    From having its draughts be palatable to a drinker.

Sol 6.1