Sol 6.1

  1. My dear brother, whenever you contend with yourself, muster your strength

    against it; and whenever you speak to yourself, speak truthfully.

  2. I see the causes of things as various, and I see no

    gathering except as a cause of separation.

  3. I see life as a shadow the sun will soon shift;

    so be as shrewd as you can in seeking livelihood—or be foolish.

  4. I see time as a ghoul devouring souls; and only

    God protects, in certain situations, those whom He protects.

  5. So do not follow what has passed with your question, 'Why did it pass?'

    And turn to what remains, then ask it, 'Why has it remained?'

  6. And I have seen no wife like this world, married to an ardent

    lover: whenever she looks fair in his eyes, she parts from him.

  7. You see it plainly, though it is the work of one maker;

    yet you think it the work of a deft maker and a clumsy one.

  8. I remembered Abu Isa and wiped an eye

    that streams with tears, sleepless whenever it does not shed them.

  9. A young man who was the soul's aspiration—or beyond its aspiration—

    when he came forth with excellent judgment and sincerity.

  10. And I do not attain the full measure of good fortune

    under Jupiter when it has not gone direct and risen in the east.

  11. May you rise again, you who have stumbled under calamity,

    O sons of Makhlad, downpour of the all-enveloping cloud!

  12. My soul loves you, even though my love for you

    exposes me to my enemies' whims and is my undoing.

  13. And people have never loved their beloveds as they love

    the riches of your bounty, both new and worn.

  14. So if anyone approaches pledges with treachery, we, for our part,

    have kept faith with both Najrans, the Yemeni and the Iraqi.

  15. We bestowed the two gifts on them both, until they recognized

    our merit, through my cousin's wealth and my words.

Sol 6.1