فَلَو أَنّي أُطِعتُ عُصبَتُ قَومي

إِلى رُكنِ اليَمامَةِ أَو شآمِ

If I had obeyed the madness of my people

If only I were obeyed by the band of my people,

To Rukn of Yamamah or Syria

[We would have marched] to the corners of Al-Yamamah or the Levant,

وَلَكِني إِذا أَبرَمتُ أَمراً

مُنيتُ بِخَلفِ آراءِ الطِغامِ

But when I decide on an affair

But whenever I firmly resolve a matter,

I die opposing the opinions of the ignorant mob

I am plagued by the dissenting opinions of the riffraff.