يُمَثِّلُ ذو العَقلِ في نَفسِهِ

مَصائِبهُ قَبلَ أَن تَنزِلا

He who is wise prepares in his mind

The wise man visualizes within his soul

For misfortunes before their descent

His misfortunes before they ever descend,

فَإِن نَزَلَت بَغتَةً لَم يُرَع

لِما كانَ في نَفسِهِ مَثَلا

So if they suddenly befall him unawares

So if they fall suddenly, he is not dismayed,

It is not as hard for what was in his mind exemplified

For he had already pictured them in his mind.

رَأى الأَمرَ يُفضي الي آخِرٍ

فَصيَّر آخِرَهُ اَوَّلا

He saw matters leading to an end

He saw that the matter leads to a conclusion,

So he made the end first in his mind

So he treated the end as if it were the beginning.

وَذو الجَهلِ يَأمَنُ أَيامَهُ

وَينسى مَصارِعَ مَن قَد خَلا

While the ignorant feel safe in their days

While the ignorant man feels safe in his days,

And forget the death of those who passed away before

Forgetting the fates of those who have passed;

فَإِن بَدَهتَهُ صُروفُ الزَمانِ

بِبَعضِ مَصائِبِهِ أَعوَلا

If the turns of time surprise him

Then, when the vicissitudes of time surprise him

With some of its misfortunes he yells

With some of their calamities, he wails in despair.

وَلَو قَدَّمَ الحَزمَ في نَفسِهِ

لَعَلَّمَهُ الصَّبرَ عِندَ البَلا

Had he prepared prudence within himself

Yet had he practiced foresight within himself,

It would have taught him patience during tribulation

It would have taught him patience in the hour of trial.