سَلَوتُ عَلى الدَهرِ فيمَن سَلا

وَصِرتُ أَعُدُّكَ فيما خَلا

I greeted Time concerning those who have passed away,

And I began to count you among those no longer here.

وَكُنتُ حَزيناً فَأَمّا كَما

يَحِقُّ لِمِثلِكَ عِندي فَلا

Though I was sad, it is not right, for one like you,

That I feel anything but joy in your memory.

بَليتُ وَأَبلَيتُ فيكَ الأَسى

كَأَنَّ السُلُوّ عَقيدُ البِلى

I suffered and made others suffer from sorrow over you,

As if grief itself were the cause of suffering.

أَبا حَسَنٍ كَيفَ ذاك الجَما

لُ وَذاكَ الجَميلُ وَتِلكَ العُلى

Oh Abu Hassan, how was that beauty,

That charm, and that lofty grace?

وَهَل أَجمَلَ التُربُ في صُنعِهِ

لِقاكَ وَلِلتُربِ أَن يُجمِلا

Did the earth adorn itself more beautifully

To welcome you, though it was earth that adorned you?

وَحَقٌّ عَلَيهِ وَأَنتَ السَحا

بُ بِأَن يَتَرَشَّفَ تِلكَ الحُلى

It had a right to cherish those graces,

When you were the rain that made beauty bloom.

وَحَقّي الفِدا لَكَ مِن حَملِهِ

وَإِن كانَ مَحمَلُهُ مُثقِلا

I owe my life for your sake, though it

Bears a heavy burden when you are gone.

فَوَاللَهِ ما تَرَكَ الدَهرُ في

فُؤادي لِحادِثَةٍ مَحمَلا

By God, Time has left no room in my heart

For any new sorrow since you left.