أَماوِيُّ قَد طالَ التَجَنُّبُ وَالهَجرُ

وَقَد عَذَرَتني مِن طِلابِكُمُ العُذرُ

Amawi, estrangement and avoidance have lasted long

And my excuses to those seeking you are enough

أَماوِيُّ إِنَّ المالَ غادٍ وَرائحٌ

وَيَبقى مِنَ المالِ الأَحاديثُ وَالذِكرُ

Amawi, wealth passes away

Only tales and memories of wealth remain

أَماوِيُّ إِنّي لا أَقولُ لِسائِلٍ

إِذا جاءَ يَوماً حَلَّ في مالِنا نَزرُ

Amawi, I never say to one who asks

When he comes one day, and little remains of our wealth

أَماوِيُّ إِمّا مانِعٌ فَمُبَيَّنٌ

وَإِمّا عَطاءٌ لا يُنَهنِهُهُ الزَجرُ

Amawi, either there is a clear refusal

Or giving that cannot be deterred by rebuke

أَماوِيُّ ما يُغني الثَراءُ عَنِ الفَتى

إِذا حَشرَجَت نَفسٌ وَضاقَ بِها الصَدرُ

Amawi, wealth does not avail a man

When his soul tightens and his chest contracts

إِذا أَنا دَلّاني الَّذينَ أُحِبُّهُم

لِمَلحودَةٍ زُلجٌ جَوانِبُها غُبرُ

When those I love guide me

To a slippery slope, its sides covered in dust

وَراحوا عِجالاً يَنفُضونَ أَكُفَّهُم

يَقولونَ قَد دَمّى أَنامِلَنا الحَفرُ

And they hastily shake their palms

Saying, “Our fingers have been bloodied by the digging”

أَماوِيُّ إِن يُصبِح صَدايَ بِقَفرَةٍ

مِنَ الأَرضِ لا ماءٌ هُناكَ وَلا خَمرُ

Amawi, if my companions awake at a waterless wasteland

With no water or wine there

تَري أَنَّ ما أَهلَكتُ لَم يَكُ ضَرَّني

وَأَنَّ يَدي مِمّا بَخِلتُ بِهِ صَفرُ

You would see that what I have destroyed did not harm me

And that my hands that were stingy with it are empty

أَماوِيُّ إِنّي رُبَّ واحِدِ أُمِّهِ

أَجَرتُ فَلا قَتلٌ عَلَيهِ وَلا أَسرُ

Amawi, I am the lord of a mother’s only son

Whom I have set free, no killing or capturing him

وَقَد عَلِمَ الأَقوامُ لَو أَنَّ حاتِماً

أَرادَ ثَراءَ المالِ كانَ لَهُ وَفرُ

And people knew that if Hatem had wanted

Wealth of money, he would have had abundance

وَإِنِّيَ لا آلو بِمالٍ صَنيعَةٍ

فَأَوَّلُهُ زادٌ وَآخِرُهُ ذُخرُ

But I do not seek to acquire wealth

Whose first is provision and last is hoarding

يُفَكُّ بِهِ العاني وَيُؤكَلُ طَيِّباً

وَما إِن تُعَرّيهِ القِداحُ وَلا الخَمرُ

Which would relieve the distressed and be consumed wholesomely

And neither cups nor wine would strip it bare

وَلا أَظلِمُ اِبنَ العَمِّ إِن كانَ إِخوَتي

شُهوداً وَقَد أَودى بِإِخوَتِهِ الدَهرُ

I do not wrong the son of an uncle if my brothers

Are witnesses, though time has destroyed his brothers

عُنينا زَماناً بِالتَصَعلُكِ وَالغِنى

كَما الدَهرُ في أَيّامِهِ العُسرُ وَاليُسرُ

We enjoyed ourselves for a time in leisure and riches

As time has its days of hardship and ease

كَسَينا صُروفَ الدَهرِ ليناً وَغِلظَةً

وَكُلّاً سَقاناهُ بِكَأسَيهِما الدَهرُ

We endured the ups and downs of fate gently and harshly

And each time fate gave us both cups to drink

فَما زادَنا بَأواً عَلى ذي قَرابَةٍ

غِنانا وَلا أَزرى بِأَحسابِنا الفَقرُ

Our wealth never increased our enmity towards a relative

Nor did poverty lessen our prestige

فَقِدماً عَصَيتُ العاذِلاتِ وَسُلِّطَت

عَلى مُصطَفى مالي أَنامِلِيَ العَشرُ

So I have often disobeyed the reproachers and devoted

My fingers to counting the tithe of my wealth

وَما ضَرَّ جاراً يا اِبنَةَ القَومِ فَاِعلَمي

يُجاوِرُني أَلّا يَكونَ لَهُ سِترُ

It does not harm a neighbor, O daughter of the people, so know

That he lives next to me but has no cover

بِعَينَيَّ عَن جاراتِ قَومِيَ غَفلَةٌ

وَفي السَمعِ مِنّي عَن حَديثِهِمِ وَقرُ

My eyes are heedless of the women of my people

And I am deaf to their gossip