بنو منقذ ما أنقذوا من زمانهم

وكم أنقذوا من مرهق وأسير

The sons of Munqidh did not save anything from their time

And how much they saved from the exhausted and the captive

أجاروا على الأيام فاضطغنتهم

وما استمسكوا من جورها بمجير

They gave refuge from the days, so the days overpowered them

And they did not hold on to any shelter from their tyranny

فلم يبق منهم غير حي كميت

أخي حسرة ما تنقضي وزفير

So nothing remains of them except the living dead

Oh my brother, endless sorrow and sighing

فقد أقفرت منهم ديار عهدتها

غياثا لملهوف وذخر فقير

Their homes, which I hoped would give

Succor to the anguished and store to the destitute, are now deserted

وما أقفرت من ساكن بل من العلى

ومن نائل هامي السحاب غزير

And they are not deserted of inhabitants, but of the sublime

And of one who reaches up to the rain-laden clouds