أَيُّها المُعرِضُ المُعَرِّضُ بِالشَي

أَيُّها المُعرِضُ المُعَرِّضُ بِالشَي

بِ وَأَلغى عَن عارِضَيهِ اِعتِراضي

بِ وَأَلغى عَن عارِضَيهِ اِعتِراضي

O you who turn away and taunt me about gray

O you who turn away, rejecting grey hair

hair, and who dismissed my objection concerning his cheeks:

And ignore my objection to your rejection

لَو تَغاضَيتَ عَن عِتابي لَأَغضَي

لَو تَغاضَيتَ عَن عِتابي لَأَغضَي

تُ عَنِ العَتبِ ضُعفَ ذاكَ التَغاضي

تُ عَنِ العَتبِ ضُعفَ ذاكَ التَغاضي

Had you overlooked my reproach, I would have overlooked

If you overlook my reproach, I'll overlook

reproach with twice that forbearance.

The weakness in that overlooking of reproach

فَلِماذا اِمتَعَضتَ مِن نَبتِ خَدّي

فَلِماذا اِمتَعَضتَ مِن نَبتِ خَدّي

كَ وَما أَوجَبَ المَشيبُ اِمتِعاضي

كَ وَما أَوجَبَ المَشيبُ اِمتِعاضي

Then why were you vexed by the hair growing on your cheeks,

So why are you annoyed by the sprouting on my cheek

when gray hair caused me no vexation?

And what caused my greying to annoy you?

أَنا راضٍ بِأَن أَشيبَ وَأَن يُص

أَنا راضٍ بِأَن أَشيبَ وَأَن يُص

بِحَ مِن هَولِ نَبتِهِ غَيرَ راضِ

بِحَ مِن هَولِ نَبتِهِ غَيرَ راضِ

I am content to grow gray, and for him to become

I'm content to grey and to become

discontented from dread of his hair’s growth.

Unhappy with the horror of its sprouting

إِنَّ هَذا البَياضَ بَعدَ سَوادٍ

إِنَّ هَذا البَياضَ بَعدَ سَوادٍ

دونَ ذاكَ السَوادِ بَعدَ بَياضِ

دونَ ذاكَ السَوادِ بَعدَ بَياضِ

Indeed, this whiteness after blackness

Indeed this whiteness after blackness

is less troubling than that blackness after whiteness.

Is better than that blackness after whiteness