1. يا مَن تَخَصَّصَ بِالتَعجرُفِ طَبعُهُ

    لَو كُنتَ رُؤبَةَ كُنتَ دونَ الدونِ

    O you whose nature is marked by arrogance,

    Even if you were Ruʾbah, you would be beneath the lowliest.

  2. كُن في الخُسونَةِ حينَ تَشعُرُ غايَةً

    وَدَعِ الَّذي هُوَ غايَةٌ في اللينِ

    Be the utmost in roughness when you compose verse,

    and leave alone the one who is the utmost in smoothness.

  3. إِن قِستَني بِكَ في الصِناعَةِ يا فَتى

    فَلَقَد أَقَستَ التِبرَ بِالسَرقينِ

    If you compare me with yourself in the craft, young man,

    then you have indeed compared gold dust with dung.