Sol 6.1

  1. I saw Ziyad loathing me in his malice,

    And I turn away from him, though his vulnerable points lie exposed.

  2. And every man—and God knows mankind—

    Has a habit on which his character is built,

  3. Which he grew used to in the bygone days of his youth;

    Thus every affair is called forth by its beginnings.

  4. And my pardon of him and my forbearance please him;

    And a fool heaps abuse on one who does not promptly retaliate.

  5. So I said to him: Leave me to my affairs; as for us,

    Each has a task laid upon him, and he performs it.

  6. But for what may be gained by placing hope in him,

    You would have experienced from me some of what you do not know.

  7. You would have learned that I bring harm upon whoever acts wickedly

    Against me; I repay what he has dealt out, and vie with him.

  8. Likewise, had you taken me as a brother, you would have found me

    Vying in generosity with anyone I befriend, and sharing freely with him.

  9. And a man of foolish speech—whatever comes his way

    Of talk from a shrewd man, he repeats it.

  10. And a suspicious, mistrusted, much-cursed talebearer,

    A friend's flesh is his amusement and his food.

  11. I overlooked what he said to me, seeking reward for bearing it;

    And it was among the sins he himself incurred.

  12. So I said to myself—and reflection is like reason—

    Do you resent what he does, yet behave just like him?

  13. So he strained a little, then turned away, though there appeared

    Despite himself, his fangs and fingertips.

  14. So you see, he did me no harm when I left him

    Behind me; evil's doer is the one who suffers most from it.

  15. And one trusted with a secret—I bound his secret fast,

    To my heart, bound to it, never leaving it.

  16. And I let the one I fear for hear the spindles of

    Speech; the guardians of speech are its spindles.

  17. And a true companion, possessed of modesty and courage,

    Whose help and favors reach his friend,

  18. Generous and forbearing, earning praise and bounty,

    When the cautious, timid man's gifts grow few.

  19. I stretched the cord of affection between myself and him;

    Each of us renewing his own end and keeping it joined.

  20. And a pasture from the first autumn rains, its gullies dark green,

    Its plants and drooping seed-heads stood proudly beyond reach.

  21. As though the pale gazelles in its recesses

    And the black ostriches were Shajin and his camel herds.

  22. I descended when the mirage became as though it were

    Thorn trees clad in mantles; I vied with it.

  23. I listened closely and looked carefully, then crossed it

    Along a white, well-trodden track whose stopping places lay deserted,

  24. On a sturdy she-camel, or a headstrong, nimble camel,

    Well-reared and splendid, his withers filling the saddle,

  25. To attain success, or put a longing to rest.

    And a short-reached man's ambition is a sickness that keeps delaying him.

  26. He intends but does not proceed, and his undertaking turns back

    When his dissuader and his reproacher rise against him.

Sol 6.1