1. أبا تُرابٍ دهرُنا جاهلٌ

    يَرفع للشِّبهِ ذَوِي الجهْلِ

    O Abu Turab, ours is an ignorant age:

    on a mere semblance, it elevates the ignorant.

  2. كأنّه المِيزانُ يعلُو به

    ذو النّقْصِ عن رُتبةِ ذي الفضلِ

    It is as though it were a balance, by which

    the deficient man rises above the station of the worthy.

  3. وما يضِرُّ العزلُ مَن لم يَزَلْ

    من فضلِهِ الباهِرِ في شُغلِ

    Dismissal cannot harm a man who always remains

    employed through his resplendent merit.