1. كُنتُ ضَيفاُ ببرمنايا لعبد الل

    هِ والضَّيفُ حَقُّهُ مَعلُومُ

    I was a guest of ʿAbd Allāh in Barmnaya,

    and a guest’s due is well known.

  2. فَانُبرَىَ يَمدحُ الصَيامَ إلى أَن

    صُمتُ يَوماً مَا كُنتُ فِيه أَصُومُ

    So he began praising fasting until

    I fasted on a day I would not otherwise have fasted.

  3. ثم أَنشا يَستَامُ بِرذَونِي الوَر

    دَ مُلِحّاً كَمَا يُلِحُّ الغرِيمُ

    Then he began bargaining for my bay horse,

    insistently, as a creditor insists.

  4. ولَعَمرِي إنَّ ابنَ قَيلة إِذ يَستَام

    بَرذَونَ ضَيفِهِ لَلَئِيمُ

    And by my life, Ibn Qayla, when he bargains

    for his guest’s horse, is base indeed.