وَما ترك الهاجونَ لي إِن هَجَوتُه

وَما ترك الهاجونَ لي إِن هَجَوتُه

مَصَحّاً أَراهُ في أَديمِ الفَرَزدَقِ

مَصَحّاً أَراهُ في أَديمِ الفَرَزدَقِ

And the satirists have not left me, should I lampoon him,

He left me no flesh visible on bone

A sound spot I can see on al-Farazdaq’s hide.

For the critic to feed on when he assailed me.

وَلا تَرَكوا لَحماً يُرى فَوقَ عَظمِهِ

وَلا تَرَكوا لَحماً يُرى فَوقَ عَظمِهِ

لآكِله أبقَوه لِلمُتَعرِّقِ

لآكِله أبقَوه لِلمُتَعرِّقِ

Nor have they left any flesh visible upon his bones

So I will break whatever bones remain

For anyone to eat; they left him for the bone-gnawer.

And suck the marrow from his shinbones as I pick them clean.

سَأَكسِر ما أَبقوا لَهُ مِن عِظامِهِ

سَأَكسِر ما أَبقوا لَهُ مِن عِظامِهِ

وَأَنكُت مُخَّ السّاقِ مِنهُ فَأَنتَقي

وَأَنكُت مُخَّ السّاقِ مِنهُ فَأَنتَقي

I shall break whatever bones they have left him,

Truly, when they attack us it’s as if

And probe the marrow of his shinbone, then extract it.

They had cast themselves into a bottomless sea.

وَإِنّا وَما تُهدي لَنا إِن هَجَوتَنا

وَإِنّا وَما تُهدي لَنا إِن هَجَوتَنا

لَكالبَحرِ مَهما يُلقَ في البَحرِ يَغرَقِ

لَكالبَحرِ مَهما يُلقَ في البَحرِ يَغرَقِ

And we, with whatever you offer us if you lampoon us,

Are indeed like the sea: whatever is cast into the sea sinks.