غريبٌ على الأيام وجدانُ مثلِهِ

غريبٌ على الأيام وجدانُ مثلِهِ

وأغربُ منه بعد رؤيته الفقرُ

وأغربُ منه بعد رؤيته الفقرُ

Rare for the ages is the finding of his like;

Stranger to his times, none is like him,

And rarer still is poverty after seeing him.

Stranger still after seeing him, poverty,

فلا حرُّ إلا وهو عبدٌ لجوده

فلا حرُّ إلا وهو عبدٌ لجوده

ولا عبدُ إلا وهو في عدله حرُّ

ولا عبدُ إلا وهو في عدله حرُّ

So there is no free man who is not a slave to his generosity,

No free man except as slave to his generosity,

And no slave who is not free under his justice.

No slave except as free in his justice.

عجبت له لم يلبس الكبرَ حلّةً

عجبت له لم يلبس الكبرَ حلّةً

وفينا لأن جزنا على بابه كبرُ

وفينا لأن جزنا على بابه كبرُ

I marveled at him: he has not donned pride as a robe,

I wonder that he wears not arrogance as a garment,

Yet pride is in us because we passed by his door.

Though in us it would be magnificence to besiege his door.