1. أخْبَرُوني غَضْبَةً وصَلفَا

    أنكم رُحْتُمُ إليهِ مَرصَفا

    They told me, in anger and arrogance,

    that you had gone to him at Marṣafā.

  2. ثُمَّ قالوا عَنْ ذُقون حُلِقَت

    قُلْتُ لا بَدَّ لها أن تُخلَفا

    Then they spoke of beards that had been shaved.

    I said: they are bound to grow back.

  3. إنّ حَلْقَ الذَّقْنِ خيرٌ لِلفَتَى

    يا بَنِي الأَعْمَامِ مِنْ أنْ تُنتَفا

    Shaving the beard is better for a young man,

    O cousins, than having it plucked out.

  4. وَالّذي حَلَقَ أنصافَ اللِّحَى

    كانَ في الأَحكامِ عَدْلاً مُنْصِفا

    And he who shaved half of each beard

    was just and fair in his judgments.

  5. حَلَقَ النِّصْفَ بِذَنْبٍ حاضِرٍ

    وَعَفا بالنصفِ عَمَّا سَلَفَا

    He shaved half for a present offense,

    and spared the other half, pardoning what had gone before.