مَا حِيلَتي والقَوْمُ أَصْبحَ دَأَبُهُمُ

مَا حِيلَتي والقَوْمُ أَصْبحَ دَأَبُهُمُ

أَنْ يَرْفِضُوا الأُدَباءَ والآدابَا

أَنْ يَرْفِضُوا الأُدَباءَ والآدابَا

What recourse have I, when the people have made it their habit

What can I do when people have made it their habit

To reject men of letters and literature?

To reject cultured people and literature?

كَرِهُوا المَدِيحَ وأَنكَرُوا جُلاَّبَهُ

كَرِهُوا المَدِيحَ وأَنكَرُوا جُلاَّبَهُ

لَوْ ذَوَّبُوهُ وَجَدْتَهُمْ جُلاََّبَا

لَوْ ذَوَّبُوهُ وَجَدْتَهُمْ جُلاََّبَا

They hated praise and rejected its purveyors;

They've come to hate praise and deny its charm -

If they melted it down, you would find them its purveyors.

Even if you made it melting, they'd be frozen.