1. أَرى رَكدَةً ريحُها يُرتَجى

    وَمُظلِمَةً صُحبُها يُنتَظَر

    I see a stillness whose wind is hoped for,

    And a darkness whose companions are awaited.

  2. لَعَلَّ هُمومَكَ هَذيُ الطَولَ

    سَيَكشِفُها فَرَجٌ مُختَصَر

    Perhaps these long sorrows of yours

    Will be dispelled by brief relief,

  3. فَتَأمَنَ مِن حَيثُ يُخشى الأَذى

    كَما خِبتَ مِن حَيثُ يُقضى الوَطَر

    So you may be safe where harm is feared,

    Just as you met disappointment where desires are fulfilled.

  4. إِذا عادَ جَدٌّ كَأَن لَم يَزَل

    وَإِن سَرَّ دَهرٌ كَأَن لَم يَضُر

    When good fortune returns, it is as though it had never left;

    And if time brings joy, it is as though it had never harmed.

  5. وَقالوا اِنتَظِرها عَلى بُطئِها

    وَمَن ضامِنُ العُمرِ لِلمُنتَظِر

    And they said, "Wait for it, despite its slowness."

    And who guarantees life to the one who waits?

  6. وَهَل نافِعي يَومَ أَقضي صَدىً

    إِذا صابَ وادي قَومِيَ المَطَر

    And will it benefit me, the day I die thirsty,

    If rain falls upon my people's valley?

  7. فَإِن لَم يَكُن فَرَجٌ في الحَياةِ

    فَكَم فَرَجٍ في اِنقِضاءِ العُمُر

    For if there is no relief in life,

    Then how much relief there is in life's ending!