1. رأيتُ ذا الكونَ كلهُ تعبُ

    سيانَ فيهِ الوجودُ والعدمُ

    I saw this whole universe as toil;

    Existence and nonexistence are alike within it.

  2. والناسُ كالنائمينَ ما لبثوا

    فكلُّ ما يشهدونهُ حلمُ

    And people are like sleepers for as long as they remain;

    So all that they witness is a dream.

  3. أبدعَ ذاتُ العمادِ مبدعُها

    فأينَ راحت بأهلها إرمُ

    Her maker wondrously fashioned the pillared one;

    So where has Iram gone with her people?