كَمْ عَالِمٍ مُتَفَضِّلٍ قَدْ سَبّهُ *** مَنْ لا يُسَاوِي غِرْزَةً فِي نَعْلِهِ

وَاعْجَبْ لِعُصْفُوْرٍ يُزَاحِمُ بَاشِقًا *** إلاّ لِطَيْشَتِهِ، وَخِفّةِ عَقْلِهِ

 

This is a poem by Imam Muhammad bin Idrees al-Shafei. I found it profoundly relevant and decided to share it here with the best translation possible. I hope many will learn from its wisdom.

المَرْءُ يُعْرَفُ فِي الأَنَامِ بِفِعْلِهِ *** وَخَصَائِلُ المَرْءِ الكَرِيْمِ كَأَصْلِهِ
اِصْبِرْ عَلَى حُلْوِ الزَمَانِ وَمُرّهِِ *** وَاْعْلَمْ بِأَنَ اللهَ بَاِلغُ أَمْرِهِ
لَا تَسْتَغِبُ فَتُسْتَغَابَ، وَرُبّمَا *** مَنْ قَالَ شَيْئَاً، قِيْلَ فِيْهِ بِمِثْلِهِ
وَتَجَنَبِ الفَحْشَاءَ لَا تَنْطِقْ بِهَا *** مَا دُمْتَ فِي جِدّ الكَلامِ وَهَزْلِهِ
وَإِذا الصَدِيقُ أَسَاءَ يَوْمًا بِجَهْلِهِ *** فَاصْفَحْ لِأَجْلِ الوُدِّ لَيْسَ لِأَجْلِهِ
كَمْ عَالِمٍ مُتَفَضِّلٍ قَدْ سَبَّهُ *** مَنْ لَا يُسَاوِي غِرْزَةً فِي نَعْلِهِ
البحر تعلو فوقه جِيَفُ الفَلا *** والدرّ مطمورٌ بأسفل رمله
واعجب لعصفورٍ يزاحم باشقاً *** إلاّ لطيشته؛ وخفّة عقله
إيّاك تجني سُكَّرًا من حنظلٍ *** فالشيء يرجع بالمذاق لأصله
في الجو مكتوبٌ على صحف الهوى *** من يعمل المعروف يُجْزَ بمثله

And here is the translation:

A person is known among people by their deeds,
And the noble qualities of a person reflect their origin.

Be patient with the sweetness and bitterness of time,
And know that God accomplishes His will.

Do not gossip, lest you be gossiped about,
For he who speaks ill of others might be spoken ill of in return.

Avoid obscenity, do not utter it,
Whether in serious talk or in jest.

And if a friend wrongs you out of ignorance,
Forgive for the sake of friendship, not for his sake.

How many an accomplished scholar has been insulted
By one who is not even worth the stitching in his shoe!

The sea has corpses floating on its surface,
While pearls are buried deep in its sands.

Be amazed at a sparrow competing with a hawk,
But only because of its foolishness and lack of sense!

Do not expect to gather sugar from bitter colocynth,
For things return to their origins in taste.

It is written in the skies on the pages of fate:
Whoever does good will be rewarded in kind.

May this poem inspire you to reflect on the virtues of patience, forgiveness, and the enduring nature of good deeds.