VIII: A spoiled son taketh not to discipline and…

A spoiled son taketh not to discipline and instruction;
And a shaded palm-tree yieldeth not ripe dates.

Let not that boy be ever taken unto thy embrace,
Who may not take, also, to his lessons and his school.

Certainly, the ass and mule are in their place, in the stable;
But not a blockhead, without application, in the house.

When one degenerate creature appeareth in a family,
He bringeth disgrace on his lineage, both present and past.

"According to the son's good or bad actions, the father is remembered,"
Is a saying that hath been verified, throughout the world.

The finger is pointed towards the rider, and to him only,
Whose horse, the bridle's guidance doth not properly obey.

In heart, affection--on tongue, asperity; it behoveth, with the son:
What an excellent axiom--"Where the blow is, there is respect."

Joseph, then, became fit for the exercise of sovereignty,
When he received the blows of displeasure, and of wrath.

Like the flies, every worthless creature buzzeth about him,
When sugar-lipped Hamid reciteth his sweet strains.