His Supplication in Repelling Enemies

His Supplication in Repelling the Trickery of Enemies and Driving away their Severity 1- My God, Thou guided mebut I diverted myself, Thou admonished me but my heart became hardened, Thou tried me graciously but I disobeyed. Then, when Thou caused me to know it, I came to know that from which Thou hadst turned [me] away, so I prayed forgiveness and Thou released, and I returned and Thou covered over. So Thine, my God, is the praise! 2- I plunged into the valleys of destructionand settled in the ravines of ruin, exposing myself to Thy chastisementsand the descent of Thy punishments! 3- My mediation with Thee is the profession of Unity, my way of coming to Thee that I associate nothing with Thee, nor do I take along with Thee a god; I have fled to Thee with my soul -in Thee is the place of flightfor the evildoer, the place of escapefor him who has squandered the share of his souland seeks asylum. 4- How many an enemy hasunsheathed the sword of his enmity toward me, honed the cutting edge of his knife for me, sharpened the tip of his blade for me, mixed his killing potions for me, pointed toward me his straight-flying arrows, not allowed the eye of his watchfulness to sleep toward me, and secretly thought of visiting me with something hatefuland making me gulp down the bitter water of his bile! 5- So Thou looked my God, atmy weakness in bearing oppressive burdens, my inability to gain victory over him who aims to war against me, and my being alone before the great numbersof him who is hostile toward meand lies in wait for me with an afflictionabout which I have not thought. 6- Thou set out at once to help meand Thou braced up my back! Thou blunted for me his blade, made him, after a great multitude, solitary, raised up my heel over him, and turned back upon him what he had pointed straight. So Thou sent him back, his rage not calmed, his burning thirst not quenched! Biting his fingers, he turned his back in flight, his columns having been of no use. 7- How many an oppressor has oppressed me with his tricks, set up for me the net of his snares, appointed over me the inspection of his regard, and lay in ambush for me, the lying in ambush of a predator for its game, waiting to take advantage of its prey, while he showed me the smile of the flattererand looked at me with the intensity of fury! 8- So when Thou saw, my God, (blessed art Thou and high exalted)the depravity of his secret thoughtsand the ugliness of what he harboured, Thou threw him on his head into his own pitfalland dumped him into the hole of his own digging. So he was brought down low, after his overbearing, by the nooses of his own snare, wherein he had thought