The eagle’s pride - Persian Poet - Naser Khosrow

روزی ز سر سنگ عقابی به هوا خواست *** وندر طلب طعمه پر و بال بیاراست
بر راستی بال نظر کرد و چنین گفت *** امروز همه روی جهان زیر پر ماست
بر اوج چو پرواز کنم از نظر خویش *** میبینم اگر ذره ای اندر تک دریاست
گر بر سر خاشاک یکی پشه بجنبد *** جنبیدن آن پشه عیان در نظر ماست
بسیار منی کرد و ز تقدیر نترسید *** بنگر که ازین چرخ جفاپیشه چه برخاست
ناگه ز کمینگاه یکی سخت کمانی *** تیری ز قضای بد او گشت بر او راست
بر بال عقاب آمد آن تیر جگر دوز *** وز اوج مر او را بسوی خاک فروکاست
برخاک بیفتاد و غلطید چو ماهی *** آنگاه پر خویش گشود از چپ و راست
گفتا عجب است اینکه ز چوبی و ز آهن *** این تندی و تیزی و پریدن ز کجا خاست
زی تیر نگه کرد و پر خویش برآن دید *** گفتا ز که نالیم که از ماست که بر ماست
​

One day an eagle rose in the air from the top of a rock,
spurred by greed he arranged his feathers.
Looking at his feathers so rightly arranged, he said,
“Today the whole face of the earth is under my wing.
When I reach the highest point, I can fly from the eye of the sun,
I can see a mere morsel deep in the sea.
If a midge but wriggles on the end of a leaf
that wriggling midge is seen by my eyes.”

He boasted much, and had no fear of God’s decree.
Now see, what cruel fate dealt out:
Suddenly, one strong bow struck from an ambush:
as fate and God’s decree would have it, an arrow sped straight at him.
That liver-piercing arrow entered the eagle’s wing
and threw him from his cloud to earth.
He fell to the ground, thrashed around like a fish,
then pulled his own feathers out, left and right.
He said, “What’s a wonder is, it’s made of iron and wood,
where does it get its swiftness and flight?”
He looked at the arrow, saw his own feather on it, and said:
“What am I complaining about? What came from me, returned to me.”
The moral is: banish boasting from your head
look at what came of the eagle who boasted.