According to Ibn Abi’l-Dunya, the following verses were composed by Mahmud al-Warraq:


If my thanking Allah for His blessings is a blessing,
then I must thank Him in the same measure again.


How can one thank Him save by His grace
as time goes on, and life goes by?


If a good thing comes, I rejoice heartily;
if a bad one comes, I receive a reward.


In both cases He gives me a gift too large
for the minds of men, and the land and sea.

In another version, the last three verses are replaced by the following:

My only excuse is that I am inadequate
but my excuse is a confession that I have no excuse.