Time is unpredictable and does not yield. It is also said, "It is unpredictable and does not yield." "Unpredictable" (أَنْكَب) comes from "calamity" (النَكْبَة), meaning it brings many calamities. The correct interpretation is that it comes from "inclination" (النَكْب), meaning it deviates from righteousness and does not remain on one path. "Unpredictable" (أَنْكَث) means it frequently undoes and breaks what it has established and untied, similar to "will yield" (أَلْبَ) in meaning.
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The proverb "Time is fickle and unyielding" (or: unfailing and unyielding) means that time is fickle and unstable, never remaining constant or unchanging. It undoes what it builds and alters circumstances.
The closest English proverbs to this meaning are:
Times change.
Nothing stays the same forever.
Fortune is fickle.
The wheel of fortune turns.
Every tide has its ebb.
The closest English proverb to the spirit of the Arabic proverb is:
Fortune is fickle.
Or:
The wheel of fortune turns.
Both express that time does not remain constant, but rather it tends to change and overturns what it has settled upon.
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ويروى " أنكث لا يلث "
أنكب : من النكبة أي كثير النكبات والصحيح أن يقال : أنكب من النكب وهو الميل يعني أنه عادل عن الاستقامة لا يقيم على جهة واحدة وأنكث : أي كثير النكث والنقض لما أبرم وألث مثل ألب في المعنى
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