«رَبِّنَا مَا يْمَلِّكِ الْقَحْفْ عَدَلُهْ»

In the tale behind the saying, the date stalk (qahf, the curved base of a date cluster, not 'skull') boasts that if it ever grew straight inside the palm, it would split the tree in half. The palm answers with a plea that the stalk stay bent forever. Its crookedness is what keeps the tree whole.

Applied to people, the saying asks that harsh, brutish individuals never get what they want, because getting it would only make them domineering and destructive. It treats their limits as a mercy to everyone around them and voices a wish that such people stay held in check.

Said of a rough, ill-tempered person who craves power or advantage, expressing the hope that he never gets it. It can be a muttered aside or a pointed remark, and it carries an edge of insult when aimed at someone present.