وَلَكِنْ نَفَى عَنِّي الرِّجَالَ جَرَاءَتِي
عَلَيْهِمْ وَإِقْدَامِي وَصِدْقِي وَمَحْتِدِي
Meaning: But what has kept men away from me, he claims, is my courage, willingness to advance against them, truthfulness, and honorable origin. He does not present himself as someone easily intimidated by a lone opponent or an entire group.
Nafā ʿannī al-rijāl means to drive people off; jarāʾatī is courage, iqdāmī bold advance, ṣidqī truthfulness, and maḥtidī one's ancestry or origin. His self-defense invokes moral as well as physical qualities.