1. I see the soul yearning in denied hope,
Though it has tried following the ways of experience,

2. And I've seen kings and leaders,
And met honorable delegates and processions,

3. And I've socialized with the joyful, conversing with him,
While grim clouds gathered over us,

4. And we parted while good praise still echoed between us,
With kindness from behind the unseen veil,

5. And I grieved over the loss of a cousin and aunt,
And I parted from a generous uncle and father,

6. So they passed away, leaving behind no path but
My hopes in what's ahead and my desires,

7. So when will my fate come to me,
With no surprise, out of kindness?

8. For I'm neither an eternal mountain nor plain,
Nor one of the everlasting Pleiades nor Capella,

9. I have fulfilled prayers and poured libations,
And the soul of youth is held ransom by the wine-pourer,

10. And I raced at dawn to visit true friends,
Without turning back or returning, straight on course,

11. With smooth, delicate steps as though his slippers
Were Ethiopian leather on a plush carpet,

12. When the hand of al-Walid extends his cup,
It overflows with scented wine,

13. And no matter how much he drinks, his warranty
Is always the pure spices, without cause,

14. Beautiful is his grief over what time has ruined,
Noble his praise, charming his character, captivating,

15. You see him easygoing if you meet him,
Generous, unaffected by the passage of time,

16. He affirms with praise from the generous, and his words:
“Please, enjoy good company and drink!”

17. Since the rooster called at dawn to the fifth regular visit,
Of those who don flowing attire, as though,

18. The surface of his skin had taken on the color of gold,
And helpless whose shackles I’ve removed, and a bucket

19. I took by night, my friends and I, guiding with a star,
I traveled with them until their star disappeared,

20. And the sleepy said, “Dawn has illuminated, so be off!”
So I didn’t close off what I shepherded, and lost property I returned,

21. And by God’s help succeeded in the best pursuit,
And answered the prayer of one struck with terror, and lifted

22. Voices of lament for those hamstrung and crucified,
And rain whose pouring adorned the plains,

23. With plants like etched embellishment on parchment,
Wild cows dripped upon it whenever sap flows from it,

24. With one of delight, gazelles inclined toward him,
And sprouts adorned him with interwoven leaves,

25. Dawn's rise unveiled him when I descended above a watchtower,
And a fasting crescent between Sama and Rijlah,

26. And white Tawam between Maysar and Mijnan,
I enjoyed his call - the beasts did not frighten him

27. With aversion, like the trimmed trunk of a Hajari palm,
With a steady trot whose gait is a way,

28. For salted fish displayed but not arranged,
If a distance came between us I’d shake it off,

29. And if the unseen drew near I’d confront it and mount it,
Of high purpose, his restraint assured,

30. On the cheek of a soft-lipped gazelle, chained,
So when darkness shrouded every cheek,

31. And nightfall cast hands against each infidel west,
I turned away from him and his reins prevented me,

32. With force, hastening hot breaths,
Your approval, so if you strike when his side passes,

33. It increases you, and if you’re content with that, he persists,
Passionate, stirred by his south winds,

34. Hastening to the wild cows of Mount Tilah to drink,
So he made me flee at dawn when I roused him,

35. With pairs of buckets from the water wheel, drawing water,
And a day when I rested from his affair on the left,

36. He tore the fringes of the embroidered hem,
He eased the birthing camel and the living sun,

37. When its fires were kindled did not blaze,
The snow drifts panicked in his shade,

38. With hands joined and knees bent,
And a she-camel I shod and exhausted,

39. When the family stayed up late every night,
So I tasked her and she became calm,

40. Docile as planks from a worn-out rooftop,
Whenever I wished I could hear bleating in the wasteland

41. Answering the flute like a perforated tambourine,
And disputants standing in the bare land as though they

42. Were foreign cranes, and every flowered meadow taxed,
Musk and brocade atop their chests

43. Like the quilts of Christ, intricately stitched,
Barking of healthy wolves every night

44. In the crooked path by a screened doorway,
I witnessed and their lies did not succeed before me,

45. And I did not heed the praise of any troublemaker,
I dismissed them scattered, as though their rigidity

46. Were fallen horns, intertwined,
If they make things easy, the easy is my share and path,

47. And if they grieve me, I mount them all,
Of high resolve, his restraint assured,

48. On the cheek of a soft-lipped gazelle, chained,