1. I fell in love with him, like a doe when given,
And clung to him, like a lion in its den when full.

2. And I housed him in my eyes, so he made them more dazzling,
As he dwelled in them, shedding copious tears.

3. I set up for him the snares of love,
So he lingered in them all night, entangled.

4. And I left them in tears, thanking him
For descending from heavens and alighting to them.

5. How many chaste ones sought solace from me,
Yet ended up with hearts laden with sorrows like mine!

6. So my love increased nothing but my haste,
And my patience nothing but loss.

7. Shall I leave that gazelle to wander free like honey
And seek patience - how bitter and futile!

8. I swear I shall know no comfort or rest,
Nor will I stay in place of rest, disjointed.

9. Nor will I be distracted from him, languid of glance,
With branches swaying over him as he strides.

10. His hair ensnares me in tresses,
Leaving me bound to him alone.

11. Never did I see, between his waist
And hips, a belt like it, poised at his center.

12. The night grows long when I don't meet him,
Until I see him in the stars, aloft.

13. Nights that make the softest garment coarse
And life, however sweet, taste bitter.

14. His lips gleamed like moist pearls,
His cheeks bloomed, features arrayed.

15. O defender of Islam against his sorcery,
More difficult than battling lions or binding them!

16. The army of verses engulfed him, though
Fate had its way in all affairs, prudent.

17. He conquered the land whenever he climbed high,
Reaching the horizon's pinnacle, place of descent.

18. Never did we see rivers like his poetry’s,
With meanings flowing, culled and reaped.

19. In them his words shone like stars,
No eye doubting amid the soul's darkness.

20. No fault in his making, if considered,
Save exceeding all in giving.

21. For his like, one should knot his fingers,
For we saw him surpassing all in generosity.

22. An attainment that burns like lightning’s blaze,
Reproaching him for holding back, rumbling.

23. And a human, sweeter to the fortunate than wish,
An opinion, truer to the lofty than thrush's call.

24. Some people surpassed all in rising high.
Did you not see them, gentlest of palms and most generous?

25. As if they have a clear path to it,
And with them, a paved way to it.

26. When they grasp the subtleties of a word, you see them
Fresher than a garden or breeze more vital.

27. Obeyed whether passionate or calm,
Near to rectitude, far from error.

28. As if amid peace they are flowers, and amid chaos,
Unyielding swords that refuse to bend and thus are futile.

29. God willed to humiliate their envious ones
And make them content in all affairs, discontent in none.

30. To you, sun of faith, steeds raced,
As if they descended to earth in your land.

31. May a miser sacrifice himself for you - but then,
His utmost is to fear poverty and despair.

32. When he was stingy with wealth, his honor was violated.
Lo, a man's generosity is his honor's cloak!

33. You are but a sea, in every state -
Generous, knowledgeable, righteous, and just.

34. You surpassed Kaʿb and Hatim in munificence,
And equalled ʿUmar and Hātim in resolve.

35. You correct them, though you are truly the corrector,
While they are newly calumnious among people.

36. May your destiny in the world endure, however you choose,
Lofty, far beyond the stars' realm.

37. As if the horizon's Pleiades were a hand outstretched
To receive the clouds' furnishings and spread them.

38. When worries come or troubles arise,
You unsheathe blades from pens, unleashed.

39. They were nurtured in torrents of calamities,
And in lions' dens - they do not waver or recoil.

40. Thus your wellbeing was a secret in dew,
While your detractor's state was marred with sheets.

41. To you, from the heat that saw my righteousness
And stretched out my life with sorrows drawn long,

42. And established for me through mention an abode and eminence
Too lofty for change or decay -

43. Take a eulogy that displays the garden blossoming, if you wish,
Or portrays description more gentle, if you wish.

44. When you shine in a gathering, its people fancy
The rising Pleiades veiled in your brightness.

45. If you are uniquely praised there,
You are also uniquely generous in giving.