1. I eagerly wait for our reunion, though that is not to be,
And the wishes I dreamed of were doomed by wretchedness, never to be fulfilled.

2. The night spreads its veil, bringing along its worries,
Both alike being hated guests in my abode.

3. I know not which of the two tormented me more
And drew my flowing tears that went on and on.

4. How can life feel pleasant when my eyes
Saw nothing but fleeting visions and mirages?

5. Strange are the ruins, lifeless,
Yet they revive my love and wear out my bones.

6. Wondrous they remain, though inanimate, melting me,
Alas, I can no longer endure the shaking.

7. How much can wishes bear if I lack the strength?
But still I hope and persevere.

8. Fate does not change its ways,
Veering from one course to another.

9. As long as I see the one with long dark tresses,
I will not cease remembering her enchanting figure.

10. When a beloved departs,
I do not seek to replace her with another.

11. My tears flow from my early passion’s source
Telling an ongoing story.

12. Love has overwhelmed me until
I see their beauty embodied before me.

13. If not for fear of wronging them,
I would not have sought other company.

14. My regrets do not cease within my breast
Until I find rest in their land.

15. Oh how I wish the doe-eyed maids knew
My patience with them has departed.

16. If I had no link to the darling of my soul
I would search my heart where they resided.

17. Wishes have taken my mind just as
Passion has sapped my strength, if it can endure.

18. So I follow the path of the impossible, and found
No liberation or refuge from them.

19. Except praising the most generous, the lofty ones,
The supreme in excellence and status.

20. The literati of Egypt, masters of literature, through them
All souls are drawn to their love and loyalty.

21. Rising high, preeminent in ascent,
Surpassing, transcending the horizon.

22. Who compose regiments of books,
Sending rhymes and poems in droves.

23. When they speak, they excel,
Conquering when they engage in debate.

24. Gracious when they see an eloquent one
Being excessive and boastful in speech.

25. Their praise is sublime, their status revered,
Beyond any praise elaborate or concise.

26. Let he who composes poetry mention them,
for that mention suffices, though he profess his love.

27. My poetry lines are laid bare,
Embarrassed before God, clad in humility.

28. I recite their praise among the scholars,
As long as breath flows when I read.

29. But this poetry loses its essence to me
As I do not seek through it anything other than them.

30. I am of those who see it as
Decorum, not fancy or imagination,

31. Nor pretentious ostentation and affectation,
Imposition and presumption.

32. Whoever thought the meter scheme fa'ilun mafa'ilun
Was the secret of poetry, I sent him

33. To the most praiseworthy, and Mustafa, and the elect ones-
Continued laudation being due, how can it not be?