1. Be patient with estrangement, though hard it is to bear,
And hope for reunion, though in separation hope seems vain.

2. Leave my heart to its turmoil,
Far from my beloved, in sorrow and anguish.

3. Turn your gaze from the glance that pierced me;
Only time can heal the wounds of your eyes.

4. I thought of union, then aspired to it,
Like the foolish drunkard craving wine.

5. I approached a spring, thirsty,
But there was only white, only milk.

6. So take from me the wine of union;
One like me finds no substitute.

7. They are the gazelles who, when far,
I die of longing, and when near, they slay me.

8. Though they spare life, they are harsh;
Though they shed no blood, they are cruel.

9. No grief affects them, no sorrow for me;
They approve their deeds, however foul.

10. I cannot number their glances' blows;
No robe, however white, escapes their stains.

11. They deprived me of their cheeks—I touch them shyly;
Shyness ever possessing me.

12. They forbade me their gentle air
Though branches were made to bend.

13. With shackles of ice they bound their waist,
As the tender branch is bound to the date palm.

14. The dawn united in them perfections—
Among them contentment, kohl, and every grace.

15. They made the rose take shade beneath them,
Crowning it with narcissus and tender basil.

16. They are hopes whose course is bound to end;
Many a rose beyond them is doomed by fate.

17. My heart obeyed my eyes in all they saw,
Both now white with age from that obedience.

18. My eyes coveted—and my heart covets still,
Busied with all my eyes desired.

19. For love I wasted away, knew not if from illness,
But opened for it ways smooth and straight.

20. Each limb, when I stirred it, burned
And drew back from my fevered grasp.

21. I moan, but moans bring no relief;
I write, but writing cannot heal my pain.

22. I who amazed people with love, know not
What course to take, what means, what cure.

23. Reason aids me not, nor heart, nor patience;
No strength is left, no stratagem, no might.

24. For my eyes, my heart, what can I do?
Bewildered, carried away, possessed!

25. I was created to love the tender gazelles,
The slender waists, the soft faces.

26. In their souls they harbor secrets
No trackers can find however keen.

27. Like a generous mentor hides his gifts,
Safe from every greedy hand.

28. The holy sanctuary none dare violate;
Which nation will dare aspire to it?

29. Great kings of old aspired in vain,
And poets before me, often they hastened

30. Yet each of us came and went beyond them,
For they had come before and were the first.

31. With my talents, my journey leads
To one whose like proverbs tell.

32. To one whose panegyrics are finely woven,
Praising or languishing suit him well.

33. To one, who all knowledge followed,
And many through his merit excelled.

34. To one, who lifts up those who stumble,
And answers the prayer of those in need.

35. The horizon shines with his rising light,
A star—but to foes a charging horse.

36. Knowledge perfected him, and wisdom refined him,
In word and deed, they are equal in him.

37. The nobility of his merit shone like a sun,
Beyond the reach of men’s eyes.

38. I praised him while my heart split;
Great misfortune has befallen me.

39. And my nature is dry, with no tears to pour,
No power to heal, yet resigns to loss.

40. Content though long parted from my love,
Though long my toil, and vain my hope.

41. My best poetry brings no benefit;
It is but roses and dew combined.

42. My ambitions meet frustrations;
My hand is crippled, their goals recede.

43. I strive so hard, while fate denies me,
As though a mountain stands between us.

44. The love that grips me wears away
My body, brings confusion and distress.

45. Misfortune exiles me to a land
Whose fruits can only grow in rot.

46. Family and friend forgot me there
Not estrangement or boredom made me leave.

47. I joined men, but joined only
Empty robes—marvels, with muscles underneath!

48. When they smile their affection lies on lips;
When fair-faced they harbor malice.

49. Hatred lurks inside their cheeks
As if blended with kohl in their eyes.

50. So I shut away thoughts of friendship,
Contracts and scrolls now stacked meaninglessly.

51. Yet for me who created brilliant pearls
That made ears incline and listen—

52. Whose judgments flow like rivers,
The least being great maxims—

53. Who transmitted my words altered them,
More lost to me than those who never knew.

54. Any poetry that charms you
bears the style and rhythm of mine.

55. I took from the ode its kingdom,
And the people after me mere rabble.

56. So be wise concerning wisdom,
Let not the sword precede proof for you.

57. I who walked like a king when I walked,
With meters crowding all around me.

58. I, whose long absence saddens none
Save the fool or miserly churl.

59. I, whose company never wearies,
Nor with my secrets are friends burdened.

60. For them no shame if they forget,
No shame if they divulge all.

61. With only his contentment one is rich;
Most men busied with villainy and theft.

62. I am the polished sword whose hilt
Dazzles when drawn by the bold knight.

63. You are that bold knight,
Cunning hero, protector of men!

64. So do not blame me if I reject them.
All worthless things are obsolete.

65. None but you, O youth, we depend on
After Allah, our creator.

66. To you, my teacher, yearnings sprang in me
Sprouting hopes though stifled by sorrows.

67. They were healed, made well, and my poetry
Contains correctness and mistakes.

68. The finest verse praises my patron;
By his merit, wealth flows to the poor

69. So the enemy's blood, though it boil,
Does not spill, bound by destiny's decree.

70. You bring days the bloom of delight
While you watch happily, lighthearted.

71. To you, my teacher, a faltering voice
Stirred by hopes has come before you.

72. It tells you the longing of a barren heart,
Ailing, though in it are wounds.

73. It recovered, was cured, and my song
Mingles right with wrong, defects with truth.

74. The best song exalts my protector;
By his grace, the poet is raised high.

75. So the enemy's blood, though hot,
Does not pour, as fate takes its course.

76. You brought back to days the bloom of joy
While you watched, contented and serene.