1. I have no joy, no children to delight me
In Jeddah – so farewell to you, O Jeddah!

2. When a man’s wealth fails, his hand cut off,
He has no place forever in either world.

3. Never did a young man’s frustration make
His homeland too confining but his nature narrowed it.

4. Hot liver, not chains, burns the exile,
And the body decays when the liver grows hot.

5. Sleepless I lie, my thoughts all anguish
From the pain of separation, tossing like one diseased.

6. How can a man’s eyes be filled with tears
In Jeddah where he has neither friend nor child?

7. I the stranger have made Jeddah my home
As if it were my grave – no kin waits for me.

8. As if I were Jonah with Jeddah for whale
I have neither hands nor means of escape.

9. I moan like a bird circling its ravaged nest,
Borne on a cloud of woe, wrapped in misery.

10. Patience and composure have betrayed me,
While sorrow and grief remain true.

11. An exile has no choice but grief
And weeping, with tears flooding his cheek.

12. What is the state of one far from his homeland,
Parted from his beloved, needing patience and fortitude?

13. He yearns for his home, she for her love –
Her passion for him always longing.

14. I cannot be patient, far from my love,
Love is the same, near or distant.

15. How can I be patient with one who does not
Understand my heart, now my vows are binding?

16. Love’s questions are family matters,
My passion for her always flows.

17. Everything has its time ‘til its end –
But my love and devotion have no end.

18. I sigh ceaselessly for her love,
With tears forever streaming down my cheek.

19. I loved her while I was still a beardless youth,
And when my beard grew, still I loved only her.