1. Whenever I mention the sand dune and the banner,
My tears flow like water.

2. Whenever the camel litters appear to me,
I yearn for those litters.

3. They marched to settle ‘Amir and his people,
Though it be a barren land.

4. I pasture their herd when they are away,
Just as they pasture my herd when I am away.

5. In the mornings, she has well-shaped ankles,
As if beauty itself divided her form.

6. Her mouth tastes like pure wine,
Or her cheek feels like velvet.

7. Her legs are like sand dunes,
Her face a full moon, and her waist is between them.

8. I regret when her camel saddle departed,
And Layla’s heart toward me feels no regret.

9. By God, her loose black hair
Cascades like grape clusters.

10. Say to her, O weak one,
Do you not fear the Lord of the heavens?

11. And beware if she arches her eyebrows,
For if her eyelash aims at you, it shoots.

12. And she came to us in a slow gait, and through her
We saw generosity and nobility.

13. She is a blessed town, surrounded
By a valley like the flooding Euphrates.