1. Alas, each night when the beloved came visiting
Seemed short, though dawn was late in rising

2. And every tear shed in passion eventually dries
Inevitably, after parting, new tears start flowing

3. All endurance in separation falls short
The mighty are made low by parting

4. Any companion who seeks to chide a lover
Weighs heavy on the lover's heart

5. The sweetest love is that which its union is unattained
The best beloved is one whose tryst is long delayed

6. Oh you who blame lovers, taste the agony of passion
For you have a disease lodged in your heart's core

7. You rebuke the passionate with regret
But the ardent lover cannot be diverted

8. Happy is he who visited his beloved's bed
On a night of joy, while the watcher was sleeping

9. And drank from those lips a deep draught
As reproaches in the bower dragged on

10. Nor did radiant dawn break too soon
Nor did the Pleiades hurry to their setting