1. She is excused in her abandonment, for her beauty
Like a full moon hanging on threads of dew

2. I yearn for her love though grey hairs betray me
She left me while youth still aids me

3. He who knows life holds its joys lightly
Even if its beauty paraded in fine robes

4. The polished sword of the mind strikes you with its view
When sights no longer captivate like witnesses

5. Passion aroused only when we drew apart
As the ribs keep their distance from the arms

6. Its ardour supported by a grieving, escorted heart
And a smile weeping the tears of farewell

7. I stayed awake for her while the star slept in the sky
There she is like a fleck in the hand of a critic

8. You remained as your glories remain in the world
Above the days, never to fade

9. My company was blessed in Saint Sa'id's monastery
One feast day, its beauty a thousand feasts

10. How many maidens, soft like the gazelle's throat, we plundered
Tearing their crucifixes from breast and neck

11. How many tender, doe-eyed girls we stripped
Of sashes binding their slender waists

12. We pitched our tents in the courtyard of the ancient
Far-flung, exalted, embellished temple

13. The terraces were blossoming like youths
Robed for us in embroidered silk

14. Cheeks were like anemones in complexion
Succeeded by cheeks like anemones in form

15. Whenever playful wit trilled through the branches
The strings accompanied it in melody

16. Whoever saw us lying dead on the ground
Said, "A people without graves."