1. Shall I leave Egypt, its pleasant comforts,
To yearn thereafter for any other place?

2. Shall I abandon a homeland, though parted from it,
That is sweet - no matter what its absence makes bitter?

3. How could I, now that its loveliness is a paradise,
Its plains scattered with groves, its thickets with lotus flowers?

4. A land that delights the eye and gladdens the heart with joy,
Bringing together all the righteous and sinful could desire,

5. And brothers of sincerity, whose excellence binds them together,
Their gatherings filled with all that gardens encompass;

6. Shall I settle in Egypt, if God fulfills my wish,
When pacts have been made between us, and covenants?

7. Do not, then, speak of it to the breeze, for it
Is wont to steal from meadows their sweetest scent.

8. How my eyes with tears are worn, my heart torn
By parting, each day renewing my fervent yearning!

9. In every place I am parted from one beloved,
And time will bring a parting more grievous still.

10. Why should I hasten toward it, overtake it?
It is my nature to grow used to friends, and rue their loss.

11. A bird startles me to sadness in the thicket,
Lightning kindles my lament in the darkness.

12. I swear by all the homes from which I’ve parted
On earth, remembering them with tears outpoured!

13. When I journey far, manners console me
That I should leave, yet nothing leaves me.

14. I have the passion of lovers in verse alone -
All else divorced from me would loathe a bond.

15. My words enchant all listeners,
Loved even by secluded ladies in their bowers.

16. Needing no melodies to grace them,
They build shrines for themselves and burst all fetters.

17. Each person takes from them what suits him,
Matching his nature, fulfilling his hopes.

18. They entertain the cheerful, and mystics in devotion,
Those craving needs petition with them, lovers implore.

19. Yet for whatever has flowed freely from them, I blame them -
Can they not reunite those parted by the years?

20. I did not speak my verses to seek renown,
Confident I stand in virtue’s ornament.

21. Shall I seek God’s provision from other than Him,
And seek bounty from mankind when God is the Provider?