أقولُ له يَوْمَ حَثَّ المَطِيَّ

أقولُ له يَوْمَ حَثَّ المَطِيَّ

وفيها جَوًى ليسَ في غيرها

وفيها جَوًى ليسَ في غيرها

I say to him, the day he urged the mounts on,

I say to him on the day he spurs the she-camel,

While in them was a heartache found in no others:

In which there is no comfort except with her,

أضَرَّ بها يا هُذيم الهوى

أضَرَّ بها يا هُذيم الهوى

وها هي تشكوكَ من ضرِّها

وها هي تشكوكَ من ضرِّها

Love has harmed them, O Hudhaym,

"You have harmed her, O Hudhaym of passion,

And here they are, complaining of you because of their suffering.

And here she complains of her harm from you.

وأَنْتَ تكلِّفها بالمسير

وأَنْتَ تكلِّفها بالمسير

فخلِّ المَطِيَّ على سيرها

فخلِّ المَطِيَّ على سيرها

Yet you burden them with the journey;

Yet you urge her to walk,

So leave the mounts to their own pace.

So leave the she-camel to walk her pace,

وتزجرها زجر لا راحمٍ

وتزجرها زجر لا راحمٍ

وإنَّكَ بالغْتَ في زجرها

وإنَّكَ بالغْتَ في زجرها

And you goad them like one without mercy,

And you scold her with merciless scolding,

And you have gone too far in goading them.

Though you have gone too far in scolding her.

ألَم تَرَها لا تُطيقُ الحِراك

ألَم تَرَها لا تُطيقُ الحِراك

لأشياء في الحبّ لم تدرها

لأشياء في الحبّ لم تدرها

Have you not seen that they cannot stir,

Do you not see that she cannot bear to move

Because of things in love you have not known?

Due to things in love she does not know?

ولو كنتَ تَعلمُ أمر النياق

ولو كنتَ تَعلمُ أمر النياق

لأوْسَعَك الرِّفقُ في عذرها

لأوْسَعَك الرِّفقُ في عذرها

And had you known the plight of the she-camels,

Had you known the matter of docility,

Gentleness would have given you ample room to excuse them.

Gentleness would have excused her in your view.

أما كنتَ يوم بكتْ بالغميم

أما كنتَ يوم بكتْ بالغميم

فَخِلْتَ المدامعَ من نحرها

فَخِلْتَ المدامعَ من نحرها

Were you not there the day they wept at al-Ghamim,

Did you not once weep in the rain clouds

And so thought their tears came from their slaughter?

And let tears flow from her eyes?

وركض الغرام بأحشائها

وركض الغرام بأحشائها

ونحن ركوبٌ على ظهرها

ونحن ركوبٌ على ظهرها

And passion galloped through their entrails,

Passion was racing through her innards

While we rode upon their backs.

While we rode upon her back.

وعَرَّفَنا وَجْدُنا ما بها

وعَرَّفَنا وَجْدُنا ما بها

وحتى اطّلَعْنا على سرِّها

وحتى اطّلَعْنا على سرِّها

And our own longing revealed to us what ailed them,

Our fervor made known to us her inner state

And we even came to know their secret.

Until we uncovered her secret.

فحينئذٍ راغ عن حَثِّها

فحينئذٍ راغ عن حَثِّها

وأصبَحَ يعجَبُ من أمرها

وأصبَحَ يعجَبُ من أمرها

Then he desisted from urging them on,

So then he stopped spurring her

And began to marvel at their plight.

And began to marvel at her condition."