1. معانٍ من العيش الغرير ومَعْمرُ

    ومبدى أنيق بالعُذَيْبِ ومحْضَرُ

    Haunts of carefree living, and a dwelling-place,

    And a lovely country retreat at al-ʿUdhayb, and a settled abode.

  2. نَمَا الروض منه في عّذاةٍ مَريعةٍ

    لها كوكب يستأنق العين أزْهَرُ

    The garden sprang from it in fertile, sweet soil,

    With a radiant star of blossom that delights the eye.

  3. ترى لامع الأنوار فيها كأنه

    إذا اعترضته العين وشي مدّنرُ

    You see the gleaming blossoms there, as though they were

    Brocade patterned with dinars when the eye meets them.

  4. تسابق فيه الاقحوان وحنوة

    وساماهما رَندٌ نضير وعَبْهَرُ

    Chrysanthemums and chamomile vied within it,

    And fresh laurel and narcissus rivaled them both.

  5. يمجّ ثراها فيه عفراء جَعْدة

    كأنّ نداها ماء ورد وعنبرُ

    Its moist soil sends forth pale germander there,

    As though its dew were rosewater and ambergris.

  6. أعاد نسيم الريح أنفاس نشره

    وخايَلَ فيه أحمرَ اللون أصفرُ

    The wind's breeze renewed the breaths of its fragrance,

    And yellow rivaled red in splendor there.

  7. بدا الشَّيحُ والقّيْصوم عند فروعه

    وشثٌّ وطُبَّاقٌ وبانٌ وعَرْعَرُ

    Wormwood and yarrow appeared beside its branches,

    And shath and tabaq shrubs, moringa and juniper.

  8. وناضر رمان يرفّ شَكِيرهُ

    يكاد إذا ما ذَرَّتْ الشمس يقطرُ

    And fresh pomegranate trees, their young shoots quivering,

    All but dripping when the sun rises.

  9. ويانع تفاح كأنّ جَنّيهُ

    نجوم على أغصانه الخضر تزهرُ

    And apple trees ripe with fruit, as though their crop were

    Stars shining on their green branches.

  10. إذا زرته يوماً تغرد طائر

    وراناك ظبي بين غصنين أحورُ

    If you visit it one day, a bird sings,

    And a dark-eyed gazelle returns your gaze between two branches.

  11. فإن هاج نوح الأيك في رونق الضحى

    تذكر محزون أو ارتاح مقصر

    And if the grove's lament swells in the radiance of midmorning,

    The sorrowful remember, or the heedless are stirred.

  12. تجاوبن بالترجيع حتى كأنما

    ترنم في الأغصان صنج ومِزْهَرُ

    They answer one another with trills, until it is as though

    A harp and a lute were singing among the branches.

  13. مراناة موموق وترجيع شائقٍ

    فللقلب ملهاة وللعين منظرُ

    A beloved's exchanged glances, and the trills of one who yearns—

    So the heart has diversion, and the eye a sight to behold.

  14. وإني إلى صحن العُذَيْبِ لتائق

    وإني إليه بالمودّة أصوَرُ

    And I indeed yearn for al-ʿUdhayb's open expanse,

    And I am indeed drawn toward it with affection.

  15. مَرَعتَ ولا زالت تصوبك ديمة

    يجود بها جَون الغوارب أقمرُ

    May you flourish, and may steady rain never cease to shower you,

    Poured lavishly by a dark-crested, moon-pale cloud,

  16. أحم الكُلى واهي العرى مسبل الجدى

    إذا طعنت فيه الصَّبا يتفجَّرُ

    Black-flanked, its bonds slack, its rain streaming down:

    When the east wind thrusts into it, it bursts open.

  17. كأن ابتسام البرق في حُجراتهِ

    مهَّندَةٌ بيض تُشام وتشهرُ

    As though the lightning's smile within its chambers were

    White Indian-forged swords, sheathed and drawn.