وقفنا فلولا أننا راضنا الهوى

وقفنا فلولا أننا راضنا الهوى

لهتَّكنا عند الرقيب نحيبُ

لهتَّكنا عند الرقيب نحيبُ

We stood; had love not tamed us,

We stopped, else had we not been pleased with passion

sobbing would have exposed us before the watcher.

We would have cried out before the watcher with lament

وفي دون ما نلقاهُ من ألم الهوى

وفي دون ما نلقاهُ من ألم الهوى

تُشقُّ جيوبٌ بل تشقُّ قلوبُ

تُشقُّ جيوبٌ بل تشقُّ قلوبُ

And for less than the pain of love we endure,

And below what we face of the pain of passion

the necklines of robes are torn—nay, hearts are torn.

Robes, nay hearts, are torn asunder

ولما بَصُرنا بالرقيب ولحظهِ

ولما بَصُرنا بالرقيب ولحظهِ

ولحظي على عين الرقيب رقيبُ

ولحظي على عين الرقيب رقيبُ

And when we caught sight of the watcher and his gaze,

And when we saw the watcher and his glance

while my gaze kept watch on the watcher's eye,

And my glance was a watcher over the watcher's eye

صددنا فكلُّ قد طوى تحت صدرِهِ

صددنا فكلُّ قد طوى تحت صدرِهِ

فؤاداً لهُ بين الضلوع وجيبُ

فؤاداً لهُ بين الضلوع وجيبُ

we turned away; each had folded beneath his breast

We turned away, and each had folded beneath his chest

a heart that throbbed between the ribs.

A heart for him between the ribs and bosom