ما زِلتَ تَلقاهُ فَضاقَ صَدرُهُ

ما زِلتَ تَلقاهُ فَضاقَ صَدرُهُ

وَعادَ مِن بَعدِ الوِصالِ هَجرُهُ

وَعادَ مِن بَعدِ الوِصالِ هَجرُهُ

You kept visiting him, and his breast grew tight.

You still meet him, though his chest is tight

And after closeness, his estrangement returned.

And after intimacy, his estrangement anew

مَن أَكثَرَ الغِشيانَ خَسَّ قَدرُهُ

مَن أَكثَرَ الغِشيانَ خَسَّ قَدرُهُ

لَو كُثِرَ الياقوتُ هانَ أَمرُهُ

لَو كُثِرَ الياقوتُ هانَ أَمرُهُ

Whoever visits too often sees his worth decline.

He who shows himself too often loses worth

Were rubies plentiful, their worth would fall,

If rubies abounded, they'd be held cheap

وَلَم يَعِزَّ حُمرُهُ وَصُفرُهُ

وَلَم يَعِزَّ حُمرُهُ وَصُفرُهُ

وَلا عَلا بَينَ الأَنامِ ذِكرُهُ

وَلا عَلا بَينَ الأَنامِ ذِكرُهُ

And their red and yellow varieties would not be prized,

Neither his redness nor paleness made him proud

Nor would their renown rise among humankind.

Nor did his name stand out among mankind