1. بيني وبينَك يا ظلومُ الموقفُ

    والحاكمُ العدل الجواد المنصفُ

    Between me and you, O cruel one, stands the final reckoning.

    And the judge is the Just, the Generous, the Fair.

  2. فلقد خشيتُ بأن أموت بغصَّتي

    أسفاً عليك وأنت لا تتعطَّفُ

    For I have feared dying of my choking grief,

    in sorrow over you, while you show no tenderness.

  3. لي مهجة تبكي وطرف ساهر

    وجوارح تضنَى وقلب مدنفُ

    I have a soul that weeps and an eye that stays awake,

    limbs wasting away and a heart sick with love.

  4. أسفٌ يدوم وحسرة ما تنقضي

    وجوىً يزيد وكُربةٌ ما تُكشَفُ

    Grief that endures and anguish that never ends,

    love's torment that grows, and distress never relieved.

  5. وكأنَّ لي في كلِّ عضوٍ واحدٍ

    قلباً يحنُّ وناظراً ما يطرفُ

    It is as though in every single limb I have

    a heart that yearns and an eye that never blinks.

  6. أشكوكَ أم أشكو إليك فإنني

    في ذا وذا متحيِّرٌ متوقِّفُ

    Shall I complain of you, or complain to you? For I

    am bewildered and hesitant between the two.

  7. أخشاك بل أخشى عليك فتارةً

    أرجو رضاك وتارةً أتخوَّفُ

    I fear you—rather, I fear for you; at times

    I hope for your favor, and at times I am afraid.

  8. أتلفتُ روحي في الهوى فإلى متى

    تلهو وتترك مَن يحبُّك يَتلفُ

    I have ruined my soul in love; how long will you

    amuse yourself, leaving the one who loves you to perish?

  9. لا مت أو تُبلى بمثل بليَّتي

    فعسى تَذوق كما تُذِيق فتنصفُ

    May you not die until you suffer the like of my affliction,

    so perhaps you may taste what you make me taste, and deal fairly.

  10. لا تنكرنَّ تأسفي إن فاتني

    روحُ الحياة فكيف لا أتأسفُ

    Do not reproach my grief if I have lost

    the spirit of life—how could I not grieve?

  11. لو أنَّ لقمان الحكيم رأى الذي

    أبصرتُ منك رأيتَه يتلهَّفُ

    If Luqman the Wise had seen what

    I saw in you, you would have seen him sigh with longing,

  12. شوقاً إلى من لو تجلَّى وجهُهُ

    للبدر كادَ من التحيُّر يُكسَف

    yearning for one whose face, if it shone

    before the full moon, would leave it almost eclipsed in wonder.

  13. بل لو رأى يعقوبُ حُسنَ محمدٍ

    ما كان يحزن إذ تغيَّب يوسفُ

    Rather, had Ya'qub seen Muhammad's beauty,

    he would not have grieved when Yusuf disappeared.

  14. طاووس حُسنٍ بل أتمُّ محاسناً

    صنم الملاحة بل أجلُّ وألطفُ

    A peacock of beauty—no, more perfect in his charms;

    an idol of loveliness—no, more exalted and more delicate,

  15. بشمائلٍ أغصانُها تتعطَّفُ

    وروادفٍ أردافُها تتردَّفُ

    with graces whose branches bend gently,

    and hips whose rounded curves follow one upon another.

  16. تتصلَّف الأرضُ التي هو فوقها

    زهواً به وتراه لا يتصلَّفُ

    The earth beneath him grows boastful,

    proud of him, yet you see him show no pride.

  17. متشرِّب ماءَ البشاشةِ وجهُهُ

    فعليه ريحان القلوب يرفرفُ

    His face is steeped in the water of cheerfulness,

    so above it the sweet basil of hearts flutters.

  18. متفرِّد في لونه فكأنَّه

    ماءٌ زلالٌ فيه خمرٌ قَرقَفُ

    Unique in his complexion, he seems

    clear, pure water with wine that brings a shiver.

  19. وكأنَّه في سَرحِهِ ضرغامُهُ

    صاف الى مُهَج الورى يتصرَّفُ

    And in his pasture he seems its lion,

    unclouded, ranging toward the hearts of humankind.

  20. ما ضرَّه أن لا يكون مقلَّداً

    سيفاً ففي عينيه سيفٌ مرهفُ

    It does him no harm not to be girded

    with a sword, for in his eyes is a keen-edged sword.

  21. وكأنَّ قوس الحاجبين مقوّساً

    سَهمٌ فويلٌ للذي يستهدفُ

    And the curved bow of his eyebrows seems

    an arrow—woe to whoever becomes its target!

  22. قد صُبَّ في قُرمُوصِه بلياقةٍ

    صَبّاً ففيه تمكُّنٌ وتخفُّفُ

    He has been poured into his hunting blind with fitting grace,

    poured so that he is firmly poised, yet unencumbered.

  23. إنّي لأحسدُ باشِقاً في كفِّه

    أتراه يدري أيّ كفٍّ يألفُ

    Indeed, I envy a sparrowhawk in his hand;

    do you think it knows what hand it has grown used to?

  24. إن كان باشقُهُ يحلِّق طائراً

    فمحمدٌ لقلوبنا يتخطَّفُ

    If his sparrowhawk soars in flight,

    then Muhammad snatches away our hearts.

  25. مولاي لو وصفَتكَ أفواهُ الورى

    طُرّاً لكنتَ تجلُّ عَمّا تُوصَفُ

    My lord, if the mouths of humankind described you,

    all together, you would still rise above their descriptions.

  26. قد ساعَفَتك محاسنٌ قد حيَّرت

    فيك العقولَ وأنت لا تتسعف

    Charms have favored you and bewildered

    minds contemplating you, yet you show no favor.

  27. سل ورد خدِّك أي حُسنٍ غرسُهُ

    إنّا نراه يعود ساعةَ يُقطَف

    Ask the rose of your cheek how beautiful its planting is:

    indeed, we see it return the moment it is picked.

  28. لو لم تضاعف لي عذابي في الهوى

    ما راح نرجُس ناظريك يضعِّفُ

    Had you not doubled my torment in love,

    the narcissus of your eyes would not go on weakening me.

  29. علمت لواحظُك الضِّعاف تجلُّدي

    ومن العجائب غالبٌ مستضعَفُ

    Your languid glances have come to know my fortitude;

    and among wonders is a conqueror deemed weak.

  30. لو لم تُرِد قلبي بغير جنايةٍ

    ما كنت تنكر في الهوى ما تعرفُ

    Had you not sought my heart, though it had done no wrong,

    you would not deny in love what you know.

  31. فرأيتَ في النَّوم الذي أنكرتَه

    في يقظةٍ من هاتفٍ بك يهتفُ

    Then in sleep you saw what you had denied

    while awake, from an unseen voice calling out to you.

  32. فتألَّفَت أرواحُنا عند الكرى

    إذ كانت الأجسامُ لا تتألَّفُ

    So our spirits came together in sleep,

    since our bodies would not come together.

  33. فأتَتك روحي حين ذاك بقولها

    بيني وبينك يا ظلومُ الموقفُ

    Then my spirit came to you with these words:

    Between me and you, O cruel one, stands the final reckoning.