1. Why does she take such pains with her appearance,
When her eyes make poetry gush forth?

2. The light kept vigil over her banks,
And awoke to her pearls in the river.

3. She kindled fires that made me tremble,
And her red ghosts clung to me.

4. The poisons boil up but cannot touch her,
And the breezes and raindrops visit her.

5. Abu Nuwas, a delightful reveler,
In his cup the wine gleams.

6. Daily I revel with the people of Karkh,
The sugar they pay me is the best.

7. The date palm grove of Karkh is the sweetest,
Why then is the temper of its dweller so bitter?

8. Why does the perfumed quarter in its elegance
Not mention the people of Karkh?

9. Oh, the heaviness of a Karkhan I argue with,
Whose love is trifling and union meager.

10. Hesitating in his vanity, he was amazed
That his loved ones around him are many.

11. He comes close, and you’d think you’re touching him,
Then disappears, his night has no dawn.

12. And he says “I long for you,” while tomorrow
Mingles: longing and separation.

13. We want him and nag him and seek him out,
And from his direction come excuses.

14. And this bridge remains separating us
As if the Tigris beneath were an ocean.

15. The bridges of the universe were created to connect,
Except for “the suspended,” its affair is strange.