1. I adorned the house with smooth sandstone
And you, O morning and evening breeze, swept it away

2. It became desolate after its people, as though
No visitor or frequenter had ever been there

3. Save a dusty, disheveled-haired prisoner
Imprisoned by decrepitude, confined

4. And ruins that tell of lovers’ hearts
Burning, though unable to take flight

5. And an udder that pours sand over them
And the winds blowing across pass by

6. In its mirage sailed the ships of the caravan
The bleating and mirage confused

7. As though valiant heroes on fleet-footed steeds
Galloped there, their characters inscribed

8. Yearning and anguish were renewed, the ruins of the abode
Revived memories of its people and its abandoned encampment

9. We lingered there, our camel kneeling, the slits
Of its eyelids and split lips gaping

10. We paused with burning passion and cheeks
Where tears flowed and lament rose high

11. None remained of them on the hillside
Except their tears and moaning

12. It lies waste, so only the eye can discern
Its bare terrain and ledges

13. They rebuked me for standing there, people
Who did not know I was duty-bound

14. I do no wrong in pausing by the house
Where I wander, lost in thought

15. My share of joy in it was abundant
So my weeping is but little

16. My companions did not keep faith as I did
For you, O house, deserve loyalty

17.
That the anguished should find in you poison

18. And the grief-stricken, kindling for their pain
For the ordeal of parting is more dreadful

19. Than any horrors, and its day calamitous
They set out at dawn, spurring on their steeds

20. While my heart languished, their prisoner
They took to the uplands, while my heart

21. Shrank from it, feeling estranged
They departed one bright full-moon night

22. As the stars above began to fade
Truly, I envy the tent pole

23. That stood straight in the abode and shone bright

24. It gleamed with their touches, and still held
Residue of their incense and scent

25. Not so was my belief in the days of union
Those were delusions, mere false hopes

26. Let sorrow depart, that my envious soul find peace
And we are parted, so let the jealous be content

27. A home abandoned, and patience worn out
Afflictions that keep tormenting the heart

28. After tears, only slumber visits me
With flowing hair and murmuring sound

29. Whenever we dispel our passion, they say "Sing!"
But where are joy and gaiety for us?

30. Cares have silenced me, rendering me mute
So eloquence fails me, falls short

31. O eyes of mine, speak with your tears
Unburden some of the heart’s hidden grief

32. Shed them upon me, perhaps my woes
Will clear a while, O source of tears

33.
Waft to me, O breeze, news of loved ones