1. I yearn for the dwellings of Banu Lihyan on the slopes and meadows
To quench my thirst with tears flowing down my cheeks

2. And ask about my neighbors in the valley, for I
See myself most deserving of good treatment

3. Relate to me the fond memories of their friendship
That I sensed were most delightful and joyful

4. And talk more about their old ties
And may God protect you, remembering those who were friendly

5. And speak of me if I cross their mind
For I have a special place in their hearts

6. And ask about the heart of the youth—I have preserved
What was in his heart though he neglected me

7. Fate turned against me though I did not oppose it
Gloom covers my horizon that cannot be dispelled

8. It sees my body from afar, standing tall as my adversary
Wanting to destroy me or stir me to pursue it

9. I used to protect myself from the arrows of misfortune
Donning the armor of patience though it was torn

10. O you whose moon rose above the horizon of al-Liwa
You ascended to the highest point above the clouds

11. O you whose plateau of comfort rises from the abode of wild cows
You quenched the thirst of the meadows and enlivened the plateau

12. Our covenant watered the valley of bliss where
We made a pleasant, verdant pasture

13. O neighbor, time has distanced them
But did not fear misfortune befalling the unjust

14. My hopes vie with me in yearning for your land
And my determined will finds no restraint

15. My steps stumble on misfortunes and I see not
One who rebukes my ill fate and calls it to stop

16. I tossed sleepless on the pillow seeing the Pleiades
While others lie sound asleep on their beds

17. Woe! I wish I knew—is my wakefulness a true feeling
Or is the concern of a friend merely pretended?

18. Can love sever hopes or join wishes
When a lover desires the aloofness of the beloved?

19. I grieve over the valley as it descends
Bearing nothing as they came down but slopes and sides

20. And I fret upon seeing a lightning bolt flash
From the direction of brilliant lightning, so I shed copious tears

21. When carnelian disappears from my sight
My gaze turns to it and so my tears pour forth

22. They rode the cypresses while the branches swayed
As if they were lanterns for the darkness gleaming

23. And in that group was one who, if her beauty was unveiled
From the darkness, we'd not doubt the group had become radiant

24. They departed, their statuesque forms carried them away
While our affairs called to them hastily, so my tears flowed faster

25. And when they bid farewell, I bid farewell to my darling
Yet they did not likewise bid the party farewell

26. Stop, O camel driver, may the kindness you grant
Allow my eyes the enjoyment of seeing loved ones

27. I have none like those who became dear and aloof
Soaring higher than eagles, unreachable and remote

28. They became dear and left no lovers pining for them
Free from humiliation and hoping for glory

29. My singing darling sang, entrancing me,
So my tune blended with hers in unison

30. I will cry my complaints to the slopes
As I cried them to the leaves of the scrolls

31. O turtledoves cooing in the protected meadow
Do you share what I have or did you merely pretend?

32. Gently, sister! My passion, if unleashed, would
Crack boulders, though it lies suppressed

33. What a difference between us in passion!
Mine ingrained, while yours is merely feigned

34. You sing the pain of parting, and I have granted you
A heart torn by separation into pieces

35. But God replaced it with a heart that sees
My loved ones gleaming like the crescent moon

36. So comfort yourself, my soul, for our bliss encompasses
Sublime meadows thronging with nobility

37. And delight, my eye, for the sun of our land has risen
And the clouds of gloom have dispersed, spreading light

38. The All-Generous has been bountiful, offering gifts
Through a most pious and devout worshipper

39. He is the erudite scholar, the embodiment of knowledge
Whose might towers over the celestial spheres

40. A noble man whose arrival heralds goodness, O best arrivals
You have attained the ultimate goodness entire

41. You performed Hajj and conveyed the wishes at Mina’s sanctuary,
Crying, “At your service!” answering one who calls

42. You attained mystical knowledge at Arafat, and appeared
Fragrant with musk, perfuming all around you

43. In the Noble Camp, you led a multitude
Whose comfort and harmony was rent asunder

44. He poured over you abundant rainfall from His clouds of bounty,
Fulfilling hopes however numerous they were

45. And you circumambulated God’s House, O site of His mystery,
And found His most plentiful grace circling round or pacing to and fro

46. And during your brilliant minor pilgrimage, your life was gladdened
As you enjoyed its promises to the fullest

47. The appointed station at as-Safa continued to be pure for you
Where you found more zeal for voluntary worship

48. What you conveyed has become reality in the morning
By which the neglected has advanced and grown

49. Until God enables you to perform Hajj again, and the sense of duty sailed forth
With you like ships with masts erect and sails hoisted

50. To the arid valley until you were delivered safely
To ar-Rabgh in the lush lowlands—a pleasing rest

51. The valley echoed with the scent of dense orchards,
So the wild cows and mountain goats bleated in delight

52. Beneath the lone mountain arak trees found shade
Offering places for the eyes to pasture

53. The springs of al-Adhb and La‘la‘ watered it
With the lightning of al-Abruqayn flickering brightly

54. Stirring deep longing in the valleys, it engulfed
Flashes of splendor unlike any life ever sparkled

55. So it soared by force of passion and love for the sanctuary
Whereupon desolation appeared increasingly delightful

56. To neighbors in the plains whom one might seek for help
And from the tyranny of time seek inviolability

57. To the Abode of the Chosen One and the Pure—Taybah—which
God eternally distinguished with sublime qualities

58. To the Highest Station where the angels descended
Prostrating in service and bowing down

59. There the arrows of oaths launched from afar
In humility, and necks bent down in submission

60. To Him who rightly guided them, the best to walk the earth
And ascend beyond the seven heavens unhindered

61. The Most Generous who gave, Most Merciful who guided
Noblest at fulfilling, Truest when He promised

62. A Messenger whose followers God has honored
While kings like Chosroes submitted to His command

63. Never was one crowned with a kingdom and power
More invincible than His ability to compel and bring low

64. So blessed is he who in His service strives
Hoping to intercede for all sinners

65. And gaining from Him cups that God most sublimely filled
You performed the pilgrimage and visited the Best of Messengers

66. And returned—the best return to a refuge
Not before you embodied every merit

67. And excelled in virtues and nobility understood by reasonable minds
You reached true piety as an elder, adult and youth

68. Grasping its essence while still being suckled and nurtured
Just as you brought great feats to our homeland, through which

69. We reached the heights for which we hoped
God blessed us with security and attainment

70. So no heart in which you dwell felt distressed
The encounter has quenched our joy, bringing comfort,

71. Remaining most effective dispelling worries
I remained attaining my hopes, raising

72. The banner of congratulations for my pleasant age
And I congratulated my loved ones and myself for the righteousness

73. That pleased the times and sufficed them
My praise of you has become most pleasing and extensive

74. While it can never be enough, being exquisite and fragrant
When my mind selects meanings to adorn

75. A magnificent necklace of peerless pearls
I disdain praising the lowly as gross flattery

76. As I sit burning with caustic lye
If I severely criticize a contemptible man

77. My appraisal of him is even harsher
By God, if a loathsome man sips of my ode

78. It becomes to him even deadlier than poison
But let me generously honor a noble man

79. For he is the most deserving of good favor
So here is a bride whom I consider of no match but you

80. Even when your merits are far more sublime
Her veil covers her—modest, embarrassed—bowing her face

81. May God protect you as long as night grows dark
She is the virtuous one, elusive to possess

82. To the ignorant who stupidly rules
When she defies other rhymes, astonishing them

83. She becomes obedient in my able hands
So leave what the simpleton claims, and take her uniquely

84. When she is recited, time listens to her attentively
May blessings remain for people when you are absent

85. As the sun may disappear but will rise again
No equal was found, even if her qualities were most lofty

86. Besides you—and were your merits even higher