1. The night in its dark robes called to him as the lightning flashed,
My longing heart is infatuated with you and tortured,

2. By a gentle apparition of your image appearing
In a desolate night filled with clouds,

3. With my spirit, O beloved's apparition, I keep
My promise, drawing near however I wish and coming closer,

4. And he whose heart melts whenever I reproach him
And swears he will neither wrong nor avoid me,

5. His people teach him the height of harshness,
But his noble nature prevails and he overcomes it,

6. He visits me, rending the veils of seclusion,
Despite those who blame and those who lie in wait,

7. So I shame him for conveying his reproach to me,
And he shames me for the intensity of my courtesy,

8. If I pretended to turn away from him, my longing
Would call out, "Where are you going?" to his kindness.

9. I see everything about him as lovable,
Especially that beloved, dimpled smile,

10. Although I am never distracted from glory by my concerns,
I am a man given to frivolity.

11. I am the sun of every virtue,
Rising in the east but my origin is the west,

12. Every discourse in which I am mentioned is sweet,
And every place in which I dwell is most fragrant,

13. It did not benefit me that I wielded the sword in the past,
When there was no one to strike with my blade,

14. By the most high, by the prince-truly I swear
That I am truthful, I do not lie,

15. They have burdened me beyond what I can bear
And they have burdened me beyond what I seek,