1. يا شمسَ خِدْرٍ مالها مَغرِبُ

    أَرامةٌ دارُكِ أمْ غُرَّبُ

    O sun of a secluded chamber, with no setting!

    Is Rama your abode, or Ghurrab?

  2. ذهبتِ فاستعبرَ طرفي دماً

    مفضَّضُ الدمعِ به مُذْهَبُ

    You departed, and my eye wept blood;

    the silver of its tears is gilded with that blood.

  3. اللهَ في مهجةِ ذي لوعةٍ

    تَيَّمَهُ يومَ النَّقا الرَّبرب

    For God's sake, have mercy on the heart of one in anguish,

    whom the gazelle herd enslaved with love that day at al-Naqa.

  4. شامَ بريقاً باللِّوى فامترى

    أضوءُهُ أم ثغرُكِ الأشنب

    He glimpsed a gleam at al-Liwa and wondered:

    was it its light, or your cool, pearly mouth?

  5. أشبه غَمّاً يومُهُ ليلَهُ

    حتى استوى الأدهمُ والأشهب

    In sorrow, his day resembled his night,

    until black and gray-white became alike.

  6. سُرورُهُ بعدَكُمُ تَرْحَةٌ

    وصُبْحُهُ بعدكمُ غَيْهَبُ

    His joy since your departure is sorrow,

    and his dawn since your departure is deep darkness.

  7. ناشدتكَ اللهَ نسيمَ الصَّبا

    أين استقرَّتْ بعدَنا زينبُ

    I adjure you by God, breeze of the east:

    where has Zaynab settled since leaving us?

  8. لم تسْر إلا بشذا عَرْفِها

    أو لا فماذا النَّفَسُ الطيبُ

    You have traveled only with the scent of her fragrance;

    or else, what is this fragrant breath?

  9. و يا سحابَ المُزنِ ما بالُنا

    يشوقُنا ذيلُكَ إذ يُسْحَبُ

    And O rain cloud, what ails us,

    that your train stirs our longing as it trails along?

  10. هاتِ حديثاً عن مغاني اللِّوى

    فعهدُكَ اليومَ بها أقرَبُ

    Bring news of the dwelling places of al-Liwa,

    for your acquaintance with them is more recent today.

  11. إيهٍ وإن عذَّبني ذِكرُها

    فمِن عذابِ النَّفسِ ما يَعْذُبُ

    Tell on, though remembering them torments me,

    for some torments of the soul are sweet.

  12. هل لعِبَتْ بالعَرَصاتِ الصَّبا

    فمحَّ منها للصِّبا مَلعَبُ

    Has the east wind played over the courtyards,

    so that youth's playground there has vanished?

  13. أمرضَها سُقياك إذ جُدْتَّها

    كم غصَّ ظمآنٌ بما يشرَبُ

    Your watering sickened them when you drenched them;

    how many a thirsty man has choked on what he drinks!

  14. يا مَن شكى من زمنٍ قسوةً

    أين السُّرى والعيسُ والسَّبْسَبُ

    O you who complain of harshness from time,

    where are night journeys, pale camels, and the vast plain?

  15. أفلحَ من خاضَ بحارَ الدُّجى

    وصهوةُ العزِّ له مركبُ

    Successful is he who wades through the seas of darkness,

    with the back of glory for his mount.

  16. أليسَ في البيداءِ مندوحةٌ

    إن ضاقَ يوماً بالفتى مذهبُ

    Is there not room for escape in the desert,

    if one day a young man's path grows narrow?

  17. لأخبطُ الليلَ ولو أنّهُ

    ذو لبَدٍ أو حيةٌ تَلْسُبُ

    I shall plunge through the night, even if it is

    a maned lion or a biting serpent.

  18. من همَّتي حادٍ ومن عَزمتي

    هادٍ ولو ضلَّ بيَ الكوكبُ

    From my aspiration comes a camel-driver, and from my resolve

    a guide, even if the star should lead me astray.

  19. تحملُ كوري فيه عَيْرانَةٌ

    إلى سوى مَهْرَةَ لا تُنْسَبُ

    A hardy she-camel bears my saddle through it,

    whose lineage belongs to none but Mahra.

  20. أَسري إلى العَليا بها في الدُّجى

    وفَوْدُهُ من شُهْبِهِ أَشْهَبُ

    On her I travel by night toward the heights, through darkness,

    whose temple is gray with its stars.

  21. وإنما تُعْرَفُ سُبْلُ العُلى

    يسلُكها الأنجبُ فالأنجبُ

    The paths to high honor are known only

    as the noblest, one after another, tread them.

  22. إن كان للفضل أبٌ إنَّهُ

    نجلُ بني عبد العزيزِ الأبُ

    If excellence has a father, then surely

    the scion of Banu Abd al-Aziz is that father.

  23. المُنْتَضَى من جَمَراتِ الأُلى

    على السِّماكينِ لهمْ مَنْصِبُ

    Chosen from the fiery clans of those

    whose station is above the two Simak stars.

  24. من أُسرةٍ إنْ شهدوا نادياً

    زانَ بهم أو وَلَدوا أَنجبوا

    From a family who, if they attend an assembly,

    adorn it; or, if they beget, bear noble offspring.

  25. تنحطُّ قحطانٌ وساداتُها

    عنهمْ وتمشي خلفهمْ تغلِبُ

    Qahtan and its lords fall below

    them, and Taghlib walks behind them.

  26. بيضٌ مصاليتُ قضى سَرْوُهُم

    أنَّ جَداهُمْ مَطَرٌ صَيِّبُ

    Bright-faced and bold, their nobility has decreed

    that their bounty be a pouring rain.

  27. لم تخلُ من نارٍ لهمْ في الدجى

    ثنيَّةٌ علياءُ أو مَرقَبُ

    Never has a fire of theirs in the dark been lacking

    on a lofty pass or lookout.

  28. جنابُهُمْ أحوى وأبياتُهُمْ

    تُوسَعُ بالإكرامِ أو تَرْحُبُ

    Their precinct is lush green, and their homes

    are made spacious by hospitality, or stand wide open.

  29. حيثُ قبابُ المجدِ مضروبةٌ

    تُعْمَدُ بالعلياء أو تُطْنَبُ

    There the tents of glory are pitched,

    pillared with high honor or secured with guy ropes.

  30. والأسَلُ السُّمرُ وبيضُ الظُّبا

    دونَ العِدا والضُمَّرُ الشُزَّبُ

    And tawny spears and bright sword edges

    stand against their foes, with lean, gaunt steeds.

  31. والعزُّ معقودُ الحُبا أقْعَسٌ

    والبأسُ مطرورُ الشَّبا مُغْضَبُ

    And glory, its knee-bands knotted, is unbowed,

    and martial might, its points sharpened, is enraged.

  32. هل شيَّدَ العلياءَ إلا فتىً

    راقَ به المَحْفَلُ والمركبُ

    Who has raised high honor but a young man

    who lends splendor to the assembly and the cavalcade?

  33. لا يرغبُ الدهرُ وأيامُهُ

    والسَّعدُ إلا في الذي يرغبُ

    Neither time nor its days desire anything,

    nor does fortune, except what he desires.

  34. يرى العلا من خيرِ ما يُقْتَنَى

    والحمدَ من أفضلِ ما يُكْسَبُ

    He sees high honor as the best of possessions,

    and praise as the finest of gains.

  35. فاليُمْنُ عن يُمناهُ لا ينثني

    واليُسْرُ عن يسراهُ لا يَعْزبُ

    Good fortune never turns away from his right hand,

    and ease never forsakes his left.

  36. نجمٌ نجيبٌ بدرُها شمسُها

    عمّارُها حُوَّلُها القُلَّبُ

    A noble star, its full moon, its sun,

    its builder, resourceful and versatile.

  37. في الدَّسْتِ منه علمٌ أصيدٌ

    وفي الوغى خر غامة أغلب

    At the seat of state, he is a proud, towering standard,

    and in battle, a mighty [lion].

  38. كم خطبَ المجدَ له صارمٌ

    في منبرٍ من كفِّه يَخطَبُ

    How often a keen sword has wooed glory for him,

    preaching from the pulpit of his palm!

  39. ذو ظمأ يشربُ ماءَ الطُّلا

    وليس يُرويهِ الذي يشربُ

    Thirsty, it drinks the blood of throats,

    yet what it drinks never quenches it.

  40. تخالُهُ مُنصلتاً بارقاً

    أو كوكباً و قبساً يلهبُ

    You would think it, unsheathed, a lightning flash,

    or a star and a blazing brand.

  41. أَرسل في الحرب شُواظاً له

    يَصلى لظاهُ البطلُ المُحربُ

    It has unleashed in war a flame of its own,

    in whose blaze the battle-hardened hero burns.

  42. تساجلُ الماءَ له صفحةٌ

    ويعدلُ النارَ له مَضربُ

    Its blade's face vies with water,

    and its striking edge equals fire.

  43. كُلِّلَ من إفرندِهِ جوهراً

    ينهبُ أرواحاً ولا يُنْهَبُ

    Crowned with jewels of its watered steel,

    it plunders souls, yet is never plundered.

  44. كلُّ شهابٍ عنده خامدٌ

    وكلُّ برقٍ عنده خُلَّبُ

    Beside it, every meteor is quenched,

    and every lightning flash is empty glitter.

  45. يفترُّ عن صفحته غمدُهُ

    كما انجلى عن مائه الطُّحلُبُ

    Its sheath parts in a smile to reveal its blade,

    as pondweed clears away from its water.

  46. ويضربُ الهامَ به أروعٌ

    سُرادق الفخرِ به يُضربُ

    A dauntless man strikes heads with it,

    around whom the pavilion of pride is pitched.

  47. يخترقُ النَّقعَ على أشقرٍ

    ينقضُّ منه في الوغى كوكبُ

    He pierces the battle dust upon a chestnut steed,

    from which a star swoops down in battle.

  48. يطيرُ في الخُضْرِ به أربعٌ

    يُطْوى لها المشرقُ والمغربُ

    Four legs fly with him through the green-clad hosts;

    for them, east and west are folded up.

  49. صَهيلُهُ عن عِتقِهِ مُفْصِحٌ

    وخَلْقُهُ عن سَبْقِهِ مُعربُ

    Its neigh proclaims its noble breeding,

    and its build speaks of its swiftness.

  50. لو طلب العنقا على متنهِ

    راكبُهُ ما فاتَهُ مَطلبُ

    If the phoenix were sought upon its back

    by its rider, no quarry would elude him.

  51. الريحُ تكبو خلفَهُ من وَنىً

    والبرقُ من سرعته يَعجَبُ

    The wind stumbles behind it from fatigue,

    and lightning marvels at its speed.

  52. يُزْهَى به كلُّ زُها جحفلٍ

    مَجْرٍ ويزدانُ به المِقْنَبُ

    Every great throng of an army takes pride in it,

    teeming with troops; and the cavalry squadron is graced by it.

  53. له تليلٌ مثلُ ما ينثني

    غصنٌ به ريحُ الصَّبا تلعبُ

    It has a neck that bends just as

    a branch bends when the east wind plays with it.

  54. وحافرٌ إن يكُ ذا خُضرةٍ

    فالجوُّ من عِثْيَرِهِ أكْهَبُ

    And if its hoof is dark green,

    the air is ash-gray with its kicked-up dust.

  55. يحملُ في صهوتهِ ضيغَماً

    ليس سوى السيفِ له مِخلبُ

    It carries upon its back a lion,

    whose only claw is the sword.

  56. قرَّبَهُ من كلِّ أُكرومةٍ

    مُهنَّدٌ أو سابحٌ مُقْربُ

    He is brought near to every noble distinction by

    an Indian blade, or a swimming-gaited, cherished steed,

  57. أو صَعدةٌ سمراءُ أو مثلها

    يراعةٌ تَطعنُ إذ تَكتُبُ

    or a tawny spear, or its like:

    a reed pen that thrusts as it writes.

  58. تمجُّ سماً وجَنَى نحلةٍ

    فريقُها يُرجى كما يُرْهَبُ

    It spits venom and the honey of a bee,

    so its spittle is hoped for as much as feared.

  59. تريكَ من صِبغَتها جوهراً

    يُنْظَمُ في الطِّرْسِ ولا يُثْقَبُ

    From its ink it shows you jewels

    strung upon the page, but never pierced.

  60. خرساءُ لكنَّ لها منطقاً

    أقرَّ بالسَّبْقِ لها يَعربُ

    Mute, yet endowed with speech

    to which Ya'rub conceded precedence.

  61. تلك بنانٌ خُلِقَتْ للنَّدى

    فما تني أنوارُها تُسْكَبُ

    Those are fingers fashioned for generosity,

    whose radiance never ceases to pour forth.

  62. من واهبٍ لم أدرِ من قَبلِه

    أَنَّ المعالي جَمَّةً تُوهَبُ

    From a giver—before him I never knew

    that high honors could be bestowed in abundance.

  63. ذي همَّةٍ علياءَ لا تُرْتَقَى

    وعزمةٍ صمّاءَ لا تُغْلَبُ

    Possessed of lofty aspiration none can scale,

    and rock-solid resolve none can overcome,

  64. وفطنةٍ قصَّرَ عن نَعْتِها

    أو بعضِها المُطْنِبُ والمسهب

    and insight whose description has defeated

    the copious and expansive speaker, even in part.

  65. حظّي من الأيام نَدبٌ به

    يُرْأَبُ ما يُصْدَعُ أو يُشْعَبُ

    My share from the days is a noble man through whom

    whatever is cracked or split is mended.

  66. ومعقلي طودُ عُلاهُ الذي

    يزاحمُ النجمَ له مَنْكِبُ

    My stronghold is the mountain of his high honor, whose

    shoulder jostles the star.

  67. أوفتْ على الأُفْقِ له ذروةٌ

    لاذتْ به الجوزاءُ والعَقرَبُ

    A summit of his rises above the horizon;

    al-Jawza and Scorpio have sought refuge in it.

  68. سنَّيْتُ أبرادَ ثنائي على

    عِطْفَيْهِ من حَوكيَ ما تُسلَبُ

    I have draped the robes of my praise upon

    his shoulders—woven by me, never to be stripped away.

  69. سال به الطبعُ مَعيناً كما

    شقَّ بساطَ الروضةِ المِذنَبُ

    My poetic gift flowed for him as a running spring, as

    a rill cuts through the meadow's carpet.

  70. فالطرسُ مذ أُلبسَ منها حُلىً

    تحسُدُهُ العذراءُ والشُّيبُ

    So, since the page was clothed in their jewels,

    the maiden and the gray-haired envy it.

  71. راغبةٌ فيهِ على أنها

    عن كلِّ بيتٍ في العُلا تَرغَبُ

    She desires him, although she

    spurns every house of high rank.

  72. والغادةُ الحسناءُ مخطوبةٌ

    وكفؤُها أوَّلُ مَنْ يَخطُبُ

    The beautiful young maiden is sought in marriage,

    and her equal is the first to woo her.