1. يا سائلي عن الكلام المنتظمْ

    ذاكَ كلامُ مَنْ هويتُ لا عُدِمْ

    O you who ask me about well-ordered speech,

    that is the speech of the one I love—may he never be lost.

  2. فكلُّ ما يقولُ فيهِ العذّل

    فإنَّهُ منكَّرٌ يا رجلُ

    For everything the reproachers say about him

    is rejected, O man.

  3. في صدغِهِ للحسْنِ آياتٌ تُخَطّ

    وقال قومٌ إنها اللامُ فقطْ

    On his temple, signs of beauty are inscribed,

    and some have said they are only the letter lām.

  4. رمَّانُهُ غضٌّ فلا يمشي فرطْ

    إذْ ألفُ الوصلِ متى يدرجْ سقطْ

    His pomegranate is tender, so he does not stride ahead,

    for the alif of liaison falls away in connected speech.

  5. بسيفِ جفنيهِ قتلتُ نفسي

    فإنَّهُ ماضٍ بغيرِ لبْسِ

    With the sword of his eyelids I killed myself,

    for it is sharp, without ambiguity.

  6. فينا غزالٌ إنْ أبيت ما اعتدى

    فأسقطِ الحرفَ الأخيرَ أبدا

    Among us is a gazelle; if you refuse, he has not transgressed.

    Then always drop the final letter.

  7. قلْ لمذكرٍ لحا خلِّ الفندْ

    واسعَ إلى الخيراتِ لُقِّيتَ الرشدْ

    Tell a male who reproaches you: 'Leave off foolish talk,'

    and strive for good deeds—may you be granted right guidance.

  8. وإنْ يكنْ عذلُكَ منْ مؤنثِ

    فقلْ لها خافي رجالَ العبثِ

    And if your reproach comes from a woman,

    tell her: 'Fear men who make mischief.'

  9. يا خصرَهُ مِنْ ردفِهِ فزْ بالمنحْ

    ولا تُبَلْ أخفَّ وزناً أمْ رجحْ

    O his waist, win gifts from his rump,

    and do not care whether it is lighter in weight or heavier.

  10. قوامُهُ أشبهُ شيءٍ بالألفْ

    كمثلِ ما تكتبُهُ لا يختلفْ

    His stature resembles nothing so much as alif,

    just as you write it, without a difference.

  11. لما شكوتُ صدَّهُ رثى لي

    وأقبلَ الغلامُ كالغزالِ

    When I complained of his shunning me, he pitied me,

    and the youth approached like a gazelle.

  12. أسنانُهُ كاللؤلؤِ المفتنِّ

    منَ المفاريدِ لجبرِ الوهنِ

    His teeth are like captivating pearls,

    individual pearls that mend frailty.

  13. قبلَ ازديادِ لامِهِ أكابدُهْ

    ثمَّ أتى بعدَ التناهي زائدُهْ

    Before his lām increased, I struggled with him;

    then, after reaching the limit, his further growth appeared.

  14. ما مثلُهُ في الحسنِ والذكاءِ

    عندَ جميعِ العربِ العرباءِ

    None is his equal in beauty and intelligence

    among all the Arabs of pure Arab stock.

  15. اعجبْ لنونِ حاجبيهِ تنصرُ

    والنونُ في كلِّ مثنى تكسرُ

    Marvel at the nūn of his eyebrows: it grants victory,

    yet the nūn in every dual takes a kasra.

  16. إذا رأيتَ وجههُ فكبِّرا

    معظماً لقدرِهِ مكبِّرا

    When you see his face, proclaim God's greatness,

    honoring his worth, proclaiming greatness.

  17. خوَّفَ فيه بالأميرِ العاذلُ

    والصلحُ خيرٌ والأميرُ عادلُ

    The reproacher invoked the emir to frighten me about him,

    and reconciliation is better, and the emir is just.

  18. سؤالُهُ عني حياةٌ تسعفُ

    ومثلُهُ كيفَ المريضُ المدنفُ

    His asking about me is life-giving help,

    as in: 'How is the gravely ill patient?'

  19. الخدُّ والقوامُ منهُ فاعلُ

    نحو جرى الماءُ وجارَ العاملُ

    His cheek and stature are agents,

    as in 'The water flowed' and 'The worker acted unjustly.'

  20. واقضِ قضاءً لا يُرَدُّ قائلُهُ

    بأنَّ منْ يهوى فتى يواصلُهْ

    Pronounce a judgment whose speaker cannot be gainsaid:

    that whoever loves a youth should keep company with him.

  21. أفعالُهُ تكسرني ذا عجبُ

    وكلُّ فعلٍ متعدٍّ ينصبُ

    His deeds break me—what a wonder!

    Yet every transitive verb assigns the accusative.

  22. يا منْ رأى منهُ جيناً واضحاً

    تقولُ قدْ خلتُ الهلالَ لائحا

    O you who have seen his clear [brow?],

    you say: 'I thought the crescent moon was shining.'

  23. فغضَّ مِنْ طرفِكَ وانجُ رابحاً

    وقدْ وجدتُ المستشارَ ناصحاً

    So lower your gaze, and escape the richer for it,

    for I have found the counselor sincere.

  24. ابدأ بذكرِ حاجبينِ حُسِّنا

    وإنْ ذكرتَ فاعلاً منونا

    Begin by mentioning two beautified eyebrows,

    and if you mention an active participle bearing tanwīn,

  25. فالطرفُ سيفٌ قتْلَنا تضمَّنا

    فهْوَ كما لو كانَ فعلاً بيِّنا

    the gaze is a sword that contains our slaying;

    thus it is as though it were an explicit verb.

  26. كنْ فيهِ بالعفافِ مرفوعَ الرتبْ

    واضربْ أشدَّ الضربِ مَنْ يغشى الريبْ

    Be exalted in rank through chastity with him,

    and strike with the harshest blows whoever pursues doubtful acts.

  27. فعاذري سقياً لهُ ورعياً

    وعاذلي جدعاً لهُ وكيّا

    So may my excuser have water and pasture,

    and my reproacher, mutilation and branding.

  28. أوهمتُهُ برشْفِ ريقِ الثغرِ

    وغصتُ في البحر ابتغاءَ الدرِّ

    I misled him by sipping the saliva of his mouth,

    and dived into the sea in search of pearls.

  29. وإنْ أقمتَ الواوَ في الكلامِ

    مِنْ صدغهِ نابتْ منابَ اللاّمِ

    And if you place the wāw in your speech,

    taken from his temple, it stands in place of lām.

  30. في قدِّه ما هوَ في الأغصانِ

    على اختلافِ الوضعِ والمباني

    In his figure is what is in the branches,

    despite differences in placement and form.

  31. إذا لمستَ خدَّهُ والنهدا

    تقولُ عندي مَنَوانِ زُبدا

    If you touch his cheek and breast,

    you say: 'I have two manns of butter.'

  32. إنْ ترهُ بينَ ذويهِ في الحمى

    فانصبْ وقلْ كمْ كوكباً تحوي السما

    If you see him among his kin in the sanctuary,

    use the accusative and say: 'How many stars does the sky contain?'

  33. أصبحتُ منهُ في ارتقابِ الوصلِ

    والزرع تلقاءَ الحيا المنهلِّ

    I have come to await union with him,

    while the crops face the pouring rain.

  34. ما للصبا يا جسمَ ذياكَ الصبي

    وقيمةُ الفضَّةِ دونَ الذهب

    What of youthful passion, O body of that little boy?

    And silver's value is below gold's.

  35. مَنْ تلقَهُ إلى سواهُ صابي

    فأوِّلْهُ الإبدالَ في الإعرابِ

    Whoever you find yearning toward another,

    construe him as substitution in grammatical parsing.

  36. قلبُ الذي يحبُّ ليسَ يبغضُ

    وإنْ بدا بينها معترضُ

    The heart of one who loves does not hate,

    even if an interloper appears between them.

  37. إذا رأيتَ عنقَهُ الطويلا

    وشعرَهُ مِنْ فوقهِ محلولا

    When you see his long neck,

    and his hair loose above it,

  38. تقولُ ما أنقى بياضَ العاجِ

    وما أشدَّ ظلمةَ الدّياجي

    you say: 'How pure the whiteness of ivory!'

    'And how intense the darkness of the nights!'

  39. بطرفِهِ في العاشقينَ سُلِّطا

    وما أحدَّ سيفِهِ حينَ سطا

    Through his gaze he was given sway over lovers,

    and how keen his sword when he attacks!

  40. حاشاهُ مِنْ عيبٍ ومِنْ نقصانِ

    أو عاهةٍ تحدثُ في الأبدانِ

    Far be it from him to have a fault or deficiency,

    or an affliction that arises in bodies.

  41. لا تطلبوا لحسنِهِ مضاهي

    اللّهَ اللّهَ عبادَ اللَّهِ

    Seek no match for his beauty,

    God, God, O servants of God!

  42. ليسَ قفاءُ عاذلي العسوفِ

    إلاّ معَ المجرورِ والظّروفِ

    The nape of my harsh reproacher is

    only with the genitive and the adverbials.

  43. يا قائلاً كانَ مليحاً وانفصلْ

    كانَ وما انفكَّ الفتى ولمْ يزلْ

    O you who say, 'He was handsome, then departed,'

    he was, and the youth has remained so, and still is.

  44. أبدتْ لهمْ وجنتُهُ ضِراما

    كما تَلَوا يا حسرةً على ما

    His cheek showed them a blaze,

    as they recited: 'O regret over what...'

  45. عذارهُ الرقيمُ كهفُ لثمِهِ

    فلا تغيِّرْ ما بقي عن رسمِهِ

    His inscribed cheek-down is a cave for kissing him,

    so do not alter what remains of its outline.

  46. تقولُ فيهِ خضرةٌ يسيرهْ

    كما تقولُ نارُهُ منيرَهْ

    You say, 'There is a little greenness in it,'

    just as you say, 'His fire is luminous.'

  47. دينارُ وجههِ بهِ شححتُ

    وكمْ دُنَينيرٍ بهِ سمحتُ

    I was stingy with the dinar of his face,

    and how many little dinars I freely gave for him!

  48. إني إلى العفافِ منهُ شيِّق

    وكلُّ لهوٍ دنيويٍّ موبقُ

    Indeed, I long to remain chaste with him,

    and every worldly diversion brings ruin.

  49. إنْ يبتسمْ لي ضوَّأ الحجونا

    وأقبلَ الحجاجُ أجمعونا

    If he smiles at me, he lights up al-Ḥajūn,

    and all the pilgrims come forward.

  50. يا ليتهُ يعطفُ بالوصالِ

    والعطفُ قدْ يدخلُ في الأفعالِ

    Oh, if only he would show kindness through union,

    and conjunction may also apply to verbs.

  51. لا ما حلا لي في هواهُ العذّلُ

    لشبهِهِ الفعلَ الذي يستثقلُ

    No, the reproachers have not pleased me in loving him,

    because of its likeness to a verb deemed heavy.

  52. قلبي وعيني عن سناهُ لا يردْ

    إذْ ما رأى صرفَهما قطُّ أحدْ

    My heart and my eye do not turn from his radiance,

    for no one has ever seen them turned away.

  53. ألفاظهُ عقودُ درٍّ منتقدْ

    وإن نطقتَ بالعقودِ في العددْ

    His words are strings of choice pearls,

    even when you speak of the tens in counting.

  54. يا صاحِ لا تدمِ الفؤادَ بالدما

    وعاصِ أسبابَ الهوى لتسلَما

    O friend, do not make the heart bleed with blood,

    and defy the causes of passion, so you may be safe.

  55. ولا تمارِ عاشقاً فتتعبا

    وما عليكَ عَتبُهُ فتُعْتَبا

    Do not dispute with a lover and so wear yourself out,

    nor need you reproach him and so be reproached yourself.

  56. ولا تزدني بالملامِ ضررا

    ولا تحاضرْ وتسيءَ المحضرا

    Do not add to my suffering with blame,

    nor join the conversation and spoil the gathering.

  57. إنْ قلتَ رشفُ ريقهِ ما حُلِّلا

    تقلْ بلا علمٍ ولا تحسُ الطلا

    If you say, 'Sipping his saliva has not been made lawful,'

    you speak without knowledge; do not sip wine.

  58. أقسمتُ لا ألومُ في العشقِ أحدْ

    ومنْ يودَّ فليواصلْ مَنْ يوَدْ

    I have sworn never to blame anyone for love,

    and whoever loves, let him join the one he loves.

  59. خذْ أدواتِ الحسنِ عنهُ منصتا

    واحفظ جميعَ الأدواتِ يا فتى

    Take beauty's instruments from him, listening silently,

    and memorize all the particles, O youth.

  60. عيناهُ أفنتْ أكثرَ العشاقِ

    وهكذا تصنعُ في البواقي

    His two eyes have destroyed most lovers,

    and they do the same to those who remain.

  61. في ثغرِهِ جواهرٌ غوالي

    جلوتُها منظومةَ اللآلي

    In his mouth are precious jewels,

    which I have displayed as a string of pearls.

  62. قلبي الذي يسكنُ للتنائي

    كأمسِ في الكسرِ والبناءِ

    My heart, which grows still at separation,

    is like ams ('yesterday') in its kasra and fixed form.

  63. بلبالُهُ مخلَّدٌ في بالي

    فما لهُ مغيِّرٌ بحالِ

    Its turmoil is lodged forever in my mind,

    and nothing can change it in any way.

  64. صوتُهُ كالبدرِ فوقَ الغصنِ

    فانظرْ إليها نظرَ المستحسنِ

    His voice is like the full moon above the branch,

    so look at it with an admiring gaze.

  65. وخلِّ عني يا عذولُ العذلا

    وإنْ تجدْ عيباً فسدَّ الخللا

    And leave off reproaching me, O reproacher,

    and if you find a flaw, mend the breach.

  66. فقد رثى لي وألانَ القولا

    والحمدُ للهِ على ما أولى

    For he has pitied me and softened his speech,

    and praise be to God for what He has bestowed.

  67. فديتُ لونَ خدِّهِ من خدِّ

    كان حريرياً فصارَ وردي

    May I be ransom for the color of his cheek—what a cheek!

    It was silken (Ḥarīrī), then became rosy (Wardī).