ظبيٌ بحسْمي حالي الجيد بالعَطَلِ

ظبيٌ بحسْمي حالي الجيد بالعَطَلِ

لكنَّه قد جلاه الحسنُ في الحُللِ

لكنَّه قد جلاه الحسنُ في الحُللِ

A gazelle in Hisma, his neck adorned with bareness,

My gazelle with his beauty improves my good mood in this vacation

yet Beauty has displayed him in robes,

Yet his beauty surpassed it with the clothes he wore

موشَّحاتٌ ولكنْ من ذوائِبِه

موشَّحاتٌ ولكنْ من ذوائِبِه

لمَّا رآه مُحَشَّى الطرفِ بالكَحَلِ

لمَّا رآه مُحَشَّى الطرفِ بالكَحَلِ

embroidered—but fashioned from his tresses—

Embroidered, but from his locks

when it saw him with eyes thickly rimmed with kohl.

When he saw his eyelids lined with kohl

أَتى إِليَّ وأَهْوَى خدَّه لفمي

أَتى إِليَّ وأَهْوَى خدَّه لفمي

فقمتُ أَقطفُ منه وَرْدَةَ الخَجَل

فقمتُ أَقطفُ منه وَرْدَةَ الخَجَل

He came to me and lowered his cheek to my mouth,

He came to me and inclined his cheek to my mouth

so I began plucking from him the rose of bashfulness.

So I started plucking from him the rose of shyness

والجوُّ قد مدّ سِتراً من سحائِبهِ

والجوُّ قد مدّ سِتراً من سحائِبهِ

لمَّا تخيّل أَنَّ الشُّهْبَ كالمُقَلِ

لمَّا تخيّل أَنَّ الشُّهْبَ كالمُقَلِ

And the sky had drawn a veil from its clouds,

And the air stretched a veil from its clouds

when it imagined the bright stars to be eyes.

When it imagined the meteors to be like eyeliner

قُمْنا ولا خَطرةٌ إِلاَّ إِلى خَطَرِ

قُمْنا ولا خَطرةٌ إِلاَّ إِلى خَطَرِ

دانٍ ولا خَطوةٌ إِلاَّ إِلى أَجَلِ

دانٍ ولا خَطوةٌ إِلاَّ إِلى أَجَلِ

We rose, with no passing thought but toward danger,

We got up and there was no notion but of peril

close at hand, and no step but toward death.

No step but towards death

والعَينُ تسحبُ ذيلاً من مدامِعها

والعَينُ تسحبُ ذيلاً من مدامِعها

والقلبُ يسحَبُ أَذيالاً من الوَجَلِ

والقلبُ يسحَبُ أَذيالاً من الوَجَلِ

And the eye trailed a train of its tears,

And the eye drags a tail of its tears

and the heart trailed trains of dread.

And the heart drags trails of anguish

أَكلِّفُ النَّفْسَ معْ عِلْمِي بعزَّتها

أَكلِّفُ النَّفْسَ معْ عِلْمِي بعزَّتها

وطءًا على البيضِ أَو حَمْلاً على الأَسَل

وطءًا على البيضِ أَو حَمْلاً على الأَسَل

I burdened my soul, though I knew how precious it was,

I task my soul despite my knowledge of its dignity

with treading on bright swords or charging against spears.

To tread on eggs or carry embers

لكنني بالمواضِي غيرُ مكترث

لكنني بالمواضِي غيرُ مكترث

وبالأَسنَّة فيه غيرُ مُحْتفِلِ

وبالأَسنَّة فيه غيرُ مُحْتفِلِ

Yet I was heedless of keen blades,

But I do not care about the meadows

and, for his sake, took no heed of spearheads,

Or the elevations there, I am not celebrating

حتَّى وصَلْنَا إِلى مِيقاتِ مأْمَنِه

حتَّى وصَلْنَا إِلى مِيقاتِ مأْمَنِه

يا صاحبيَّ فلو أبصرتُما عَمَلي

يا صاحبيَّ فلو أبصرتُما عَمَلي

until we reached his appointed place of refuge.

Until we reached the haven’s destination

O my two companions, if only you had seen what I did!

My companion, if you could see what I have done

أَواصِلُ اللَّثمَ من فَرْعٍ إِلى قَدَمٍ

أَواصِلُ اللَّثمَ من فَرْعٍ إِلى قَدَمٍ

وأُوصِل الضمَّ من صَدْرٍ إِلى كَفَلِ

وأُوصِل الضمَّ من صَدْرٍ إِلى كَفَلِ

I kept kissing from his hair to his foot,

I kiss from a branch to a foot

and extended my embrace from his chest to his rump.

And join the embrace from a chest to a shoulder

وجيَّب الشوقُ ذيلاً من مُعانَقة

وجيَّب الشوقُ ذيلاً من مُعانَقة

منَّا علينا فلم يَقْصُر ولم يطُلِ

منَّا علينا فلم يَقْصُر ولم يطُلِ

And longing cut a neckline in a train of embraces,

Passionate longing trails an embrace

from us, draped upon us, neither too short nor too long.

From us upon us, neither short nor long

بات يُسْمِعُني من لَفْظِ مَنْطِقِه

بات يُسْمِعُني من لَفْظِ مَنْطِقِه

أَرقَّ من كَلمِي فيه ومِنْ غَزَلي

أَرقَّ من كَلمِي فيه ومِنْ غَزَلي

All night he let me hear, in the words he spoke,

He kept letting me hear his eloquent speech

speech more tender than my words about him and my love poetry.

More subtle than my words to him or my flirtation

وَدِدْتُ أَعضائِي أَسماعاً لتسمعَه

وَدِدْتُ أَعضائِي أَسماعاً لتسمعَه

ولو تحمَّلْن فيه وطأَة العَذَلِ

ولو تحمَّلْن فيه وطأَة العَذَلِ

I wished my limbs were ears, to hear him,

I wished my limbs were ears to hear him

even if they bore, for his sake, the weight of reproach.

Even if they bore the affliction of being cut off

ودَمْعةُ الدَّلِّ تجريها على جَسدِي

ودَمْعةُ الدَّلِّ تجريها على جَسدِي

فهل رأَيتَ سُقُوطَ الطَّلِّ في الطَّلَلِ

فهل رأَيتَ سُقُوطَ الطَّلِّ في الطَّلَلِ

And a tear of coquetry—you let it flow over my body—

And a tear of affection flows upon my body

have you seen dew fall upon a ruin?

Did you ever see dew falling on a barren land?

ونِلْتُ ما نِلْتُ مما لم أَهُمَّ به

ونِلْتُ ما نِلْتُ مما لم أَهُمَّ به

ولا تَرقَّتْ إِليه هِمَّةُ الأَمَلِ

ولا تَرقَّتْ إِليه هِمَّةُ الأَمَلِ

And I attained what I attained—what I had never contemplated,

I attained what I never dreamed of

nor had hope's aspiration risen to it.

Nor did the hopes aspire to

ومرّ واللَّيْلُ قد غارت كواكِبُه

ومرّ واللَّيْلُ قد غارت كواكِبُه

لما نوى الصُّبْحُ تَطفيلاً على طَفَلِ

لما نوى الصُّبْحُ تَطفيلاً على طَفَلِ

And he departed, while the night's stars had set,

And the night passed as its planets hid

when dawn resolved to intrude uninvited upon twilight.

When dawn intended to sneak upon an infant

ل أَسْحَب الذّيلَ كي أَمْحو مواطِئَه

ل أَسْحَب الذّيلَ كي أَمْحو مواطِئَه

لكنَّني قمت أَمحُو الخَطْوَ بِالقُبَل

لكنَّني قمت أَمحُو الخَطْوَ بِالقُبَل

I did not drag my hem to erase his footprints,

I do not drag my tail to erase his footsteps

but rose to erase his steps with kisses.

Rather I stand to erase the steps with kisses

يا ليلةً قد تولَّتْ وهي قائِلَةٌ

يا ليلةً قد تولَّتْ وهي قائِلَةٌ

ل تَنْظمَنِّيَ معْ أَيامِكَ الأَوّلِ

ل تَنْظمَنِّيَ معْ أَيامِكَ الأَوّلِ

O night that has passed away, saying:

O night that has passed saying

“Do not string me together with your earlier days.”

Do not string me with your first days