ذكرتُ والقلبُ أَسيرُ الذِّكْرِ

ذكرتُ والقلبُ أَسيرُ الذِّكْرِ

ليلَةَ وَصْلٍ سَلَفَتْ مِنْ عمْرِي

ليلَةَ وَصْلٍ سَلَفَتْ مِنْ عمْرِي

I recalled—my heart held captive by remembrance—

I remembered while my heart is captive to remembrance

A night of union gone by in my life,

On a night of union that passed from my life

أَقْصَرُ من تجلُدي وصَبْري

أَقْصَرُ من تجلُدي وصَبْري

رقَّت فكادت رقَّةً أَن تَجْرِي

رقَّت فكادت رقَّةً أَن تَجْرِي

Shorter than my fortitude and my patience.

Shorter than my endurance and patience

It grew so delicate that it almost flowed,

It softened, almost to the point of flowing

كأَنَها مخلوقةٌ من شِعْرِي

كأَنَها مخلوقةٌ من شِعْرِي

تفضُلُ عِنْدِي أَلْفَ أَلِف شَهْر

تفضُلُ عِنْدِي أَلْفَ أَلِف شَهْر

As though it were fashioned from my poetry.

As if it was created from my poetry

To me it surpasses a thousand thousand months;

It exceeds in my view a thousand thousand months

ما هي إِلاَّ خالُ وجْهِ الدَّهْرِ

ما هي إِلاَّ خالُ وجْهِ الدَّهْرِ

فَضَحْتُ فيها بَدْرَها ببَدْرِي

فَضَحْتُ فيها بَدْرَها ببَدْرِي

It is but a beauty mark on the face of time.

It is but an instant in the cheek of time

In it I shamed its full moon with my own full moon,

I exposed through it its full moon with my full moon

وبان فيها عذرُها وعُذْرِي

وبان فيها عذرُها وعُذْرِي

وبعْتُ فيها صحْوَتِي بسُكْرِي

وبعْتُ فيها صحْوَتِي بسُكْرِي

And in it its excuse and mine became clear.

And through it her excuse and my excuse became clear

And in it I sold my sobriety for my intoxication,

And in it I sold my sobriety for my drunkenness

منْ خَصِر الريق رقيقُ الخَصْرِ

منْ خَصِر الريق رقيقُ الخَصْرِ

أَحسنَ من سلْمَى وأُم عمرو

أَحسنَ من سلْمَى وأُم عمرو

From one with cool saliva and a slender waist,

From the slim waist, slender of waist

Fairer than Salma and Umm Amr,

More beautiful than Salma and Umm ‘Amr

ذي مُقْلةٍ مل فترَتْ من فَتَرٍ

ذي مُقْلةٍ مل فترَتْ من فَتَرٍ

قد عُوضت من إِثْمِدٍ بالسِّحرِ

قد عُوضت من إِثْمِدٍ بالسِّحرِ

With an eye whose languor comes [not?] from weakness,

With languid eyes, exhausted from languor

Given sorcery in place of antimony kohl.

She has been ransomed from lethal poison by sorcery

واللهِ لو كانَ إِليَّ أَمْري

واللهِ لو كانَ إِليَّ أَمْري

رميتُ كَسْرَ جَفْنِهَا بِجَبْرِ

رميتُ كَسْرَ جَفْنِهَا بِجَبْرِ

By God, were my affairs in my own hands,

By Allah, if my matter were up to me

I would aim healing at the fracture in its eyelid,

I would have cast the lid of her eye in splints

لعلَّ أَن تَجْبُر مِني كَسْري

لعلَّ أَن تَجْبُر مِني كَسْري

وبتُ أُخْفِي ضوءَ ذاك الثَّغْر

وبتُ أُخْفِي ضوءَ ذاك الثَّغْر

In hope that it might mend my own brokenness.

Perhaps it would mend me from my breakage

And I spent the night hiding the light of that mouth,

And I would spend the night hiding the light of that smile

كي لا أَرُوعَ لَيْلَتي بفَجْرِي

كي لا أَرُوعَ لَيْلَتي بفَجْرِي

يا ليلةً قد أَسرفتْ في بِرِّي

يا ليلةً قد أَسرفتْ في بِرِّي

Lest I startle my night with my dawn.

Lest I startle my night with my dawn

O night, so lavish in kindness to me,

O night that went too far in blessing me

مضَتْ ولم يمض عليها شُكْرِي

مضَتْ ولم يمض عليها شُكْرِي

رُزِئت منها اليومَ خيرَ ذُخْرِي

رُزِئت منها اليومَ خيرَ ذُخْرِي

It passed, yet my gratitude for it has not passed.

It passed and my gratitude to it did not pass

Today, in losing it, I was bereft of my finest treasure;

Today I was derided for the best of my hoards

فأَعْظَمَ اللهُ عَلَيْهَا أَجْرِي

فأَعْظَمَ اللهُ عَلَيْهَا أَجْرِي

So may God magnify my reward for its loss.

So may Allah increase its reward from me