وساحرة العينين ما تحسن السحرا — Muslim Ibn Al Walid

وَساحِرَةِ العَينَينِ ما تُحسِنُ السِحرا

تُواصِلُني سِرّاً وَتَقطَعُني جَهرا

And a woman with bewitching eyes, yet she knows no sorcery,

She keeps close to me in secret and cuts me off in public.

أَبَت حَدَقُ الواشينَ أَن يَصفُوَ الهَوى

لَنا فَتَعاطَينا التَعَزِّيَ وَالصَبرا

The eyes of tale-bearers would not let love run clear

For us; so we turned to consolation and patience.

وَكُنّا أَليفَي لَذَّةٍ شَملَ صَفوَةٍ

حَليفَي صَفاءٍ مانَخافُ لَهُ غَدرا

And we were two companions in pleasure, joined in purity,

Two allies in pure affection, fearing no betrayal of it.

فَعُدنا كَغُصنَي أَيكَةٍ كُلَّما جَرَت

لَها الريحُ أَلقَت مِنهُما الوَرَقَ الخُضرا

Then we became like two branches in a thicket: whenever there blew

A wind through it, it stripped the green leaves from both.

وَزائِرَةٍ رُعتُ الكَرى بِلِقائِها

وَعادَيتُ فيها كَوكَبَ الصُبحِ وَالفَجرا

And a visitor—I frightened sleep away by meeting her,

And for her sake became the foe of the morning star and dawn.

أَتَتني عَلى خَوفِ العُيونِ كَأَنَّها

خَذولٌ تُراعي النَبتَ مُشعَرَةً ذُعرا

She came to me in fear of watching eyes, as though she were

A doe apart from her herd, watching the herbage, filled with dread.

إِذا ما مَشَت خافَت تَميمَةَ حَليها

تُداري عَلى المَشي الخَلاخيلَ وَالعِطرا

Whenever she walked, she feared the amulet in her jewelry;

She hushes her anklets and hides her perfume as she walks.

فَبِتُّ أُسِرُّ البَدرَ طَوراً حَديثَها

وَطَوراً أُناجي البَدرَ أَحسِبُها البَدرا

So I spent the night, sometimes confiding her words to the full moon,

And sometimes whispering to the full moon, taking her for the full moon.

إِلى أَن رَأَيتُ اللَيلَ مُنكَشِفَ الدُجى

يُوَدِّعُ في ظَلمائِهِ الأَنجُمَ الزُهرا

Until I saw the night, its darkness lifting,

Bidding the bright stars farewell in its gloom.

خُذاها فَأَمّا أَنتَ فَاِشرَب وَهاتِها

لِأَسقيَها هَذا مُعَتَّقَةً بِكرا

Take it, you two; as for you, drink, and pass it here,

So I may serve it to this man—aged, yet virgin.

وَهاتِ اِسقِني مِن طَرفِها خَمرَ طَرفِها

فَإِنّي اِمرُؤٌ آلَيتُ لا أَشرَبُ الخَمرا

And come, pour me from her gaze the wine of her gaze,

For I am a man who has sworn not to drink wine.

أَرودُ بِعَيني مَنظَرَ اللَهوِ وَالصِبا

وَأَهوى ظِباءَ الإِنسِ وَالبَقَرِ العُفرا

With my eye I seek the sight of pleasure and youthful desire,

And I love human gazelles and dust-colored wild cattle,

وَبِنتَ مَجوسيٍّ أَبوها حَليلُها

إِذا نُسِبَت لَم تَعدُ نِسبَتُها النَهرا

And a Magian's daughter, whose father is her husband;

When her lineage is traced, it goes no farther than the river.

تَجيشُ فَتُعدي جَوهَرَ الحَلي خِدرَها

وَتُغضي فَتُعدي نَكهَةَ العَنبَرِ الخِدرا

She surges, lending her chamber the brilliance of jewels;

And she lowers her gaze, imparting ambergris's scent to the chamber.

أَخَصُّ النَدامى عِندَها وَأَحَبُّهُم

إِلَيها الَّذي لا يَعرِفُ الظُهرَ وَالعَصرا

The closest of her drinking companions, and the dearest

To her, is he who knows neither the noon nor the afternoon prayer.

بَعَثتُ لَها خُطّابَها فَأَتوا بِها

وَسُقتُ لَها عَنهُم إِلى رَبِّها المَهرا

I sent her suitors to her, and they came back with her,

And on their behalf I conveyed her dowry to her master.

وَما زالَ خَوفاً مِنهُمُ في جُحودِها

يُقَرِّبُهُم فِتراً وَيُبعِدُهُم شِبرا

And, fearing them, he persisted in denying her,

Bringing them a short span nearer, and a handspan farther away,

إِلى أَن تَلاقَوها بِخاتَمِ رَبِّها

مُخَدَّرَةً قَد عُتِقَت حِجَجاً عَشرا

Until they found her bearing her master's seal,

Secluded, already aged ten years.

إِذا مَسَّها الساقي أَعارَت بَنانَهُ

جَلابيبَ كَالجادِيِّ مِن لَونِها صُفرا

When the cupbearer touched her, she lent his fingertips

Yellow robes, like saffron, of her own hue.

أَناخَ عَلَيها أَغبَرُ اللَونِ أَجوَفٌ

فَصارَت لَهُ قَلباً وَصارَ لَها صَدرا

A hollow, dust-colored vessel knelt over her;

She became its heart, and it became her breast.

قُلوبُ النَدامى في يَدَيها رَهينَةٌ

يَصيدونَها قَهراً وَتَقتُلُهُم مَكرا

The hearts of her drinking companions are captive in her hands;

They hunt her by force, and she kills them by guile.

أَبَت أَن يَنالَ الدُنُّ مَسَّ أَديمِها

فَحاكَ لَها الإِزبادُ مِن دونِها سِترا

She refused to let the wine jar touch her skin,

So foam wove a veil before her.

إِذا ما تَحَسّاها الحَليمُ أَخو النُهى

أَسَرَّ بِها كِبراً وَأَبدى بِها كِبرا

Whenever the forbearing man, possessed of reason, sips her,

Through her he harbors pride in secret, and through her displays pride.

وَدارَ بِها ظَبيٌ مِنَ الإِنسِ ناعِمٌ

تَرودُ عُيونُ الشَربِ جانِبَهُ شَزرا

And a delicate gazelle of humankind went round with her,

The drinkers' eyes roamed over his side in sidelong glances.

فَحَثَّ مِطِيَّ الراحِ حَتّى كَأَنَّما

قَفا أَثَرَ العَنقاءِ أَو سايَرَ الخِضرا

So he spurred the wine's mounts, until it was as though

He followed the phoenix's trail, or kept pace with al-Khidr.

إِذا ما أَدارَ الكَأسَ ثَنّى بِطَرفِهِ

فَعاطاهُمُ خَمراً وَعاطاهُمُ سِحرا

Whenever he passed the cup around, he followed with his glance,

So he offered them wine, and offered them enchantment.

إِلى أَن دَعا لِلسُكرِ داعٍ فَمُوِّتوا

وَكانَ مُديرُ الكَأسِ أَحسَنَهُم سُكرا

Until a caller summoned them to drunkenness, and they were struck lifeless,

And the cupbearer was the fairest of them in drunkenness.

أَدارَ عَلى الراحِ البَياتَ فَصَيَّرَت

وِساداً لَهُ مِنهُ التَرائِبَ وَالنَحرا

He launched a night raid upon the wine, and she made

A pillow for him from his own breastbones and throat.

ظَلِلنا نَشوفُ الجِلدَ بِالجِلدِ لا نَرى

لَهُ وَلَها في طيبِ مَجلِسِنا قَدرا

We spent the day rubbing skin against skin, not seeing

Any measure for him or her in the pleasure of our gathering.

سَلَكنا سَبيلاً لِلصِبا أَجنَبِيَّةً

ضَمِنّا لَها أَن نَعصِيَ اللَومَ وَالزَجرا

We took an unfamiliar path to youthful desire,

Pledging to it that we would defy blame and rebuke,

بِرَكبٍ خِفافٍ مِن زُجاجٍ كَأَنَّها

ثُدِيُّ عَذارى لَم تَخَف مِن يَدٍ كَسرا

With a light troop of glass, as though they were

The breasts of maidens, unafraid of being broken by a hand.

عَلَينا مِنَ التَوقيرِ وَالحِلمِ عارِضٌ

إِذا نَحنُ شِئنا أَمطَرَ العَزفَ وَالزَمرا

A cloud of dignity and forbearance hangs over us;

Whenever we wish, it rains music and piping.