كأَنَّ هَواكُم كانَ لي فيكُم عَذلا

فَلستُ بِراضٍ مِنكُم أبَداً فِعلا

As if your love was meant to torment me

So I'll never be pleased with you

أخَذتُ تَجنِّيكُم عَليَّ وهَجركُم

وأَعطَيتُكُم ذاكَ التَّملُّقَ والوَصلا

I endured your abandonment of me and your departure

While I gave you that flattery and union

وناقَلتُكم حالاً بِحالٍ لتَعلَموا

إِذا ذُقتُم الحالَينِ أيُّهما أَحلَى

And I made you go from one state to another so you would know

Which of the two tastes sweeter

وَلمَّا استَجابَ النَّومُ لي قُلتُ مُسرِعاً

مكانَ انصرف يا لَيلُ يا لَيلُ قِف مَهلا

And when sleep responded to me I said hastily

Instead of leaving, oh night, oh night, wait a while

سَألتُكَ لا تَبرَح قَليلاً فإنَّني

سَأَلتُ الكَرى أَن يَهجُرَ الأعيُنَ النُّجلا

I asked you not to go for a little while for I

Asked fate to make eyes abandon sleep

وَإن كُنتَ ممَّن يَتَّقي لَحظاتها

فعِدها بِضَوءِ الصُّبحِ واستَعملِ المَطلا

And if you're one who avoids its glances

Replace it with the light of dawn and use the view

ويا زَمنَ العُشَّاقِ خُذها بِثارِهم

فَقَد أكثرَت في أهلِكَ الأسرَ والقَتلا

And oh time of lovers, take revenge for them

For you have captured many of your people and killed them

وأغيدَ أملَى طَرفه سِحرَ لَحظِهِ

عَلى لَفظِه حتَّى تَعلَّمَ ما استَملا

And he recited, his eyelid enchanted his utterance

Until it learned what it had dictated

عَجِبتُ وقَد رامَ النُّهوضَ لحِلمِهِ

كأن لَم يَكُن فيما مَضى يَعرِفُ الجَهلا

I'm amazed that when he got up to leave due to his forbearance

It was as if he never knew ignorance in the past

وَما كانَ حِلماً من رَأيتُ وإنَّما

تُحمِّلُهُ الأَردافُ من خلفِهِ ثِقلا

And it wasn't forbearance I saw in him, but rather

His backside carries a heavy load behind him

وللحبِّ غاياتٌ وأصعَبُها الرَّدى

وقَد صارَ عِندي عندَما نالَني سَهلا

And for love there are goals, the most difficult of which is infatuation

And it has become easy for me since it came to me effortlessly

سَماحةُ نَفسٍ بِالمنونِ جَعلتُها

لفَرعِ احتِجاجي عندَ مَن لامَني أَصلا

The generosity of a soul I have given to

The branch of my argument against those who blamed me

كأنَّ رَدىً عذَّبتُ قَلبي بِحبِّه

ندىً فَكأنِّي كنتُ في حُبِّهِ الفَضلا

As if with infatuation I have tortured my heart

A dew, so it's as if I was its merit in the first place

وما مِثلُهُ مِن قَبل جادَ وإنَّما

يُقالُ أتَى بالجودِ من عرفَ البُخلا

And no one like him was generous before, but rather

It is said he came with generosity from one who knew stinginess

ولَو لَم يَكُن بخلَ الزَّمانِ مُوفّداً

إِلَيهِ الوَرى وَفداً لأَلزَمَه الفِعلا

And if it weren't for the era's stinginess sending

The people delegation after delegation to him, he would've taken action

يُرى جودُه خَوفَ الغِنى عنه داعِياً

إِلى اللَّهِ أن لا يَرفَعَ القَحطَ والمَحلا

His generosity is seen urging poverty upon himself

To implore God not to lift the drought and famine

علَى أنَّه ما عاشَ في الأَرضِ ضَامِنٌ

إِذا ظمِئَت أن يَخلِفَ العارِضَ الوَبلا

For he does not live on earth guaranteeing

That if she thirsts he will make up for the absent rain

شَفيقاً عَلى أبنائِها متَعَطِّفاً

عَلى أهلِها حتَّى يَراهُم لَه أَهلا

Compassionate to her children, kind

To her people until he sees them as family

فَتىً حطَّتِ الآمالُ رَحلي بِبابِه

وما رَضيَت باباً تَحطُّ بِه رَحلا

A gallant man whose hopes my saddle unpacked at his door

And it would not accept any door to unpack at except his

لِكُلِّ رَبيعٍ فَصلُهُ ورَبيعُهُ

مُقيمٌ عَلَينا ما عَرَفنا لَه فَصلا

For every spring has its season, and its spring

Stays with us - we never knew it had a season

أَخو هِمَّةٍ طالَت عُلواً كأنَّها

دُعاءٌ مُجابٌ باتَ يَرفَعُ فاستَعلا

A brother of high ambitions that rise so high it is as if

They are a supplication that spends the night rising up wishing to ascend

وذكرٌ يَجولُ الأَرضَ حتَّى كأنَّه

يُحاوِلُ في هَذا الزَّمانِ لَه مِثلا

And a mention that roams the earth until it is as if

He is trying in this time to find its equivalent

وعَزمٌ إِذا نارُ الحَوادِثِ عُوقِبَت

عَلى حادِثٍ مِن فِعلِها فَبِهِ تُصلى

And determination - so if the fire of tribulations is punished

For an incident of its doing, it is prayed for through him

خلائِق تُبقي صالِحاً يا ابنَ صالِحٍ

مِن الذِّكرِ لا يَفنى بمُكثٍ ولا يَبلَى

Praiseworthy qualities make a righteous man live, oh son of the righteous

Through mention that does not fade with time or wear

وتَدنو مِن العافينَ حتَّى كأنَّها

ولا هَزلَ فيها تَجمع الجدَّ والهَزلا

And it draws near to the healthy until it is as if

There is no jest in bringing together seriousness and jest

عَجِبتُ لشِعرٍ صحَّ لي فيكَ نَظمُهُ

بِعَقلي ومَا عايَنتهُ يُبهِرُ العَقلا

I'm amazed by poetry whose meter was corrected for me by

My mind though I did not perceive it dazzling the mind

يُعرِّضُني للدَّهرِ صَرفٌ جَعَلتُهُ

وإِياكَ عِندَ الحَمدِ والذمِّ لي شُغلا

It makes me reject fate which I have made

Me and you, in praise or condemnation, busy

وما جارَتِ الأيامُ إِذ كانَ عدلُها

مِن الجَورِ لكِن جارَ من سامَها العَدلا

And the days have not been just when their justice

Meant injustice, but the one they wronged called for justice