بيد العفاف أَصون عز حجابي

وِبِعِصمَتي أَسمو عَلى أَترابي

With chastity I guard the honor of my veil,

And with my virtue I rise above my peers.

وَبِفِكرَة وَقادَة وَقَريحة

نَقادَة قَد كَمَلَت آدابي

With intellect, leadership and talent -

My manners perfected and refined.

وَلَقَد نَظَمت الشِعرَ شيمَة مَعشَر

قَبلى ذَوات الخُدور وَالاِحساب

And I have composed poetry as a trait,

Of my genteel people of repute and prestige.

ما قُلتُه الافكاهة ناطِق

يَهوى بَلاغَة مَنطِق وَكِتاب

I say only eloquent words,

Seeking excellence in speech and writing.

فَبِنِيَّة المهدى وَلَيلى قُدوَتي

وَبِفِطنَتي أَعطي فَصل خطابي

With Naiya's grace and Layla's example,

And with my wisdom I deliver my discourse.

لِلَّهِ در كَواعِب منوالها

نَسج العُلا لِعَوانِس وَكِعاب

Praise be to God for the inspiration,

That wove majesty for the exalted ladies.

وَخَصَّصَت بِالدُر الثَمين وَحامَت ال

خَنساء في صَخر وجوب صِعاب

She adorned with precious pearls, and protected -

Al-Khansa in the rock of rugged terrain.

فَجَعَلَت مِرآنى جَبين دَفاتِري

وَجَعَلَت من نقش المداد خضابي

She made my forehead the mirror of my notebooks,

And made ink decoration for my hands.

كم زَخرَفَت وَجنات طرسى أَنملى

بعذار خط أَواهاب شَباب

How my fingers have adorned the gardens of Tarasa,

With the bracelets' touch of youthful palms.

وَلَكُم زها شَمع الذكا وَتَضوعَت

بِعَبيرِ قَولى رَوضَة الاِحباب

For you the light of glory shone, and exuded -

In the meadow of loved ones, the scent of my words.

منطقت ربات اِلَيها بِمَناطِق

يَغبطها في حضرتي وَغِيابي

I have gifted the ladies with eloquence,

That makes them envy me whether present or absent.

وَحَلَّلَت في نادى الشُعور ذَوائِبا

عَرَفت شَعائِر ما ذو الاِنساب

And I have solved in the gathering of passions,

The rituals of genealogy and lineage.

عوذت مِن فِكري فُنون بَلاغَتي

بِتَميمَة غَرا وَحرز حِجاب

I have sought refuge for my ideas in the arts of rhetoric,

With a talisman of honor and veil of modesty.

ما ضَرَّني أَدبي وَحُسنُ تَعَلُّمي

الا يَكونى زَهرَة الاِلباب

Neither my education nor learning,

Harmed me, but made me the flower of reason.

ما ساءَني خدري وَعَقد عِصابَتي

وَطَرازُ ثَوبي وَاِعتِزاز رَحابي

Neither my bashfulness, nor fastening of my headscarf,

Nor the style of my dress and pride of my abode.

ما عاقَني خَجلي عَن العليا وَلا

سَدل الخِمار بِلِمَّتي وَنِقابي

Neither my shyness from the sublime,

Nor dropping the veil with my sign and mask.

عَن طي مِضمار الرَهان اِذا اِشتَكَت

صَعب السِياق مطامح الرِكاب

From entering the racecourse when the path,

Became difficult for the hopes of the riders.

بَل صَولَتي في راحَتي وَنفرسى

في حُسنِ ما أَسعى لِخَير مَآب

Rather my ferocity in comfort and my vigor,

In seeking the best outcome of my efforts.

ناهيكَ من سر مَصون كنهَه

شاعَت غَرابَتِه لَدى الاِغراب

Not to mention the secret well preserved,

Whose strangeness spread amongst strangers.

كَالمِسكِ مَختوم بِدُرج خَزائِن

وَيَضوع طيبُ طيبِهِ بِمَلاب

Like musk sealed in treasure chests,

Its beautiful scent permeates the wrappings.

أَو كَالبِحار حوت جَواهِر لُؤلُؤ

عَن مَسِّها شَلت يَد الطلاب

Or like the sea where pearls of treasure lie,

That made the seeker's hand go limp.

در لِشَوق نَوالِها وَمَنالُها

كَم كابِد الغَواس فَصل عَذاب

Praise the longing and attaining,

That made the diver suffer such torment.

وَالعَنبَر المَشهود وافَق صونَها

وَشُؤنَه تَتلى بِكُل كِتاب

And commended chastity befitted her,

As told in every scripture.

فَأَنَرتَ مِصباح البَراعَةِ وَهيَ لي

مَنح الا لَهُ مَواهِب الوَهاب

You have lit the lamp of eloquence, and it is for me,

A gift from the Giver of Gifts.