دعاني الهوى إذ شَرَّقَ الحيُّ غدوةً

وما كُنتُ تدعوني الخطوبُ الضَّعائِفُ

Love called me when dawn shone

And I was not called by trivial troubles

وهيَّج أحزاني حُمولٌ تَرَفَّعَت

عليهنَّ غِزلانٌ عليها الزَّخارِفُ

It stirred my sorrows, burdens haughtily carried

On them are beautiful gazelles and ornamentation

وبالأمسِ قد كانَت بَدَت ليَ طيرُهم

جَرَت بارِحاً لو زَجَّرَ الطيرَ عائِفُ

Just yesterday their birds appeared to me

They had flown freely, if only the returning birds were shooed

فيا قاتَلَ اللهُ الغواني فإنها

قريبٌ بَعيدٌ وَصلُهُنَّ تنائِفُ

Oh, may God destroy singers for they

Are near, far, and uniting them are overlaps

تراهُنَّ يختلن الأقاومَ بالصبا

وهُنّ على ما يختَتِلنَ سَخائِفُ

You see them wearing their best clothes in the morning breeze

Yet they are wearing what they wear lightly

بَكَرنَ فلم يُنجِزنَ وَعداً وَعَدنَه

إِلى البُخلِ تحدو ظَعنَهُنَّ المناصِفُ

They promised and did not fulfill their promise

Up to stinginess their defects are halved

وقد كانَ فيهِم ما دَنَوا لي نعمَةٌ

وقرةُ عينٍ دَمعُها اليومَ ذارِفُ

Among them was what had approached me of bounty

And the delight of an eye whose tears today are pouring

ومِن لذَّةِ الدنيا حَديثٌ ونعمةٌ

ولهوٌ وحاجاتٌ تُتلّى طرائِفُ

And of the bliss of life is talk, grace

Amusement and needs to fulfill diverse wishes

فَشَتَّ النوى من بَعدِ طولِ اقامةٍ

وما كُلُّ ما تهوى النُّفوسُ يُساعِفُ

The companions dispersed after long stay

And not all that souls desire gives double

فان أُمسِ قَد بُدِّلتُ حِلماً وشيبةً

مشيبيَ من بعدِ التَّبَختُر دالِفُ

Yesterday indeed my dream and old age were changed

My old age after youthful vigor is binding

فَكَم من حَبيبٍ بانَ نهوى جِماعَهُ

وخطب خطوبٍ كلَّفتني التَّكالِفُ

So how many a beloved whose gathering has appeared hateful

And a marriage proposal that cost me much trouble

وراحٍ سُلافٍ شَعشَعَ التَجرُ مَزجها

لنحمى وما فينا عن الشّربِ صادِفُ

And a departing caravan whose leader sparkled

To protect and among us there is no accord to drink

فصالوا وَصُلنا واتقَونا بماكِرٍ

ليعلمَ مافينا عن البَيعِ كانِفُ

So they departed and we kept ties with early rising

To know that among us there is no unwillingness to sell

فحطّوا إلينا شاصِياتٍ كأنها

مِن السِندِ مسلوبُ القميصِ رواعِفُ

So they lowered down to us slender ladies as if

Stripped of dress, plump, rosy forearms

فلما انتشينا عَدِّني من صديقِهِ

وعادَ الصَّبوحُ والشّواءُ السدائِفُ

When we woke we were reckoned among their friends

And the dawn and the late evenings returned

أذلك أم بيضاءُ مِلأُنسِ حُرَّةٌ

أتاها بِوِدِّ القَلبِ مني الخطاطِفُ

Is that so or is it a white pleasant company

Brought by my heart’s love to it yearnings

لها رَوضَةٌ في القَلبِ لم يَرعَ مثلَها

فَروكٌ ولا المستعبراتُ الصلائِفُ

It has a meadow in the heart that the like of it was not grazed

By cows or shepherds driving lean sheep

أرى الحَقَّ لا يعيى عليَّ سبيلُه

إذا ضافني ليلاً مع القَرِّ ضائِف

I see right does not tire against me in its way

When night lodges me with the bell ringer

إذا كَبَّدَ النجمُ السماءَ بشَتوةٍ

على حين هَرَّ الكلبُ والثَّلجُ خاشِفُ

When the star burdens the sky with extreme cold

While the dog barks and snow falls noisily

ربيعةُ أبائي الأُلى اقتسموا العلى

إذا عُدَّ باقٍ من زمانٍ وسالِفُ

My forefathers, the lofty Ulayys divided the heights

If any remainder of eras and bygones is counted

وتغلِبُ بَحري طَمَّ سيلاً بأبحُرٍ

فلم يَستَطِع تيارَهُنَّ المجاذِفُ

And my sea overcomes seas with floods

Their currents could not be contained by oars

وبَكرٌ وعبدُ القيسِ اخوتُنا معاً

كفتنا لُكَيزٌ منهُمُ والحَنائِفُ

And Bakr and Abdul Qays are our brothers together

Preventing for us the Letters and the Hanifs

وعِيلان منا يَومَ كُلَّ كريهَة

وتحلب غُزراً يَومَ تُدعى الخَنادِفُ

And our sons are on every terrible day

And milk abundantly the day midwives are called

ومن خَندِفَ الداعي الرسولُ الى الهدى

ومِنّا الامامُ والنجومُ العواكِفُ

And the one who called to right guidance by the message is from us

And the imam and the devoted worshipping stars

أخوكَ الذي لا تملك الحِسَّ نفسُه

وترفضُّ عند المحفظاتِ الكتائِفُ

Your brother whom the soul cannot stand

And refuses when safeguarded scriptures are recited

فَنَحنُ الزِّمامُ القائدُ المُهتدي بهم

ومِن غيرنا المولى التبيعُ المحالِفُ

For we are the reins, the guided leader

And without us the Lord of might takes a different course

إذا اصطَك رأسانا حلَلَنا بباذخٍ

برُكنيهِ تعتاذُ التوالي الزعانيفُ

When our heads knock they permit us with generosity

His buttresses wearing consecutive saddle pads

ونحن تَروحُ الخيلُ وَسطَ بيوتنا

ويَغبُقنَ مَحضا وهي مَحلٌ مَسانِف

And we are where horses roam amidst our homes

And neigh abundantly when they are in their stalls