ويحَ الفقيرِ فما تراه يُلاقي

سُدَّت عليه منافذُ الأرزاقِ

Alas for the poor man, for what he endures

The means of livelihood are closed to him

عصَفت به و بِسْرِبِه ريحُ الشَّقا

فتساقطُوا كتساقُطِ الأوراق

The winds of misery blew upon him and his flock

And they fell like falling leaves

فإذا بصُرتَ به عجبتَ لشمعَةٍ

كالزَّعفران تجولُ في الأسواق

When you see him, you are amazed at a candle

Like saffron wandering in the markets

عَلَقُ المجاعةِ مَصَّ بعضَ دمائه

وتعسُّفُ الحُكَّام مصَّ الباقي

The grip of famine sucked some of his blood

And the injustice of rulers sucked the rest

أخذَ الشَّقا يدَها فسارت خَلفَه

واللّيلُ ممدُودٌ على الآفاق

Misery took his hand, so he walked behind her

While the night stretched across the horizons

سارت، فماسَ الخيزرانُ بقدِّها

وَ رَنَتْ، فذابَ السِّحرُ في الأحداق

She walked, and her dress did not touch her ankles

She moaned, and the magic melted in the eyelids

وتلوحُ آثارُ النَّعيم بخدِّها

كالفجر قبل تكاملِ الإشراق

And the traces of bliss on her cheek

Shone like the dawn before full daybreak

أخذ الشَّقا يدَها فإن هي فكَّرت

بمصيرها صُعِقَت من الإشفاق

Misery took his hand, so if she had thought

Of her fate, she would have collapsed in horror

ووهتْ عزيمتُها فألقتْ نفسَها

فوق الثَّرى وشكتْ إلى الخلاَّق

And her determination faltered, so she threw herself

On the ground and complained to the Creator

تشكو بمدْمعِها و ذُلّ فؤادها

وبما تُحسُّ به منَ الإحراق

She complains with her tears and the agony of her heart

And what she feels of burning

يا ربِّ قالت وهْي جاثيةٌ لهُ

إن شئتَ حُلَّ من الحياة وثاقي

O Lord, she said, kneeling before Him

If you wish, untie the knot of my life

قد عشتُ عُمري ما عُرفتُ بريبةٍ

وعبدتُ بعدكَ عفَّتي و خَلاقي

I have lived my life without any shame

And after You, worshipped my chastity and ethics

والآنَ والأيامُ ملأى بالأذى

قد أصبحتْ وِقْراً على الأعناق

But now, and the days are full of harm

I have become a burden around the necks

زوجي يُحارب في التُّخوم وطفلتي

فوق الفراشِ تزيدُ في إرهاقي

My husband fights on the borders, and my little daughter

Lies in bed, increasing my distress

مِنْ أمِّها تبغي الغِذاء لجسمها

من أمِّها تبغي الدَّواء الواقي

From her mother she seeks food for her body

And from her mother the protective remedy

وطَرقتُ أبوابَ الكرام فأوصدوا

أبوابَهُمْ فرَجَعْتُ بالإخفاق

And I knocked on the doors of the noble, but they bolted

Their doors, so I returned in failure

سامَ الفتى عِرضي فيا لكَ من فتىً

كاسي الغنى عَارٍ مِنَ الأخلاق

The young man offered money for my honor - what a young man!

Wearing the garment of wealth, but devoid of morals

هَبْ أنَّ أُختَكَ والزَّمانُ أصابها

مثلي أصابت سافلَ الأعراق

Imagine your sister, and the times have befallen her

What has befallen the lowest of the low

أفكان سَرّكَ أن ترى إحسانَهُ

ثَمن العفَافِ لضمَّةٍ و عِناق

Would it please you to see his charity

As the price of chastity for an embrace and a hug?

خَفِّفْ على عُنُقي الضَّعيفةِ واتّئدْ

إني رأيتُكَ آخذاً بخناقي

Lighten the burden on my weak neck, and refrain

From choking me, for I have seen you grasp my throat

إنَّ الرِّيال غِنىً ولكن عِفَّتي

فوق الغنى ونفائس الأعْلاق

The money is wealth, but my chastity

Is above wealth and the finest treasures

أأصونُ عِرضي؟ وابنتي؟ وحياتُها

وعلاجها يحتاجُ للإنفاق

Should I protect my honor? And my daughter? And her life?

And her treatment needs spending?

أنا إن أعفَّ قتلتُها فعَلامَ لا

تحيا بماءِ تَعَفُّفِي المُهراق

If I were chaste, I would have killed her, so why should she not

Live by the water of my streaming chastity?

لا لا تموتُ فإنَّها لبريئةٌ

حسناءُ ما شبَّتْ عن الأطواق

No, no, let her not die, for she is innocent

A beautiful girl, not yet fully grown

إني مُفارقَةُ ابنتي أو عِفَّتي

فعلى كلا الحالينِ مُرُّ فراقِ

Parting from my daughter or my chastity

Is bitter in both cases

والذَّنبُ للأيَّام في حدَثَانها

والذَّنبُ للأخلاق غيرُ رواقي

And the blame is on the days for their novelty

And the blame is on the ethics, not solid

ربّاهُ حِلمكَ فالمصائبُ جمَّةٌ

وأنا بواحدةٍ يضيقُ نطاقي

O Lord, Your forbearance, for calamities abound

And I am overwhelmed by just one

لو شئتَ موتاً لابنتي لأخذتَها

وجعلتَ طُهري قُدْوةً لرفاقي

If You wished death for my daughter, You could have taken her

And made my purity a role model for my peers

لكن ْأردتَ بقاءها وأردتَ لي

فقري أتُظمِئُني وأنتَ السَّاقي؟

But You wanted her to live, and You wanted for me

My poverty - will You quench my thirst when You are the Giver?

وَمَشَتْ لموعده بماء جُفُونها الـ

ـقَرْحَى وَجَمْرِ فُؤادها الخفَّاق

And she went to the appointment with the tears of her eyes and

The embers and burning of her fervent heart

ترعى السَّفالةُ في مَجاهلِ قَلبه

وتُطلُّ إن شَبعَتْ منَ الآماق

The vulgar peep into the darkness of his heart

And emerge when satiated from the depths

ومتى يُحاولْ حَجبَ مَكْنوناتِه

يُلبِسْ مُحَيَّاهُ حجابَ نفاق

And when he tries to conceal his secrets

He adorns his appearance with the garment of hypocrisy

قنصَ الفتاةَ بفقرها وشقائها

«وبما تكابد من أسىً وتُلاقي»

He hunted the girl with her poverty and misery

"And what she endures of sorrow and tribulation"

حتى إذا اختليا انثنى بوصالها

وقد انثنتْ بِريالِهِ البرَّاق

Until when alone, he embraced her

And she embraced his shiny riyal

رَجَعَت وفي يدها الرِّيالُ ورأسُها

لحيائها متواصلُ الإطراق

She returned, the riyal in her hand, and her head

Bowed in shame, constantly lowering her gaze

وكأنّها خطرت لها ابنتُها وما

تلقاه من ألم الطَّوى المِقْلاق

As if the thought of her daughter crossed her mind, and what

She was suffering from the pain of yearning

فأصابها مثلُ الجُنُون فتَمْتَمَتْ

بُشراكِ إني عُدتُ بالتِّرياق

So she was struck with a kind of madness, and mumbled

This riyal is good, for it is what

هُو ذا الرِّيالُ فإنَّه نِعْمَ الذي

يَهَبُ الشفاءَ لنا ونعمَ الرَّاقي

Grants us healing, and an excellent healer

The darkness of worries, answering my needs

هُو ذا الرِّيالُ وقد تألَّقَ ماحقاً

دُجنَ الهموم وقد أردنَ مُحاقي

It would have refused me outright

And she went to the cook to restrain what was within her

هو ذا الرِّيالُ ولم يكُن لولا ابنتي

ليَسومَني نُكْراً على الإطلاق

Of the agony of passions for her daughter

She said, handing him the riyal, come, give me

ومضتْ إلى الطَّبَّاخ تلجمُ ما بها

لِفَتاتِها من لاعج الأشواق

Some food, and give me back the remainder

Hurry, for if you delay me, my daughter will taste

قالت وأدَّتْهُ الرِّيالَ ألا اعْطِني

بعضَ الغِذا واردُدْ عليَّ الباقي

From her hunger, a bitter experience

He held the riyal between his fingers and felt it

أسرعْ فإنَّكَ إن تُؤخِّرْني تذُقْ

من جُوعها بنتي أمرَّ مذاق

And he shouted and screamed

Shame on you, sir! Do you insult me

نَقَفَ الرِّيالَ بإصبَعَيهِ وَجَسَّهُ

وانهالَ بالإرعاد والإبراق

And take me for a thief?

No! Is the riyal counterfeit? Counterfeit?

قُبحاً لوجهكِ سَيِّدي أتَسُبُّني

عفواً وتَحْسَبُني منَ السُّرَّاق؟

She cried, and collapsed from exhaustion

She fell at the feet of misfortune and wept for her

لا فالرِّيالُ مُزَيَّفٌ أمُزيَّفٌ؟

صاحتْ وقد سَقَطت منَ الإرهاق

The All-Seeing eye and the noble morals wept

The chastity of gentlewomen wept for her chastity

سقَطت على قَدم الشَّقا فبكتْ لها

عينُ العلى ومكارم الأخلاق

That slipped through the fingers with a streaming tear

O bird of her chastity, I sacrifice myself for you, o bird

وبكى عَفَافُ الآنساتِ عفافَها

خلَلَ السُّجوفِ بمدمعٍ مُهراق

Why did you not warn against the snares of the debauched?

The sun rose while she was imprisoned

يا طيرَ عفَّتِها فديتُكَ طائراً

هلاَّ حذِرتَ حبائلَ الفُسّاق

And her daughter was a guest in the markets

As for the sinner, his nets are still

طَلَعتْ عليها الشَّمسُ وهْي سَجينةٌ

وفتاتُها ضَيفٌ على الأسواق

Spread for the glances of the sleepless eyes

He is quenched with cups and gazes

أمَّا الأثيمُ فلا تزالُ شباكُهُ

مَنصُوبةً لنواعس الأحداق

While God suffices, "and He is the best Guardian"

يُسقى الرَّحيقَ بأكؤُسٍ ولواحظٍ

واللهُ يكلأُ «وهْوَ نِعمَ الواقي»