للهِ أرْبَعَةٌ مِنَ الدَّهرِ
حَسْبي بِها مِنْ جُملةِ العُمْرِ
Four from time are for God
They suffice me from the sum of life
سَمَحَ الزَّمانُ بِها عَلى بَخَلٍ
فِيهِ ووَفَّاها عَلى غَدْرِ
Time was gracious with them despite its stinginess
And fulfilled them despite its betrayal
لم يَنْتَبِهْ طَرْفُ الخَطوب لَها
حَتَّى انقَضَت فَدَرَتْ ولَمْ تَدْرِ
The eye of misfortunes was not alert to them
Until they passed, rolled away, and were not known
أعْجِبْ بها أيَّامَ مالقَةٍ
بَيْنَ المُنى وصَحابَةٍ غُرِّ
Wonder at days of encounter
Between yearning and companion of youth
ما شِئْتَ من حُسْنٍ ومن حَسَنٍ
ما شِئْتَ مِنْ شَمسٍ ومِنْ بدْرِ
Whatever beauty and charm you wished for
Whatever sun and moon you wished for
ما رُمْتَ من أمْنٍ ومِن أمَلٍ
مارُمْتَ مِنْ بُشَرٍ ومِنْ بِشْرِ
Whatever safety and hope you wished for
Whatever good news and tidings you wished for
عَفَّتْ ضَمائِرُنا فَظاهِرُنا
مُتشابِهُ الإعْلانِ والسِّرِّ
Our innermost thoughts are chaste so our outward selves
Are of similar openness and secrecy
وصَفتْ خَواطِرُنا فَباطِنُنا
مُتَمازِجٌ كالرَّاحِ والقَطْرِ
Our innermost thoughts are pure so our inward selves
Are intermingled like the wind and raindrops
يَسْعَى عَلَيْنا مُسْمِعٌ غَرِدٌ
يُغْنِيكَ عَنْ نُقْلٍ وعَنْ خَمْرِ
A melodious singer strives for us
His singing makes you needless of drinking and wine
يَثْني المَعاطِفَ حُسْنُ نَغْمَتِهِ
فِعْلَ النَّسيمِ بِغُصنِهِ النَّضْرِ
The beauty of his tune makes the branches
Sway like the breeze does to a green branch
يَتَلقَّفُ النَّغماتِ عَنْهُ رَشاً
أرْبَتْ مَحاسِنُهُ عَلى الحَصْرِ
He collects the notes that have fallen from him
His beauty has shackled creativity
فَيَصُوغُها رَقْصاً عَلى قَدَمٍ
كادَتْ تُبينُ مَعانِيَ الشِّعْرِ
He shapes them into a dance to the rhythm
Nearly making the meanings of poetry visible
قُلْ للقَضيبِ يُقيمُ مَعْطِفَهُ
إنْ كانَ لا يَدْرِي كما يدْرِي
Say to the critic to adjust his cloak
If he does not know as he should know
في رَوْضةٍ جَرَّ الربيعُ بِها
ذَيْلَ المَحاسِنِ أيَّما جَرِّ
In a garden the spring has dragged
The train of beauties whichever drag
مَطْروزةِ الأدْواحِ بالزَّهْرِ
مَحْفُوفَةِ الأكنافِ بالزُّهْرِ
Embroidered globes with flowers
Surrounded by flowers on all sides
تُهْدِيهِمُ من نَوْرِها قِطَعاً
ما صِغْنَ من وَرِقٍ ولا تِبْرِ
They grant fragments of their light
No small leaf or dust speck was created
لكِنَّهُ حُسْنٌ تَلوَّن لي
والحسنُ ألوانٌ فخُذْ عُذري
But it is a beauty that has varied hues for me
And beauty is of varying hues, so excuse me
عَبثَ النَّسيمُ بقُضبِها ثَمِلاً
فَتَعانَقَتْ خَصْراً إلى خَصْرِ
The breeze has toyed with it, laden
So they embraced waist to waist
والضَّمُّ يُعْدي اللَّثْمَ فابتَدَرَتْ
أزهارُها ثَغْراً عَلى ثَغْرِ
When pressed together, a kiss leads to a kiss
So its flowers stole a kiss from lip to lip
ولَرُبَّ لَثْمٍ كانَ أوَّلَهُ
ضَمٌّ وضَمٍّ جاءَ عَنْ سُكْرِ
And for many a kiss, its beginning
Was an embrace, and an embrace came from intoxication
ما احْوَلَّ عَيْنُ الباقِلا عَبَثاً
لِكنْ لِما بَصُرَتْ مِنَ الأمْرِ
The wide-eyed narcissus did not wink frivolously
But from what it saw of the situation
كلّا ولا صاحَتْ بَلابِلُها
قَبْلَ الأوانِ سِوى مِنَ القَهْرِ
Nor did its nightingales cry out
Before it was time, except from being overpowered
أفْدي لَيالِينا الَّتي سلَبَتْ
في ظِلِّها بِعَوارفِ الدَّهْرِ
I ransom our nights which robbed me
In their shadows, of life's etiquette
أعقابَ شَعْبانٍ عَجِبْتُ لَها
بِيْضاً نَصَلْنَ أواخِرَ الشَّهْرِ
The ends of Sha'ban amazed me
We attained whiteness by the month's end
ولَرُبَّ مَحْمُودٍ عَواقِبُهُ
لَمْ يَجْرِ أوَّلُهُ عَلى ذِكْرِ
And often the outcome of a praised thing
Its beginning did not flow with mention
لَوْلا التَّحَرُّجُ قُلْتُ رُتْبَتُها
في القَدْرِ رُتْبَةُ لَيْلَةِ القَدْرِ
Were it not for my embarrassment, I would say
Its sequence in fate is like Laylat Al-Qadr
ماإنْ ذَمَمْتُ لها سِوى عَجَلٍ
بالفَجْرِ قَبْلَ صَبيحةِ الفَجْرِ
I have no qualms with it except
Its hastiness at dawn before the dawn
