لا يفتخر خدّاكِ بالجُلنار
فانَّ في قَلبي الشجي جُلَّ نار
Your cheeks' beauty is not boasted by the earrings,
For in my passionate heart there is abundant fire.
وَلا البَها فهو بِوَجهي وقد
زاد انظري هَذا البَها والبَهار
Neither by ornaments, for by my face they
Have increased, behold this ornament and ornament maker!
ولا نُحولِ الخصر جسمي لَهُ
مِثلٌ تُرى أَيُّهما مُستَعار
Nor by the bending of my waist towards it,
Both appear similar, which of them is borrowed?
وإِنَّما فخرُكِ أَن لم أُطِق
عنكِ كَما عني أَطقتِ اِصطبار
Rather, your pride is that I could not
Refrain from you, as you refrained patience from me.
واختصَّ بي دونِكِ فعلُ الهوى
كأَنَّهُ يَهواكِ من حَيثُ غار
And love singled me out, away from you,
As if it loves you from where it was jealous.
أَو لا فإِنّا شَرَعٌ والهَوى
يصرَعُ ذا الدرع وَذاتَ الإِزار
Or not, for it is a law, and passion
Defeats the armored one and the one wearing robe.
عَجِبتُ مِمَّن اشتَهي لمحَها
يرتدُّ عنها ناظري بانكسار
I was surprised by one who desired her glance
That my eyes recoil from it broken.
فهَل نزاعٌ بعدُ في أَنَّها
شَمسُ الضحى للطرفِ عنها ازورار
Is there then any dispute that she is
The sun of morning from which eyelids avert?
نورٌ لَهُ في الخدّ نارٌ بِنا
وَهَل يَكون النور من دون نار
A light that has in the cheek fire within us,
And can light be without fire?
قالوا سهرتَ اللَيل نَم في الضحى
مَن يَسهَرُ اللَيل يَنام النهار
They said you stayed up at night, so sleep in the morning,
Who stays up at night, sleeps in the day.
فَقُلتُ كفوا لَيسَ لي من ضحىً
فَتِلكَ شمسي لم تزل في اِستتار
So I said, enough! I have no morning,
For that is my sun that never ceased to hide.
وَلَّت فَهَذا الليل من شعرها
لا ينجَلي الّا بوجهٍ أَنار
It declined, so this night from her hair
Does not clear except with a face that illuminated.
او بسوادِ الحبرِ ممن لَهُ
فيهِ معانٍ كالضحى بانفجار
Or with black ink, from one who has
In it meanings, like the morning with its burst.
تكتبهُ كفٌّ يودُّ البقا
في قَلَمٍ فيها ابتغاءَ الجِوار
A hand writes it, wishing to remain
In a pen through which it seeks closeness.
يَكاد لا يَجري ولكنهُ
تخجِلُهُ عادةُ جريِ النُضار
It almost does not flow, but it is
Shy of the flowing of the exquisite.
بحرٌ بحور الشعر تجري بِها
يا مَن رأى في البحرِ تجري بحار
A sea, the seas of poetry flow through it
O you who saw in the sea seas flow!
اخو ودادٍ ثابِتٍ مثل لَو
نَ الزَهرِ لا كالزَهرِ في الإِنتثار
A brother in affection, steadfast, not like
Flowers, but like the rock in its firmness.
وَطيبُ اخلاقَ لمدَّاحِها
مُعجِزَةٌ عزَّ عليها اِقتدار
And the good manners of his praiser
A miracle he scarcely could match.
مَن منهُمُ احرزَها نَدعُهُ
بِالمتَنبي فالبِدار البِدار
Whoever among them obtained it, we call him
Al-Mutanabbi, so the best, the best!
ملكتَ قَلبي حين ملَّكتَني
قلبَكَ لي في الحالَتين اِفتخار
You possessed my heart when you possessed me
To you in both cases a pride.
حبٌّ تصافَينا عليهِ لِما
أَنّا عرفنا نفسنا باختبار
A love we agreed upon, because
We knew ourselves through testing.
حقَّقتُهُ فاردُد فؤادي وَخذ
قَلبَكَ أَو إِن شئتَ دع لي الخيار
I realized it, so take back my heart, and take
Your heart, or if you wish, leave me the choice.
