يا ربَّ وادٍ بِهِ النَسيمُ

سرى مع الماءِ اذ سَرى

O Lord of a valley wherein blows the breeze

It flows with the water as it flows

يهرُبُ منهُ فَلا يُقيمُ

وهو لَهُ قد تأَثَّرا

It escapes from it, neither staying

While it is affected by it

وادٍ بِهِ الماءُ قد تدفَّق

كأَنَّهُ دمعُ عاشقِ

A valley wherein water has gushed

As if it were tears of a lover

وَالطيرُ فَوقَ الغصون صفَّق

مثل المحبِّ المُفارقِ

And birds above the branches chirped

Like a lover who is separated

فكُلُّ غصنٍ عليهِ اشفَق

فَباتَ محني المَفارقِ

So every branch it pitied

Thus it stayed bent from separation

كأَنَّما وجدهُ قَديمُ

فَهو محبٌّ تذكَّارا

As if it had found it an old friend

Thus it is a lover, remembering

تَمَلمُلٌ منهُ مُستَديمُ

لَهُ وَنوحٌ تكرَّرا

A constant writhing from it

With crying repeating for it

لا بل كأَنَّ الطيور لَمّا

تَراقبَصَت تحتها الغصون

Nay, but as if the birds, when

They fluttered beneath the branches

حنَّت فتصفيقهنَّ مِمّا

سُررنَ لا من جَرى الشجون

Bent, so their chirping was from

Joy, not from flowing sorrows

ومن سرورٍ بها أَلَمّا

غَنَّت بما طابَ من لحون

And from a joy in them sometimes

They sang with melodious tones

وَالغصنُ لَمّا اِنحنى يَرومُ

أَن يَرقُبَ الماءَ اذ جَرى

And the branch, when it bent, it intended

To watch the water as it flowed

غِذاؤُهُ اذ بِهِ يَقومُ

يَشربُهُ دونهُ الثرى

Its nourishment, as by it it stood

Drinking it, unlike the soil

أَما تَرى الغصنَ كيفَ مالا

بِهِ على ضعفهِ الهَوا

Do you not see how the branch inclined

With it in its weakness the air

كأَنَّهُ عاشِقٌ توالى

عليهِ وجدٌ بِهِ هَوتى

As if it were a lover who continued

Upon it an ardor that impassioned it

مال بِهِ الحُبُّ مُستَمالا

كِلاهُما مال بالهَوى

The love bent it, exerting allurement

Both inclined with passion

وَجسمهُ ناحلٌ سَقيمُ

كالعودِ مِمّا تَحسّرا

And its body is emaciated, frail

Like a lute from what distressed it

وعندهُ المُقعِدُ المُقيمُ

مِمّا بِهِ في الهوى جرى

And it has one sitting by it

From what in love transpired for it