أَديرا عَليَّ الراحَ لا تَشرَبا قَبلي
وَلا تَطلُبا مِن عِندِ قاتِلَتي ذَحلي
Turn away from me, O breeze, and do not drink before me,
And do not seek from my killer any consolation for me,
فَما حَزَني أَنّي أَموتُ صَبابَةً
وَلَكِن عَلى مَن لا يَحِلُّ لَهُ قَتلي
It does not grieve me that I die young,
But that my death comes from one unworthy to kill me.
أُحِبُّ الَّتي صَدَّت وَقالَت لِتُربِها
دَعيهِ الثُرَيّا مِنهُ أَقرَبُ مِن وَصلي
I love she who turned me away and said to her friends,
"Leave him be, he is close in lineage to generosity."
أَماتَت وَأَحيَت مُهجَتي فَهيَ عِندَها
مُعَلَّقَةٌ بَينَ المَواعيدِ وَالمُطلِ
She who revived and killed my love, it is with her
Suspended between promises and separation.
وَما نِلتُ مِنها نائِلاً غَيرَ أَنَّني
بِشَجوِ المُحِبّينَ الأُلى سَلَفوا قَبلي
I gained nothing from her but to join
The wretched lovers who came before me.
بَلى رُبَّما وَكَّلتُ عَيني بِنَظرَةٍ
إِلَيها تَزيدُ القَلبَ خَبلاً عَلى خَبلِ
Yes, perhaps I set my eyes to glance at her
Increasing the heart’s confusion upon confusion.
كَتَمتُ تَباريحَ الصَبابَةِ عاذِلي
فَلَم يَدرِ ما بي فَاِستَرَحتُ مِنَ العَذلِ
I hid my youthful complexion slighting my beauty
So it did not know my state and I was relieved of blame.
وَمانِحَةٍ شُرّابَها المُلكَ قَهوَةٍ
مَجوسِيَّةِ الأَنسابِ مُسلِمَةِ البَعلِ
A coffee-pourer whose king drinks from her hands,
Magian in ancestry, Muslim in husband,
رَبيبَةِ شَمسٍ لَم تُهَجنَ عُروقُها
بِنارٍ وَلَم يُقطَع لَها سَعفُ النَخلِ
A radiant sun whose roots were not burnt
By fire, nor any frond cut from her palms,
تَصُدُّ بِنَفسِ المَرءِ عَمّا يَغُمُّهُ
وَتُنطِقُ بِالمَعروفِ أَلسِنَةَ البُخلِ
She wards off the grief of men, and makes
The tongues of the miserly speak good,
قَدِ اِستُودِعَت دَنّاً لَها فَهوَ قائِمٌ
بِها شَفَقاً بَينَ الكُرومِ عَلى رِجلِ
She was entrusted with wealth so he stands guard
Over her between vineyards on sturdy legs.
بَعَثنا لَها مِنّاً خَطيباً لِبُضعِها
فَجاءَ بِها يَمشي العِرضَنَة في مَهلِ
We sent to her a suitor for her hand
Who brought her walking leisurely and unhurried,
رَقى رَبَّها حَتّى اِحتَواها مُغالِياً
عَقيلَتَهُ دونَ الأَقارِبِ وَالأَهلِ
Her Lord ascended until He contained her exclusively,
Above kin and family.
فَوافى بِها عَذراءَ كُلَّ فَتى نَدَىً
جَزيلَ العَطايا غَيرَ نِكسٍ وَلا وَغلِ
So she came to every youth a virgin of generous gifts
Neither destitute nor stingy nor deceitful,
مُعَتَّقَةً لا تَشتَكي وَطءَ عاصِرٍ
حَرورِيَّةً في جَوفِها دَمُها يَغلي
Freed, never complaining of being confined,
Passionate, her blood boiling inside her,
أَغارَت عَلى كَفِّ المُديرِ بِلَونِها
فَصاغَت لَهُ مِنها أَنامِلَ كالذَّبلِ
She envied the cupbearer for his complexion
And molded for him from it slender fingers like dry twigs
أَماتَت نُفوساً مِن حَياةٍ قَريبَةٍ
وَفاتَت فَلَم تُطلَب بِتَبلٍ وَلا ذَحلِ
She killed souls nearing life, and they were lost
Without ransoms or entreaties offered for them,
شَقَقنا لَها في الدَّنِ عَيناً فَأَسبَلَت
كَما أَسبَلَت عَينُ الخَريدِ بِلا كُحلِ
We split open a spring for her in the valley, so it flowed
Freely like the eye of Kharid without kohl,
كَأَنَّ حَبابَ الماءِ حينَ يَشُجُّها
لَآلِئُ عِقدٍ في دَماليجَ أَو حِجلِ
As if the drops of water were pearls of a necklace
In bracelets or anklets when she disturbed it,
كَأَنَّ فَنيقاً بازِلاً شُكَّ نَحرُهُ
إِذا ما اِستَدَرَّت كَالشُعاعِ عَلى البَزلِ
As if a tender, slender oryx, whose neck rings
Were turned, like rays glancing off ivory,
كَأَنَّ ظِباءً عُكَّفاً في رِياضِها
أَباريقُها أَوجَسنَ قَعقَعَةَ النَبلِ
As if a gazelle gathered in her meadows
And her vessels clinked with the tinkling of anklets,
ظَلِلنا نُناغي الخُلدَ في مَشرَعِ الصِبا
عَلَينا سَماءُ العَيشِ دائِمَةُ الهَطلِ
We took shade to enjoy eternity in the yard of youth
Above us, the sky of life ever raining,
وَدارَت عَلَينا الكَأسُ مِن كَفِّ طَفلَةٍ
مُبتَلَّةٍ حَوراءَ كَالرَشَءِ الطَّفلِ
And the cup circulated among us from the hand of a maiden
Pure, graceful like the soft calf,
وَحَنَّ لَنا عودٌ فَباحَ بِسِرِّنا
كَأَنَّ عَلَيهِ ساقَ جارِيَةٍ عُطلِ
And the lute sang to us as if it related
The laments of bereaved women weeping for their lost ones,
تُضاحِكُهُ طَوراً وَتُبكيهِ تارَةً
خَدَلَّجَةٌ هَيفاءُ ذاتُ شَوىً عَبلِ
One moment laughing at it, another crying,
A coquette, slender, of even teeth, twisted locks,
إِذا ما اِشتَهَينا الأُقحُوانَ تَبَسَّمَت
لَنا عَن ثَنايا لا قِصارٍ وَلا ثُعلِ
When we desired wine, she smiled at us
From lips neither short nor thick,
وَأَسعَدَها المِزمارُ يَشدو كَأَنَّهُ
حَكى نائِحاتٍ بِتنَ يَبكينَ مِن ثُكَلِ
And the flute made happiest the one who wept
As if telling of a bereaved woman wailing her loss,
غَدَونا عَلى اللَذّاتِ نَجني ثِمارَها
وَرُحنا حَميدي العَيشِ مُتَّفِقي الشَكلِ
We went at daybreak to gather its fruits,
And we lived, praiseworthy lives, similar in appearance,
أَقامَت لَنا الصَهباءُ صَدرَ قَناتِها
وَمالَت عَلَينا بِالخَديعَةِ وَالخَتلِ
The blond one offered us her breast sincerely
And leaned toward us with guile and cunning,
إِذا ما عَلَت مِنّا ذُؤابَةَ شارِبٍ
تَمَشَّت بِهِ مَشيَ المُقَيَّدِ في الوَحلِ
When the craze of a drinker rose in one of us
She walked with him with the gait of one fettered in mud,
فَلا نَحنُ مِتنا ميتَةَ الدَهرِ بَغتَةً
وَلا هِيَ عادَت بَعدَ عَلِّ إِلى نَهلِ
Neither did we die suddenly the death of fate,
Nor did she return, after that rising, to the stream,
وَساقِيَةٍ كَالريمِ هَيفاءَ طَفلَةٍ
بَعيدَةِ مَهوى القُرطِ مُفعَمَةِ الحِجلِ
And a cupbearer like a gazelle, slender and delicate,
Far from the anklet, her bracelets full,
تَنَزُّهُ طَرَفَي في مَحاسِنِ وَجهُها
إِذا اِحتُثَّتِ الطاساتُ يُغنى عَنِ النُقلِ
Her eyes would wander over the beauty of her face
When the bangles were moved, making rouge unnecessary,
سَأَنقادُ لِلَّذاتِ مُتَّبِعَ الصِبا
لِأُمضِيَ هَمّي أَو أُصيبَ فَتىً مِثلي
I will follow the pleasures of youth,
To fulfill my desire, or meet a lad like me.
هَلِ العَيشُ إِلّا أَن أَروحَ مَعَ الصِبا
وَأَغدوا صَريعَ الراحِ وَالأَعيُنِ النُجلى
Is life anything but to wander with youth
And become a victim of the breeze and smiling eyes?
