جُيوشُ الهوى والحُزْنِ تَقتادُ أَدْمُعي

وشَوقي وتَذْكاري وآيات مَرْبَعي

The armies of passion and sorrow lead my tears,

And my longing, memories, and odes.

وما لِي وما لِلبَانِ، قد بانَ عَهْدُهُ

ووَلَّى هَوى الغِزْلانِ مِن بين أَضْلُعِي

What is left for me and for separation, its era has ended,

And the love of the gazelles has turned from my ribs.

إلى (قاعةِ الزَّهراءِ) لَبَّيْتُ مُحْرِمًا

ووَلّادَتي بَيْتُ القَصيدِ المُرَّصَعِ

To the Hall of Al-Zahra’ I vowed as a pilgrim,

And my ode is the ornamented house of poetry.

وقُرْطُبَةُ بَيتُ ابنِ زَيدونَ وِجْهَتي

وبُستانُها والدَّهْرُ ما بينَ أَذْرُعي

And Cordoba is the house of Ibn Zaydun - my destination,

And its garden - while life lies between my arms.

كساها وحَيَّاها الحَيا مِن ثِيابِهِ

وأَغْدَقَها بِالرِّيِّ مِنْ كُلِّ مَشْرَعِ

It clothed it and gave it life with its clothes,

And poured over it abundant water from every outlet.

إليْها، ولي فيها مَعانٍ عَشِقْتُها

كعِشْقِي لِمَنْ كانتْ عُيوني ومَسْمَعي

To it, though I have passionate meanings I loved,

Like my love for her who was my eyes and hearing.

لِتِلكَ الَّتي تَسبي الفُؤادَ بِطَرْفِها

وفي وَجْنَتَيْها مُهْجَةُ القَلبِ تَرْتَعي

For she who captures hearts with a glance,

And in her cheeks my heart’s love grazes.

أُواري وأُخْفِي اِسْمَها عندَ ذِكْرِها

كما تَخْتَفي أشواقُها خَلْفَ أَدْمُعي

I hide and conceal her name when she is mentioned,

Just as her passions hide behind my tears.

ولِلصَّبْرِ أَثوابٌ تَشِفُّ إذا بكى

مُحِبٌّ، وحاشا صادقُ الحُبِّ يَدَّعِي

Patience has rewards that comfort when a lover cries,

And far from the truth is he who claims to love sincerely!

وكلٌّ له (ولَّادةٌ) غيرَ أنّني

أُداري الهَوى الغَلّابَ جَهْلًا ولا أَعِي

Though each has an obsession, I fight

Passionate love ignorantly, not knowing.

سَلامٌ على حُبٍّ تَقَضَّى وما انْقَضَتْ

عذاباتُه كأسًا مِنَ الجَمرِ مُتْرَعِ

Peace upon love that is fulfilled, though its

Torments as a cup of embers have not ended.

تَجَرَّعْتُ مِن غَدْرِ الحَبيبِ وظُلْمِهِ

مآسي الهوى يا بِئْسَهُ مِن تَجَرُّعِ

I have tasted the betrayal and injustice of the loved one,

The tragedies of passion - how bitter is its taste!

ورَوَّعَني حتّى فَنيتُ مرارةً

ولِلحبِّ أحكامُ الزَّمانِ المُرَوِّعِ

It frightened me until I withered, bitterness,

And for love the judgments of frightening time.

تقولُ: وقد مالَتْ عَلَيَّ تَدَلُّلًا

أما زِلْتَ مَفْتونًا بِعِطْري ومِخْدَعِي

You say, leaning towards me flirtatiously -

Are you still infatuated by my scent and charm?

ولانَتْ وقدْ أَرْخَتْ دُموعَ نَدامَةٍ

وفي خَدِّها بَعضُ اصفرارِ التَّفَزُّعِ

You softened and shed tears of regret,

With some paleness of fear on your cheek.

وفي وَجْنَتَيْها مِن دُموعٍ كَذُوبةٍ

عَلاماتُ كُحْلٍ للبراءةِ تَدَّعي

In her cheeks, from fake tears,

Are kohl marks pretending innocence.

أَتَحْلِفُ بِاللهِ الّذي أنتَ عَبْدُهُ

بأنَّكَ لم تَغْدِرْ، ولم تَتَمَتَّعِ؟!

Do you swear by God whom you worship

That you have not betrayed, nor taken pleasure?!

وأنتَ سَليلُ المَجْدِ مِن آلِ (حِمْيَرٍ)

(وذي يَزنٍ) والقَيلِ (سيفٍ) (وتُبَّعِ)

You are a descendant of glory from the family of Himyar,

Yazan, Sayf, and Tubba'.

فقلتُ لها لا أكذبُ اللهَ إنّني

فَطَمْتُ فُؤادي عَنْ هَوَى كُلِّ مُوجِعِ

So I said to her: I do not lie to God - I

Have weaned my heart from the love of anything hurting.

وهذا ابنُ زيدون المُعَنَّى يقولُ لِي

فوَلّادَةٌ تَهْوَى حَياةَ التَّسَكُّعِ

And this Ibn Zaydun says to me:

An obsession that loves the life of wandering.

تُبادلُ أَلْفًا بِالغرامِ وبالهوى

ولِلْبَغْيِ أَلْفا عاشِقٍ عِنْد مَضْجَعِي؟

You exchange a thousand for passion and love,

While for separation, a thousand lovers lie in my bed?!

لقد كَنْتُ جَوَّابَ الزَّمانِ، وها أنا

أرى الدَّهْرَ أمسى قَدْرَ مِتْرٍ مُرَبَّعِ

I was fate’s responder, but now I see

Fate has become an inanimate, square pot.

متى نلتقي بعد الفراقِ؟ تَساءَلَتْ

ومَنْ ذا يُعِيدُ الحُبَّ مِن بَعْدِ ما نُعِي؟

When will we meet after the separation? she asked.

And who will restore love after it is mourned?

أُقَلِّبُ أَحشاءَ الهواجِسِ عَلَّني

أراها بَرَاءً في ثيابِ التَّضَرُّعِ

I churn the innards of anxieties, hoping

To see her innocent in clothes of pleading.

ولكنّها يا وَيْحَ قَلْبٍ أَحَبَّها

يَطِيبُ لها قَهري، وحُزني، ومَصْرَعي

But oh the heart that loved her!

My defeat, grief and death please her.

تُريدينَ أن أَصْفُو لِحُبِّكُ مُخْلِصًا

وعن حُبِّ غَيري أنتِ لم تَتَوَرَّعِي

You want me to describe my love for you sincerely,

While you did not refrain from loving another!

كِلانا يَرى ثَوبَ الوِصالِ مُمَزَّقًا

بِكَفِّكِ خَرْقًا واسعًا لم يُرَقَّعِ

We both see the garment of union torn

With your hand - a wide, unstitched tear.

أُوَدِّعُ ما اسْتَبْقَيْتُ ما عاد شاغِلي

غَرامُكِ، وَلَّى مِن خيالي فوَدِّعي

I bid farewell to the obsession I maintained - my only

Concern now over, so farewell my imagination!

أُكابِدُ أَسرارَ اللَّظَى في جَوانحي

فليتكِ يومًا لا عَلَيَّ ولا معي

I endure the heat of the flames in my thoughts

If only one day you were neither against me nor with me!

فَطَلَّقْتُ غَدْرَ الحُبِّ والعَهْدُ باطلٌ

قُبورُ ضَحايا الحُبِّ في كلِّ مَوْضِعِ

So I divorced the treachery of love, and the covenant is void -

The graves of love's victims are in every place.