وَأَحوَرَ ذِمِّيٍّ طَرَقتُ فِنائَهُ

بِفِتيانِ صِدقٍ ما تَرى مِنهُمُ نُكرا

I came in the evening to a Christian's house

And a wide-eyed Dhimmi whose courtyard I visited by night,

With honest youths, you'd not see among them a stranger

accompanied by trustworthy youths in whom you see no vice.

فَلَمّا قَرَعنا بابَهُ هَبَّ خائِفاً

وَبادَرَ نَحوَ البابِ مُمتَلِئً ذُعرا

When we knocked on his door, he got up frightened

When we banged on his door, he woke in alarm,

And rushed to the door, filled with fear

and hastened toward the gate, filled with terror.

وَقالَ مَنِ الطُرّاقِ لَيلاً فِناءَنا

فَقُلتُ لَهُ افتَح فِتيَةٌ طَلَبوا خَمرا

And said, "Who is knocking at our door at night?"

He cried, "Who are these knocking at our courtyard in the dark?"

I said to him, "Open up, youths seeking wine."

I replied, "Open up—young men seeking wine."

فَأَطلَقَ عَن أَبوابِهِ غَيرَ هائِبٍ

وَأَطلَعَ مِن أَزرارِهِ قَمَراً بَدرا

He opened his doors without hesitation

So he unbolted his doors, no longer afraid,

And brought out a moon-like beauty from his rooms

and revealed from his collar a face like a radiant full moon.

وَمَرَّ أَمامَ القَومِ يَسحَبُ ذَيلَهُ

يُجاذِبُ مِنهُ الرِدفَ في مَشيِهِ الخَصرا

She walked ahead of the men, dragging her skirt

He walked before the group, dragging his trailing hem,

Swaying her hips gracefully as she walked

his heavy hips pulling against his slender waist as he moved.

فَقُلتُ لَهُ ما الإِسمُ حُيِّيتَ قالَ لي

دَعاني أَبي سابا وَلَقَّبَني شَمرا

I asked her, "What's your name, beauty?" She said to me

I asked, "What is the name—may you be greeted?" He replied,

"My father called me Saba and nicknamed me Shamra."

"My father named me Saba, and nicknamed me Shamra."

فَكِدنا جَميعاً مِن حَلاوَةِ لَفظِهِ

نُجَنُّ وَلَم نَسطِع لِمَنطِقِهِ صَبرا

We almost swooned from the sweetness of her voice

From the sweetness of his pronunciation, we were all

And could not show patience for her speech

nearly driven mad, unable to patiently bear his speech.

فَقُلتُ لَهُ جِئناكَ نَبتاعُ قَهوَةً

مُعَتَّقَةً قَد أَنفَدَت قِدَماً دَهرا

I said to her, "We've come to buy mature coffee

I said to him, "We came to you to buy a vintage draught,"

That's been sitting for ages and run out of stock."

aged wine that has exhausted an eternity in ancient times."

فَقالَ اربِعوا عِندي الَّتي تَطلِبونَها

قَدِ احتَجَبَت في خِدرِها حِقَباً عَشرا

She said, "Stay with me, I have what you're looking for

He said, "Be at ease, for I have exactly what you seek;"

It's been hiding in its pot for ten years."

"it has been veiled in its chamber for ten epochs."

فَقُلتُ فَماذا مَهرُها قالَ مَهرُها

إِلَيكَ فَسُقنا نَحوَهُ خَمسَةً صُفرا

I said, "What's her price?" She said, "Her price

I asked, "And what is her dowry?" He said, "Her dowry

Is five gold coins I poured out for her."

is up to you." So we pushed five yellow coins toward him.

فَقُلتُ لَهُ خُذها وَهاتِ نُعاطِها

فَقامَ إِلَيها قَد تَمَلّى بِنا بِشرا

I said to her, "Take it and bring out her container."

I said, "Take them, and bring it; let us share the cup."

He got up happily and brought it out to us.

He rose to fetch it, filled with joy on our account.

فَشَكَّ بِإِشفاءٍ لَهُ بَطنَ مُسنَدٍ

فَسالَت تُحاكي في تَلَألُؤِها البَدرا

It shone as if filled with a cure for him

He pierced the belly of a supported cask with an awl,

Flowing like the full moon in its luster

and it flowed out, mimicking the full moon in its shimmer.

وَجاءَ بِها وَاللَيلُ مُلقٍ سُدولَهُ

مُدِلّاً بِأَن وافى مُحيطاً بِها خُبرا

And he brought it while the night draped its darkness

He brought it forth while the night lowered its curtains,

Covering it, as if it had just been filled.

confident that he came encompassing full knowledge of it.

رَبيبَةُ خِدرٍ راضَها الخِدرُ أَعصُراً

فَكانَت لَهُ قَلباً وَكانَ لَها صَدرا

A beauty of the pot, pleased by the pot, pressed early,

A foster-daughter of the darkness; the cellar trained her for ages,

She became its heart and it became her chest.

so she became a heart to it, and it a chest to her.

إِذا أَخَذَتها الكَأسُ كادَت بِريحِها

تَخالُ بِها عِطراً وَما إِن تَرى عِطرا

When the cup takes her, she almost flies with its scent,

When the cup received her, she almost—by her bouquet—

Though no scent comes from her, you'd think it did.

made you imagine perfume, though you saw no perfume there.

وَمازالَ يَسقينا وَيَشرَبُ دائِباً

إِلى أَن تَغَنّى حينَ مالَت بِهِ سُكرا

He kept serving us as he drank on steadily

He continued to serve us and drink tirelessly,

Until he sang tipsily as drunkenness took him over.

until he began to sing when drunkenness made him sway.

فَما ظَبيَةٌ تَرعى مَساقِطَ رَوضَةٍ

كَسا الواكِفُ الغادي لَها وَرَقاً خُضرا

No doe, grazing the grass of a meadow, is as beautiful

No gazelle grazing the slopes of a meadow,

As he who rose unsteadily, plucking green leaves.

which the morning rain has clothed in green leaves,

بِأَحسَنَ مِنهُ مَنظَراً زانَ مُخبِراً

بَلِ الظَبيُ مِنهُ شابَهَ الجيدَ وَالنَحرا

He adorned himself, reporting gracefully,

is more beautiful to behold—his appearance adorning his nature—

No, the doe took after his neck and chest in beauty.

rather, the gazelle only resembles his neck and throat.

فَيا حُسنَهُ لَحناً بَدا مِن لِسانِهِ

وَيا حُسنَهُ لَحظاً وَيا حُسنَهُ ثَغرا

O, his sweet voice, emerging from his tongue,

Oh, how beautiful the melody that rose from his tongue,

O, his sweet glance, O, his sweet lips!

oh, the beauty of his glance, and the beauty of his smile.

وَنامَ وَمايَدري أَأَرضٌ وِسادُهُ

تَوَسَّدَ سُكراً أَم وِساداً رَأى جَهرا

He fell asleep, not knowing if the ground was his pillow

He fell asleep, not knowing if the earth was his pillow,

Or he saw open ground and took it for a pillow, drunk.

cushioned by intoxication, or a pillow he saw clearly.

فَقُمنا إِلَيهِ حينَ نامَ وَأُرعِدَت

فَرائِصُهُ تَجري بِميدانِهِ ضَمرا

We got up when he fell asleep and his eyelids

So we rose toward him when he slept, and there trembled

Fluttered over his eyes as he slumbered deeply.

his flank muscles, racing lean within his frame.

فَلَمّا رَأى أَن لَيسَ عَن ذاكَ مَخلَصٌ

وَوافَقَهُ لينٌ أَجادَ لَنا العَصرا

When he saw no escape from this, and softness met him,

But when he saw there was no escape from that affair,

He generously pressed wine for us.

and softness agreed with him, he performed the pressing well for us.