أرى الحُبَّ لا يَبلى ولكنَّه يُبلي

فلا قُربُه يشفي ولا بُعدُه يُسلي

I see that love does not wear away—yet it wears one away;

neither its nearness heals, nor its distance consoles.

حَلاوتُه ممزوجةٌ بمَرارةٍ

ففيه جَنى الدِّفلى وفيه جَنى النَّحل

Its sweetness is mingled with bitterness:

in it is the yield of oleander, and in it the harvest of bees.

أموت وأحيا بين سخطك والرضى

تُرى هكذا كان المحبُّونَ من قبلي

I die and live between your anger and your favor—

were lovers before me like this, I wonder?

أعيش إذا أحييتَني بتعطُّفٍ

وتُقبض روحي بانقباضك عن وصلي

I live when you give me life through tenderness,

and my soul is taken when you withdraw from union with me.

فإن شئتَ أن أحيا فجُد بتواصُلٍ

وإن شئتَ فاهجر إن عزمتَ على قتلي

If you wish me to live, then generously keep in touch;

and if you wish, forsake me—if you are resolved to kill me.

أراك فأسعى ذاهلَ العقل شاخصاً

وأُبهَتُ حتى لا أُمِرَّ ولا أُحلي

I see you and hasten on, my mind bewildered, my gaze fixed,

and I am struck dumb, unable to utter bitter or sweet.

فيا ويلتي هَبني غُلِبتُ على المنى

برغمي فمالي قد غُلِبتُ على عقلي

Ah, woe is me! Grant that longing has mastered me

against my will—but why has it mastered my reason too?

أرى لك في لُبس القَبَاء لَباقةً

كأنك قد أُفرِغتَ في قالب الشَّكلِ

I see a graceful elegance in the way you wear the qabāʾ,

as though you had been poured into the very mold of beauty.

بحقِّ المَلاحات التي فيك عُد بنا

إلى العادة الحسنى من القول والفعل

By all the graces within you, return us

to the fair old way, in word and deed.

فإن كنتَ غضباناً فعندي لك الرضا

وإن كان لي ذنبٌ فجُد أنت بالفضلِ

If you are angry, I meet you with goodwill;

and if I have sinned, then you—be generous with grace.