وَسِربِ عَذارى مِن رَبيعَةِ عامِرٍ

تَشابَهَ مِنها العِقدُ وَالدَّمعُ وَالثَّغرُ

A flock of maidens from the Banu 'Amir

Their necks and tears and lips all alike

وَفيهنَّ مِقلاقُ الوِشاحِ إِذا مَشَتْ

وَأَثقَلَها الرِّدفانِ خَفَّ بِها الخَصرُ

The sound of their trailing robes as they walk

Their hips made heavy by their behinds, slender their waists

أَقولُ لَها وَاللَيلُ مَدَّ رِواقَهُ

عَلَينا وَلَم يَهتِك جَوانِبَهُ الفَجرُ

I say to her as night spreads its awning over us

And dawn has not yet lifted its edges

وَقَد سَفرَت عَن وَجهِها فَتَمَزَّقَتْ

دُجاهُ وَلكِن رَدَّ ظُلمتَهُ الشَّعرُ

Though night has erased her face and torn it away

Poetry brings back its darkness

خُذي رَمَقِي إِن رُمتِ قَتلي فَإِنَّهُ

بَقيَّةُ ما أَبقاهُ حُبُّكِ وَالهَجرُ

Take my life if you wish to kill me

For it is what remains after your love and abandonment