يَمُرُّ بِكَ الزَمَنُ الدَغفَلِيُّ

وَكَم فيهِ مِن رَجُلٍ أَسنَتا

Time passes you by unforgivingly

With men of twisted tongues aplenty

فَلا تَسأَلِ المَرءَ عَن سِنِّهِ

وَلا مالِهِ وَاِخشَ أَن تُعنَتا

Ask no man his age or his money

Lest you incur their enmity

وَلا تَبغِيَن لَمحَةً في الحَياةِ

إِلى جارَتَيكَ إِذا كَنَّتا

Seek no glance from the neighbor ladies

Lest they look at you distastefully

فَلَولا مَخافَةُ جَنِّ الشَبابِ

وَسوءِ الغَريزَةِ ما جُنَّتا

Were it not for fear of youthful spirits

And wicked instincts, they’d not act modestly

وَحَسبُكَ مِن مُخزَياتِ الفِعالِ

ما شَكَتا مِنكَ أَو ظَنَّتا

It’s enough disgrace what the hands have done

That they complain of you or think distrustfully

طَرِبتُ لِقُمرِيَّتَي مَربَعٍ

عَلى غُصُنَي ضالَةٍ غَنَّتا

I was disturbed by two moon-faced ones

Perched on the branch of a wandering tree singing pleasantly

بَدَت لَهُما زَهَراتُ الرَبيعِ

فَأَحسَنَتا القَولَ وَاِفتَنَّتا

Spring flowers appeared to them

And they spoke sweetly, alluringly

وَتَعذِرُ نَفسَكَ عِندَ الحَنينِ

وَتَعذُلُ نَفسَكَ أَن حَنَّتا

And you excuse yourself in longing

And pretend you have not yearned obsessively