أيّها الضاحك الطّروب ألا تأسى

لهذي الدموع في عينيّا

O you who laugh with joy, do you not grieve

O joyous, laughing one, do you not grieve

For these tears in my eyes?

For these tears in my eyes?

أنا أبكي و كرّم الله و الحسن

عن الدّمع خدّك الورديّا

I weep while God has honored your cheeks

I weep, but may God and beauty spare

With roseate complexion.

Your rosy cheek from any tears.

شوّه العاذلون عندك حبّي

لا عليهم فعار حبّي عليّا

The blamers have maligned my love before you

The censurers have distorted my love in your eyes;

But the shame of my love is mine alone.

No blame on them, for the shame of my love is mine alone.

قسموه بين البراءة و الإثم

و وحّدته أثيما بريّا

They divided it between innocence and sin

They divided it between innocence and sin,

While I made it wholly sinful and innocent.

While I united it as sinfully pure.

يا حبيبي دعني أقبّل خدّيك

و أشتفّ ثغرك اللؤلؤيّا

O my beloved! Let me kiss your cheeks

O my beloved, let me kiss your cheeks

And quench my thirst at your pearly lips,

And drink deep from your pearly mouth.

و تبذّل للحبّ سكرا و عريا

جسدا فاتنا و روحا غويّا

Offering love sugar and nudity,

And surrender to love, in drunkenness and nakedness,

A ravishing body and an ardent soul.

A captivating body and a beguiling soul.

ألهوى جنّة بقلبي و الشهوة

نار حمراء في شفتيّا

In my heart is a love like Paradise,

Passion is a paradise in my heart, and desire

On my lips a red fiery lust.

Is a red fire upon my lips.

مهرجان لمتعة الجسم حال

يرحم الله حبّنا العذريا

When the body was in revelry

A festival for the body's pleasure has come;

God have mercy on our chaste love!

May God have mercy on our chaste love.

طاف بي طائف من المعبد المسحور

يدعو فقالت النفس هيّا

A magic temple attracted me,

A phantom from the enchanted temple came to me,

And whispered: come! My soul replied: Here I am!

Calling out, and my soul replied, 'Let us go.'

يا حبيبي و سحر عينيك يغنيني

أشاهدت سحره البابليّا

O my love, your eyes' sorcery makes me dream,

O my beloved, the magic of your eyes suffices me;

I saw their Babylonian magic.

Have you seen its Babylonian magic?

معبد للهوى الأثيم بنينا

الفجر فيه و المشرق الذهبيّا

We built a temple of sinful love,

A temple for sinful passion we have built,

Where dawn was gold and purple.

Holding the dawn and the golden sunrise.

و أقمنا على الكهانة فيه

و العبادات شاعرا عبقريّا

We practiced sorcery in it,

And we appointed to its priesthood

And worshiped, poet and soothsayer.

And its rites of worship, a genius poet,

يتغنّى سكران بين عوار

رضيت عريها كسا و حليّا

The drunk poet sang among idols,

Singing drunkenly among naked maidens,

Pleased by their nakedness as dress and jewelry.

Who accept their nakedness as dress and adornment.

و إذا يشتهي الأغانيّ يسمع

معبدا و الغريض و الموصليّا

When he wanted music, he would hear

And if he desires songs, he listens to

A temple, a tambourine, a flute.

Ma'bad, Al-Gharidh, and Al-Mawsili.

و إذا حنّ للكرى فذراعان

و نهدان و ابتسام و ريّا

When he longed for a beloved, two arms

And if he yearns for slumber, then two arms,

And breasts, a smile and a gaze were there.

Two breasts, a smile, and a sweet fragrance.

حالم فالزمان يرقب أمري

و المنى الحاليات طوع يديّا

I dream, and time watches my affairs,

Dreaming, while time awaits my command,

Destiny bows to my present desires,

And sweet desires obey my hands.

و الرؤى عالم خفيّ أراه

عالما ضاحك السنا مرئيا

Dreams are a hidden world I see,

And visions are a hidden world I see

A laughing, visible world.

As a visible world of laughing radiance.

صوّرت قدرة الخيال من العسجد

و النّور كأسي الخزفيّا

Imagination pictured wonders,

The power of imagination has fashioned from gold

And light like the wine in my clay cup.

And light, my earthen cup.

ربّ حلم تناقلته اللّيالي

و الخيالات فاستحال نبيّا

Many a dream passed by night

Many a dream the nights have passed along

Became a prophet when fantasized.

With fantasies, until it became a prophet.