Sol 6.1

  1. My beloved let loose a bucketful of tears.

    Then she said: You grew amorous—rather, you were already smitten.

  2. I said: No, not so; my love grew pure for you, until

    God granted you more love, O ʿUbayda.

  3. I have not approached the gazelles hiding behind the veil,

    nor those who show themselves, herd after herd.

  4. You muddied their draught, so they grew

    angry with me, finding fault with the drink.

  5. And through that you reclaimed me from them,

    and with intimacy poured abundantly out for love.

  6. So for them, divorce from me; and from me

    for you, lasting sincerity and sweet affection.

  7. So rest assured: you possess my soul and my heart

    and my cares; they never pass beyond aching pain.

  8. Do not fear for your place with me,

    ever, while pilgrims proclaim God's oneness and answer His call.

  9. My heart is full of your love, utterly

    pure; so, in my love, let 'Enough!' suffice me twice over.

  10. I cannot bear the anguish of reproach—enough!

    Do not add distress to the beloved of your soul.

  11. Alas for my soul! Is it whenever a tale-bearer creeps in

    with a story that you leap headlong into estrangement?

  12. That is not how a lover acts; so be calm.

    Where among us is one who never commits a sin?

  13. I had no lord but God, O ʿAbd;

    why, then, have I made your face my lord?

  14. I am offering my soul for the sake of your face;

    so accept what I have given—a soul and a heart.

  15. And indeed I told the one who reproached me over

    you, openly, without veiling myself in deceit:

  16. You went away unyielding; had you drunk of love

    from my cup, you would not have gone away unyielding.

  17. So leave off reproaching ʿUbayda; I

    leave anyone who reproaches that woman aside.

  18. Eyes told me of her, so I cleaved

    to the prayer-place, calling on my God, bent low,

  19. like the prayer of one distressed in the depths of the

    sea, calling on the Merciful in longing and fear.

  20. Descriptions of her had done to me what they did;

    then I saw that myself, and my wonder grew.

  21. She is tender in her youth, languid of

    gaze; combing her hair, she is like an arbor stretching tall.

  22. The back of her shoulders lies away from the 'swimming-place of

    nearness' [wording unclear]; her gums are cool, gleaming with freshness.

  23. The anklet, armlets and bracelets are sated

    with ample flesh; to the eye, they wear enchantment.

  24. And heavy-hipped, slender in the

    waist, like a fresh basil branch swaying.

  25. If I am granted enjoyment of her—O blessing of

    God! And if it is denied, woe to me, a lover!

Sol 6.1