الحَشدُ مِلءُ الدارِ لَكِن

لَم يَرَ أَحداً سِواها

The crowd filled the house, but

The house was filled with a crowd, yet

No one saw her except him

He saw no one but her.

فَتّانَةٌ خَلّابَةٌ

كَالياسَمينَةِ في شَذاها

A charming, graceful one

Enchanting, captivating,

Like a jasmine in its fragrance

Like the jasmine in her fragrance.

وَفى عَلَيها وَهيَ تَش

طُرُ كَالفَراشَةِ فَاِشتَهاها

He was loyal to her as she walked

He gazed upon her as she

Like a butterfly, he desired her

Fluttered like a butterfly, and he desired her.

شَكَتِ الصَبابَةُ مُقلَتا

هُ فَجاوَبَتهُ مُقلَتها

The young woman complained, winking

His eyes complained of ardent longing,

He responded, winking back

And her eyes answered him in kind.

حَتّى إِذا ما اِختارَ كُلُّ

فَتىً رَفيقَتَهُ اِصطَفاها

Until each young man

Until, when every young man

Chose his companion and singled her out

Selected his companion, he chose her.

وَرَأَت بِهِ مَن تَبتَغي

وَكَما رَأَتهُ كذا رَآها

And she saw in him what she sought

She saw in him the one she sought,

And just as she saw him, so did he see her

And as she beheld him, so he beheld her.

وَتَقَدَّما لِلرَقصِ يَق

رَء ناظِرَيهِ ناظِراها

They stepped up to dance, each

They stepped forward to the dance,

Gazing into the eyes of the other

Her eyes reading his eyes.

مُتَلاصِقي الجِسمَينِ يَس

نُدُ ساعِدَيهِ ساعِداها

Their bodies pressed close, he placed

Their bodies pressed close together,

His arms around hers

Her forearms resting upon his.

وَتَكادُ لَولا الخَوفُ تَل

مُسُ وَجنَتَيهِ وَجنَتاها

And were it not for fear, she would

And were it not for fear, almost

Touch his cheeks with hers

Her cheeks would touch his own.

مُتَدافِعَينِ كَمَوجَتَي

نِ خُطاهُ تَتبَعُها خُطاها

Pushing against each other like two

Swaying together like two waves,

Waves, her steps following his

Her footsteps following his lead.

يَمشي فَتَمشي وَهي تَح

سَبُهُ يَسيرُ عَلى حَشاها

He walks so she walks, and she feels

He moves and she moves, feeling

He is walking on her eyelashes

As though he treads upon her very soul.

هِيَ في لِثامٍ كَالدُجى

مُحلَولِكٌ وَكَذا فَتاها

She in a veil like the darkness

She wore a veil like the night,

Both loosened, and so was her veil

Pitch black, and so did her young man.

لَكِنَّما الأَلحاظُ تَخ

تَرِقُ السُتورَ وَما وَراها

But glances slip through veils

Yet their glances pierced through

And what lies behind them

The veils and what lay behind them.

فاضَ الغَرامُ فَقالَ آهِ

وَقالَتِ الحَسناءُ آها

Passion overflowed, so he sighed "Ah"

Passion overflowed, so he sighed, "Ah,"

And the beautiful one sighed "Ah"

And the beauty sighed, "Ah."

فَاِنسَلَّ مِن أَصحابِهِ

سِرّاً وَأَغضَت جارَتاها

He slipped away from his companions

He slipped away from his companions

Secretly, and her neighbor lowered her gaze

In secret, while her neighbors turned a blind eye.

وَمَشى بِها في رَوضَةٍ

قَد نامَ عَنها حارِساها

He walked with her in a garden

He walked with her into a garden

Its guardians asleep

Whose guards had fallen asleep.

حَتّى إِذا أَمِنّا الوَرى

وَشَكا الهَوى وَشَكَت هَواها

Until when they felt secure from people

Until, when they were safe from prying eyes,

And love pained, and its passion pained her

He spoke of his passion, and she spoke of hers.

طارَت بِبُرقُعِها وَبُر

قُعِهِ عَلى عَجَلٍ يَداها

Her face-cover flew, and his

Her hands flew to her veil and to his

In haste, her hands

With urgent haste to remove them,

كَيما تُقَبِّلُ ثَغرَهُ

وَيُقَبِّلُ المَعشوقُ فاها

So she can kiss his lips

That she might kiss his lips,

And the lover kiss her mouth

And the beloved might kiss her mouth.

فَرَأى المُتَيَّمُ بِنتَهُ

وَرَأَت مَليحَتُنا أَباها

But the enamored one saw his daughter

Then the lovesick man saw his daughter,

And our beauty saw her father

And our beauty saw her father.