أَلا مَن عَذيرُ النَّفسِ مِمَّن يَلومُها
عَلى حُبِّها جَهلاً أَلا مَن عَذيرُها
Alas! Who excuses the soul for blaming her
For loving in ignorance? Alas! Who excuses her?
تَذَكَّرتُ أَيّاماً تَوَلّى سُرورُها
فَدر لعَيني عِندَ ذاكَ دَرُورُها
I remembered days when her joy turned away
So tears flowed from my eyes at that moment.
فَبِتُّ كَأَنّي بِالنُّجومِ مُوَكَّلٌ
أُقَلِّبُ فيها مُقلَتي وَأُديرُها
I spend the night as if I were appointed over the stars
Turning my eyelids over them and directing them.
كَأَنَّ بَناتَ النَّعشِ باسِطٌ كَفَّهُ
وَقَد مَدَّ كَفاً لِلسُّؤالِ فَقيرُها
As if the daughters of the bier had stretched out their palms
And a beggar had extended his palm to beg from them.
كَأَنَّ الثُّريا في الدُّجى وَاِجتِماعِها
عِصابَةُ طَيرٍ فَزَّعَتها صُقورُها
As if the Pleiades in the darkness and their gathering
Were a flock of birds startled by their eagles
يخالُ بِها النَّسرُ الَّذي هُوَ واقِعٌ
أَثافِيَّ لَم يُنصَب عَلَيها قُدورُها
Hunting them. The vulture that was aiming for them
Had no pots set against them.
أَلا يا لَها مِن لَيلَةٍ حارَ نَجمُها
وَغابَ الكَرى فيها وَطالَ قَصيرُها
Oh, what a night whose star disappeared
When fate vanished in it and its shortness lengthened!
تَذَكَّرتُ أَيّاماً تَوَلَّت حَميدَةً
فَعادَ لِنَفسي بَثُّها وَزَفيرُها
I remembered days that passed by auspiciously
So their conversation returned to trouble my soul,
لَيالِيَ كانَت مَن تُحِبُّ أَميرَةً
عَلَيكَ وَمَولاةً وَأَنتَ أَميرُها
Nights when she who loved a prince was your beloved
And slave girl while you were her prince.
وَكانَت أَسيراً في وِثاقِكَ يَنتَهي
إِلى كُلِّ مَن تَهوى وَأَنتَ أَسيرُها
She was a captive in your bond whom you directed
To everyone you loved while you were her captive.
فَأَعقَبتُ أَيّاماً جَرَت بِمُساءَتي
قَريبَةُ بُؤسٍ وَاستشاط غيورُها
So days followed when she treated me spitefully,
Days of distress which enraged her jealous husband.
وَفي الصَّدرِ مِنّي غُصَّةٌ لا أُحيرُها
وَفي الصَّدرِ مِنها غُصَّة لا تُحيرُها
In my chest is an anguish I do not express,
Just as in her chest is an anguish she does not express.
دَهاني وَإِيّاها العُداةُ فَأَصبَحَت
وَقَد أُسبِلَت دوني عَلَيها سُتورُها
The enemies caused us problems until she was separated from me
With her curtains lowered between us.
وَكانَت وَأَبوابٌ لَها خَمسُ عَشرَة
تَطولُ عَلَيها لَيلَةً لا أَزورُها
She had fifteen doors
That I would not visit all night long.
وَكُنتُ أَثيراً عِندَهُنَّ يَرَينَني
كَتُفّاحَةٍ قَد فُضَّ فيها عَبيرُها
I was a topic of conversation among them when they saw me
Like an apple whose fragrance had been emitted.
وَكانَت عَلاماتي إِلَيها تَنَحنُحي
وَيُنذِرُها مِن حِسِّ نَعلي صَريرُها
My signals to her were my sandals’ squeaking
And the jingling of my horse’s harness warning her.
وَكانَت إِذا ما جاءَ غَيري تَسَتَّرَت
وَكانَ لَدَيَّ بَذلُها وَسُتورُها
Whenever someone other than me came, she was veiled,
Yet she was generous and unveiled with me.
فَأَصبَحتُ أَرضى بِالقَليلِ وَرُبَّما
طَلَبتُ فَلَم يَعسُر عَلَيَّ كَثيرُها
So I became content with little, and sometimes
I sought but the great part of it was not difficult for me.
وَأَعزِز عَلَيها أَن تَكونَ إِشارَتي
إِلَيها بِطُهر لا يُجابُ مُشيرُها
It was dearer to me that my gesture to her
Be with pure intention, not to be rewarded by its performer.
تَطاوَلَتِ الأَيَّامُ مُنذُ رَأَيتُها
فَكانَت عَلَيَّ كَالسِّنينِ شهورُها
Many days have passed since I last saw her,
Yet to me her months were like years.
وَلَو أَنَّ ما أَلقى مِنَ الوجدِ ساعَةً
بِأَجبالِ رَضوى هُدَّ منَها صُخورُها
If what I suffered for an hour from passion
Were thrown on the mountains of Radwa, it would crumble its rocks.
وَلَو أَنَّ ما أَلقى مِنَ الوجدِ ساعَةً
بِرُكنَي ثَبيرٍ ما أَقامَ ثَبيرُها
If what I suffered from passion for an hour
Were thrown at the two sides of Thabeer, it would not stand firm.
وَلَو أَنَّني أدعى لَدى المَوتِ باسمِها
لَعادَ لِنَفسي باذن رَبّي نُشورُها
If when death came, I called upon her name,
My soul by my Lord’s permission would be restored by her.
أُعَلِّلُ نَفسي بِالأَماني مَخافَةً
عَلَيها إِذا ما الشَّوقُ كادَ يُطيرُها
I make excuses to myself out of fear for her
When longing is about to make her fly away.
وَأَدعو إِذا ما خِفتُ أَن يَغلبَ الهَوى
عَلَيها غَرامي بِاِسمِها أَستَجيرُها
And when I fear passion overcoming her,
I seek refuge for her by calling her name.
فَإِن تَكُنِ الأَيَّامُ أَغشتكَ نقمَةً
فَقَد أَدبَرت أَعجازها وَصُدورُها
If days have covered you with vengeance,
Their consequence and result have passed.
وَإِنِّي لَآتي الشَّيءَ مِن غَيرِ عِلمِها
فَيُخبِرُها عَنّي بِذاكَ ضَميرُها
I do something without her knowing,
Then her conscience informs her of that about me.
وَقَد زَعِمتُ أَنِّي سَمَحتُ لِغَيرِها
بِوَصلٍ وَلا وَالبُدنِ تَدمي نحورُها
And I claimed I allowed someone other than her
An intimate union—by my life, she bloodies their necks!
وَرَبِّ المَنايا لا أُميلُ زِيارَتي
إِلى غَيرِها أُنثى وَلا أَستَزيرُها
By the Lord of death, I do not incline my visits
To other than her, neither female nor male.
وَلكِنَّني كَنَّيتُ عَنها بِغَيرِها
مَخافَةَ عَينٍ لا يَنامُ بَصيرُها
Rather, I pretended with someone other than her
Fearing the eye that does not sleep seeing her.
عَلَيَّ نُذورٌ جَمَّةٌ في لِقائِها
فَلَيتَ نذوري أَوجَبَت وَنُذورُها
I have many vows to meet her,
If only my vows made her vows obligatory!
أَما مِن مُشير سَدَّدَ اللَّهُ رَأيَهُ
يَرى أَنَّ فيها حيلَةً لا يُضيرُها
Is there no wise advisor whom Allah guided
Who sees a scheme in this that would not harm her?
