منية الأرواح وافانا

وبكأس الراح صافانا

The souls’ desire has come to us,

and with the wine-cup he has shown us pure fellowship.

حبّذا كاسٌ بنشأته

عن سوى ساقيه أفنانا

How lovely the cup at its first arising:

it effaced us from all but its cupbearer.

ذو قوامٍ كم يرنّح من

روض قلب الصبّ أفنانا

One of graceful stature—how many has he made sway

of the boughs in the lover’s heart-garden!

خرّت الأغصان ساجدةً

هيبةً أن ماس أو لانا

The branches fell down in prostration,

in awe, whether he swayed or showed us tenderness.

وكذا الأقمار كاسفةً

عند ما الأنوار أولانا

And so too the moons stood eclipsed

when he bestowed his radiance upon us.

بدر تمٍّ لاح في شرف

ببديع الحسن أحيانا

A full moon appeared upon a height

and with wondrous beauty brought us to life.

ليته بالعصف حيّانا

بوصال منه أحيانا

Would that he greeted us with tenderness

and, through union with him, revived us.

كم فنينا بالهوى شغفاً

ولبسنا منه أكفانا

How often we perished, consumed by love,

and from it donned our shrouds.

ليت شعري يا حبيب أما

ذا القلى والهجر أكفانا

Would that I knew, beloved: has not

this aversion and abandonment sufficed us?

طالما بالوجد هائمةٌ

مهجتي سرّاً وإعلانا

Long has wandered, distraught with longing,

my soul, secretly and openly.

يا له بدراً علا رتباً

في مقام الحبّ أعلانا

What a full moon he is—exalted in rank,

who raised us high in love’s station;

وهلالاً حسن هالته

جملة الأهلين أنسانا

and what a crescent, lovely in its halo,

who made us forget all our kin.

ما برا الرحمن خالقه

مثله في الكون إنسانا

The Merciful, his Creator, never fashioned

a human being like him in all creation.

فعليه الله صلّى ما

طاب شعري فيه أو زانا

So may God bless him for as long as

my poetry about him delights—or adorns us;

أو محبّ في صبابته

من هواه اكتال أوزانا

or as long as a lover, in his ardor,

measures out poetic meters from his passion,

وشدا بالوصل منتعشاً

منية الأرواح وافانا

and, revived, sings of union:

The souls’ desire has come to us.