أَهَاجَكَ بَيْنُهُمْ إِذْ نَأَوْا

أَهَاجَكَ بَيْنُهُمْ إِذْ نَأَوْا

وَطَيُّ الْوِصَالِ الذِي قَدْ طَوَوْا

وَطَيُّ الْوِصَالِ الذِي قَدْ طَوَوْا

Did their parting stir you when they went far away,

Your parting stirred grief in me when you went away,

Did their separation stir your grief when they moved away,

and the folding away of the union they had folded away,

And the pain of separation you have long borne.

And the folding of the union that they rolled up?

وَتَوْدِبعُ صَبْرِكَ إِذْ وَدَّعُوكْ

وَتَوْدِبعُ صَبْرِكَ إِذْ وَدَّعُوكْ

وَتَفْطِيرُ قَلْبِكَ لَمَّا بَكَوْا

وَتَفْطِيرُ قَلْبِكَ لَمَّا بَكَوْا

and your patience's farewell when they bade you farewell,

Your patience wears thin when you bid them farewell,

And the bidding farewell to your patience when they bade you farewell,

and your heart's breaking when they wept?

And your heart breaks when they weep.

And the rending of your heart when they wept?

وَشَاقَكَ أُنْسُهُمُ بِاللِّوَى

وَشَاقَكَ أُنْسُهُمُ بِاللِّوَى

وَمُنْعَرِجِ النَّهْرِ حَيْثُ انْتَدَوْا

وَمُنْعَرِجِ النَّهْرِ حَيْثُ انْتَدَوْا

And did their companionship at al-Liwa make you yearn,

Their company troubled you at the bend of the river,

Did their intimacy at Al-Liwa fill you with longing,

and at the river's bend, where they gathered,

Where they pitched their tents.

And at the winding river where they convened?

وَنَيْلُهُمُ بَيْنَ مَهْفَى الشَّمَالْ

وَنَيْلُهُمُ بَيْنَ مَهْفَى الشَّمَالْ

وَمَهْفَى الصَّبَا وَالصِّبَا مَا اشْتَهَوْا

وَمَهْفَى الصَّبَا وَالصِّبَا مَا اشْتَهَوْا

and their attaining, between the north wind's sweep

Their halt was between the north wind

And their attaining, between the gusts of the north wind

and the east wind's sweep, in youth, whatever they desired,

And the morning and evening breeze they desired.

And the gusts of the east wind, and youthful passion, whatever they desired?

وَعِقْدُ الْمُنَى غَيْرُ مُنْتَثِرٍ

وَعِقْدُ الْمُنَى غَيْرُ مُنْتَثِرٍ

وَسَعْدُكَ دَانَ بِمَا قَدْ دَنَوْا

وَسَعْدُكَ دَانَ بِمَا قَدْ دَنَوْا

while the necklace of wishes lay unscattered,

The necklace of wishes is unbroken,

While the necklace of hopes remained unscattered,

and your good fortune yielded, since they had drawn near?

And your happiness depends on how close they approached.

And your good fortune drew near, just as they had approached.

عَفَا اللهُ عَنْهُمْ وَنَضَّرَهُمْ

عَفَا اللهُ عَنْهُمْ وَنَضَّرَهُمْ

كَمَا عَنْكَ يَوْمَ اللِّقَا قَدْ عَفَوْا

كَمَا عَنْكَ يَوْمَ اللِّقَا قَدْ عَفَوْا

May God pardon them and make them radiant,

May God forgive them and make them prosperous,

May Allah pardon them and make their faces radiant,

as they pardoned you on the day of meeting.

As they have forgiven you on the day you meet.

Just as they pardoned you on the day of the encounter.

حَلَتْ لَكَ أَيَّامُهُمْ بِالْعُذَيْبِ

حَلَتْ لَكَ أَيَّامُهُمْ بِالْعُذَيْبِ

وَمِنْ نَكْبَةٍ قَدْ خَلَوْا فَحَلَوْا

وَمِنْ نَكْبَةٍ قَدْ خَلَوْا فَحَلَوْا

Their days at al-Udhayb were sweet to you,

To you came their days in hardship,

Their days at Al-Udhayb were sweet to you,

and they were free of misfortune, and so grew sweet.

And from an affliction they have passed and relented.

And they were free of misfortune, and thus grew sweeter.

شَوَوْا وُدَّهُمْ لَكَ حَتَّى صَفَا

شَوَوْا وُدَّهُمْ لَكَ حَتَّى صَفَا

وَمَا رَمَّدُوا بِالْجَفَا مَا شَوَوْا

وَمَا رَمَّدُوا بِالْجَفَا مَا شَوَوْا

They roasted their affection for you until it grew pure,

They conversed with you in affection until it was pure,

They refined their affection for you in the fire until it grew pure,

and did not reduce what they roasted to ashes through coldness.

And they were not stubborn in estrangement from what they desired.

And they did not turn to ash with estrangement what they had refined.

وَعَاطَوْكَ كَأْسَهُ مَمْزُوجَةً

وَعَاطَوْكَ كَأْسَهُ مَمْزُوجَةً

بِمَا مِنْ عَظِيمِ السُّرُورِ عَطَوْا

بِمَا مِنْ عَظِيمِ السُّرُورِ عَطَوْا

And they offered you its cup, mingled

They gave you a cup blended

And they offered you its cup, blended

with what they took of immense joy.

With the greatest of joys they gave.

With the profound joy that they bestowed.

وَأَجْنَوْكَ رَوْضَةَ وَصْلِهِمُ

وَأَجْنَوْكَ رَوْضَةَ وَصْلِهِمُ

بِمَا مِنْ ثِمَارِ الْمُنَى قَدْ جَنَوْا

بِمَا مِنْ ثِمَارِ الْمُنَى قَدْ جَنَوْا

And they let you harvest the garden of their union,

And they presented you with a garden of their company,

And they allowed you to harvest the garden of their union

with what they had gathered of the fruits of wishes.

With the fruits of wishes they had picked.

With whatever fruits of hope they had gathered.

رَعَى اللهُ عَهْدَهُمُ بِالرِّيَاضِ

رَعَى اللهُ عَهْدَهُمُ بِالرِّيَاضِ

كَمَا عَهْدَ حُبِّيَ فِيهَا رَعَوْا

كَمَا عَهْدَ حُبِّيَ فِيهَا رَعَوْا

May God preserve their pledge in the gardens,

May God maintain their pledge in the meadows

May Allah preserve their covenant in the gardens,

as they preserved the pledge of my love there,

As my loved ones maintained their pledge there.

Just as they preserved the covenant of my love therein.

وَأَيَّامَ أُنْسٍ لَهُمْ بِالْحِمَى

وَأَيَّامَ أُنْسٍ لَهُمْ بِالْحِمَى

حَمَوْا مِنْ سُرُورِي بِهَا مَاحَمَوْا

حَمَوْا مِنْ سُرُورِي بِهَا مَاحَمَوْا

and their days of companionship in the sanctuary,

And days of intimacy they had in vigilance

And the days of joy they spent in Al-Hima,

in which they guarded what they guarded of my joy:

They protected from my joy there what they protected.

Where they protected whatever part of my joy they guarded.

لَيَالِيَ يُبْهِجُنِي جَمْعُهُمْ

لَيَالِيَ يُبْهِجُنِي جَمْعُهُمْ

وَيُؤْنِقُنِي لَهْوُهُمْ إِذْ لَهَوْا

وَيُؤْنِقُنِي لَهْوُهُمْ إِذْ لَهَوْا

nights when their gathering would gladden me,

Nights their gathering delighted me,

Nights when their gathering brought me delight,

and their play would delight me when they played,

And their jest cheered me when they jested.

And their playfulness charmed me when they played.

ويُبْرِئُ قَلْبِيَ مِنْ سُقْمِهِ

ويُبْرِئُ قَلْبِيَ مِنْ سُقْمِهِ

بِلَسْعِ الأَسَى شَدْوُهُمْ إِنْ شَدَوْا

بِلَسْعِ الأَسَى شَدْوُهُمْ إِنْ شَدَوْا

and my heart would be healed of its sickness

And it cures my heart of its sickness

And what heals my heart of its sickness

from sorrow's sting by their song, whenever they sang.

With the remedy of their chanting when they chanted.

From the sting of sorrow is their singing, when they sing.

وَأَبْنِي مِنَ الشِّعْرِ شِعْراَ أَنِيقاً

وَأَبْنِي مِنَ الشِّعْرِ شِعْراَ أَنِيقاً

يُنَسِّي الرُّوَاةَ الذِي قَدْ رَوَوْا

يُنَسِّي الرُّوَاةَ الذِي قَدْ رَوَوْا

And I would build from verse an elegant poem

And I composed from poetry an elegant poem

And I build from poetry an elegant verse,

that made the reciters forget what they had recited.

That makes the reciters forget what they have recited.

That makes the narrators forget what they have narrated.

سَقَاكِ الْحَيَا يَا عُرُوشَ النَّقَا

سَقَاكِ الْحَيَا يَا عُرُوشَ النَّقَا

فَفِيكِ سَقَوْنِي الذِي قَدْ سَقَوْا

فَفِيكِ سَقَوْنِي الذِي قَدْ سَقَوْا

May the rain water you, O bowers of al-Naqa,

The life has quenched you, O cypresses of loftiness,

May the rain water you, O arbors of Al-Naqa,

for in you they gave me to drink what they gave.

For in you they quenched my thirst that they have quenched.

For within you, they gave me to drink what they poured.

وَيَا مُلْتَقَى النَّهْرِ وَالْمُنْحَنَى

وَيَا مُلْتَقَى النَّهْرِ وَالْمُنْحَنَى

أَلاَ اسْلَمْ فَفِيكَ عَلَيَّ حَنَوْا

أَلاَ اسْلَمْ فَفِيكَ عَلَيَّ حَنَوْا

And O river confluence and bend,

O meeting point of the river and the curve,

And O meeting place of the river and the bend,

ah, remain safe, for in you they were tender toward me.

Submit, for in you they were gentle to me.

Be safe, for within you they showed me tenderness.

وَيَا نَفْحَةَ الرَّوْضِ طِيبِي بِهِمْ

وَيَا نَفْحَةَ الرَّوْضِ طِيبِي بِهِمْ

فَإِنّهُمُ قَدْ زَكَوْا وَذَكَوْا

فَإِنّهُمُ قَدْ زَكَوْا وَذَكَوْا

And O garden breeze, grow fragrant with them,

O breeze of the garden, be fragrant through them,

And O breeze of the garden, be sweet because of them,

for they have grown pure and fragrant.

For they have flourished and remembered.

For they have grown pure and radiantly fragrant.

أَلاَ نَفْحَةٌ مِنْ رٌبَى وَصْلِهِمُ

أَلاَ نَفْحَةٌ مِنْ رٌبَى وَصْلِهِمُ

تُبَرِّدُ مَا بِالنَّوَى قَدْ كَوَوْا

تُبَرِّدُ مَا بِالنَّوَى قَدْ كَوَوْا

Is there no waft from the hills of their union

O breeze from the scent of their company

Is there no breeze from the hills of their union,

to cool what they have seared with separation?

That cools the heat of longing they have baked!

To cool down the burns they inflicted with their parting?

أَلاَ عَطْفَةٌ لِأَسِيِرهِمُ

أَلاَ عَطْفَةٌ لِأَسِيِرهِمُ

أَلاَ رَحْمَةٌ لِلَّذِي قَدْ سَبَوْا

أَلاَ رَحْمَةٌ لِلَّذِي قَدْ سَبَوْا

Is there no tenderness for their captive?

O glance of compassion to their prisoner!

Is there no tenderness for their captive?

Is there no mercy for the one they have taken captive?

O mercy to those they have taken captive!

Is there no mercy for the one they have enslaved?

سَلاَمُ الإِلَهِ وَرِضْوَانُهُ

سَلاَمُ الإِلَهِ وَرِضْوَانُهُ

يَؤُمَّانِهِمْْ حَيْثُمَا قَدْ ثَوَوْا

يَؤُمَّانِهِمْْ حَيْثُمَا قَدْ ثَوَوْا

May God's peace and His favor

God's peace and pleasure be with them wherever they settled,

May the peace of God and His good pleasure

seek them wherever they have dwelt.

And my longing for them still rises

Seek them out wherever they may reside.

وَلاَ زَالَ شَوْقِي لَهُمْ صَاعِداً

وَلاَ زَالَ شَوْقِي لَهُمْ صَاعِداً

كَزَفْرَاتِ قَلْبِي يَوْمَ نَأَوْا

كَزَفْرَاتِ قَلْبِي يَوْمَ نَأَوْا

And may my longing for them never cease rising,

Like the sighs of my heart the day they left,

And my longing for them forever ascends,

like my heart's sighs on the day they went far away.

And my love for them still comes to rest

Like the sighs of my heart on the day they departed.

وَلاَ زَالَ وُديِّ لَهُمْ تَنْتَهِي

وَلاَ زَالَ وُديِّ لَهُمْ تَنْتَهِي

نُسَيْمَاتُهُ الْغُرُّ حَيْثُ انْتَهَوْا

نُسَيْمَاتُهُ الْغُرُّ حَيْثُ انْتَهَوْا

And may my love for them never cease to reach,

Where the winds of passion subside.

And my love for them shall never cease reaching out,

in its bright little breezes, wherever they have gone.

Its noble breezes blowing to wherever they end their journey.