1. غِناءٌ يَسخُنُ العَينَ

    وَيَنفي فَرَحَ القَلبِ

    A song that heats the eye with sorrow,

    And banishes the heart's joy.

  2. وَلا يَأتي عَلى الزَمرِ

    وَلا يَجري مَعَ الضَربِ

    Nor does it come with piping,

    Nor does it flow with the drumbeat.

  3. غِناءُ البَقِّ بِاللَيلِ

    يُنافي طَرَبَ الشَربِ

    The mosquitoes' song at night

    Conflicts with the drinkers' merriment.

  4. إِذا ما طَرَقَ المَرءَ

    جَرى في طَلَقِ الكَربِ

    When it visits a man at night,

    He races along the course of anguish.

  5. نَحيفٌ راحَ كَالشَنِّ

    وَلَكِن باتَ كَالوَطبِ

    Lean, it sets out at dusk like a worn-out waterskin,

    But spends the night like a leather milk-bag.

  6. إِذا ما نَقَبَ الجُلدَ

    ةَ أَخفى مَوضِعُ النَقبِ

    Whenever it pierces the skin,

    It conceals the puncture's site,

  7. سِوى حُمرٌ خَفِيّاتٍ

    تُحاكي نُقَطَ الكُتبِ

    Save for faint red marks

    Resembling the dots in books.