Sol 6.1

  1. أَقولُ لَمّا لاحَ مِن خِدرِهِ

    وَاللَيلُ يَرخي الفَضلَ مِن سِترِهِ

    I said, when he emerged from his curtained chamber,

    while night let down the trailing length of its veil:

  2. أَبَدرُهُ أَحسَنُ مِن وَجهِهِ

    أَم وَجهُهُ أَحسَنُ مِن بَدرِهِ

    Is its full moon lovelier than his face,

    or is his face lovelier than its full moon?

  3. قَد مالَتِ الرِقَّةُ في شَطرِهِ

    وَمالَتِ الغِلظَةُ في شَطرِهِ

    Slenderness has settled in one half of him,

    and fullness has settled in the other.

  4. فَأُزرُهُ غَصَّت بِأَردافِهِ

    وَوُشحُهُ جالَت عَلى خَصرِهِ

    So his waist-wraps were choked by his buttocks,

    and his sashes wandered about his waist.

  5. أَصبَحتُ لا أَدري وَإِن لَم يَكُن

    في الأَرضِ شَيءٌ أَنا لَم أَدرِهِ

    Now I do not know, though there is nothing

    on earth that I have not known:

  6. أَشعَرُهُ أَحسَنُ مِن وَجهِهِ

    أَم وَجهُهُ أَحسَنُ مِن شَعرِهِ

    Is his hair lovelier than his face,

    or is his face lovelier than his hair?

  7. وَدُرُّهُ يُؤخَذُ مِن لَفظِهِ

    أَم لَفظُهُ يُؤخَذُ مِن دُرِّهِ

    And are his pearls drawn from his speech,

    or is his speech drawn from his pearls?

  8. وَثَغرُهُ يُنظَمُ مِن عِقدِهِ

    أَم عِقدُهُ يُنظَمُ مِن ثَغرِهِ

    And are his teeth strung from his necklace,

    or is his necklace strung from his teeth?

  9. فَمِن عَذيرَ الصَبِّ مِن صَدِّهِ

    وَمَن يُجيرُ القَلبَ مِن هَجرِهِ

    Who, then, will defend the lovesick against his rejection,

    and who will protect the heart from his abandonment?

  10. يا لَيتَهُ يَعرِفُ حُبّي لَهُ

    عَساهُ يُجزيني عَلى قَدرِهِ

    Oh, if only he knew my love for him!

    Perhaps he would reward me in proportion to it.