طابَ الهَوى لِعَميدِه

طابَ الهَوى لِعَميدِه

لَولا اِعتِراضُ صُدودِه

لَولا اِعتِراضُ صُدودِه

Love would be sweet to its lovesick sufferer,

Love thrived for its leader

Love would be sweet for its captive heart,

Were it not for the obstacle of his rejection.

If not for the obstruction of barriers

Were it not for the barrier of his disdain.

وَقادَني حُبُّ ريمٍ

وَقادَني حُبُّ ريمٍ

مُهَفهَفِ الكَشحِ رودِه

مُهَفهَفِ الكَشحِ رودِه

And love of a gazelle led me on,

And the love of Rim led me

I was led by the love of a fawn,

Slender-waisted and supple,

With fluttering forelocks and fleeing

Slender of waist, tender in grace;

كَالبَدرِ لَيلَةَ عَشرٍ

كَالبَدرِ لَيلَةَ عَشرٍ

وَأَربَعٍ لِسُعودِه

وَأَربَعٍ لِسُعودِه

Like the full moon on the night of ten

Like the full moon on the night of the tenth

Like the full moon on its fourteenth night,

And four, in its auspicious fortune.

And fourteenth in its ascension

Rising in the auspicious height of its glow.

بَدا يُدِلُّ عَلَينا

بَدا يُدِلُّ عَلَينا

بِمُقلَتَيهِ وَجيدِه

بِمُقلَتَيهِ وَجيدِه

He appeared, flaunting himself before us

He started to glance at us

He appeared, casting coy glances upon us,

With his two eyes and his neck.

With his eyelids and forehead

With the charm of his eyes and the curve of his neck.

فَاِصطادَني لِحِمامي

فَاِصطادَني لِحِمامي

تَخطارُهُ في بُرودِه

تَخطارُهُ في بُرودِه

So I was snared for my doom

So he hunted me to my dove

He hunted me down to my very doom,

By his swaggering in his striped robes.

His coldness causing me apprehension

With his swaying gait in embroidered cloaks.

فَقُمتُ نُصبَ عَدُوٍّ

فَقُمتُ نُصبَ عَدُوٍّ

قاسي الفُؤادِ كَنودِه

قاسي الفُؤادِ كَنودِه

So I stood before an enemy,

Thus I stood facing an enemy

So I stood exposed before a foe,

Hard of heart and thankless.

Hardhearted like granite stone

Hard of heart, ungrateful and cruel.

لا أَستَطيعُ فِراراً

لا أَستَطيعُ فِراراً

مِن بَرقِهِ وَرُعودِه

مِن بَرقِهِ وَرُعودِه

I cannot flee

I cannot escape

I can find no way to take flight

From his lightning and his thunder.

From his lightning and thunder

From his flashing lightning and rolling thunder.

وَعَسكَرُ الحُبِّ حَولي

وَعَسكَرُ الحُبِّ حَولي

بِخَيلِهِ وَجُنودِه

بِخَيلِهِ وَجُنودِه

And Love's army surrounds me,

And the army of love surrounds me

While the army of Love surrounds me close,

With his horses and his troops.

With its horses and soldiers

With all its cavalry and gathered troops.

فَإِن عَدَلتُ يَميناً

فَإِن عَدَلتُ يَميناً

خَشيتُ وَقعَ وُعودِه

خَشيتُ وَقعَ وُعودِه

So if I turn to the right,

So if I go right

If I turn my course to the right,

I fear the impact of his promises.

I fear the falling of promises

I fear the strike of his threatened blow.

وَإِن شَمالاً فَمَوتٌ

وَإِن شَمالاً فَمَوتٌ

لا بُدَّ لي مِن وُرودِه

لا بُدَّ لي مِن وُرودِه

And if to the left, there is death

And if left then death

And if to the left, there lies a death

That I must inevitably meet.

I must inevitably enter

Which I must inevitably approach and taste.

وَإِن رَجَعتُ وَرائي

وَإِن رَجَعتُ وَرائي

خَشيتُ زَأرَ أُسودِه

خَشيتُ زَأرَ أُسودِه

And if I turn back behind me,

And if I go back

And should I retreat to the rear,

I fear the roar of his lions.

I fear the roar of lions

I dread the roar of his guarding lions.

وَنُصبَ عَينَيَ طَودٌ

وَنُصبَ عَينَيَ طَودٌ

فَكَيفَ لي بِصُعودِه

فَكَيفَ لي بِصُعودِه

And before my eyes stands a mountain—

And a tall mountain blocks my eyes

Before my eyes stands a towering peak,

So how can I climb it?

So how can I climb it?

And how could I hope to scale its heights?

وَتَحتَ رِجلِيَ بَحرٌ

وَتَحتَ رِجلِيَ بَحرٌ

يَجري الهَوى بِمُدودِه

يَجري الهَوى بِمُدودِه

And beneath my foot lies a sea;

And beneath my feet an ocean

While beneath my feet is a churning sea,

Love flows with its tides.

With passions flowing in its depths

Where passion flows with its rising tides.

وَفَوقَ رَأسِيَ كَمِيٌّ

وَفَوقَ رَأسِيَ كَمِيٌّ

مُقَنَّعٌ في حَديدِه

مُقَنَّعٌ في حَديدِه

And above my head is an armored warrior,

And above my head a watcher

And looming above is a warrior bold,

Helmeted in his iron armor,

Masked in his iron armor

Veiled within a mask of iron,

مُجَرَّدٌ لِيَ سَيفاً

مُجَرَّدٌ لِيَ سَيفاً

وَيلاهُ مِن تَجريدِه

وَيلاهُ مِن تَجريدِه

With a sword bared against me—

Unsheathing his sword at me

Having drawn a naked blade against me—

Alas for me at his unsheathing it!

Frightening me with its unsheathing

Woe unto me from its unsheathing!

فَلَستُ أَرفَعُ طَرفي

فَلَستُ أَرفَعُ طَرفي

حِذارَ ماضِ حَديدِه

حِذارَ ماضِ حَديدِه

So I do not lift my gaze,

So I do not lift my eyes

So I dare not lift my gaze to him,

For fear of the keen edge of his steel.

Fearing the blow of his iron

In terror of his steel's sharp edge.

وَلي خُشوعُ المُصَلّي

وَلي خُشوعُ المُصَلّي

في دَيرِهِ يَومَ عيدِه

في دَيرِهِ يَومَ عيدِه

And I have the humility of a worshipper

And I have the humility of the worshipper

I bear the humility of a monk at prayer,

In his monastery on his feast day.

In his monastery on feast day

Inside his cloister on a holy feast.

كَأَنَّني مُستَهامٌ

كَأَنَّني مُستَهامٌ

ضَلَّ الطَريقَ بِبيدِه

ضَلَّ الطَريقَ بِبيدِه

As though I were crazed with love,

As if I have lost my way

As though I were a distracted soul,

Lost from the path in its deserts.

Wandering confused in the desert

Who lost the path in a barren waste.

لَو لاحَ لي مِنهُ نَهجٌ

لَو لاحَ لي مِنهُ نَهجٌ

رَكِبتُ نَهجَ صَعيدِه

رَكِبتُ نَهجَ صَعيدِه

If a path out of it appeared to me,

If he shows me a path

If a clear way had appeared from him,

I would take the path across its open ground.

I would take the path of his plains

I would have ridden the path of his ground.

فَالوَيلُ لي كَيفَ أَنجو

فَالوَيلُ لي كَيفَ أَنجو

مِن حُمرِ مَوتٍ وَسودِه

مِن حُمرِ مَوتٍ وَسودِه

So woe to me! How can I escape

So woe to me, how do I escape

So woe is me, how shall I survive

From death in its red and black forms?

From the red death and the black?

The red of death and its darkest black?

لا شَيءَ إِلّا اِشتِغالي

لا شَيءَ إِلّا اِشتِغالي

بِيُمنِ موسى وَجودِه

بِيُمنِ موسى وَجودِه

Nothing remains but to occupy myself

Nothing except my occupation

Nothing remains but my devotion

With Musa's good fortune and his generosity.

With the generosity of Moses' right hand

To Musa's blessing and his open hand.

فَكَم شَديدٍ بِهِ قَد

فَكَم شَديدٍ بِهِ قَد

دَفَعتُ خَوفَ شَديدِه

دَفَعتُ خَوفَ شَديدِه

For, through him, in many a harsh ordeal, I have

For by it I have dispelled

For how many terrors have I repelled

Warded off the fear of its severity.

The fear of many fears

Through him, escaping the fear of the strong.

لا مَرَّةً بَعدَ أُخرى

لا مَرَّةً بَعدَ أُخرى

أَكِلُّ عَن تَعديدِه

أَكِلُّ عَن تَعديدِه

Not just once, but time after time—

Never once after another

Not merely once, nor time and again—

I grow weary of counting it.

Do I cease counting them

I grow weary attempting to count the sum.

أَيّامَ أَنفُ حَسودي

أَيّامَ أَنفُ حَسودي

دامٍ وَأَنفُ حَسودِه

دامٍ وَأَنفُ حَسودِه

In days when my envier's nose

The days of my envious foes

In days when the nose of my envier bled,

Is bleeding, and his envier's nose too.

Lasting while the envious last

As did the nose of the one who envied him.

غَنّى السَماحُ بِموسى

غَنّى السَماحُ بِموسى

في هَزجِهِ وَنَشيدِه

في هَزجِهِ وَنَشيدِه

Generosity sang of Musa

The tolerant sang of Moses

Generosity sang the praise of Musa,

In its lilting chant and its song.

In his yearning and chant

In its rhythmic trills and anthems loud.

وَكَيفَ يَهزِجُ إِلّا

وَكَيفَ يَهزِجُ إِلّا

بِإِلفِهِ وَعَقيدِه

بِإِلفِهِ وَعَقيدِه

And how could it sing except

And how could he not chant

And how could it sing, except to praise

Of its close companion and its sworn ally?

Except by his faith and belief?

Its intimate friend and sworn ally?