1. وَجدٌ لَهُ في الحَشا دَبيبٌ

    يُشفق مِن حَرِهِ اللَهيبُ

    A longing creeps within the heart,

    Whose heat makes even flame afraid.

  2. وَغلة ما لَها شِفاءٌ

    وَعلة ما لَها طَبيبُ

    And a burning thirst that has no cure,

    And an illness with no physician.

  3. ما ترك الشَوق وَالتَنائي

    مِني سِوى مَدمع يَصوب

    Longing and separation have left nothing

    of me but tears pouring down.

  4. تَنفسي لِلعَليل علَّ ال

    عَليل يَرتاح يا جُنوب

    Breathe upon the ailing one; perhaps the

    ailing one may find relief, O south wind.

  5. سَقاكَ يا عَهدَنا وَحيا

    كَ بِاللَوى عارض سَكوب

    May you, O days we shared, be watered and greeted

    at al-Liwa by a cloud pouring rain.

  6. أَعائِدٌ عَيشَنا الرَطيب

    فَرُبما أَخصب الجَديب

    Will our lush life return?

    For barren ground sometimes grows fertile.

  7. أَيام رَوضُ الشَباب غضٌّ

    وَحَيث بَرد الهَوى قَشيب

    In days when youth's garden was tender,

    And when love's mantle was new.

  8. إِذ يُسكر الشُرب وَالحَميا

    مِن فَمِهِ الشادن الرَبيب

    When drinkers and strong wine alike were intoxicated

    By the mouth of that tenderly reared fawn.

  9. يُدير كاس الآداب صَرفاً

    وَالراح مِن رِيقِهِ يَشوب

    He passes round the cup of refinement, unmixed,

    And mixes the wine with his saliva.

  10. القَد وَالثَغر وَالمَحيا

    البَدر وَالدُرّ وَالقَضيب

    His stature, his mouth, his face—

    The full moon, pearls, and a slender bough.

  11. يَروعني لَحظَة الغَضوب

    كَأَنَّهُ صارِمٌ مُهيب

    The angry one's glance terrifies me,

    As though it were a fearsome sword.

  12. إِذا خَلَونا بِلا رَقيبٍ

    أَشكو هَواهُ فَلا يَجيب

    When we are alone, without a watcher,

    I lament my love for him, but he gives no answer.

  13. قُم نَشتَكي الشَوق يا سَميري

    فَأَنتَ وافي الهَوى تسيب

    Rise, let us lament our longing, O my night companion;

    For you, faithful in love, wander freely.

  14. بانوا وَوَجهُ الزَمان طَلق

    فَصارَ في وَجهِهِ قَطوب

    They departed while time's face was smiling,

    So a frown came over its face.

  15. فَلا نَديمٌ وَلا صَديقٌ

    وَلا أَنيسٌ وَلا حَبيب

    So no drinking companion, no friend,

    Nor intimate companion, nor beloved.

  16. يَفديك قَلبٌ لَهُ وَجيب

    في جَسَد كُلُهُ نَدوب

    May a throbbing heart ransom you,

    In a body that is all scars.

  17. تَحضر لي بَعضُهُ الأَماني

    وَالشَوق عَني بِهِ يَغيب

    Hopes bring part of it before me,

    And longing carries it away from me.

  18. أَظن أَن قَد نَسيت عَهداً

    لَم يَنسهُ المُدنف الكَئيب

    I think you have forgotten a pledge

    The sorrowing, love-worn one has not forgotten.

  19. وَقَد مَنَحتُ الأَغيار قُرباً

    وَإِن قُرب المُريب حَوبِ

    And I have granted others closeness,

    And closeness to one who arouses doubt is surely a sin.

  20. وَلَيسَ يَجفي المُحب شيءٌ

    وَظَنَ أَهل الهَوى يَصيب

    Nothing escapes the lover's notice,

    And lovers' surmises hit the mark.

  21. قُلوبُهم كُلَها عُيون

    وَكُلُ أَجسامِهُم قُلوب

    Their hearts are all eyes,

    And all their bodies are hearts.

  22. وَمَن يَكُن عاشِقاً عَفيفاً

    تَكاد تَبدو لَهُ الغُيوب

    And whoever is a chaste lover—

    Hidden things almost reveal themselves to him.

  23. قَد يُرزَق الشَيء غَير عان

    وَيحرم الطالب الأَريب

    A thing may be granted to one who has not toiled,

    While the discerning seeker is denied.

  24. ما ذاقَ صَفو الدَنا فَصيح

    وَرُبَما ملَّهُ حَبيب

    No eloquent man has tasted the world's unclouded joy,

    And sometimes a beloved tires of him.

  25. وَما تَصدى حَرٌّ لِأَمر

    إِلّا أَتَت دونَهُ الخَطوب

    No free man ever undertakes a task

    Without calamities barring his way.

  26. لا تَطلُبنَ عِلة لَحظٍ

    قَد أُبهِمَ الأَمر بِالبيب

    Do not seek a reason for a glance;

    The matter is obscure even to the discerning.

  27. وَمُضمر في حَشاهُ ضَغناً

    يَذيعُهُ لَحظُهُ المُريب

    And one who harbors rancor in his breast—

    His suspicious glance betrays it.

  28. يَسوم وِدي بِالمال جَهلاً

    وَكبرهُ دونَهُ رَقيب

    He ignorantly bids for my affection with money,

    While his pride stands guard in the way.

  29. هَيهات ذل القَنوع يَوماً

    ما النجم مَن لامسَ قَريب

    Far be it that the contented man ever be abased!

    The star is not close to one who would touch it.

  30. لا يَستَطيب الحَيوة حرٌّ

    إِذا اِستَرَقَ الهزَبر ذيب

    A free man finds no sweetness in life

    When a wolf enslaves the lion.

  31. قَد يَملك الحَر بابتسام

    وَلا يَرى بَشَره قُطوب

    A free man may be won with a smile,

    But no scowling man sees his cheerful face.

  32. وَالمال ما لَم تَهبهُ آل

    وَالقوت عَنهُ إِذاً يَنوب

    And wealth, unless you give it away, is a mirage;

    And sustenance then serves in its stead.

  33. أَقسَمت بِالعيسَ كَالحَنايا

    قَد شَفها السَير وَالسهوب

    I swear by the pale camels, like curved bows,

    Worn thin by travel and the open plains,

  34. يَحملنَ ميل الطَلى نَشاوى

    مِن السَرى مسهم لَغوب

    Carrying riders with drooping necks, drunken

    From night travel; weariness has touched them,

  35. حَتّى أَلموا بِالبَيت شَعثاً

    وَخصت عَنهُمُ الذُنوب

    Until they reached the House, disheveled,

    And their sins fell away from them:

  36. إِن العُلا أَصبَحَت خَلاءً

    فَالحُرُ بَينَ الوَرى غَريب

    Truly, the heights of honor have become deserted,

    So the noble man is a stranger among mankind.