أثغركَ أم بردٌ جامدُ

أثغركَ أم بردٌ جامدُ

أم الدّر تضّدهُ النَّاضد

أم الدّر تضّدهُ النَّاضد

Is that your mouth, or frozen hail,

Is your smile a blossoming rose

or pearls strung by a pearl-stringer?

Or icy, gleaming pearls?

وَوجهكَ أم قمر طالع

وَوجهكَ أم قمر طالع

وقدّكَ أم غُصنٌ مائدُ

وقدّكَ أم غُصنٌ مائدُ

And is that your face, or a rising moon?

Is your face the rising moon?

And your stature, or a swaying branch?

Is your form a bending branch?

أيا منكراً فرط حبّي له

أيا منكراً فرط حبّي له

وما أنا في حبُه واحدُ

وما أنا في حبُه واحدُ

O you who deny the intensity of my love for him,

O you who deny my abundant love,

I am not alone in loving him.

None love as I love, solely devoted.

أما لي مِن أَدْمعي حُجَّةٌ

أما لي مِن أَدْمعي حُجَّةٌ

عليكَ ومِن سَقَمي شاهدُ

عليكَ ومِن سَقَمي شاهدُ

Have I not in my tears a proof

Have I not tears enough

against you, and in my sickness a witness?

To argue for me, witness my pain?

لي اللهُ صَبري غداً ناقِصاً

لي اللهُ صَبري غداً ناقِصاً

فَشَوقي طُول المَدى زَايدُ

فَشَوقي طُول المَدى زَايدُ

God be my help! My patience has grown scant,

God grant me patience tomorrow,

for my longing increases with the passing of time.

Though longing always grows in me.

فديتك صِلْني فقَدْ شفَّني

فديتك صِلْني فقَدْ شفَّني

السّقامُ وملني العائد

السّقامُ وملني العائد

May I be your ransom! Come to me, for I am wasted away

My dear, bless me, for sickness has cured me

by sickness, and the sickbed visitor has tired of me.

And back has returned what was lost.

أَطَلْتَ سُهادي فحتّى متَى

أَطَلْتَ سُهادي فحتّى متَى

تُطيلَ سُهاديَ يا راقِدُ

تُطيلَ سُهاديَ يا راقِدُ

You have prolonged my sleeplessness; how much longer

You've lingered in slumber so tell me,

will you prolong my sleeplessness, O sleeper?

How long will you slumber, o sleeper?

سَمِعتَ الوشاة وما زَخرفوا

سَمِعتَ الوشاة وما زَخرفوا

وصدَّقتَ ما قالَهُ الحاسِدُ

وصدَّقتَ ما قالَهُ الحاسِدُ

You listened to the slanderers and their embroidered tales,

You heard the gossips and their fake words,

and believed what the envious one said.

And believed the envious tales they told.

لقد حلّ ما حَلّ بي منكَ مِن

لقد حلّ ما حَلّ بي منكَ مِن

غرامٍ أقرّ له الجاحِدُ

غرامٍ أقرّ له الجاحِدُ

Indeed, what has befallen me through you is a

What came upon me from you was a love

passion that even the denier has acknowledged.

That even deniers openly allowed.

خُلِقْتَ لِكلِّ الورى فتنةٌ

خُلِقْتَ لِكلِّ الورى فتنةٌ

فَضَلَّ بكَ النّاسِكُ الزاهدُ

فَضَلَّ بكَ النّاسِكُ الزاهدُ

You were created as a temptation for all humankind,

You were created as temptation for all people,

so the devout ascetic went astray because of you.

So even the pious hermit covets you.