عَذولُ الهَوى يَبني بِغَيرِ أَساسِ

وَيُفتي بِلا نَصٍّ وَغَيرِ قِياسِ

The madness of passion builds without foundation,

And gives verdicts without text or analogy.

يَرِقُّ هَجيرُ اليَومِ إِن رَقَّتِ الصَبا

وَأَنتَ مَعَ الأَيّامِ قَلبُكَ قاسي

The wounds of today heal, if the zephyr heals,

While your heart remains harsh through the days.

مَتى تَنطَفي نارُ الغَليلِ بِرَشفَةٍ

بِحُمرَةِ خَدٍّ أَو بِخَمرَةِ كاسِ

When will the fire of sickness be extinguished with a drink

Of a rosy cheek or a cup of wine?

عَلى أَنَّ خَمراً ماؤُهُ مُتَرَقرِقٌ

يُخالِفُ حِكمَيْ رُؤيَةٍ وَقِياسِ

Even though the water of wine is very clear,

It contradicts the judgment of sight and analogy.

وَلَو شَرَعَ الناسُ المُواساةَ في الهَوى

لَكُنتُ أُواسَى أَو لَكُنتُ أُواسي

If people practiced empathy in passion,

I would empathize or be empathized with.

وَدونَ اِسمِهِ لي غَيرَةٌ سامِرِيَّةٌ

فَذِكرُ اِسمِهِ مِن عاذِلٍ كَمَساس

Except for his name, I have Samaritan jealousy,

So the mention of his name is like a touch from an admonisher.

وَبَعدَهُمُ الآثارُ تُؤنِسُ وَحشَتي

وَكَيفَ بِأُنسي بَعدَ فَقدِ أُناسي

After them, relics comfort my loneliness,

How can I be comforted after losing my intimates?

مَهاً مِن مَهاً بُدِّلتُ إِلّا نِفارَها

وَغُصناً بِأَغصانٍ وَغُصنُكَ عاسِ

I have substituted tents for tents except for their evacuation,

And branches for branches while your branch is barren.

لَقَد نَبَذَ الهَمُّ السَوادَ بِخاطِري

كَما حَصَّلَ الهَمُّ البَياضَ بِراسي

Worry has cast blackness into my thoughts

As worry has accumulated whiteness in my head.

وَلَم يُشجِني إِلّا جِنايَةُ عَينِهِ

بِما أودِعَت عَينايَ وَهوَ نُعاسي

And nothing hurts me but the crime of his eye,

With what my eyes deposited while he was sleeping.

وَلَو أَنَّهُ ناسٍ لَكُنتُ مُذَكِّراً

فَلا تَبعَثِ التِذكارَ في المُتَناسي

If he were forgetful, I would be a reminder,

So do not awaken remembering in the forgetful.

يَمُرُّ عَلى سَمعي المَلامُ بِطافِحٍ

فَيَدمَغُهُ عَنّي الغَرامُ بِراسِ

Blame passes overflowing through my hearing,

Then passion crushes it for me.

خُذوني عَلى التَجريبِ عَبداً فَإِنَّني

أَبيعُكُم بَيعاً بِغَيرِ مِكاسِ

Take me on trial as a slave, for I

Will sell you without bargaining.

وَقاسَيتُ ما أَنكى عَدُوِّيَ مِنكُمُ

وَأَصعَبُ عِندي مِنهُ ما سَأُقاسي

And I have endured what has pained my enemy from you,

Yet what I have yet to endure is more difficult for me.

وَكُنتُ إِذا فورِقتُ لابِسَ جُنَّةِ

مِنَ الصَبرِ فَاليَومَ اِستُلِبتُ لِباسي

Whenever I was clothed in the armor

Of patience, today it was stripped from me.

وَما جِئتُهُ يَوماً بِنَشطَةِ مَطمَعٍ

فَأَرجَعَني إِلّا بِفَترَةِ ياسِ

And I never came to him full of hopeful ambition

Except that he sent me back with the garb of despair.

وَعَنَّفَني أَن قُلتُ ما ليَ طاقَةٌ

وَقالَ أَما تَقوى بِطاقَةِ آسِ

He scolded me when I said I have no strength,

And said, “Do you not have the strength of staffs?”