ليَ إِلْفٌ حمانيَ الألاَّفا

ليَ إِلْفٌ حمانيَ الألاَّفا

منصفٌ لا يُجاوِزُ الإنصافا

منصفٌ لا يُجاوِزُ الإنصافا

I have a beloved who has kept other companions away from me,

A thousand melodies captivate me,

Fair-minded, he never oversteps the bounds of fairness.

A just one, not exceeding justice.

لم يسمُّوه لا الهلال ولا البد

لم يسمُّوه لا الهلال ولا البد

رَ وسَمَّوْهُ حين سَمَّوْا جُزَافا

رَ وسَمَّوْهُ حين سَمَّوْا جُزَافا

They called him neither the crescent nor the full

Neither the crescent nor the full moon named him,

moon; when they named him, they named him at random.

Yet they named him when naming the excellent.

منحوهُ الإِكليلَ والجديَ والجو

منحوهُ الإِكليلَ والجديَ والجو

زاءَ لم يمنحوه فاءً وقافا

زاءَ لم يمنحوه فاءً وقافا

They bestowed on him the Crown, the Kid, and al-Jaw-

They gave him the wreath, the river, and the atmosphere

zāʾ; they bestowed on him neither fāʾ nor qāf.

As a reward they did not give vainly or emptily.

لو تراهُ بالأمس يُنشِدُ بيتاً

لو تراهُ بالأمس يُنشِدُ بيتاً

كان شهداً بل كان سَمّاً ذعافا

كان شهداً بل كان سَمّاً ذعافا

Had you seen him yesterday reciting a verse—

If you saw him yesterday reciting a verse,

it was honey, nay, it was deadly poison—

It was as honey, or even as pure wine.

يا أبا بكرٍ المعافى من الهج

يا أبا بكرٍ المعافى من الهج

ر وما المبتلى به كالمعافى

ر وما المبتلى به كالمعافى

O Abū Bakr, spared from estrange-

Oh Abu Bakr, safe from vitriol,

ment—and one afflicted by it is not like one spared—

While the afflicted is not like the safe one.

لتنزَّهْتَ بين أصناف زهرٍ

لتنزَّهْتَ بين أصناف زهرٍ

جاورتْ في رياضها الأصنافا

جاورتْ في رياضها الأصنافا

you would have strolled among varieties of flowers

You would have walked purely among the flowers,

that neighbored other varieties in their gardens.

Whose gardens neighbor all kinds of flowers.

دُرُّ شعرٍ يفيضُ من دُرِّ ثغرٍ

دُرُّ شعرٍ يفيضُ من دُرِّ ثغرٍ

لا ترى بين ذا وذاك خِلافا

لا ترى بين ذا وذاك خِلافا

Pearls of verse flow from the pearls of a mouth;

Poetry pearls overflowing from smiling lips -

you see no difference between this and that.

You see no difference between this and that.