كَسَوْتَني فَرْوَةً فَرَّ الشِّتاءُ بِها

كَسَوْتَني فَرْوَةً فَرَّ الشِّتاءُ بِها

عَنّى وَوَلَّى كَمَا وَلَّتْ جُمُوعُ تَتَرْ

عَنّى وَوَلَّى كَمَا وَلَّتْ جُمُوعُ تَتَرْ

You clothed me in a fur coat that made winter flee

You clothed me with a fur coat, so winter fled from me

from me, retreating as the Tatar hordes retreated.

And turned away, as the hordes of Tatars turned away.

تَوَدُّ شُهْبُ الدَّيَاجِي لَوْ تَلُوحُ بِها

تَوَدُّ شُهْبُ الدَّيَاجِي لَوْ تَلُوحُ بِها

سَوْداءَ كاللَّيلِ أَهْداهَا إليَّ قَمَرْ

سَوْداءَ كاللَّيلِ أَهْداهَا إليَّ قَمَرْ

The bright stars of the dark nights wish they could shine upon it,

The Pleiades yearn that you may gleam with it -

black as night—a moon bestowed it on me.

Black as the night, though the moon gave it to me as a gift.

كُنْتُ المُبرّدَ لَوْلاها وقَد جَعَلَ ال

كُنْتُ المُبرّدَ لَوْلاها وقَد جَعَلَ ال

فَرَّاءُ لي رَابِطاً كالمِسْكِ أَو خَبَرْ

فَرَّاءُ لي رَابِطاً كالمِسْكِ أَو خَبَرْ

But for it I would have been al-Mubarrad—the chilled one—and the

Were it not for it, I would be chilled, but my

furrier, al-Farrāʾ, made me a fastening like musk or a predicate.

Furrier made for me a bond as of musk or ambergris.

إذا خَطَرْتُ بِها في مَعْشَرٍ دُهِشُوا

إذا خَطَرْتُ بِها في مَعْشَرٍ دُهِشُوا

وَقَالَ قَائِلُهُمْ مَنْ ذا الأَمِيرُ عَبَرْ

وَقَالَ قَائِلُهُمْ مَنْ ذا الأَمِيرُ عَبَرْ

Whenever I stride proudly in it among a company, they are astonished,

When I wore it among a group, they were amazed,

and one of them says, “Who is this prince passing by

And one of them said, "Who is this prince?"

بِطَوْقِ سَمُّورَةٍ كادَتْ مَحاسِنُهُ

بِطَوْقِ سَمُّورَةٍ كادَتْ مَحاسِنُهُ

تَكُونُ لِلوُرْقِ في أفْنَانِهنَّ سَمَرْ

تَكُونُ لِلوُرْقِ في أفْنَانِهنَّ سَمَرْ

with a sable collar whose charms almost

With a collar of sable, whose beauties almost

become evening talk for the gray doves upon their boughs?”

Seemed to the leaves in their clusters to be chameleons.

إنْ شَبَّ عَمْروٌ عنِ الطَّوْقِ الذي زَعَمُوا

إنْ شَبَّ عَمْروٌ عنِ الطَّوْقِ الذي زَعَمُوا

فَقُلْ وَقَدْ شَبَّ في طَوْقِ الوَزِيرِ عُمَرْ

فَقُلْ وَقَدْ شَبَّ في طَوْقِ الوَزِيرِ عُمَرْ

If ʿAmr outgrew the collar, as they claim,

If 'Amr boasted of the collar which they alleged,

then say: ʿUmar has indeed grown up within the vizier’s collar.

Say "Yet 'Umar grew up in the minister's collar."