أَلا يا عَفيفَ الدينِ هَل أَنتَ مُخبِري

أَلا يا عَفيفَ الدينِ هَل أَنتَ مُخبِري

بِمُشكِلَةٍ لا يَغمِزُ العَجمُ عودَها

بِمُشكِلَةٍ لا يَغمِزُ العَجمُ عودَها

Ah, O Afif al-Din, will you tell me

Oh virtuous Daffad! Are you to inform me,

Of an enigma whose wood no testing can dent—

Of a plight whose knot even the eloquent cannot untie?

بِمثقلةٍ حَملاً إِذا ما بَناتُها

بِمثقلةٍ حَملاً إِذا ما بَناتُها

مَرَتها أَعارَتها الغَواني نُهودَها

مَرَتها أَعارَتها الغَواني نُهودَها

Of one heavy with child: when her daughters

Of a burden, whose daughters when they pass it on,

Milk her, beautiful women lend her their breasts?

Borrow breasts from the beautiful to feed it.

كَأَنَّ أَليمَ الهَجرِ أَجرى دُموعَها

كَأَنَّ أَليمَ الهَجرِ أَجرى دُموعَها

فَفاضَت وَأَذكى في حَشاها وَقودَها

فَفاضَت وَأَذكى في حَشاها وَقودَها

As though the anguish of separation had set her tears flowing,

As if the agony of estrangement made it shed tears,

So they overflowed, and it kindled the fuel in her belly.

Overflowing, igniting its embers within.

تُباري ثِقالَ المُعصِراتِ بِدَرّها

تُباري ثِقالَ المُعصِراتِ بِدَرّها

فَما تَرَكَت لِلسّحبِ إِلّا رُعودَها

فَما تَرَكَت لِلسّحبِ إِلّا رُعودَها

She rivals the heavy rain clouds with her flowing milk,

It competes with the heaviness of oil presses in its abundance.

So she has left the clouds nothing but their thunder.

Leaving no trace for the clouds except its rumblings.