لَولا اِزديارُكِ في الكَرى وَهنا

لَولا اِزديارُكِ في الكَرى وَهنا

كانَ السهادُ لطرفِه أَهنا

كانَ السهادُ لطرفِه أَهنا

But for your visit in sleep late at night,

Had you not spurned affection in this abode

sleeplessness would have been sweeter to his eyes.

The wild deer would come to drink from your hand

أَلَطيفُ كانَ أَرقَّ منك له

أَلَطيفُ كانَ أَرقَّ منك له

لَولا الصَباحُ لزارَه مَثنى

لَولا الصَباحُ لزارَه مَثنى

The dream-phantom was gentler to him than you;

One more gentle than you would have visited him

but for dawn, it would have visited him twice.

Had not the dawn kept him from coming again

إِن تمنعي يَقظى زيارتَه

إِن تمنعي يَقظى زيارتَه

فَلَقَد أَبحتِ وصالَه وَسنى

فَلَقَد أَبحتِ وصالَه وَسنى

If, awake, you deny him a visit,

If you forbid him from visiting while awake

you have indeed granted him union in slumber.

You have allowed union with him in dreams

يا ظبيةً بالسَفح راتعةً

يا ظبيةً بالسَفح راتعةً

تَشتو الغضا وتربَّعُ الحزَنا

تَشتو الغضا وتربَّعُ الحزَنا

O gazelle grazing at the mountain's foot,

O doe grazing the slopes burdened with sorrow

you winter among ghada trees and spend spring in the uplands.

Yearning for the meadows and bowing with grief

إن ينأَ حيُّك فالهَوى أمَمٌ

إن ينأَ حيُّك فالهَوى أمَمٌ

أَو تَقصَ دارُك فالحَشى مَغنى

أَو تَقصَ دارُك فالحَشى مَغنى

If your tribe goes far away, love is near;

If your love spurns me then passion is ephemeral

or your dwelling lies distant, my heart is an abode.

Or if your abode rejects me then desire is transient

ما كُنتُ أَحسبُ قبل فُرقتنا

ما كُنتُ أَحسبُ قبل فُرقتنا

أن سوفَ تغلقُ مُهجَتي رَهنا

أن سوفَ تغلقُ مُهجَتي رَهنا

Before our parting, I had never thought

Never before our parting did I imagine

that my heart would be forfeited as a pledge.

My love would make my heart her ransom

وَلَقَد سأَلتُ عَريفَ ركبِهمُ

وَلَقَد سأَلتُ عَريفَ ركبِهمُ

عنها فقال ترحَّلت مَعنا

عنها فقال ترحَّلت مَعنا

And indeed I asked the leader of their caravan

I asked the guide of their caravan about her

about her; he said, 'She departed with us.'

He said she traveled on with us

لِلَّه مسكنُها على إِضمٍ

لِلَّه مسكنُها على إِضمٍ

لَو دامَ لي وَلهاً به السُكنى

لَو دامَ لي وَلهاً به السُكنى

God, what a dwelling she has beside Iḍam!

May her dwelling be with a loving partner

If only my stay there had lasted, enamored as I was of it!

If she and I could have stayed together

إِذ كانَ رَوضُ صَبابَتي نَضِراً

إِذ كانَ رَوضُ صَبابَتي نَضِراً

غضّاً وغصنُ شَبيبَتي لُدنا

غضّاً وغصنُ شَبيبَتي لُدنا

When the garden of my longing was verdant,

When the meadow of my youth was verdant

tender, and the bough of my youth supple;

Soft, and the branch of my youthfulness supple

أَيّامَ تُسعدني بزورتِها

أَيّامَ تُسعدني بزورتِها

سُعدى وَكُلُّ لُبانتي لُبنى

سُعدى وَكُلُّ لُبانتي لُبنى

in the days when she gladdened me with her visit—

Days she made happy just by her visit

Suʿdā—and Lubnā was my every desire.

My bliss, and all my smoothest milk, cream

لَم أَنسَها وَالبينُ يُزعجها

لَم أَنسَها وَالبينُ يُزعجها

تُبدي العزاءَ وتكتم الحُزنا

تُبدي العزاءَ وتكتم الحُزنا

I have not forgotten her, as parting drove her away:

I did not forget her though distance pained her

she showed fortitude and concealed her grief.

Showing consolation yet hiding her sadness

حتّى إِذا جدَّ الرَحيلُ بها

حتّى إِذا جدَّ الرَحيلُ بها

بلَّت سجالُ دموعِها الرُدنا

بلَّت سجالُ دموعِها الرُدنا

until, when departure pressed upon her,

Until the departure made serious by her

her tears, pouring by the bucketful, soaked her sleeve.

The tracks of her tears flowed copiously

واهاً لَها من غادةٍ سكنت

واهاً لَها من غادةٍ سكنت

منّي الحشى إِذ حاولت ظَعنا

منّي الحشى إِذ حاولت ظَعنا

Ah, for her—a tender maiden who dwelt

Alas for her who left me inhabiting

within my heart, even as she sought to depart!

My love when she tried to wound me

قد بعتُها روحي بلا ثَمَنٍ

قد بعتُها روحي بلا ثَمَنٍ

لا أَشتَكي في صفقتي غَبنا

لا أَشتَكي في صفقتي غَبنا

I have sold her my soul for no price;

I sold her my soul without a price

I complain of no loss in my bargain.

Of my deal I do not complain of fraud

غَرّاء يَحكي الصبحُ غرَّتها

غَرّاء يَحكي الصبحُ غرَّتها

لكنَّ صبحَ جبينها أَسنى

لكنَّ صبحَ جبينها أَسنى

Radiant—dawn mirrors her shining brow,

A coquette who tells of the coquetry of dawn

yet the dawn of her forehead is brighter still.

But the dawn of her forehead is most radiant

تَربو على أَترابها حَفَراً

تَربو على أَترابها حَفَراً

وَتَفوقُ غرَّ لِداتها حُسنا

وَتَفوقُ غرَّ لِداتها حُسنا

She surpasses her peers in bashfulness,

She rises over her companions like a full moon

and outshines her radiant age-mates in beauty.

And exceeds the radiance of her friends in beauty

نشرت ذوائبَها عَلى قَمَرٍ

نشرت ذوائبَها عَلى قَمَرٍ

وَثَنَت على حِقفِ النَقا غُصنا

وَثَنَت على حِقفِ النَقا غُصنا

She spread her tresses over a moon,

She let down her tresses over a moon

and bent a bough over the curve of a sand dune.

And bent over the curvature of a tender twig

لِلَّه أَيُّ محاسنٍ جُليت

لِلَّه أَيُّ محاسنٍ جُليت

لَو كانَ يَشفعُ حسنَها حُسنى

لَو كانَ يَشفعُ حسنَها حُسنى

God, what beauties have been unveiled!

What gorgeous beauty was revealed to me

If only her beauty were accompanied by kindness!

If only her beauty could intercede for me

وَمؤنِّبٍ فيها يُزخرفُ لي

وَمؤنِّبٍ فيها يُزخرفُ لي

نُصحاً وَلَيسَ لنُصحه مَعنى

نُصحاً وَلَيسَ لنُصحه مَعنى

And many a reprover over her embellishes for me

A counselor who lavishes on me

advice—yet his advice has no meaning.

Advice without any meaning

ما ضرَّه همّي ولا وَصَبي

ما ضرَّه همّي ولا وَصَبي

قَلبي الكَئيبُ وجسمي المُضنى

قَلبي الكَئيبُ وجسمي المُضنى

My grief and sickness have done him no harm—

Neither does his concern or his anguish console me

my sorrowful heart and my wasted body.

My sorrowful heart and my exhausted body

هَيهات يُسلي العذلُ لي كَلَفاً

هَيهات يُسلي العذلُ لي كَلَفاً

ويطرِّقُ التأنيبُ لي أذنا

ويطرِّقُ التأنيبُ لي أذنا

Far be it that censure could soothe my infatuation,

Alas! Solace cannot comfort my affliction

or that rebuke could gain entrance to my ear.

Or admonishment make my ear attentive