1. ذيب نرهن ذا الغفاره

    ونرده في غباره

    Wolf, I will pawn this cloak,

    and redeem it amid its dust.

  2. ونقول اسقين حوحو

    ونميل من حيط لأخر

    And I say, "Give me a drink, Huhu!"

    And I sway from one wall to another.

  3. ويقولوا حن يروني

    سكر هي من الف شاهر

    And they say when they see me:

    "She has been drunk for a thousand months!"

  4. كن زوج للتوب لاكن

    لم تكن عندي بماهر

    I was wedded to repentance, but

    it was no skilled partner to me.

  5. لول خوفي للإماره

    مابقا منّه إماره

    Were it not for my fear of the authorities,

    not a trace of it would remain.

  6. ريت من تب قبل منها

    عاد يجبرط هو عليها

    I have seen someone repent of it before,

    then return to swagger over it.

  7. الرياه منه يمنع

    والقلوب تحن إليها

    He keeps the scent away from himself,

    while hearts yearn for it.

  8. وسمّي فهذا الأيّم

    والثمار تنشر حليها

    And name her, in these days,

    while fruits display their finery:

  9. أي عروسا بخماره

    تسحر النس بخماره

    what a bride beneath her veil,

    bewitching people with her intoxicating haze!

  10. لول حب ذا الفلانا

    ما كنجنح للتصاب

    Were it not for love of this so-and-so,

    I would not incline to youthful dalliance.

  11. حسنها أخذن غفلا

    وم يكن شي في حساب

    Her beauty caught me unawares,

    and nothing of this was in my plans,

  12. بعد ما نوّر عذاري

    والبياض رجع خضاب

    after my sideburns had blossomed

    and whiteness had become my dye.

  13. ليست للحسن شاره

    ورمست قلبي إشاره

    Beauty has no emblem;

    and a gesture buried my heart

  14. بسهام من لحظ ان احور

    وشفار ان با بليّا

    with arrows from a dark-eyed glance,

    and Babylonian lashes,

  15. وجسم أبيض مدلفن

    مثل جبنة ان طريّا

    and a white, plump body

    like a piece of fresh cheese.

  16. رمت نرجع لها سفج

    رجعت تقلي عليّا

    I wished to become a fritter for her;

    she began to fry me.

  17. وتقول عني لجاره

    الفقير مالو تجاره

    And she says about me to a neighbor:

    "The poor man has no trade."

  18. رب ينصر الخليفا

    الذي يعطي ويغني

    May the Lord grant victory to the caliph,

    who gives and enriches.

  19. المزاح غلب عليّا

    والهوى لشنّه فنّي

    Jesting has got the better of me,

    and love—for it is my art.

  20. ماه فن يا رقيعا

    غير نمدح ونهنّي

    What art, you shameless fool,

    except to praise and congratulate

  21. للذّي يفني النصاره

    وصل اللّه انتصاره

    him who annihilates the Christians?

    May God prolong his victory!