للَه غانية حظيت بوصلها

للَه غانية حظيت بوصلها

والليل من نار النهار على حذر

والليل من نار النهار على حذر

God be praised for a beauty whose intimacy I was blessed to enjoy,

She came to me, a gift from God, when we met

while night was wary of the fire of day.

And the night was wary of the day's fire

زارت وقد سترت بياض جبينها

زارت وقد سترت بياض جبينها

بسواد سالفها الذي سحر السحر

بسواد سالفها الذي سحر السحر

She visited, having veiled the whiteness of her brow

She visited, her white brow veiled

with the blackness of her sidelock, which bewitched the dawn.

By the blackness of her tresses that bewitched all magic

وتصدقت برضابها لما رأت

وتصدقت برضابها لما رأت

ظمئي لريقتها يدل على الخطر

ظمئي لريقتها يدل على الخطر

And she gave her sweet saliva as alms when she saw

And she was generous with her saliva when she saw

that my thirst for her saliva signaled danger.

My thirst for it betrayed my peril

حتى إذا علم الرقيب بحالنا

حتى إذا علم الرقيب بحالنا

ولت تقول فضحتني بين البشر

ولت تقول فضحتني بين البشر

Until, when the watcher learned of our situation,

Until the guard knew of our situation

she turned away, saying, “You have exposed me among people!”

And she left saying, you exposed me before all people

واللَه ما حدثته عما جرى

واللَه ما حدثته عما جرى

لكنني قلت التي نفت الكدر

لكنني قلت التي نفت الكدر

And by God, I did not tell him what had happened;

By God, I told him nothing of what happened

but I spoke the words that dispelled distress:

But I did say she who dispelled gloom

فضح الغزالة جيدها وقوامها

فضح الغزالة جيدها وقوامها

فضح الغصون ووجهها فضح القمر

فضح الغصون ووجهها فضح القمر

“Her neck put the gazelle to shame, and her figure

Her neck and stature gave her away

put the branches to shame, and her face put the moon to shame.”

The branches and her face gave her away, the moon gave her away