أَلمِم بِعَفراءَ إِن أَصحابُكَ اِبتَكَروا

أَلمِم بِعَفراءَ إِن أَصحابُكَ اِبتَكَروا

وَسَلهُمُ هَل لَدَيها اليَومَ مُنتَظَرُ

وَسَلهُمُ هَل لَدَيها اليَومَ مُنتَظَرُ

Call on Afra if your companions have set out early,

Send word to 'Afra that your friends have come up with a plan,

And ask them whether anything may be hoped for from her today.

And ask her if she is expecting us today.

واهاً لِعَفراءَ إِن دارٌ بِها قَرُبَت

واهاً لِعَفراءَ إِن دارٌ بِها قَرُبَت

فَما أُبالي أَلامَ الناسُ أَم عَذَروا

فَما أُبالي أَلامَ الناسُ أَم عَذَروا

Ah, for Afra! If her dwelling is near,

Woe to 'Afra whose house is so close,

Then I do not care whether people blame me or excuse me.

I care not if people blame me or make excuses.

وَإِن تَبِن غَربَةٌ عَنّا بِها قَذَفٌ

وَإِن تَبِن غَربَةٌ عَنّا بِها قَذَفٌ

فَما تَقَضّى الهَوى مِنّا وَلا الوَطَرُ

فَما تَقَضّى الهَوى مِنّا وَلا الوَطَرُ

And if distance takes her far away from us,

If estrangement from us has cast doubt on her,

Then neither love nor desire has left us.

Passion and fervor will not diminish in me.

خَودٌ مُهَفهَفَةُ الأَعلى إِذا اِنصَرَفَت

خَودٌ مُهَفهَفَةُ الأَعلى إِذا اِنصَرَفَت

تَكادُ مِن ثِقَلِ الأَردافِ تَنتَبِرُ

تَكادُ مِن ثِقَلِ الأَردافِ تَنتَبِرُ

A tender young beauty, slender above; when she turns away,

When she turns her soft cheek, the highest part,

She almost heaves upward under the weight of her buttocks.

Its heaviness makes her shoulders almost dance.

تَفتَرُّ عَن ذي غُروبٍ طَعمُهُ عَسَلٌ

تَفتَرُّ عَن ذي غُروبٍ طَعمُهُ عَسَلٌ

مُفَلَّجِ النَبتِ رَفّافٍ لَهُ أُشُرُ

مُفَلَّجِ النَبتِ رَفّافٍ لَهُ أُشُرُ

She smiles, revealing a mouth with fine-edged teeth, honey to the taste,

Her mouth smells sweetly of gum that oozes

With well-spaced, gleaming teeth, their edges finely serrated.

From a tree's split bark flavored like ripened fruit.

كَأَنَّ فاها إِذا ما جِئتَ طارِقَها

كَأَنَّ فاها إِذا ما جِئتَ طارِقَها

خَمرٌ بِبَيسانَ أَو ما عَتَّقَت جَدَرُ

خَمرٌ بِبَيسانَ أَو ما عَتَّقَت جَدَرُ

Her mouth, whenever you come visiting her by night, is like

It's as if her mouth when you come visiting her at night

Wine from Baysan, or what Jadar has aged,

Were wine mixed with resin or freed from its amphora.

شُجَّت بِماءِ سَحابٍ زَلَّ عَن رَصَفٍ

شُجَّت بِماءِ سَحابٍ زَلَّ عَن رَصَفٍ

مِن ماءِ أَزهَرَ لَم يُخلَط بِهِ كَدَرُ

مِن ماءِ أَزهَرَ لَم يُخلَط بِهِ كَدَرُ

Diluted with cloud-water that slipped off close-set stones,

She is made smooth with rain water fallen from a pavement

Bright, clear water, with no murk mingled in.

Of untouched azure, no murkiness mixed in.

وَالعَنبَرُ الأَكلَفُ المَسحوقُ خالَطَهُ

وَالعَنبَرُ الأَكلَفُ المَسحوقُ خالَطَهُ

وَالزَنجَبيلُ وَرَندٌ هاجَهُ السَحَرُ

وَالزَنجَبيلُ وَرَندٌ هاجَهُ السَحَرُ

And dusky, powdered ambergris mingled with it,

The pounded aromatic wood, camphor, is blended with it,

And ginger, and laurel stirred by the hour before dawn.

As is ginger and spikenard made potent by dawn.

حَوراءُ مَمكورَةُ الساقَينِ بَهكَنَةٌ

حَوراءُ مَمكورَةُ الساقَينِ بَهكَنَةٌ

لا عَيبَ في خَلقِها طولٌ وَلا قِصَرُ

لا عَيبَ في خَلقِها طولٌ وَلا قِصَرُ

Dark-eyed with bright whites, rounded calves, soft and full-bodied,

She is a beauty, perfectly formed, neither too tall nor too short,

No flaw in her form: neither too tall nor too short.

Her legs pressed together like the trunks of palm trees.

كَأَنَّها الشَمسُ وافَت يَومَ أَسعُدِها

كَأَنَّها الشَمسُ وافَت يَومَ أَسعُدِها

أَو دُرَّةٌ شوِّفَت لِلبَيعِ أَو قَمَرُ

أَو دُرَّةٌ شوِّفَت لِلبَيعِ أَو قَمَرُ

She is like the sun, appearing on a day of good fortune,

She is like the sun on its luckiest day,

Or a pearl polished for sale, or the moon.

Or a pearl examined for sale or the moon.

تَقولُ إِذ أَيقَنَت أَنّي مُفارِقُها

تَقولُ إِذ أَيقَنَت أَنّي مُفارِقُها

يا لَيتَني مِتُّ قَبلَ اليَومِ يا عُمَرُ

يا لَيتَني مِتُّ قَبلَ اليَومِ يا عُمَرُ

She says, once she knows for certain that I am leaving her:

When she knew I would leave her, she said

Oh, if only I had died before today, O Umar!

"Would that I had died before this day, O my life!"