1. Oh say to those awake in the dark night
Seekers of high aspirations, enduring pain

2. And those kept awake by passions of love
Below those kept awake by wisdom

3. So many youths hide in corners
Wandering, estranged from books and pens

4. Seeing the world as narrow as a tear in a cloak
And desiring nonexistence over existence

5. And so many on two bridges in one night
Like embers on glowing coal in the hearth

6. The writer wishes for a hut there
And sheep he would herd and milk

7. So many cypresses under the wings of darkness
Broke the writers heart as they swayed

8. He fears the movements of their branches
And is wary of the breeze if it blows

9. And if their leaves rustle in a thicket
Disturbing him with their sound and melody

10. And so many spent the night herding stars
When the horizon filled with stars

11. And the night stretched on until dawn broke
And he thought the pillar of daylight had crumbled

12. In his anxiety he imagined the stars
Were guiding down toward his musk scent

13. Whenever Gemini rose threatening
He imagined it was attacking him

14. And without the dark, no salvation comes
When darkness made it possible, not light

15. By God’s grace the villages hid him
For nothing easily hides from knowledge

16. So two crude bridges and Ashar
Are places where he sheltered and took refuge

17. And he headed towards Malihah
So many accused in Malihah

18. The home of his father whose people betrayed him
And who were given refuge and generosity

19. No doubt they pitied his state
An outcast suffering illness and pain

20. The December nights in their forties
And the cold nights more precious than coal

21. On land whose soil was sky and water
With canals above me and the river below

22. He wanders having become like a specter
Thin, that if he appeared, none would collide

23. With ruddy cheeks like citrus color
And dark skin like grapes

24. And everyday in their search and quest
He turns away and where does he flee

25. And their search brought them to his home
In Jilq gossip spread far and wide

26. And so they raided his books
Like raids of Arabs at dawn on livestock

27. And they said he will flee to Rhodes
And said he will pay for his crimes

28. And said Adham will take him
On his ship where feet find no rest

29. And some ruled prison for him
While others verdicted flogging for him

30. And the Kurd Ali Daw became a lesson
So assist him from whom hope has fled

31. Oh Kurds, do not let misfortunes grieve you
For worries match the pride of men

32. And he who dares gain glory
Should expect to be tested with vengeance

33. The craft of words is a perilous one
And how many wise ones have I known

34. And how many writers met calamity
And how many words split open hearts

35. And he who expressed passion through writing
Then misery for him is inevitable

36. So, Kurd, patience in suffering
For so many misfortunes turn hair gray

37. And patience over papers
Whose eyes of meaning weep blood

38. Alas for flowers that bloomed at dawn
And are collected by a Gatherer ancient of days

39. Flowers that stay up through the night gathering
No wonder their fragrance wafts and sleeps

40. Nothing smells finer than fresh balsam
Finer than sweet smelling pale myrtle

41. Say to the fault finders against Kurd Ali
I praised him when I tried to blame him

42. For Kurd was nothing but truthful
To his nation whom he long served

43. And if they found any doubt in him
It would not reach even petty faults

44. Can they extinguish with their mouths
Light that nations have seen

45. As long as there is a poet in our Syria
We will not be wronged or destroyed

46. And if not for the care of a poet
We would have no established order

47. He defended us from the guile of slanderers
Repelled the attacks of fault finders and cleared the clouds

48. And Syria in his time
Became straightened by blessings

49. And was safe from falsehood
As sanctity spread through the Sacred House