1. My brother Elias, how cruel are the nights
That sleep restlessly and say: what's wrong with me?

2. They pretend to be attentive as they gossip,
And whisper as they share secrets.

3. They deceive us with a capricious moon,
And assault us with a bow called "crescent."

4. They give us pleasure with the right hand
And stab us straight with the left.

5. They lay out silk dreams for us
Though poison hides in their folds.

6. They bring us close and push us away, playing
With us as storms do with sands.

7. We touch them and they touch us plainly,
Then vanish like a mirage.

8. My brother Elias, do not blame what's left -
Untie what ropes have bound you.

9. As if the sun did not rise upon us
And we did not enjoy the shade.

10. As if we never sipped a forbidden cup
Or enjoyed the magic of the halal.

11. As if we never wished this life was eternal
And we'd never come to an end.

12. As if we never mocked what we dictate
Or what dictates our dreams!

13. My brother Elias, nothing is more candid
Than a friendship pure as dew,

14. Nothing has brought our souls closer together
Or adorned them with noble thoughts,

15. I am no longer upset with life
Even when it is turbid. I am not miserable,

16. Because you had advised me to be this way
And so did the great men before us.

17. They advised us to bid farewell to a dear one,
Then replace him with another.

18. To return after painful separation
And add to that joyful union.

19. I am not one to try and appease
His loved ones with lies or the impossible!

20. Rather, my essence is crushed
While you stand aloof from me.