1. The earth grew narrow for you, and the sky roared,
And your fate jostled with destiny,

2. O Nile, O sign of fate,
With no cure to withstand diverse forms,

3. You seethe, never ceasing, from a glowing place,
Angry in channel and slope,

4. You travel the luminous path of stars,
And the procession of the sun and the march of the moon,

5. Be gentle with the one who inspired you the care,
And crafted in your heart the inspiration of beauty,

6. His chalice of passion overflowed,
A lifetime, and your singing and the singing of the sands,

7. His hopes, O Nile, his dreams,
His fresh, verdant youth and shadows,

8. Is this how his days run out,
While you never cease, pouring magnificence?

9. In a wave of yours, you swallowed the farewell boat,
So who will swallow you?

10. In your vast belly, you fed the hungry,
Does that sate you?

11. Be gentle with him, keep him intact,
If his ribs are lodged in your ribs,

12. Build him a funeral house among the grasses,
And let the structure weep from the heat,

13. Shape him shells as a grave, for who
Would conceal the pearl but the oyster shell?

14. Pour out on the grave of genius blood,
Scatter on the grave of youth, censure,

15. And gather for the glory of poetry, the glory of lyricism,
The first fruits of the Lord, stars.