سقيتْ دمشقُ وجارتاَ جيرونها

سقيتْ دمشقُ وجارتاَ جيرونها

بمثلثّ أخلافِ القطار هتونها

بمثلثّ أخلافِ القطار هتونها

May Damascus and the two neighbors of its Jayrun be watered

Damascus quenched the thirst of its neighbor Jeronah

with torrents from the showers' threefold teats.

With a triangle of train tracks that humbled it

صنعٌ يعيد على البطاح بصبغهِ

صنعٌ يعيد على البطاح بصبغهِ

ما حال عامَ المحل من تلوينها

ما حال عامَ المحل من تلوينها

A handiwork restoring to the plains, with its dye,

An act that returns color to the plains with its dye

the colors that the drought-year had altered.

What happened this year to its variegation?

وكسا حياءُ البرقِ كلَّ خميلةٍ

وكسا حياءُ البرقِ كلَّ خميلةٍ

جنّات نيربها إلى قابونها

جنّات نيربها إلى قابونها

And lightning's rain clothed every leafy grove:

And the lightning's shyness dressed every flirt

the gardens of its Nayrab, as far as its Qabun,

Whose gardens we lead to Qaboun

فعراصِ مزَّتها إلى قنواتها

فعراصِ مزَّتها إلى قنواتها

فالواديينِ إلى شعاب منينها

فالواديينِ إلى شعاب منينها

then the open grounds of its Mizzah, as far as its Qanawat,

So the terraces of its beauty lead to its canals

then the two valleys, as far as the ravines of its Minin.

And the two valleys to the folds of its plains

أوطانُ أوطاني ودين ُصبابتي

أوطانُ أوطاني ودين ُصبابتي

ألاَّ أحولَ صبابةً عن دينها

ألاَّ أحولَ صبابةً عن دينها

Homelands of my homelands! The creed of my yearning

My homelands, homelands, and the faith of my youth

is never, in love, to turn from their creed.

I will not turn my youth away from its faith

تختال نفسك في نفاسة أهلها

تختال نفسك في نفاسة أهلها

وتلذُّ عينك في محاسن عينها

وتلذُّ عينك في محاسن عينها

Your soul exults in the precious worth of its people,

You flaunt yourself in the finery of its people

and your eye delights in the beauties of its spring.

And your eyes delight in the beauty of their eyes

ويروقك المثلانِ في فعليهما

ويروقك المثلانِ في فعليهما

هيفُ القدود ومائلاتُ غصونها

هيفُ القدود ومائلاتُ غصونها

And two counterparts charm you in their movements:

And you like the two examples in their actions

slender figures and its swaying branches.

The swaying of the slender bodies and the leaning branches

كم روضةٍ رقصت معاطفُ دوحها

كم روضةٍ رقصت معاطفُ دوحها

وأتت بلابلها بحسن لحونها

وأتت بلابلها بحسن لحونها

How many a garden where its great trees' limbs danced,

How many meadows danced their cloaks

and its nightingales brought their lovely melodies!

And brought their nightingales with the beauty of their tunes

هتفتْ بوجدي والغرام سواجعٌ

هتفتْ بوجدي والغرام سواجعٌ

جاءت على أفنانها بفنونها

جاءت على أفنانها بفنونها

Cooing birds called out my ardor and my love;

Yearning souls called out to me in passion

they came upon its boughs with their varied arts.

Coming with their arts in their tunes

شوقي دفينٌ بالشآم ونشوة الأشـ

شوقي دفينٌ بالشآم ونشوة الأشـ

ـواق لا يصيبك مثلُ دفينها

ـواق لا يصيبك مثلُ دفينها

My longing lies buried in Syria; and the rapture of long-

Shawqi lies buried in Damascus and the ecstasy of passions

-ings—nothing touches you like its buried treasure.

Nothing can touch you like its buried treasures

أرأيتَ أحسن من ملاءةِ أرضها

أرأيتَ أحسن من ملاءةِ أرضها

وسماؤها لبست قناعَ دجونها

وسماؤها لبست قناعَ دجونها

Have you seen anything lovelier than the mantle of its earth,

Have you seen more beautiful than the adornment of its land?

while its sky has donned the veil of its clouded gloom?

Its sky has worn the mask of its gloom

وبمهجتي أخت القناةِ جلوتها

وبمهجتي أخت القناةِ جلوتها

في لونها وهصرتها في لينها

في لونها وهصرتها في لينها

And my lifeblood for the spear's sister, whom I unveiled

And with my love I have revealed its canal

in her bright hue, and bent in her suppleness.

In its color and softness in its tenderness

ولقد سمعت وما سمعت كمثلها

ولقد سمعت وما سمعت كمثلها

يصبو إليها الدهرَ قلبُ طعينها

يصبو إليها الدهرَ قلبُ طعينها

Indeed I have heard, yet never heard of her equal;

And indeed I have heard, and never heard its like

the heart of the one she pierced yearns for her forever.

To which the ages incline the heart of the passionate

خفْ لدنَ قامتها وذبَّل قومها

خفْ لدنَ قامتها وذبَّل قومها

وحذارِ من أسيافهم وجفونها

وحذارِ من أسيافهم وجفونها

Fear her supple stature and her people's slender spears,

It diminished before its standing and its people withered

and beware of their swords and her eyelids.

Beware of their swords and their eyelids

لأطال ليلي حبُّ ليلى عامرٍ

لأطال ليلي حبُّ ليلى عامرٍ

فعلام لا تحنو على مجنونها

فعلام لا تحنو على مجنونها

Love for Layla of Amir has surely lengthened my night;

The long night of my love for Layla Aamir

why, then, does she not pity her madman?

Why then do you not sympathize with her crazy lover?

أبكي وتضحك ليس تسأل فيه عن

أبكي وتضحك ليس تسأل فيه عن

شأني ولا عن مقلتي وشؤونها

شأني ولا عن مقلتي وشؤونها

I weep and she laughs; through it all she never asks about

I cry and you laugh, asking not about

my plight, nor my eye and its streams of tears.

My state, my worries, and tribulations

وتنوفةٍ جاوزتها بنجائبٍ

وتنوفةٍ جاوزتها بنجائبٍ

طالت كطول نسوعها ووضينها

طالت كطول نسوعها ووضينها

And many a desert waste I crossed on noble riding-camels,

And Tannoufah, whom I passed by, swaying

tall as their long saddle-straps and woven girths.

As long as her belt and her pillow

من كل هوجاء السُّرى وخَّادة الـ

من كل هوجاء السُّرى وخَّادة الـ

ـغدوات قاطعة الفلاة أمونها

ـغدوات قاطعة الفلاة أمونها

Each headlong in night travel, long-striding in the

From every passionate encounter and tryst

mornings, crossing the wilderness, trustworthy upon it.

Cutting across the wilderness, safe

سلكتْ بطونَ وهادها وشعابها

سلكتْ بطونَ وهادها وشعابها

وفلتْ ظهور سهولها وحزونها

وفلتْ ظهور سهولها وحزونها

They passed through the bellies of its hollows and ravines,

It threaded its intestines, valleys and folds

and combed the backs of its plains and rugged tracts.

And sailed over the hills and sorrows of its plains

ولربّ بحرٍ من سرابٍ زاخرٍ

ولربّ بحرٍ من سرابٍ زاخرٍ

جاوزتهُ متمنّعاً بسفينها

جاوزتهُ متمنّعاً بسفينها

And many a brimming sea of mirage

And many a mirage sea with abundant illusion

I crossed, secure aboard its ships.

It bypassed, spurning with its ship

فأتت ضوامرَ كالقسي حواملاً

فأتت ضوامرَ كالقسي حواملاً

مثل السهام رواشقاً بظنونها

مثل السهام رواشقاً بظنونها

Then they arrived gaunt as bows, bearing

So it came to the hills, straight like an arrow

arrow-like riders, darting on their weakened mounts.

Borne like arrows by its conjectures

وإلى ذرى الملك الهجان ترفَّعت

وإلى ذرى الملك الهجان ترفَّعت

عن كل مقروف البنان هجينها

عن كل مقروف البنان هجينها

And toward the heights of the pure-bred king they rose,

And to the lofty kingdom of defiant mountains

above every tainted-fingered, baseborn man.

It rose above every curved-back breed

حتى إذا حلَّت بساحة قصدهِ

حتى إذا حلَّت بساحة قصدهِ

فكّت هنالك غالقات رهونها

فكّت هنالك غالقات رهونها

Until, when they alighted in the courtyard of the one they sought,

Until when it arrived at the field of its quest

there they redeemed their forfeited pledges.

There it unlocked the fetters of its purposes