وسميطةٍand a small roast fowl صفراءَyellow ديناريةٍdinar-like
وسميطةٍ صفراءَ ديناريةٍ
ثمناًin price ولوناًand in color زفهاushered it like a bride لكto you حَزْوَرُḤazwar
ثمناً ولوناً زفها لك حَزْوَرُ
And a little yellow roast fowl, like a dinar
A supple, saffron yellow she-camel,
in price and color—Ḥazwar ushered it to you like a bride.
was given me as a gift--her price as well as her color--by Hazwar.
عظمتْit grew large فكادتso it nearly أنto تكونbecome إوزةًa goose
عظمتْ فكادت أن تكون إوزةً
ونَوتْand it grew fat فكادso it nearly إهابهاits skin يتفطرُsplit open
ونَوتْ فكاد إهابها يتفطرُ
It grew so large it nearly became a goose,
She grew so fat that she was about to become an ostrich,
and so fat that its skin almost split.
and became so full that her udder was about to burst.
طفِقتit began تجودit lavishes بذَوْبهاwith its melted fat جُوذابةa sweet pudding
طفِقت تجود بذَوْبها جُوذابة
قَانَىmingled لبابَkernels اللوزof almonds فيهاin it السكّرthe sugar
قَانَى لبابَ اللوز فيها السكّر
It began lavishing its melted fat upon a sweet pudding,
She began to give freely of her milk, pouring forth abundantly,
in which sugar mingled with almond kernels.
the syrup over the door of the almond in her flowed.
نِعَمُblessings السماءthe sky هناكthere ظَلّkept صبيبُهاtheir downpour
نِعَمُ السماء هناك ظَلّ صبيبُها
يَهميstreams down ونعمand blessings الأرضthe earth ظلتkept تمطرraining
يَهمي ونعم الأرض ظلت تمطر
There, heaven's blessings—their downpour kept
How good was the climate there, with its dripping rainclouds,
streaming, while earth's blessings kept raining.
and how good the land as the spray continued to pour!
ياO حسنَهاits beauty فوقabove الخِوانthe dining table وبنتُهاand its daughter
يا حسنَها فوق الخِوان وبنتُها
قدامهاbefore it بصهيرهاwith its melted fat يُتَغَرْغَرis gargled
قدامها بصهيرها يُتَغَرْغَر
How lovely it was upon the table, with its daughter
How lovely it was above the bowls and her daughter before her,
before it, with its melted fat being gargled!
with her bleating, bubbling over with joy!
ظلْناwe kept نقشِّرwe peel جلدهاits skin عنfrom لحمهاits flesh
ظلْنا نقشِّر جلدها عن لحمها
وكأنand as though تبراًunworked gold عنfrom لُجيْنsilver يُقشَرis peeled
وكأن تبراً عن لُجيْن يُقشَر
We kept peeling its skin from its flesh,
We kept peeling the skin back from her flesh
as though gold were being peeled from silver.
as if scraping butter from a churn.
وتقدّمتْهاand preceded it قبلbefore ذاكthat ثَرائدbread-and-broth dishes
وتقدّمتْها قبل ذاك ثَرائد
مثلlike الرياضgardens بمثلهنwith their like يُصَدَّرis begun
مثل الرياض بمثلهن يُصَدَّر
And before that, bread-and-broth dishes had preceded it,
She had been preceded by unweaned young she-camels
like gardens; with their like a meal is begun.
as if the meadows were exporting the like of them.
ومدقَّقاتand finely pounded dishes كلُّهنeach of them مزخرفٌadorned
ومدقَّقات كلُّهن مزخرفٌ
بالبيضwith eggs منهاamong them مُلَسَّنٌtongue-shaped ومُدَنَّرand dinar-shaped
بالبيض منها مُلَسَّنٌ ومُدَنَّر
And finely pounded dishes, each adorned
They were all perfectly delineated, embroidered
with eggs—some tongue-shaped, others shaped like dinars.
with white and dark interwoven.
وأتتْand came قطائفqatayif pancakes بعدafter ذاكthat لطائفَdelicacies
وأتتْ قطائف بعد ذاك لطائفَ
تَرْضىis pleased اللهاةُthe uvula بهاwith them ويرضىand is pleased الحنجرthe throat
تَرْضى اللهاةُ بها ويرضى الحنجر
And after that came qatayif, delicate pastries,
Then there came stewpots after that, delicious,
pleasing the uvula and pleasing the throat.
with which the gluttons were delighted and the throat satisfied.
ضُحُكُsmiling الوجوهthe faces منfrom الطبرزَدthe rock sugar فوقهاatop them
ضُحُكُ الوجوه من الطبرزَد فوقها
دمعtearful العيونthe eyes منfrom الدِّهانthe fats تُعصّرare squeezed out
دمع العيون من الدِّهان تُعصّر
Their faces smile with the rock sugar atop them,
The cheeks smiled at the bowls of seasoned meat above them,
their eyes weep with the fats squeezed out.
and tears from the oil were squeezed from the eyes.
منfrom مالِwealth ذيone possessing فخرٍglory كأنas though بنانهُhis fingertips
من مالِ ذي فخرٍ كأن بنانهُ
خُلُجُchannels الفراتthe Euphrates إذاwhen غدتbegan تتفجَّرُgushing forth
خُلُجُ الفرات إذا غدت تتفجَّرُ
From the wealth of a man of glory, whose fingertips are like
From the wealth of one with abundant merit it seemed
the channels of the Euphrates when they begin to gush.
as if the spring floods of the Euphrates were bursting forth,
يعطيhe gives الكثيرmuch فيستقِلso he deems little كثيرهُhis abundance
يعطي الكثير فيستقِل كثيرهُ
وقليلُهand his little مِنfrom غيرِهsomeone other than him مستكثَرdeemed abundant
وقليلُه مِن غيرِه مستكثَر
He gives much, yet deems his abundance little,
Who gives much but esteems his plenty as little,
and his little, from another, would be thought much.
while the little he has given by another seems abundant.
شمسٌa sun يحفflanks يمينهاits right side وشمالهاand its left side
شمسٌ يحف يمينها وشمالها
بدرُthe full moon السماءthe sky ومشتريهاand its Jupiter الأزهَرradiant
بدرُ السماء ومشتريها الأزهَر
A sun, flanked to right and left
He is a sun, right and left flanked by a moon,
by heaven's full moon and its radiant Jupiter.
the full moon of the sky with Venus that shines brightest.
للّهto God دَرُّهُمُtheir excellence ثلاثةُthree إخوةٍbrothers
للّه دَرُّهُمُ ثلاثةُ إخوةٍ
حسنتْwere beautiful مَناظرهمtheir appearances وطابand was good المخبَرthe inner character
حسنتْ مَناظرهم وطاب المخبَر
God bless them—three brothers!
God requite them--three brothers
Their looks are fair, and their inner nature is good.
of fair looks and refined speech.
Sol 6.1