قَضَيْتُ أَدوارَ الحَيَاةِ مُفَكِّراً

في الكَائِناتِ مُعَذَّباً مَهْمُوما

I spent the cycles of my life in deep contemplation,

Of all creation, tormented and oppressed.

فَوَجَدْتُ أَعراسَ الوُجُود مآتِماً

ووجدْتُ فِرْدَوْسَ الزَّمانِ جَحِيما

I found the weddings of existence to be funerals,

And found the paradise of time a living hell.

تدوي مَخَارِمُهُ بضَجَّةِ صَرْصَرٍ

مشبوبةٍ تَذَرُ الجِبالَ هَشِيما

Its passes thunder with the clamor of a gale,

A raging storm that grinds the mountains into dust.

وحَضَرْتُ مائدَةَ الحَيَاةِ فلمْ أَجِدْ

إلاَّ شراباً آجِناً مَسْمُوما

I took my seat at life's great banquet, yet found nought,

Save for a potion, foul and laced with poison.

ونَفَضْتُ أَعماقَ الفَضَاءِ فلمْ أَجِدْ

إلاَّ سُكوناً مُتعَباً مَحْمُوما

I shook the depths of empty space, yet only found,

A stillness weary, feverish, and vast.

تتبخَّرُ الأَعمارُ في جَنَباتِهِ

وتَمُوتُ أَشواقُ النُّفوسِ وُجُوما

Where lifetimes dissipate like vapor in its void,

And longings of the soul die out in silent gloom.

ولَمَسْتُ أَوتارَ الدُّهُورِ فلمْ تُفِضْ

إلاَّ أَنيناً دامياً مَكْلُوما

I touched the strings of timeless eons, yet they poured,

Nothing but groans, bloody and deep with wounds.

يَتْلو أَقاصيصَ التَّعاسَةِ والأَسى

ويُصِيرُ أَفراحَ الحَيَاةِ هُمُوما

Reciting tales of misery and sorrow's plight,

Turning the joys of life to heavy, anxious cares.

شُرِّدْتُ عن وَطَني الجميل أَنا الشَّقِ

يُّ فَعِشْتُ مَشْطورَ الفؤادِ يتيما

I was cast out from my fair home—I, the wretched one—

And lived an orphan, with a heart cleft in two.

في غُربةٍ رُوحيَّةٍ مَلْعُونةٍ

أَشواقُها تَقْضي عِطاشاً هِيما

Within a cursed exile of the spirit's realm,

Where longings perish, wandering and athirst.

يا غُربَةَ الرُّوحِ المُفَكِّر إنَّهُ

في النَّاسِ يحيا سَائماً مَسْؤُوما

O alienation of the thinking soul! For it

Lives among men in weariness and loathing.

شُرِّدْتُ للدُّنيا وكُلٌّ تائهٌ

فيها يُرَوِّعُ راحلاً ومقيما

I was cast out into the world where all are lost,

Where terror strikes the traveler and those who stay.

يدعو الحَيَاةَ فلا يُجيبُ سِوَى الرَّدى

ليدُسُّهُ تَحْتَ التُّرابِ رَميما

He calls to Life, but only Death replies to him,

To thrust him deep beneath the dust, decayed and old.

وتِظِلُّ سَائِرةً كأنَّ فقيدها

مَا كانَ يوماً صاحباً وحميما

And life marches onward, as if he who is lost,

Had never been a comrade or an intimate friend.

يا أَيُّها السَّاري لقد طالَ السُّرى

حَتَّام تَرْقُبُ في الظَّلامِ نُجُوما

O traveler by night, your journey has grown long,

How long will you seek stars within the dark abyss?

أَتَخَالُ في الوادي البعيدِ المرتَجَى

هيهاتَ لنْ تَلْقَى هناكَ مَرُوما

Do you imagine hope lies in that distant vale?

Alas! You will not find what you desire there.

سرْ مَا اسْتَطَعْتَ فَسَوْفَ تُلفِي مثلما

خلَّفتَ مَمشُوقَ الغُصونِ حَطيما

Walk on as you are able, for you shall only find,

Just what you left behind: the slender bough, now broken.