والعصر مخضوب البنان

والعصر مخضوب البنان

 و أزهار الحقل الحسان

و أزهار الحقل الحسان

And the afternoon, its fingertips dyed,

The branches are stained with blood red,

And the afternoon with henna-tinted fingers,

and the lovely flowers of the field,

And the flowers of the meadow are beautiful,

And the beautiful flowers of the field,

و الصبح يملأ بالندى

و الصبح يملأ بالندى

 عطرا سلال الأقحوان

عطرا سلال الأقحوان

and morning, filling with dew

And the morning fills with dew,

And the morning filling with dew,

the baskets of chrysanthemums with fragrance,

The fragrance of the oleander groves,

Scent into the baskets of chamomile,

و البدر و هو مظله

و البدر و هو مظله

 لليل تمتلك افتناني

لليل تمتلك افتناني

and the full moon, a canopy

And the moon that shelters,

And the full moon, acting as a shade,

for the night, hold me spellbound.

The night has my infatuation,

For the night, possesses my fascination.

إن الفؤاد لفي ضلال

إن الفؤاد لفي ضلال

 من هواه و في هوان

من هواه و في هوان

Truly, the heart is astray

The heart is lost in its passion,

Verily the heart is in error,

through its passion, and in abasement.

And in humiliation from its love,

From its passion and in humiliation.

ما داخل الحب الفؤا

ما داخل الحب الفؤا

 د فعاد بيتا للأماني

د فعاد بيتا للأماني

Love never entered the heart

What is inside the bewildered heart,

Love never entered the heart,

and made it a home for wishes,

It became a home for wishes,

Then turned it into a home for wishes,

أو بات في روض و أص

أو بات في روض و أص

بح باسما نضر المجاني

بح باسما نضر المجاني

nor dwelt in a garden and grew

Or spent the night in a garden and woke up,

Or spent the night in a garden and be-

smiling, fresh with fruit.

With a blossoming smile of joy,

came smiling with fresh harvest.

هبط النعيم و ساكنيه

هبط النعيم و ساكنيه

 فرده خلو المغاني

فرده خلو المغاني

It descended upon Paradise and its two dwellers,

Comfort came down and its inhabitants,

Bliss descended, along with its dwellers,

and left its dwellings empty.

So it was empty of music,

Reducing it to empty ruins.

سل عنه أزهار الحقول

سل عنه أزهار الحقول

 على جداولها حواني

على جداولها حواني

Ask the flowers of the fields about it,

Ask about it the meadows’ flowers,

Ask the flowers of the fields about him,

bending over their streams.

On their streams ask the guardians,

Leaning compassionately over their streams.

سل زهرة التفاح ضا

سل زهرة التفاح ضا

 حكة الأسرة و المعاني

حكة الأسرة و المعاني

Ask the apple blossom, smiling

Ask the apple blossom the talkative,

Ask the apple blossom,

in countenance and meaning:

Of secrets and meanings,

Laughing in features and meaning.

يا زهرة التفاح هلا

يا زهرة التفاح هلا

 تخبرين عن الجنان

تخبرين عن الجنان

O apple blossom, will you not

O apple blossom, why don’t you,

O apple blossom, will you not,

tell of the gardens,

Tell us about paradise,

Tell us about the Gardens?

يوم استفز بها الهوى

يوم استفز بها الهوى

 فلبين باتا يخفقان

فلبين باتا يخفقان

on the day passion stirred within them

The day desire provoked it,

The day passion provoked them there,

two hearts that throbbed all night?

And they both started throbbing,

And two hearts spent the night beating.

اروي لنا نبأ ( الطريد )

اروي لنا نبأ ( الطريد )

 فأنت راوية الزمان

فأنت راوية الزمان

Tell us the tale of the outcast,

Tell us the story of the banished,

Narrate to us the news of the Outcast,

for you are time's storyteller.

As you are the narrator of time,

For you are the storyteller of time.

أغوته ( حواء ) فمد

أغوته ( حواء ) فمد

 يديه نحو الأفعوان

يديه نحو الأفعوان

Eve tempted him, so he stretched

“Eve” seduced him, so he,

Eve tempted him, so he extended,

his hands toward the serpent.

Stretched his hands to the snakes,

His hands towards the serpent,

ثمر يحرمه الإله

ثمر يحرمه الإله

 عليهما و يحللان

عليهما و يحللان

Fruit that God forbids

They tasted the fruit God forbade,

Fruit which God had forbidden,

to them both, yet they deem it lawful.

To both yet they made permissible,

To them both, yet they deemed it lawful.

ذاقا فكانا ظالمين

ذاقا فكانا ظالمين

 فكيف يجزي الظالمان

فكيف يجزي الظالمان

They tasted it, and became wrongdoers;

So they tasted and became transgressors,

They tasted and became transgressors,

how, then, are the two wrongdoers requited?

How would the transgressors be punished?

So how are transgressors requited?

وبدا الموارى منهما

وبدا الموارى منهما

 فإذا هنالك سوءتان

فإذا هنالك سوءتان

And what was hidden of them both appeared—

And their nakedness appeared to them,

And what was hidden appeared to them,

and behold, the nakedness of both.

There were the two evils,

And lo, there was their nakedness.

و عليهما طفقا من الو

و عليهما طفقا من الو

رق المهدل يخصفان

رق المهدل يخصفان

And they began to cover themselves with the

And they started sewing from the leaves,

And upon themselves they began, from the

drooping leaves, piecing them together.

Covers to conceal themselves,

Dangling leaves, to patch and cover.

يا بؤس من فضح الإله

يا بؤس من فضح الإله

 و لم يزده سوى الهوان

و لم يزده سوى الهوان

Alas for the one whom God exposed,

Oh what misery that God exposed them,

Oh, the misery of one exposed by God,

and to whom He added nothing but humiliation.

And only added more humiliation,

Which increased him only in disgrace.

لم يعرف الدوح الخريف

لم يعرف الدوح الخريف

 و نزع أوراق حسان

و نزع أوراق حسان

The great trees had never known autumn

Spring did not know the autumn,

The great tree knew not autumn,

nor the stripping of lovely leaves,

Taking off the beautiful leaves,

Nor the stripping of beautiful leaves,

حتى نضى ورقاته

حتى نضى ورقاته

 العاشقان الآثمان

العاشقان الآثمان

until their leaves were stripped away

Until it shed its leaves,

Until its leaves were plucked away,

by the two sinful lovers.

The two sinful lovers.

By the two sinful lovers.