ذري القلب يطوي حبّه ويواريه

ذري القلب يطوي حبّه ويواريه

ذريه فقد أقصى هواك أمانيه

ذريه فقد أقصى هواك أمانيه

Let the heart fold away its love and conceal it.

My heart conceals its love and hides it

Leave it: love of you has banished its hopes.

Leave it be, for your love has fulfilled its wishes

ومن كفّك الصهباء صاب فاترعي

ومن كفّك الصهباء صاب فاترعي

عدمتك كأسي واغربي لا تديريه

عدمتك كأسي واغربي لا تديريه

And from your palm the tawny wine is gall; so fill to the brim

From your soft white palm pours my drink, so refresh me

My cup—may I be rid of you!—and begone; do not pass it round.

You are absent from my cup, go on your way and do not return

فلست على الحب القتيل بآسف

فلست على الحب القتيل بآسف

فحبّ كهذا لا تطاق مساويه

فحبّ كهذا لا تطاق مساويه

For I do not mourn the slain love;

I do not regret that dead love

A love like this has faults that cannot be borne.

For a love like yours cannot be equaled

ولست على أمسي وغرسي بنادم

ولست على أمسي وغرسي بنادم

وتبّا لقلبٍ كاذب الحبّ يغريه

وتبّا لقلبٍ كاذب الحبّ يغريه

Nor do I regret my yesterday or what I planted;

Nor do I regret my past and my upbringing

And damn a heart that false love beguiles!

Woe to a heart that is treacherous in the love that deceives it

دعيني وهاتي يا هلوك رسائلي

دعيني وهاتي يا هلوك رسائلي

فإنّ ربيب الإثم خابت مساعيه

فإنّ ربيب الإثم خابت مساعيه

Leave me, and bring my letters, you wanton!

Leave me be and bring, oh beautiful one, my letters

For the fosterling of sin has failed in his endeavors.

For the darling of sin, his efforts have been thwarted

وهاك الذي بالأمس كنت أضمه

وهاك الذي بالأمس كنت أضمه

إلى مهجتي الحرى وكنت أفدّيه

إلى مهجتي الحرى وكنت أفدّيه

And take what yesterday I used to clasp

And take this, which yesterday I held

To my burning heart, and would give my life for.

To my burning heart, and I would sacrifice for it

خذيه ففي طيّاته لك صورة

خذيه ففي طيّاته لك صورة

ودمع وبعض الدمع خرسٌ معانيه

ودمع وبعض الدمع خرسٌ معانيه

Take it: in its folds is a portrait of you,

In its folds is an image for you

And tears; some tears have meanings that are mute.

Some tears, and some tears that mute their meanings

ولي في يا أفعى دموع بعيد ما

ولي في يا أفعى دموع بعيد ما

أثار ابن جنبي فارعوى ما سأخفيه

أثار ابن جنبي فارعوى ما سأخفيه

And I have tears within me, O viper, shortly after

As for me, oh viper, I have tears from long ago

What I shall conceal roused the son of my side, who then came to his senses.

That the son of my flank has stirred, that I will conceal

ويا شبح الموت اذهبي وتصيّدي

ويا شبح الموت اذهبي وتصيّدي

عسى ولعلّ السهم يودي براميه

عسى ولعلّ السهم يودي براميه

And O specter of death, go and hunt;

Oh specter of death, go and hunt

Perhaps—perhaps—the arrow will kill its archer.

Perhaps the arrow will kill its archer

حنانيك يا ساقي الطلا أصبابة

حنانيك يا ساقي الطلا أصبابة

تبلّ الصدى والحيّ عطشان شاديه

تبلّ الصدى والحيّ عطشان شاديه

Your mercy, O cupbearer of wine! Can a few drops

Your affection, oh cupbearer, is a torrent

Slake thirst while the tribe's singer is parched?

That resonates loudly, and the alive one is thirsty for it

إذن هات هاتيك الزجاجة واسقني

إذن هات هاتيك الزجاجة واسقني

ومثلي مدين بالحياة لساقيه

ومثلي مدين بالحياة لساقيه

Then bring that bottle and give me drink;

So bring, bring me that bottle and let me drink

And one like me owes his life to his cupbearer.

One indebted to life like me, to his cupbearer

أغثني ففي روحي لحون حبيسة

أغثني ففي روحي لحون حبيسة

وفي الصدر ما فيه أغثني لأبديه

وفي الصدر ما فيه أغثني لأبديه

Help me: melodies lie captive in my soul,

Relieve me, for in my soul are imprisoned melodies

And my breast holds what it holds; help me reveal it.

And in my chest is that which, relieve me of forever

ويا أيها اللاحي وكأسي في يدي

ويا أيها اللاحي وكأسي في يدي

منار لنفسي وهي تحبط في التيه

منار لنفسي وهي تحبط في التيه

And you who reproach me—my cup in my hand

And oh radiant one, while my cup is in my hand

Is a beacon for my soul as it falters in the wilderness.

A lantern for my soul while it wanders lost

أأترك كأسي والفؤاد ربيبها

أأترك كأسي والفؤاد ربيبها

وهيهات ينسى القلب فضل مربيه

وهيهات ينسى القلب فضل مربيه

Shall I abandon my cup, when the heart is its fosterling?

Shall I leave my cup while my heart is its companion?

Far be it from the heart to forget its nurturer's kindness!

Never will the heart forget the favors of its nurturer

أربّ الرفيق الجزل ألف تحيّة

أربّ الرفيق الجزل ألف تحيّة

ومثلك من أعماق قلبي أحيّيه

ومثلك من أعماق قلبي أحيّيه

O master of the eloquent companion, a thousand greetings!

A thousand greetings to the finest friend

And from my heart's depths I salute one such as you.

And one like you, from the depths of my heart I salute

وأرفع إعجابي وشكري خالصا

وأرفع إعجابي وشكري خالصا

له واعترافي صادقا وأهنّيه

له واعترافي صادقا وأهنّيه

And I offer my admiration and my sincere thanks

And I raise my admiration and sincere thanks to him

To him, with my sincere acknowledgment; and I congratulate him.

And my truthful recognition, and I congratulate him

ومثلك أهديه القريض مهذّبا

ومثلك أهديه القريض مهذّبا

ولم لا وأنت الراقصات قوافيه

ولم لا وأنت الراقصات قوافيه

And to one like you I offer polished verse;

And one like you, I present to him this poetry refined

And why not, when you are the one whose rhymes dance?

Why not, while you are the meter of its rhymes

تغّنيت في الوادي فاسكرت نشأه

تغّنيت في الوادي فاسكرت نشأه

وأطربت دانيه ورقّصت قاصيه

وأطربت دانيه ورقّصت قاصيه

You sang in the valley and intoxicated its youth,

You sang in the valley, intoxicating its groves

And delighted those near it, and made those far from it dance.

And brought joy to its slopes and set its edges dancing

ورحت على الأحلام في الروض نائحا

ورحت على الأحلام في الروض نائحا

فأبكيت في فصل الربيع قماريه

فأبكيت في فصل الربيع قماريه

And in the garden you went mourning dreams,

And you went crying dreams in the meadow

And made its turtledoves weep in springtime.

So you made weep in springtime its gamblers

وبتّ تبثّ الوجد والشوق زهره

وبتّ تبثّ الوجد والشوق زهره

فيلقي الضحى والدمع ملء مآقيه

فيلقي الضحى والدمع ملء مآقيه

You spent the night telling its flowers of passion and longing,

And you diffused ecstasy and longing, their flowers

So they greeted the morning, their eyes brimming with tears.

To meet the morning and tears filling its streams

وكم نبّهت شكواك في الدوح بلبلا

وكم نبّهت شكواك في الدوح بلبلا

فشاطرك الشكوى ونارك تكويه

فشاطرك الشكوى ونارك تكويه

How often your lament has woken a nightingale among the great trees,

And how your complaints in the valley woke the nightingale

And it shared your lament as your fire seared it.

To share in the plaint, and your fire burns it

وكم لك من وجدانك الحيّ صرخة

وكم لك من وجدانك الحيّ صرخة

بعثت بها ميتا وأيقظت ما فيه

بعثت بها ميتا وأيقظت ما فيه

And how many a cry from your living soul

And how many laments you cried from your living heart

Has revived a dead man and awakened what lay within him!

With it you gave life to the dead and awakened what was in them

وكم عبرة أرسلتها إثر عبرة

وكم عبرة أرسلتها إثر عبرة

لمست بها جرحا تناساه آسيه

لمست بها جرحا تناساه آسيه

And how many a tear you have shed after another,

And how many teardrops you sent after teardrops

With which you touched a wound its healer had chosen to forget.

That touched a wound its pain had forgotten

وكم لك من أغنية شفت الصدى

وكم لك من أغنية شفت الصدى

ومثلك عبد اللَه تشفي أغانيه

ومثلك عبد اللَه تشفي أغانيه

And how many a song of yours has cured thirst!

And how many songs of yours delighted the echo

And one like you, Abdullah, has songs that heal.

And one like you, Abdullah, whose songs heal

فتى الهاتفات الواثبات شواديا

فتى الهاتفات الواثبات شواديا

ويا من بأفق الفنّ لاحت دراريه

ويا من بأفق الفنّ لاحت دراريه

Young man of calling voices that leap forth singing,

Lad of the leaping melodies, giving joy

And you whose bright stars have shone on art's horizon!

And you who on the horizon of art your brilliance arose

فديتك طال الصمت والركب حائر

فديتك طال الصمت والركب حائر

وخارت قوى حاديه مذ تاه هاديه

وخارت قوى حاديه مذ تاه هاديه

My life for you! Silence has grown long, and the caravan is bewildered,

I sacrifice myself, silence has been long and the caravan wanders lost

And its chanting camel-driver's strength has failed since its guide went astray.

The power of its guide has vanished since its guide was lost

بربّك أطلقها لحونا مثيرة

بربّك أطلقها لحونا مثيرة

تحرك في القلب الشعور وتذكيه

تحرك في القلب الشعور وتذكيه

By your Lord, release them as stirring melodies

For your Lord's sake, unleash for it melodies stirring

That move feeling in the heart and kindle it.

That stir in the heart feeling and kindle it

فكم صغتها والدر صعب مناله

فكم صغتها والدر صعب مناله

عقودا بها الوادي فخور براميه

عقودا بها الوادي فخور براميه

How often you have fashioned them, though pearls are hard to obtain,

For how I have listened to them, and attaining pearls is hard

Into necklaces that make the valley proud of their caster—

Necklaces of them, the valley is proud of its archer

عقودا بها باهي النجوم وصانها

عقودا بها باهي النجوم وصانها

وما كل غوّاص تصان لآليه

وما كل غوّاص تصان لآليه

Necklaces with which it vied with the stars, and which it guarded;

Necklaces of them, the brilliant stars have guarded them

And not every diver's pearls are preserved.

And not every diver can attain its treasures

أخي كم دعاني الشعر والفكر شارد

أخي كم دعاني الشعر والفكر شارد

فلم أستطع والآن لبيت داعيه

فلم أستطع والآن لبيت داعيه

My brother, how often poetry called me while my mind wandered,

My brother, how poetry and thought called me wandering

But I could not; now I have answered its summoner.

But I could not, and now I respond to their call

فمن غور قلبي هاكها عسكريّة

فمن غور قلبي هاكها عسكريّة

مجنّحة والشاعر الحرّ أهديه

مجنّحة والشاعر الحرّ أهديه

So from my heart's depths, take this Askari poem,

So from my heart's abyss, here are some, like soldiers

Winged—and to the free poet I offer it.

Winged, and the free poet presents them as a gift