حَدِيثُكِ ما أَحْلَى فَزِيْدِي وَحَدِّثِي

حَدِيثُكِ ما أَحْلَى فَزِيْدِي وَحَدِّثِي

عَنِ الرَّشإِ الفَرْدِ الجَمَالِ المُثَلِّثِ

عَنِ الرَّشإِ الفَرْدِ الجَمَالِ المُثَلِّثِ

How sweet your talk is! Say more, and tell me

Your talk, how sweet! So speak more and converse with me

of the fawn, peerless in beauty, who professes the Trinity.

About the lovely, unique, sublime, unmatched beauty.

ولا تَسْأَمِي ذِكْرَاهُ فالذِكْرُ مُؤْنِسِي

ولا تَسْأَمِي ذِكْرَاهُ فالذِكْرُ مُؤْنِسِي

وإنْ بَعَثَ الأشواقَ مِن كلِّ مَبْعَثِ

وإنْ بَعَثَ الأشواقَ مِن كلِّ مَبْعَثِ

And do not tire of recalling him, for remembrance is my solace,

And do not tire of mentioning him, for remembering is my companion,

even if it awakens longings from every source.

Though it rouses longing from every awakening.

وبالله فَارقِي خَبلَ نَفْسِي بقوله

وبالله فَارقِي خَبلَ نَفْسِي بقوله

وفي عَقْدِ وَجْدِي بالإعادة فانفُثِي

وفي عَقْدِ وَجْدِي بالإعادة فانفُثِي

And by God, charm away my soul's madness with his words,

For God's sake, cure the madness of my soul with his words,

and breathe into the knot of my passion, repeating them.

And with repeating in the knot of my passion, breathe into me.

أَحَقَّاً وقد صَرَّحْتُ ما بِيَ أنَّهُ

أَحَقَّاً وقد صَرَّحْتُ ما بِيَ أنَّهُ

تَبَسَّمَ كاللاَّهِي بنا المُتَعَبِّثِ

تَبَسَّمَ كاللاَّهِي بنا المُتَعَبِّثِ

Is it true—though I openly told what ails me—that he

Truly, though I have confessed what ails me,

smiled like one idly making sport of us,

He smiled at me knowingly, playing with one troubled.

وأَقْسَمَ بالإِنْجِيلِ إنِّي لَمَائِنٌ

وأَقْسَمَ بالإِنْجِيلِ إنِّي لَمَائِنٌ

وناهِيكَ دَمْعِي من مُحِقٍّ مُحَنَّثِ

وناهِيكَ دَمْعِي من مُحِقٍّ مُحَنَّثِ

and swore by the Gospel that I am indeed a liar?

And he swore by the Bible, "I am verily a comforter,"

And my tears suffice for you—truthful, yet deemed forsworn.

Yet do not reproach my tear from one sincere but false.

ولا بُدَّ مِن قَصِّي على القَسِّ قِصَّتِي

ولا بُدَّ مِن قَصِّي على القَسِّ قِصَّتِي

عَسَاهُ مُغِيثَ المُدْنَفِ المُتَغَوِّثِ

عَسَاهُ مُغِيثَ المُدْنَفِ المُتَغَوِّثِ

And I must recount my story to the priest;

And I must tell my story to the priest, tell him my tale,

perhaps he will rescue the lovesick man crying for help.

Maybe he will help the outcast, the one crying for help.

فلم يَأْتِهِمْ عِيْسَى بِدِيْنِ قَسَاوَةٍ

فلم يَأْتِهِمْ عِيْسَى بِدِيْنِ قَسَاوَةٍ

فَيَقْسُوْ على مُضْنىً ويَلْهُوْ بِمُكْرَثِ

فَيَقْسُوْ على مُضْنىً ويَلْهُوْ بِمُكْرَثِ

For Jesus did not bring them a faith of cruelty,

Jesus did not bring them a religion of cruelty

that he should be harsh to one wasted away and toy with one distressed.

To be cruel to the anguished and toy with the wretched.

وَقَلْبِيَ مِنْ حَلْيِ التَّجَلُّدِ عاطلٌ

وَقَلْبِيَ مِنْ حَلْيِ التَّجَلُّدِ عاطلٌ

هَوَىً في غزالٍ ذي نِفَارٍ مُرَعَّثِ

هَوَىً في غزالٍ ذي نِفَارٍ مُرَعَّثِ

And my heart is bare of the adornment of fortitude,

And my heart is free of the finery of pretense,

for love of a skittish gazelle adorned with earrings.

Passionately loving a shy gazelle, unkempt and disheveled.

سَيُصبحُ سِرِّي كالصَّباحِ مُشَهَّراً

سَيُصبحُ سِرِّي كالصَّباحِ مُشَهَّراً

ويُمْسِي حَدِيثِي عُرْضَةَ المُتَحَدِّثِ

ويُمْسِي حَدِيثِي عُرْضَةَ المُتَحَدِّثِ

By morning my secret will be public, plain as the dawn,

My secret will shine forth like the dawn,

and by evening my story will be fair game for the talker.

And my conversation will be the talk amongst all who converse.

وَيَغْرَى بذِكرِي بين كأسٍ وروضةٍ

وَيَغْرَى بذِكرِي بين كأسٍ وروضةٍ

وَيُنْشِدُ شِعْرِي بين مَثْنىً ومِثْلَثِ

وَيُنْشِدُ شِعْرِي بين مَثْنىً ومِثْلَثِ

And he will delight in recalling me amid wine cup and garden,

And he will boast of me between a cup and a garden,

and recite my verse amid the lute's second and third strings.

And recite my poetry between pairs and trios.