اِن كانَ مَوتُكَ مِن قَسى حَواجِبَ

كَالنونِ أَو من سحر جفن ذابِل

If your death was from the hardness of frowning brows

Like a nun, or from the magic of a withering eyelid,

أَو غُرة مِثل النَهار وَطرة

كَاللَيلِ أَو مِن جور قد عادِل

Or the rashness of daytime like nighttime,

Or from the injustice that has been made right,

أَو مِن لِحاظ تسحر الاِلباب اِذ

تُروى لَنا سَلب النُهى عَن بابِل

Or from a gaze that enchants intellects

When unlawful sights from Babylon are shown to us,

فَهي الَّتي فَعَلت وَلَم أَشعُر بِما

فَعَلت فَكَيفَ تَلومَني يا سائِلي

It is she who has done it, though I was unaware

Of what she did, so how can you blame me, O questioner?

أَنا ما قَتَلتُ وَاِنَّما أَنا آلَة

في القَتلِ فَاِطلُب اِن ترد من قاتِلي

I did not kill, but I am only an instrument

Of killing, so seek, if you want, my killer.

وَمَتى أَريد قصاص سيف أَوقَنا

هَل مِن سَميع مِثل ذا أَو قائِل

And when I want vengeance for a sword or spear,

Is there one who hears the like of this or says it?

وَاللَهُ قَد خَلَقَ الجَميلَ وَلَم يَقُل

هيموا بِلين قَده المُتَمايِل

And God created beauty and did not say

"Sway with the softness of its bending branches."

ما قالَ رَبُّكَ قَط يا عَبدي أَطل

نَظر الملاح وَيا جَميلَه واصِلي

Your Lord never said, "O My servant, look

At the sailor's gaze and join him, My beautiful one."

فَعَلام تَطلُب بِالدِماءِ وَتَدعى

زورا وَتَطمَع في محال باطِل

Why do you seek blood and falsely claim

In vain, hoping for the impossible?