أَدركتَ فَجْرَ الحَيَاةِ أَعمًى

وكنتَ لا تَعْرِفُ الظَّلامْ

You reached the dawn of life blind,

You reached the dawn of life while blind,

And you did not know the darkness.

And were a stranger to the dark;

فأَطْبَقَتْ حَوْلَكَ الدَّياجِي

وغامَ مِنْ فوْقِكَ الغَمَامْ

So the gloom surrounded you,

Then the gloom closed in around you,

And the clouds gathered above you.

And clouds turned gray above your head;

وعِشْتَ في وَحْشَةٍ تُقاسي

خواطراً كلّها ضرامْ

You lived in a frightful solitude

You lived in desolation, suffering

With thoughts that were all thorns.

Thoughts that were all searing fire;

وغُرْبَة مَا بِها رَفيقٌ

وظلمةٍ مَا لها خِتامْ

And a loneliness that had no friend,

An estrangement with no comrade near,

And a darkness that had no end,

And darkness that possesses no end;

تشقُّ تِيهَ الوُجُودِ فرداً

قَدْ عضَّكَ الفَقْرُ والسُّقَامْ

Wandering the wilderness of existence alone,

You cross the wilderness of existence alone,

Afflicted by poverty and disease.

Gnawed by poverty and disease;

وطارَدَتْ نَفْسَكَ المآسي

وفَرَّ مِنْ قَلْبِكَ السَّلامْ

And misfortunes chased your soul

Tragedies have chased your spirit,

As peace fled from your heart.

And peace has fled from your heart.

هوِّنْ على قلبك المعنَّى

إنْ كُنْتَ لا تُبْصِرُ النُّجُومْ

Be gentle with your heart if

Go gently on your tormented heart,

You cannot see the stars,

If you are one who sees no stars,

ولا ترى الغابَ وهو يلغو

وفوقه تَخْطُرُ الغُيومْ

Nor see the forest murmuring

Who sees not the forest as it murmurs,

With clouds floating over it.

With clouds strutting high above;

ولا ترى الجَدْوَلَ المغنِّي

وحَوْلَهُ يَرْقُصُ الغيمْ

Nor see the singing stream

Who sees not the brook that sings,

With mist dancing around it.

While clouds dance upon its banks;

فكلُّنا بائسٌ جديرٌ

برأْفَةِ الخَالقِ العَظيمْ

For we are all wretched and deserving

For we are all wretched, worthy

Of the mercy of the Almighty Creator.

Of the Great Creator's mercy;

وكلُّنا في الحَيَاةِ أعمى

يَسُوقهُ زَعْزَعٌ عَقِيمْ

And we are all blind in life,

And we are all blind in this life,

Led by fruitless confusion.

Driven by a sterile gale;

وحوله تَزْعَقُ المنايا

كأنَّها جنَّةُ الجَحِيمْ

And around us shriek the fates

Around us the dooms are shrieking,

As if they were the hellfire.

Like the very madness of Hell;

يا صاحِ إنَّ الحَيَاة قفرٌ

مروِّعٌ ماؤهُ سَرَابْ

My friend, life is a wasteland,

O friend, truly life is a barren waste,

Frightening, with mirage water.

Terrifying, its water a mirage;

لا يجتني الطَّرْفُ منه إلاَّ

عَواطفَ الشَّوْكِ والتُّرابْ

The eye reaps from it only

The eye gathers nothing from it

The thorns and dust of sorrow.

Save emotions of thorns and dust;

وأَسعدُ النَّاس فيه أَعمى

لا يُبْصِرُ الهول والمُصَابْ

And the happiest people in it are the blind

The happiest person here is blind,

Who do not see the horror and calamity,

Who does not see the dread and woe,

ولا يرى أَنْفُسَ البرايا

تَذُوبُ في وقْدَةِ العَذَابْ

Who do not see the wilds of existence

Nor sees the souls of creation

Melting in the flames of torment.

Melting in the blaze of agony;

فاحمد إِلهَ الحَيَاةِ واقنعْ

فيها بأَلْحانِكَ العِذَابْ

So praise the God of life and be content

So praise the God of Life and be content

In it with your songs of lament.

Within it, with your sweet songs,

وعِشْ كما شاءَتِ اللَّيالي

مِنْ آهَةِ النَّايِ والرَّبَابْ

And live however the nights willed

And live as the nights may wish,

With the sigh of the flute and lute.

From the sighs of the flute and the rabab.