بِعَيشِكَ هَل أَبصَرتَ مِن قَبلُ أَحرُفاً

بِعَيشِكَ هَل أَبصَرتَ مِن قَبلُ أَحرُفاً

كُتِبنَ بِماءِ الحُسنِ في طُرَرِ الزَهرِ

كُتِبنَ بِماءِ الحُسنِ في طُرَرِ الزَهرِ

By your life, have you ever before seen letters

With life's vision have you ever seen

Written with the water of beauty on the fringes of blossoms?

Letters written with the water of beauty on the leaves of flowers

سَحاءَة قِرطاسٍ ثَنَتها كَما تَرى

سَحاءَة قِرطاسٍ ثَنَتها كَما تَرى

مُلاعَبَةُ المِقراضِ سَطراً عَلى سَطرِ

مُلاعَبَةُ المِقراضِ سَطراً عَلى سَطرِ

A slip of paper, folded, as you see,

The blankness of paper it has bent as you see

By the play of the scissors, line upon line.

The playfulness of scissors, line after line

أَلَيسَ عَجيباً أَن يُعَوَّضَ كاتِبٌ

أَلَيسَ عَجيباً أَن يُعَوَّضَ كاتِبٌ

بِكافورَةِ القِرطاسِ عَن مِسكَةِ الحِبرِ

بِكافورَةِ القِرطاسِ عَن مِسكَةِ الحِبرِ

Is it not wondrous that a writer should be recompensed

Is it not wondrous that a writer be rewarded

With paper's camphor in place of ink's musk?

With the camphor fragrance of paper instead of the musk scent of ink