وَمَنظومَةٍ سَبعاً وَعِشرينَ دُرَّةً

وَمَنظومَةٍ سَبعاً وَعِشرينَ دُرَّةً

تُدارُ عَلى الدُنيا كُؤوسُ رَحيقِها

تُدارُ عَلى الدُنيا كُؤوسُ رَحيقِها

And a poem of twenty-seven pearls,

A poem of twenty-seven shining pearls

Cups of its pure wine are passed around the world.

Whose goblets of nectar circle the world

عَوى نَحوَها الكَلبُ الأُعَيمى حَسادَةً

عَوى نَحوَها الكَلبُ الأُعَيمى حَسادَةً

وَمَن ذا يَعيبُ الشَمسَ عِندَ شُروقِها

وَمَن ذا يَعيبُ الشَمسَ عِندَ شُروقِها

The little blind dog howled toward it out of envy.

Toward it the blind dog growled enviously

And who is there to fault the sun at its rising?

Who can fault the sun at its rising?

لَآلِئُ تومٌ أَشرَقَتهُ بِريقِهِ

لَآلِئُ تومٌ أَشرَقَتهُ بِريقِهِ

وَزادَت ظَلاماً عَينَهُ بِبَريقِها

وَزادَت ظَلاماً عَينَهُ بِبَريقِها

Pearl beads made him choke on his saliva,

Its radiance made the diamonds shine

And deepened the darkness in his eye with their brilliance.

And increased the darkness of his eyes with its brilliance

لَوى العِيُّ صَمّاوَيهِ عَن سِرِّ رَوضِها

لَوى العِيُّ صَمّاوَيهِ عَن سِرِّ رَوضِها

فَلَم يَدرِ ما ريحانُها مِن شَقيقِها

فَلَم يَدرِ ما ريحانُها مِن شَقيقِها

Ineptness turned his two ears away from its garden's secret,

The blind man turned his ears from the secret of its garden

So he could not tell its sweet basil from its anemones.

So he did not know what basil was from its hyssop

كَأَنِّيَ قَد أَرسَلتُهُنَّ حِجارَةً

كَأَنِّيَ قَد أَرسَلتُهُنَّ حِجارَةً

عَلَيهِ فَراغَت أُذنُهُ عَن طَريقِها

عَلَيهِ فَراغَت أُذنُهُ عَن طَريقِها

As though I had hurled them as stones

As if I had pelted him with stones

At him, so his ear swerved from their path.

So his ear was deaf to its path