Sol 6.1

  1. To the august presence of the Trustworthy Spirit, a greeting,

    With perfumed breaths, sweet with roses.

  2. Longing has redoubled through it, and passion remains intact,

    Nor has affection in it weakened since that pledge.

  3. Its droplets perfume the lands of al-Sham and Rum,

    And put the scent of musk, ben trees, and laurel to shame.

  4. And it carries a message from the heights of Damascus,

    Spreading fragrance in the land of Rum like rose-hued ambergris.

  5. And explains something of my condition to his exalted presence,

    So he may truly know the anguish of love I endure.

  6. And tells him that I, whether near or far,

    In every circumstance, stand in the station of a servant.

  7. And of an abundance of longings: when I try to count them,

    I see some of them exceed all bounds and reckoning.

  8. For, by God and by the glory that is not altered

    By the boasting of the people of this age, near or far,

  9. To smell the moist earth of those lands and their fragrance

    Is dearer to one who yearns than the Garden of Eternity.

  10. May God water and bless them, those abodes,

    That revolve in the spheres of happiness and good fortune.

  11. And may fate's decrees ever remain obedient to his will,

    Clouds of a promise close at hand, bringing rain anew.

Sol 6.1