الحبُّlove داءٌa disease عياءٌincurable لاno دواءcure لهfor it
الحبُّ داءٌ عياءٌ لا دواء له
تضلُّlose their way فيهin it الأطباءthe physicians النحاريرُthe highly skilled
تضلُّ فيه الأطباء النحاريرُ
Love is an incurable disease for which there is no cure.
Love is an incurable disease
Expert physicians lose their way in it.
In which doctors go astray
قدindeed كنتُI used to أحسبُthink أنّthat العاشقينthe lovers غَلُواwent too far
قد كنتُ أحسبُ أنّ العاشقين غَلُوا
فيin وصفهdescribing it فإذاbut behold فيamong القومthe people تقصيرfalling short
في وصفه فإذا في القوم تقصير
I used to think that lovers went too far
I used to think lovers exaggerated
In describing it—but behold, they fall short.
In describing it, yet they fell short
سُقياًmay rain be granted لأيامto the days لمdid not أخْبُرْهknow it تجربةًthrough experience
سُقياً لأيام لم أخْبُرْه تجربةً
إلاexcept بماthrough what وصفتْdescribed عنهabout it الأخابيرthe tales
إلا بما وصفتْ عنه الأخابير
May rain bless the days when I knew it not through experience,
I endured days whose trials
But only through what the tales told of it.
I knew only from rumors