خذِ العيشَ الهنيَّ من المجوس

خذِ العيشَ الهنيَّ من المجوس

معاقرةَ العقارِ الخندريسِ

معاقرةَ العقارِ الخندريسِ

Take life's pleasant ease from the Magians:

Take joyful life from the Magi,

Seize the blissful life from the ways of the Magians,

the steady drinking of strong, aged wine.

Drinking their healing potion,

In the ceaseless quaffing of vintage wine,

ودع لهوَ العُرَيب بطردِ صيد

ودع لهوَ العُرَيب بطردِ صيد

له يأبى العناء على النفوس

له يأبى العناء على النفوس

And leave the Arab folk's sport of chasing game,

Leave the Bedouin's vain pursuit of game

And leave the petty Arabs to their play of chasing game,

whose toil the souls refuse to bear.

To weary and vex men's souls.

For the soul rejects such burdensome strain.

ذر الوحشيَّ يرعى جلمتيهِ

ذر الوحشيَّ يرعى جلمتيهِ

وخلّ الطيرَ يعدُ بغيرِ بوس

وخلّ الطيرَ يعدُ بغيرِ بوس

Leave the wild beast grazing along its two banks,

Let the beast graze his pair of cheek-teeth,

Let the wild beast graze its pastures in peace,

and let the birds run without distress.

Let the birds chatter heedlessly.

And let the birds fly free without woe,

وغُضفاً ينسفنَّ الأرض نسفاً

وغُضفاً ينسفنَّ الأرض نسفاً

تنافرُ فيه حبّاتُ النفوس

تنافرُ فيه حبّاتُ النفوس

And leave flop-eared hounds tearing up the earth,

Locusts ravage the land with ravage

And the flop-eared hounds that tear up the earth,

where the very cores of souls recoil.

Whose pellets the souls abhor.

Where the very kernels of life are scattered in fear.

وسرباً حائراتٍ فوق قُفّ

وسرباً حائراتٍ فوق قُفّ

تشبّهها بمشيخةٍ جلوس

تشبّهها بمشيخةٍ جلوس

And a bewildered flock atop a rocky rise,

A flock, wandering above a wasteland,

And the flock hovering bewildered above the crag,

which you liken to seated elders.

Looking like a council of elders sitting.

Resembling a gathering of seated elders,

وأسود لهذم الشفرين يفري

وأسود لهذم الشفرين يفري

وأزرقَ منسَرٍ أقنىً هموس

وأزرقَ منسَرٍ أقنىً هموس

And a black one, keen on both edges, that rends,

Lions whose two fangs prey,

And the black falcon, sharp-beaked and tearing,

and a blue-beaked one, hook-nosed and stealthy.

And a worm, most timid of crawlers.

Blue-taloned, hooked, and stealthy in flight,

تخالُ على القرا درّاج وشي

تخالُ على القرا درّاج وشي

تكشّفَ عن غلالةِ خندريس

تكشّفَ عن غلالةِ خندريس

On its back you fancy a brocaded francolin

They seem, when they glance at ruins,

You would think its back bore patterns of brocade,

revealing a gauzy tunic of aged wine.

To reveal the dark leaves of oleander.

Revealed from beneath a tunic of wine-dark hue,

يثيرُ بكل معركةٍ صناجاً

يثيرُ بكل معركةٍ صناجاً

وداهيةً كداهيةٍ البسوسِ

وداهيةً كداهيةٍ البسوسِ

At every clash it raises a cymbal-clamor,

With every battle they provoke a cafe's

Stirring up a clamor in every battle,

and a calamity like the calamity of al-Basus.

Worth of saucy tales and gossip.

A calamity like the ancient war of Al-Basous,

وأمّ الطير في شرٍّ وضير

وأمّ الطير في شرٍّ وضير

وأمّ الوحشِ في يوم عبوسِ

وأمّ الوحشِ في يوم عبوسِ

And the mother of birds is in misery and harm,

The female beasts are vicious and spiteful

Bringing evil and harm to the mother bird,

and the mother of wild beasts has a grim day.

On an inauspicious day.

And a grim, frowning day to the mother beast.

فركضُ السكر في يوم عبوس

فركضُ السكر في يوم عبوس

بأعناقِ الرؤوسِ إلى الرؤوس

بأعناقِ الرؤوسِ إلى الرؤوس

For drunkenness's gallop on a grim day,

Gallop the steeds on an ill-omened day,

But the rush of intoxication on a sullen day,

driving heads by their necks toward other heads,

With the heads at the heads, in double file.

Passing from head to head with eager necks,

وإطلاقُ الجفونِ وهنّ حومٌ

وإطلاقُ الجفونِ وهنّ حومٌ

لصيدِ الخدّ والوجهِ النفيس

لصيدِ الخدّ والوجهِ النفيس

and loosing the eyelids as they hover

Eyelids flutter, for they are a party

And the casting of glances that hover and circle,

to hunt the cheek and the exquisite face,

Hunting cheeks and precious faces.

To hunt the soft cheek and the exquisite face,

ألذُّ على فم الأحرارِ ذوقاً

ألذُّ على فم الأحرارِ ذوقاً

وأغلبُ للسعود على النحوس

وأغلبُ للسعود على النحوس

are sweeter to the taste on the lips of the freeborn,

Sweeter to the freeman's mouthful

Is sweeter to the taste on the lips of the free,

and give good fortune greater victory over ill fortune.

More profitable for happiness than ill-omen.

And surer to bring fortune over despair.

وللبيضُ المضمّخةُ التراقي

وللبيضُ المضمّخةُ التراقي

سوى الشفع المنمّشةِ الرؤوس

سوى الشفع المنمّشةِ الرؤوس

And surely the fair ones, their collarbones perfumed,

The whiteness stained red through contact

For the fair ones with their perfumed throats

are unlike the paired ones with speckled heads.

Is better than the gray heads with their tribulation.

Are unlike the falcons with speckled heads;

وللوجَناتُ أفرسُهنّ أشهى

وللوجَناتُ أفرسُهنّ أشهى

من الفرَس الفريس إلى الفريس

من الفرَس الفريس إلى الفريس

And surely cheeks—even their fiercest—are more desirable

The cheeks of the girls are more ardent racers

And the cheeks of the beloved are far more desired

than the prey-rending horse bound for its prey,

Than the steed charging to the stallion.

Than the predatory steed chasing down its prey,

تناقلُ من سنابِكها فتحكي

تناقلُ من سنابِكها فتحكي

مناقلةَ الأناملِ في الطروسِ

مناقلةَ الأناملِ في الطروسِ

shifting from hoof to hoof, and so imitating

Transferring from their chamber windows

Whose galloping hooves mimic in their beat

the fingertips' shifting across manuscript sheets.

The gestures of fingers entwined.

The movement of fingertips across the scrolls.