1. هذِهِ القَصَّةُ لا شَأنَ لَها

    بِأَقاصيص عَجوز خَطِلِ

    This story has nothing to do

    With the tales of a foolish elder.

  2. فَهيَ نُطقٌ سَمِعتهُ أُذني

    وَبَيانٌ أَبصَرَتهُ مُقلَي

    For it is speech my ear has heard,

    And an account my own two eyes witnessed.

  3. فَأَنا في سَردِها أَصدقُ إِذ

    إِنَّها قَد حَدَثَت في مَنزِلي

    So I speak truly in recounting it, since

    It did indeed happen in my home.

  4. فَاِسمَعوها وَاِفقَهوا جَوهَرِها

    وَخُذوا مَوعِظَةً مِمّا يَلي

    So hear it and understand its essence,

    And take a lesson from what follows.

  5. قُمتُ في ذاتِ ضحىً من مَضجَعي

    وَبناتُ الشِعرَ قَد قامَت مَعي

    One late morning I rose from my bed,

    And the daughters of poetry rose with me.

  6. وَتَوَجَّهتُ كَأَمسي يائِساً

    أَنزَوي مُنفَرِداً في مَخدَعي

    And, despairing as I was yesterday, I went

    To withdraw alone into my chamber.

  7. مُخدعٌ كَالقَفص الضَيِّقِ قَد

    سَكَنَت فيهِ عَذارى أَدمُعي

    A chamber like a narrow cage, where

    The virgins of my tears had settled.

  8. كُلَّ عَذراءَ عَلى قَيثارِها

    هَجَعَت وَالشعرُ بَينَ المُقلِ

    Each virgin upon her lyre

    Slept, with poetry between her eyes.

  9. فَسمعتُ الطَيرَ في مَجثَمِهِ

    مُنشِداً يَستَقبِلُ الفَجرَ الجَديدا

    Then I heard the bird upon its perch,

    Singing to welcome the new dawn.

  10. وَرَأَيتُ الفَجرَ سَكرانَ هَوىً

    يَردُ الطهرَ وَلا يسقي الوُجودا

    And I saw dawn drunk with passion,

    Drawing from purity, yet not watering existence.

  11. وَعلى قيثار فينوس شَدَت

    ربةُ الحِكمَةِ ميزفا النَشيدا

    And upon Venus's lyre sang

    Mizfa, goddess of wisdom, the hymn:

  12. إِنَّ لِلفَجرِ غَراماً طاهِراً

    ما دَرى مَعناهُ غَيرُ البُلبُلِ

    Dawn has a pure passion

    Whose meaning none but the nightingale knew.

  13. طَلَعَ الصُبحُ رُوَيداً وَأَنا

    أَسكُبُ الأَشعارَ مِن قارورَتي

    Morning rose slowly, while I

    Poured poems from my flask,

  14. مُطلِقاً زَفرَةَ صَدري بِأَسى

    فَأَثيرُ الروحَ في نرجيلَتي

    Releasing a sigh from my breast in sorrow,

    And so I stirred the spirit in my hookah.

  15. وَأَرى دَخنَتَها ثائِرَةً

    تَتَلاشى في زَوايا غُرفَتي

    And I watched its smoke rising,

    Fading in the corners of my room.

  16. كُلَّما أَطلَقتُ فيها زَفرَةً

    هَمَسَت في الصُبحِ حَتّى يَنجَلي

    Whenever I released a sigh into it,

    It whispered in the morning until it cleared.

  17. وَإِذا صَوتٌ تَعالى مُلحِناً

    مِن بَعيدٍ مِثل أَوتارِ النَغَم

    And suddenly a voice rose, melodious,

    From afar, like the strings of melody.

  18. صادَمتَهُ نَسماتٌ في الصَبا

    فَأَتى كَالهَمسِ في أُذنِ النسم

    Breezes struck it in the east wind,

    And it came like a whisper in the breeze's ear.

  19. عِندَ ذا أَطلَلتُ من نافِذَتي

    تارِكاً قِرطاسَ شِعري وَالقَلَم

    At that, I looked out from my window,

    Leaving my sheet of verse and the pen.

  20. فَإِذا بصارَةٌ برّاجةٌ

    تَكشِفُ البَختَ بِقَولٍ مُنزلِ

    And there was a fortune-teller, an astrologer,

    Unveiling fortune with a revealed utterance.

  21. ما تَرددتُ بِأَن نادَيتُها

    وَعَلى ثَغري خَيالُ البَسمات

    I did not hesitate to call her,

    And on my lips lay a shadow of smiles.

  22. فَأَتَت وَالوَشمُ في مرشفِها

    طُرقاتٌ لمرورِ المُعجِزات

    She came, and the tattoo upon her lips

    Was a set of paths for miracles to pass.

  23. قُلتُ يا عرّافَتي هل أَنتِ مَن

    قَرَأَت في الغَيبِ أَسرارَ الحَياةِ

    I said: 'O my seer, are you the one

    Who has read life's secrets in the unseen?

  24. أَطلِعيني عَن مَآتي وَطَني

    وَعن الحالَةِ في المُستَقبَلِ

    Tell me what will befall my homeland,

    And of its condition in the future.'

  25. فَأَجابَت بَعد أَن مَدَّت يَداً

    لاِستِلامِ الغَرشِ من كَفّي نَصيب

    She answered, after extending a hand

    To take a piastre from my palm as her share,

  26. وَرَمَت في حُجرَتي أَبواقِها

    فَتَعالى نَغَمٌ مِنها غَريبُ

    And tossed her horns into my room;

    From them arose a strange melody.

  27. ضَع عَلى الأَبواقِ يُمناكَ وَقل

    إِنَّني آمَنتُ بِاللَهِ المُجيب

    'Place your right hand upon the horns and say:

    “Indeed, I have believed in God, who answers.”'

  28. ثُمَّ قالَت لي كَلاماً صائِباً

    فَاِسمَعوا يا قَومُ ما قالَتهُ لي

    Then she spoke sound words to me;

    So listen, O people, to what she told me:

  29. إِنَّ لُبنانَ ضَعيفٌ رزاحٌ

    تَحت أَثقالِ ظَلامٍ أَسودِ

    'Lebanon is weak, weighed down

    Under the burdens of black darkness.

  30. لَعبَت فِتيانُهُ فيهِ دداً

    ما اَرادَت مهنَةً غيرَ الدَدِ

    Its youths indulged there in idle play,

    Desiring no occupation other than play.

  31. هَجَعَت سكرى بِأَحلامِ الصِبا

    هَل دَرَت ماذا تَوارى في الغَدِ

    They slept, drunk on the dreams of youth;

    Did they know what lay hidden in tomorrow?

  32. إِنَّ شَعباً كَثُرت أَحلامُهُ

    لَهو شَعبٌ ضائِعٌ في الدُوَلِ

    A people whose dreams have grown many

    Is surely a people lost among nations.

  33. لبِلادِ الأَرزِ أَبناءٌ نَأَت

    فَهيَ تَشقى في زَوايا المَهجرِ

    The land of cedars has sons who have gone far,

    And they suffer in the corners of exile.

  34. وَلها قَلبٌ إِذا ما ذُكر ال

    وَطنُ اِهتَزَّ اِهتِزازَ الشَجرِ

    And they have a heart which, at mention of the

    Homeland, trembles as trees tremble.

  35. سَعدُ لُبنانَ كَبيرٌ إِنَّما

    بِسِوى أَبنائِهِ لَم يكبُرِ

    Lebanon's fortune is great, but

    It never grew great through any but its sons.

  36. وَله بُرجٌ علا مُرتَفِعاً

    مِن قَديمٍ وَغداً لا يُعتَلى

    And it has a tower that rose high

    Long ago, but tomorrow it will not be climbed.

  37. عِندَما الغُؤّابُ تَعتادُ الحمى

    لِتَرى مُستَقبَلاً في الوَطَنِ

    When the exiles frequent their native land,

    To see a future in the homeland;

  38. عِندَما الأَمواهُ تُمسي مُسكِراً

    جارِياتٍ من أَعالي القُننِ

    When the waters become an intoxicant,

    Flowing from the heights of the peaks;

  39. عِندَما المَهجِرُ يُمسي خالِياً

    من رِجالٍ نَشَأَت في الدِمَنِ

    When the lands of exile become empty

    Of men who grew up in the homesteads,

  40. بَشَّروا لُبنانَ بِالعودِ إلى

    زَمنٍ مِثل الزَمانِ الأَوَّلِ

    Give Lebanon good tidings of a return to

    An age like the age of old.

  41. عِندَما البَغضاءُ تُمسي مهجاً

    تَنسلُ الحُبُّ وَتَأوي الرجلا

    When hatred becomes hearts

    That beget love and shelter man;

  42. عِندَما الأَرماحُ تُمسي سككاً

    وَفرند السيفِ يُمسي منجلا

    When spears become plowshares,

    And the sword's watered steel becomes a sickle;

  43. عِندَما الحاكِمُ في عِزَّتِهِ

    يُنجِد الفَلّاح حَتّى يَعمَلا

    When the ruler, in his might,

    Helps the farmer so he may work,

  44. بَشَّروا لُبنانَ بِالعِزِّ فَما

    وَطنٌ عَزَّ بِغَيرِ العَملِ

    Give Lebanon good tidings of glory, for no

    Homeland has grown great without work.'

  45. كُنتُ أُصغي وَفُؤادي نابِضٌ

    وَعُيوني شاخِصاتٌ في السَحاب

    I listened, my heart beating,

    And my eyes fixed upon the clouds,

  46. ناظِراً في عالَمِ الماضي إِلى

    مَجد قَومي المُتَلاشي كَالضَباب

    Looking into the world of the past, toward

    My people's glory, fading like mist.

  47. إِنَّ زَيتَ المَجدِ تشعلُهُ

    زَفَراتٌ اليَاسِ من صَدرِ الشَباب

    The oil of glory is kindled by

    Sighs of despair from the breast of youth.

  48. فَالتَآخي وَالقُوى تَضرُمُه

    هَل مُؤاخاة بِهذا الجَبلِ

    For brotherhood and strength set it ablaze:

    Is there brotherhood upon this mountain?

  49. عِندَ هذا نَهَضَت عَرّافَتي

    بَعد ما قَد جَمَعت أَبواقها

    At this, my fortune-teller rose,

    After she had gathered her horns,

  50. وَمَضَت تَسرع بِالمشي وَقد

    وَهَبت من سحرها أَحداقها

    And went away, hurrying on foot, while

    Her eyes had bestowed some of her magic.

  51. وَلَدُن قَد خَرجَت مِن مَنزِلي

    وَمَضَت ناشِدَةً عشاقَها

    And when she had left my home

    And gone seeking her lovers,

  52. صَرخت بصارَةٌ براجةٌ

    تَكشِفُ البَختَ بقَولٍ مُنزَلِ

    She cried: 'A fortune-teller, an astrologer,

    Unveiling fortune with a revealed utterance!'