أَمِسكينُO Miskin أَبكىmay make weep اللَهُGod عَينَيكَyour two eyes إِنَّماonly
أَمِسكينُ أَبكى اللَهُ عَينَيكَ إِنَّما
جَرىflowed فيin ضَلالٍerror دَمعُهاits tears إِذwhen تَحَدَّراstreamed down
جَرى في ضَلالٍ دَمعُها إِذ تَحَدَّرا
O Miskīn, may God make your eyes weep! Their tears merely
O Miskin, may God make your eyes weep! It was only
flowed to waste when those two eyes streamed.
in error that their tears flowed as they streamed down.
أَتَبكيdo you weep اِمرَأًa man مِنfrom أَهلِthe people of مَيسانَMaysan كافِراًunbelieving
أَتَبكي اِمرَأً مِن أَهلِ مَيسانَ كافِراً
كَكِسرىlike Khosrow عَلىin عِدّانِهِhis time أَوor كَقَيصَراlike Caesar
كَكِسرى عَلى عِدّانِهِ أَو كَقَيصَرا
Do you weep for a man—an unbeliever from the people of Maysān—
Do you weep for an unbelieving man from the people of Maysan,
like Khosrow in his heyday, or like Caesar?
like Khosrow in his day, or like Caesar?
أَقولُI say لَهُto him لَمّاwhen أَتانيreached me نَعِيُّهُnews of his death
أَقولُ لَهُ لَمّا أَتاني نَعِيُّهُ
بِهِupon him لاnot بِظَبيٍupon a gazelle بِالصَريمَةِin the sandy tract أَعفَراtawny
بِهِ لا بِظَبيٍ بِالصَريمَةِ أَعفَرا
When news of his death reached me, I said of him:
I said to him when news of his death reached me:
May death take him—not a tawny gazelle in the sandy tract.
"Let it befall him, not a tawny gazelle in the sandy tract!"
