أشكو إلى اللَّه ما قاسيتُ من رَمَدٍ

أشكو إلى اللَّه ما قاسيتُ من رَمَدٍ

مواصلٍ كَرْبَ آصالي بأسْحَاري

مواصلٍ كَرْبَ آصالي بأسْحَاري

I complain to God of the eye inflammation I have endured,

I complain to God of what I have suffered from chronic

which joins the anguish of my late afternoons to my predawn hours.

conjunctivitis, prolonging the pain of my wakefulness at dawn,

كأنّ حَشْوَ جفوني عند سَوْرَتِهِ

كأنّ حَشْوَ جفوني عند سَوْرَتِهِ

جيشٌ منَ النَّملِ في جُنحِ الدُّجى ساري

جيشٌ منَ النَّملِ في جُنحِ الدُّجى ساري

As though the insides of my eyelids, when it flares,

As if the lining of my eyelids at their edges

were an army of ants marching under the cover of darkness.

Were an army of ants marching in the wings of night,

كأنّه للقَذَى والدمعِ في وَحِلٍ

كأنّه للقَذَى والدمعِ في وَحِلٍ

فَخَلْعُهُ أَرجُلاً مِنهُ بِإِضرارِ

فَخَلْعُهُ أَرجُلاً مِنهُ بِإِضرارِ

As though the grit and tears had mired it in mud,

As if the grit and tears in the muddy hollows

so wrenching its legs free of it inflicts pain.

Were legs plucked from them, injuring me,

كَأَنَّ أَوجاعَ قَلبي من مُطاعَنَةٍ

كَأَنَّ أَوجاعَ قَلبي من مُطاعَنَةٍ

بِالشَّوكِ ما بَينَ أَشفاري وأَشفاري

بِالشَّوكِ ما بَينَ أَشفاري وأَشفاري

As though my heart's pains came from thrusts exchanged

As if the pains of my heart from being stabbed

with thorns between my lashes on one lid and the other.

With thorns between my lashes and my lashes

كَأَنَّما لُجَّةٌ في العَينِ زاخِرةٌ

كَأَنَّما لُجَّةٌ في العَينِ زاخِرةٌ

تَرمي سَواحِلَ جَفنَيها بِعُوّارِ

تَرمي سَواحِلَ جَفنَيها بِعُوّارِ

As though a surging sea were within the eye,

Were a swelling in the eye overflowing

pelting the shores of its two eyelids with stinging grit.

With its shores casting sparks upon my lids,

تُفَجِّرُ الماءَ مِنها كُلَّما وَضَعَتْ

تُفَجِّرُ الماءَ مِنها كُلَّما وَضَعَتْ

لِهَجعَةٍ مِنهُما ناراً على نارِ

لِهَجعَةٍ مِنهُما ناراً على نارِ

It sends water gushing from the eye whenever it lays,

Gushing water from them each time a slumber

for a brief sleep, one lid's fire upon the other's.

Laid upon them a fire upon fire,

كم ليلةٍ بتُّ صفراً من كرايَ بها

كم ليلةٍ بتُّ صفراً من كرايَ بها

ومن مَخيلةِ صُبْحٍ ذاتِ إسفارِ

ومن مَخيلةِ صُبْحٍ ذاتِ إسفارِ

How many a night I passed utterly bereft of sleep,

How many a night have I spent yellow from the misery of it

and of any sign of dawn breaking bright,

And from imagining a dawn of journeys,

إذ باتَ جفني رضيعَ ابني يقاسمُهُ

إذ باتَ جفني رضيعَ ابني يقاسمُهُ

لُبانَ أسحَمَ يَغذوهُ بِمِقدارِ

لُبانَ أسحَمَ يَغذوهُ بِمِقدارِ

when my eyelid spent the night as my son's milk-brother, sharing with him

While my eyelids kept the sleep of my little son Qasim

the milk of a pitch-black night that fed it in measured portions.

Who wet-nurses nourished with just enough milk

في حَلْقَةٍ مِن ظَلامٍ لا تَرى طَرَفاً

في حَلْقَةٍ مِن ظَلامٍ لا تَرى طَرَفاً

يَبدو بها من سَنا صُبْحٍ لأَبصارِ

يَبدو بها من سَنا صُبْحٍ لأَبصارِ

In a ring of darkness, you see no sliver

In a circle of darkness where no edge can be seen

of dawn's radiance emerging there before the eyes.

In which gleams from the teeth of dawn appear,

كَأَنَّما الشَّرقُ دِهْقَانٌ يَرى غَبناً

كَأَنَّما الشَّرقُ دِهْقَانٌ يَرى غَبناً

في دَفعِهِ مِنهُما الكافورَ بِالقارِ

في دَفعِهِ مِنهُما الكافورَ بِالقارِ

As though the East were a merchant who saw a loss

As if the east were an unjust man who saw wrong

in trading dawn's camphor for night's pitch.

In paying them camphor dissolved in saliva,

كَأَنَّما الشَّمسُ قد رُدَّتْ إلى فَلَكٍ

كَأَنَّما الشَّمسُ قد رُدَّتْ إلى فَلَكٍ

على الخلائقِ ثَبْتٍ غيرِ دَوّارِ

على الخلائقِ ثَبْتٍ غيرِ دَوّارِ

As though the sun had been sent back to a celestial sphere

As if the sun had been returned to a circuit

fixed above all creatures, not revolving.

Above people steady, not revolving,

كَأَنَّما اللَّيلُ ذو جَهلٍ فَلَيسَ يَرَى

كَأَنَّما اللَّيلُ ذو جَهلٍ فَلَيسَ يَرَى

في دِرهَمِ البَدْرِ مِنها أَخْذَ دينارِ

في دِرهَمِ البَدْرِ مِنها أَخْذَ دينارِ

As though night were ignorant, and so failed to see

As if the night were ignorant and so did not see

that for the full moon's dirham it could take a dinar from the sun.

In the coin of the moon any taking of its dinar.

يشكو لجفنيَ جفني مثلَ عِلّتِهِ

يشكو لجفنيَ جفني مثلَ عِلّتِهِ

كَالضَّيمِ يُقْسَمُ بينَ الجارِ والجارِ

كَالضَّيمِ يُقْسَمُ بينَ الجارِ والجارِ

One of my eyelids complains to the other of the same affliction,

My eyelid complains to my eyelid like its own

like injustice apportioned between neighbor and neighbor.

Affliction, as harm is shared between neighbor and neighbor.

فالحَمدُ للَّه مَجرى النورِ من غَسَقٍ

فالحَمدُ للَّه مَجرى النورِ من غَسَقٍ

وجاعلِ اللَّيلِ في تَلطيفِ أَحجارِ

وجاعلِ اللَّيلِ في تَلطيفِ أَحجارِ

So praise be to God, who brings forth light from deep darkness,

So praise be to God, the course of light from darkness,

and sets night within finely ground stones.

And maker of the night with soothing stones.

كَم أبعدَ النَّاسُ في أَمرٍ ظنونَهُمُ

كَم أبعدَ النَّاسُ في أَمرٍ ظنونَهُمُ

فكان دائي قريبَ البُرْءِ بالباري

فكان دائي قريبَ البُرْءِ بالباري

How far people carried their conjectures about this matter,

How far people were in a matter their conjectures

yet my illness proved close to recovery through the Creator.

Brought near, while my malady was near cure by the Creator!