بالله فُتَّ كَبِدِي يا هَمِّي

بالله فُتَّ كَبِدِي يا هَمِّي

وغمَّ قَلْبي بالجَوَى يا غمِّي

وغمَّ قَلْبي بالجَوَى يا غمِّي

For God's sake, crush my liver, O my sorrow!

In God's name unravel my liver, O my worries,

And shroud my heart in anguish, O my grief!

And sadden my heart with longing, O my sorrows,

وابْلُ جسْمي بالضَّنىَ يا سُقْمِي

وابْلُ جسْمي بالضَّنىَ يا سُقْمِي

فبَعدَ رُوحي لا أُرِيدُ جِسمي

فبَعدَ رُوحي لا أُرِيدُ جِسمي

And wear out my body with wasting sickness, O my illness!

Drench my body with grief, O my illness,

For after my soul is gone, I do not want my body;

For after my soul, I do not want my body,

وبعد دِرْياقي أُريدُ سمِّي

وبعد دِرْياقي أُريدُ سمِّي

مُصيبتي لمَّا انتهت في العَظْمِ

مُصيبتي لمَّا انتهت في العَظْمِ

And after my antidote is gone, I want my poison.

And after my shroud, I want my burial.

When my calamity reached the bone,

When my ordeal ended with destruction,

قد سخرت من الجِبَالِ الصمِّ

قد سخرت من الجِبَالِ الصمِّ

توسَّعَتْ فضاقَ عَنها كَتْمِي

توسَّعَتْ فضاقَ عَنها كَتْمِي

It scoffed at the solid mountains.

It mocked the silent mountains.

It swelled, too vast for me to keep concealed.

It expanded, so my endurance was too narrow for it.

دفنت أَهلي كلَّهم بَرَغْمِي

دفنت أَهلي كلَّهم بَرَغْمِي

أَخِي وأُختي وأَبي وأُمِّي

أَخِي وأُختي وأَبي وأُمِّي

I buried all my family against my will:

It buried all my family despite me:

My brother, my sister, my father, and my mother.

My brother, my sister, my father and my mother,

وكم دفنتُ غَيْرَ مَنْ أُسمِّي

وكم دفنتُ غَيْرَ مَنْ أُسمِّي

من رُفْقَةٍ مثلِ بدورِ التِّم

من رُفْقَةٍ مثلِ بدورِ التِّم

And how many have I buried besides those I name,

And how many others I do not name

From among companions like moons in their fullness,

Were a company like the Pleiades.

ومن بهاليلَ عظامٍ شُمِّ

ومن بهاليلَ عظامٍ شُمِّ

دفنت كلاًّ منهمُ عَنْ علْم

دفنت كلاًّ منهمُ عَنْ علْم

And from among great, lofty noble men.

Their bones smelled sweet like musk.

I buried each of them knowingly,

I buried each one of them without knowledge,

في موحشٍ أَسْوَدَ مُدْلَهمِّ

في موحشٍ أَسْوَدَ مُدْلَهمِّ

في قَعْر قَبْرٍ تَحْت أَلفِ رَدْمِ

في قَعْر قَبْرٍ تَحْت أَلفِ رَدْمِ

In a desolate place, black and pitch-dark,

In a gloomy, pitch-black wasteland,

In a grave's depths, beneath a thousand heaps of earth.

At the bottom of a grave under a thousand spadefuls.

تلك قبورٌ بُنيت لهَدْمِي

تلك قبورٌ بُنيت لهَدْمِي

لم تُبْن إِلاَّ بدَمِي ولَحْمِي

لم تُبْن إِلاَّ بدَمِي ولَحْمِي

Those graves were built to tear me down;

These were graves built for my destruction,

They were built of nothing but my blood and flesh.

Constructed from nothing but my blood and flesh.

مَناظرٌ كما رأَيتَ تُعْمِي

مَناظرٌ كما رأَيتَ تُعْمِي

وتَقْصِدُ القلبَ بكُلِّ هَمِّ

وتَقْصِدُ القلبَ بكُلِّ هَمِّ

Sights that blind, as you have seen,

Sights - as you see - that blind me

And assail the heart with every sorrow.

And aim at the heart with every care,

لقبر ذَا ضَمِّي وهَذَا لَثْمِي

لقبر ذَا ضَمِّي وهَذَا لَثْمِي

وعِشْتُ مِنْ بَعدِهم بِرَغْمي

وعِشْتُ مِنْ بَعدِهم بِرَغْمي

This one's grave receives my embrace, and this other's my kiss.

This grave take my breath and that take my touch.

And I lived on after them against my will,

And after them I lived despite myself,

لِشُؤْمِ بَخْتي ولسُوءِ قَسْمِي

لِشُؤْمِ بَخْتي ولسُوءِ قَسْمِي

كالسَّيفِ في الوَحْدَةِ لا كالسَّهْم

كالسَّيفِ في الوَحْدَةِ لا كالسَّهْم

Through my ill-starred fortune and my wretched lot,

Due to my ill-fated, wretched destiny.

Like a sword in solitude, not like an arrow,

I was like a sword in loneliness, not an arrow in flight.

في فَقْرٍ صُوفيٍّ وذمي

في فَقْرٍ صُوفيٍّ وذمي

قد ضاع عقلي بعدهم وحلمي

قد ضاع عقلي بعدهم وحلمي

In poverty like a Sufi's and a dhimmi's.

In Sufi ascetic poverty and bankruptcy.

After them, my reason and my forbearance were lost.

After them my reason was lost and my wisdom.

وكنت في غِنىً وغُنمِ

وكنت في غِنىً وغُنمِ

في نعمةٍ وفي نعيمٍ جَمِّ

في نعمةٍ وفي نعيمٍ جَمِّ

And once I lived in wealth and prosperity,

Whereas I was once wealthy and prosperous,

In comfort and in abundant bliss.

In bounty and in copious luxury.

وكنت لا أُرْمَى بِهم وأَرْمِي

وكنت لا أُرْمَى بِهم وأَرْمِي

وكُنْتُ لا أُصْمَى بهم وأُصْمِي

وكُنْتُ لا أُصْمَى بهم وأُصْمِي

And with them I was not shot at, but I shot;

I neither cast them aside, nor was I cast aside.

And with them I was not slain, but I slew.

I neither turned deaf to them, nor did they turn deaf to me.

يرون حُبِّي كالقضاءِ الحَتْم

يرون حُبِّي كالقضاءِ الحَتْم

ورَسْمُهم أَن ينتهوا لرَسْمِي

ورَسْمُهم أَن ينتهوا لرَسْمِي

They saw love for me as an irrevocable decree,

They saw my love as inescapable destiny

And their custom was to obey my command,

And their fate, to end with my fate.

ويَسْتعيذوا في الهُمومِ باسْمِي

ويَسْتعيذوا في الهُمومِ باسْمِي

لم يَجْرِ مَوْتُ كلَّهم في وَهْمِي

لم يَجْرِ مَوْتُ كلَّهم في وَهْمِي

And in their troubles to seek refuge in my name.

In troubles, they sought refuge in my name.

The death of all of them never crossed my mind.

Not one of their deaths occurred to my imagination.

ما لِحياتي بَعْدَهم مِنْ طَعْمِ

ما لِحياتي بَعْدَهم مِنْ طَعْمِ

فيا افْتِقَارِي بَعْدَهُم وعُدْمِي

فيا افْتِقَارِي بَعْدَهُم وعُدْمِي

There is no savor to my life after them.

After them, my life had no taste.

So, O my poverty after them, and my destitution!

So now my destitution and non-existence without them!

ويا ضَلالي بعد فقد نَجْمِي

ويا ضَلالي بعد فقد نَجْمِي

ويا هموماً لاَ تَزَالُ تَنْمِي

ويا هموماً لاَ تَزَالُ تَنْمِي

And O my bewilderment after the loss of my star!

And my misguidance after losing my guiding stars!

And O sorrows that never cease to grow!

And O sorrows that only grow!

ويا دُموعاً لا تَزال تَهْمِي

ويا دُموعاً لا تَزال تَهْمِي

تَكْثُر أَنْ أَسْتُرَها بكُمِّي

تَكْثُر أَنْ أَسْتُرَها بكُمِّي

And O tears that never cease to stream,

And O tears that keep on flowing!

Too plentiful for me to hide with my sleeve!

Too numerous for me to hide with my sleeve.

ويا زماناً جائراً في الحُكْمِ

ويا زماناً جائراً في الحُكْمِ

لا غرو أَنْتَ حاكمي وخَصْمِي

لا غرو أَنْتَ حاكمي وخَصْمِي

And O Time, unjust in judgment!

And O unjust times in judgment!

No wonder—you are my judge and my adversary.

No wonder you are my judge and my adversary.

بأَيِّ ذَنْبٍ وبأَيِّ جُرْمِ

بأَيِّ ذَنْبٍ وبأَيِّ جُرْمِ

ظَلَمْتَني ومَا يَحلُّ ظُلْمِي

ظَلَمْتَني ومَا يَحلُّ ظُلْمِي

For what sin, and for what crime,

With what crime, what sin,

Did you wrong me, when wronging me is not lawful?

Have you wronged me, and how unjust is my injustice!

لله حَمْدِي ولدَهْري ذمِّي

لله حَمْدِي ولدَهْري ذمِّي

My praise is for God, and my blame for my time.

To God belongs my praise, to fate my blame.