ذات مساء صفا المساء

وليسَ في خاطري صفاء

One evening, the evening grew serene,

yet there was no serenity in my mind.

يخيّمُ الليلُ في فؤادي

والبدرُ في قبة السماء

Night settles within my heart,

and the full moon is in the vault of the sky.

والسُحبُ لما انتشرنَ بيضاً

أثوابُ عرسٍ على الفضاء

And the clouds, when they spread out white,

are wedding robes upon the expanse.

يلبسها غيمةً فأخرى

يختارُ منها الذي يشاء

It dons them, one cloud, then another,

choosing from them whichever it wishes.

أو يخلُع الغيمَ ثم يبدو

طفلاً مصوغاً من الضياء

Or it sheds the clouds, then appears

as a child fashioned from light.

ما يبرحُ الكونُ في صباه

مجدَّدَ الحسنِ والرواء

The universe remains in its youth,

renewed in beauty and splendor.

ما يبرح الكونُ غيرَ أني

قد دبَّ في نفسي الفناء

The universe remains so; but as for me,

death has crept into my soul.

فمن عَياءٍ إِلى كلالٍ

ومن كلالٍ إِلى عياء

So from weariness to exhaustion,

and from exhaustion to weariness.

كم احتمَلنا وكم صبرنَا

والعيشُ صبرٌ وكبرياء

How much we have borne, and how much we have endured!

And life is patience and pride.

وكم نسينَا وكم محَونَا

وكم غفرنَا لمن أساء

And how much we have forgotten, and how much we have erased,

and how often we have forgiven those who did wrong.

وما عتبنَا على حبيبٍ

لكن عتبنَا على القضاء

And we have not reproached a beloved,

but we have reproached fate.