شَوقي إِليك كَثيرٌ فوق ما اصفُ

شَوقي إِليك كَثيرٌ فوق ما اصفُ

وَحبذا الشوق لا حزنٌ ولا أسفُ

وَحبذا الشوق لا حزنٌ ولا أسفُ

My longing for you is great, beyond what I can describe.

My longing for you is far more than I can describe

And how lovely is longing—not grief or regret!

How wonderful this longing, with no sorrow or regret

يا لَيتَ كل بعادٍ من احبتنا

يا لَيتَ كل بعادٍ من احبتنا

كبعدنا حيث أَنا سوف نأتلفُ

كبعدنا حيث أَنا سوف نأتلفُ

Would that every parting from our loved ones

If only all separation from our loved ones

were like our own, since we shall reunite.

Was like our separation, so we may be reconciled

بل لَيتَ احبابنا كانت اعادينا

بل لَيتَ احبابنا كانت اعادينا

فَلَم يكن منهمُ سُقمٌ ولا دَنَفُ

فَلَم يكن منهمُ سُقمٌ ولا دَنَفُ

Rather, would that our loved ones were our enemies,

Rather, I wish our loved ones were our enemies

then neither sickness nor wasting illness would come from them.

So there would be no illness or contempt from them

وَالشَوقُ أَقتَل من بُعدٍ يولدُهُ

وَالشَوقُ أَقتَل من بُعدٍ يولدُهُ

وَالبُغضُ أَفتكُ منهُ الحُبُّ وَالكَلَفُ

وَالبُغضُ أَفتكُ منهُ الحُبُّ وَالكَلَفُ

And longing is deadlier than the separation that engenders it.

Longing is more deadly than the separation it causes

And love and infatuation are deadlier than hatred.

Hatred more fatal than love and intimacy

يَشكو المحبون من بُعدٍ وما عَلموا

يَشكو المحبون من بُعدٍ وما عَلموا

طيبَ التقرُّبِ لَولاهُ وَلا عَرَفوا

طيبَ التقرُّبِ لَولاهُ وَلا عَرَفوا

Lovers complain of separation, yet they would not have known

The lovers complain of separation, not knowing

the sweetness of closeness without it, nor recognized it.

The goodness of being close, had they not been far

بِتنا كأَنَّ الأَفاعي في مضاجعنا

بِتنا كأَنَّ الأَفاعي في مضاجعنا

بلينها نَلتَهي والسمَّ نرتشفُ

بلينها نَلتَهي والسمَّ نرتشفُ

We spent the night as though vipers lay in our beds,

We are as though snakes lie in our beds

amusing ourselves with their softness while sipping the venom.

Whose softness we enjoy, whose poison we sip

نَظُنُّ أَنّا نَجونا والزَمانُ طوى

نَظُنُّ أَنّا نَجونا والزَمانُ طوى

كَشحاً وَلَم ندرِ أَنَّ الدهرَ لا يَقِفُ

كَشحاً وَلَم ندرِ أَنَّ الدهرَ لا يَقِفُ

We think we have escaped, and Time has turned

We think we have escaped, while time has coiled

its flank away; we did not know that Time never stands still.

Deceptively, and we don't know time does not stand still

لَئن عفا عن نفوس القوم لم يكُ بال

لَئن عفا عن نفوس القوم لم يكُ بال

عافي عن المالِ وَهوَ الياءُ والأَلفُ

عافي عن المالِ وَهوَ الياءُ والأَلفُ

Though it spared the people's lives, it did not

If he forgave the souls of the people, he would not care

spare wealth, which is the yāʾ and the alif.

To pardon money, for it is the essence

وَكَم وكم ذلَّ قومٌ بعد عزهمِ

وَكَم وكم ذلَّ قومٌ بعد عزهمِ

فاصبحوا بالمَنايا عندهم حَلِفُ

فاصبحوا بالمَنايا عندهم حَلِفُ

And how many, how many peoples were humbled after their glory,

And how many, how many people were humiliated after their glory

and came to have a pact with death.

And wake to find death keeps them company

وَهَكَذا نقمة المولى كنعمتهِ

وَهَكَذا نقمة المولى كنعمتهِ

محيطةٌ بِجَميع الناس تكتنفُ

محيطةٌ بِجَميع الناس تكتنفُ

And thus the Lord's punishment, like His blessing,

Thus is the vengeance of the Lord like His blessings

surrounds all people, encompassing them.

Encompassing all people and embracing them

يا مَن غدت شرفاً عندي محبتهُ

يا مَن غدت شرفاً عندي محبتهُ

نعم محبتهُ عندي هي الشرفُ

نعم محبتهُ عندي هي الشرفُ

O you whom it has become an honor for me to love,

O you who have become honor in my eyes through love

yes, loving you is honor itself to me.

Yes, his love to me is honor

وَمَن أُساءُ اذا ما مسَّهُ ضررٌ

وَمَن أُساءُ اذا ما مسَّهُ ضررٌ

حتىّ كأَنَّ اليَّ الضرَّ ينصرفُ

حتىّ كأَنَّ اليَّ الضرَّ ينصرفُ

And you for whom I grieve whenever harm befalls you,

And one who is wronged but does not retaliate

so much so that the harm seems to turn toward me.

As if the harm was repelled from him

وَالطاهر القلب قد مدَّ الزَمانُ لَهُ

وَالطاهر القلب قد مدَّ الزَمانُ لَهُ

يَداً وعادتهُ الإِيذاءُ والصلف

يَداً وعادتهُ الإِيذاءُ والصلف

And you, pure of heart—Time has stretched out to you

While the pure of heart - time has extended its hand to him

a hand—its habit being harm and arrogance.

Yet its way is harm and insolence

اشكو وَلستَ بشاكٍ فعلهُ بكَ إِذ

اشكو وَلستَ بشاكٍ فعلهُ بكَ إِذ

اضحى بنفسك من أَن تَشتَكي أَنَفُ

اضحى بنفسك من أَن تَشتَكي أَنَفُ

I complain, while you do not complain of what it has done to you, for

I complain yet am not complaining, for what was done to you

proud disdain for complaining has arisen within your soul.

Has made you unable to complain for yourself

لا يثقُلنَّ علينا ان نُصابَ بِهِ

لا يثقُلنَّ علينا ان نُصابَ بِهِ

فالبَدر في كبدِ العلياءِ ينخسفُ

فالبَدر في كبدِ العلياءِ ينخسفُ

Let being afflicted by it not weigh heavily upon us;

Let it not weigh on us if we are struck by it

for the full moon is eclipsed in the heart of the heavens.

For the full moon in the midst of the stars becomes eclipsed

وَلا عَلى البدرِ مخسوفاً فانَّ له

وَلا عَلى البدرِ مخسوفاً فانَّ له

عَمّا بِهِ أُسوةً فالشمس تنكسفُ

عَمّا بِهِ أُسوةً فالشمس تنكسفُ

Nor should it weigh on the eclipsed full moon, for it has

The eclipsed moon bears no shame, for the sun

a consoling example for its plight: the sun too is eclipsed.

Is precedent, eclipsed before it

ما اِستعظَمَ المَرءُ من شيءٍ فانكرُهُ

ما اِستعظَمَ المَرءُ من شيءٍ فانكرُهُ

الا رأَى فوقهُ والدهر ينتصفُ

الا رأَى فوقهُ والدهر ينتصفُ

Never does a person deem a thing grievous and deplore it

How could a person belittle something and reject it

without seeing something greater still; Time exacts its due.

Except after seeing one greater, as time halves