ليت شعرى كيف أنتم بعدّنا

ليت شعرى كيف أنتم بعدّنا

أَتُرى عندكمُ ما عندنا

أَتُرى عندكمُ ما عندنا

If only I knew how you fare now that we are gone.

I wonder how you all have fared since we parted,

Oh, how I wish I knew how you have fared since we parted,

I wonder: do you feel what we feel?

Do you now feel what we feel?

Do you harbor the same feelings that we hold?

بنتُمُ والشّوقُ عنَّا لم يَبِن

بنتُمُ والشّوقُ عنَّا لم يَبِن

وظعنتُم والأسى ما ظَعَنا

وظعنتُم والأسى ما ظَعَنا

You parted, but longing has not parted from us.

You built while longing for us did not build within,

You have departed, yet longing has not left us,

You journeyed away, but sorrow has not journeyed away.

You prospered while anguish did not prosper us.

And you journeyed on, while sorrow remained behind.

قل لمسرورين بالبين وقد

قل لمسرورين بالبين وقد

شَفَّنا من أجلهم ما شَفَّنَا

شَفَّنا من أجلهم ما شَفَّنَا

Tell those who rejoice in parting, though

Say to those joyous in our absence, though

Say to those who rejoice in this separation, while

all that has worn us down has done so for their sake:

We were hurt for their sake, what hurt us.

We have been wasted by suffering for their sake:

لم يَهُن قطُّ علينا بُعدُكم

لم يَهُن قطُّ علينا بُعدُكم

مثلما هانَ عليكم بُعدُنا

مثلما هانَ عليكم بُعدُنا

Your absence has never been easy for us,

Our distance never weakened you

Your distance has never been trivial to us,

as our absence has been easy for you.

As your distance weakened us.

As our distance has seemed so trivial to you.

ولقد كُنَّا نُعزِّى النفسَ لو

ولقد كُنَّا نُعزِّى النفسَ لو

كنتمُ قبلَ التّنائى مثلَنا

كنتمُ قبلَ التّنائى مثلَنا

And we would indeed have consoled ourselves, if

We might have consoled ourselves had you,

We might have found solace for our souls,

you had been like us before our separation.

Before the parting, been like us.

Had you been like us before the estrangement.

لم تُبالوا إذ رحلتم غُدوةً

لم تُبالوا إذ رحلتم غُدوةً

أىَّ شىءٍ صنَع الدهرُ بنا

أىَّ شىءٍ صنَع الدهرُ بنا

You did not care, when you departed in the morning,

You cared not, when you left one morning,

You did not care, as you left in the early morn,

what Time did to us.

What the days had inflicted on us.

What destruction time has wrought upon us.

سهرت أجفانُنَا بَعدكمُ

سهرت أجفانُنَا بَعدكمُ

فكأنَّا ما عرفنا الوَسَنا

فكأنَّا ما عرفنا الوَسَنا

Our eyelids have kept vigil since you left,

Our lids kept vigils after you had gone

Our eyelids have known no sleep since you left,

so it is as though we had never known drowsiness.

As if we'd never known rest.

As though we had never known slumber at all.

لا رأَت عينٌ رأت من بعدكم

لا رأَت عينٌ رأت من بعدكم

غيرَ فَيضِ الدمعِ شيئاً حسَنا

غيرَ فَيضِ الدمعِ شيئاً حسَنا

May no eye ever see again that has seen, since you left,

No eyes that saw you saw, after you'd left,

May no eye that saw you see, after you,

anything beautiful but the flood of tears.

Aught of beauty, only tears pouring.

Anything beautiful other than overflowing tears.

وآخدعوا العينَ بطيفٍ مثلما

وآخدعوا العينَ بطيفٍ مثلما

تخدعُ القلبَ أحاديثُ المُنَى

تخدعُ القلبَ أحاديثُ المُنَى

And beguile the eye with a dream-vision, just as

Beguile the eyes with a phantom like the way

And beguile the eye with a fleeting phantom, just as

tales of hope beguile the heart.

Talk of the departed beguiles the heart.

The heart is deceived by the whispers of wishes.