The Poem “I Overcome You, My Persisting Heart”
By the poet Al-Murqash Al-Akbar:
I overcome you, my heart, with longing
and yearning for Asma, or are you the victor?
It longs and does not tire for her name,
just as love’s consequences are a trial.
Can a person in love with Asma keep his distance
when whispers of gossip beckon him and he withdraws?
Asma is the concern of the soul if you are aware,
and the beginning of the heart’s dialogues and its disappearance.
When her name is mentioned, I feel as if
I am stirred by a storm, a delicate flower in bloom.
The Poem “The Moon Gifted the Morning Its Smile”
By Ibn Rawaha Al-Hamawi:
The moon has lent the morning its enchanting smile,
and bestowed the branch the tenderness of its embrace.
Its green whiskers blossomed, clearly visible to me,
the verdure around the watering hole.
When will lovers be permitted to share a kiss
like pearls nestled beneath precious stones?
The Poem “I Gave My Beloved a Rose”
By Khalil Gibran:
I offered my beloved a rose,
after entrusting it to my heart.
It scattered its petals,
like the gentle touch of tender sheep.
Do not inquire of the lover about his heart,
for it is lost amid laughter and play.
I would not have plucked the rose from its stem
if it were not like the fiery blush of her cheek,
and had not Hind torn its leaves apart,
if not for the confusion between it and the heart.
The Poem “I Love You in Ways Uncharted”
By Qais Ibn Dhurayh:
I love you in kinds of love not found
elsewhere described in all humanity.
Among them is a love for the beloved and compassion,
drawn from the understanding of what one must endure.
Among them is the notion that the passage of days
should not speak of her name without risk to my soul.
There is a love that reveals itself in body and color,
and a love that in my soul is more tender.
There is love that is the very illness itself,
with a memory that haunts my every thought.
So, I find no rest from its grasp nor respite from existence,
and neither will I win sanctuary when suffering is persistent.
O love, you have held on until you have vanquished me,
and you, should my suffering continue, will show me mercy.
The Poem “Love Made Me Laugh and Weep”
By Abu Nuwas:
Love made me laugh then weep,
and longing surged amid my silence.
With affection for a radiant beauty,
like a branch from the tender willow.
She embodies grace, and possesses the charm,
as exquisite as a pearl from a cultured shell.
Or perhaps a scent imbued with amber,
with a fragrance reminiscent of basil.
And again, he says:
You ignited the fire of love in my heart,
yet turned your back on the offense.
So when I drowned in the sea of passion,
and waves swept over my heart.
I divulged my secrets while you forgot me—
this is not fairness, my love.
Set me adrift; I cannot resist love’s tide,
why do you not fear the Creator’s wrath?
The Poem “The Elixir of Life”
By Hamad bin Khalifa Abu Shahab:
When his words resonate and shine brightly,
love, the beautiful, becomes its sovereign.
It is directed toward the evident and quenches
the feelings drawn from the pure, sweet fountain.
You are, for him, a breath of existence,
and his melody in the world of love and its blossoms.
His breaths are sweetened by your fragrant essence,
had it not been for you, their beauty wouldn’t catch fire.
Without you, no bird would sing atop the bough,
nor would the charms of seasons be brightened.
Were it not for you, neither grace nor bitterness
would weave through time and the wilderness.
Your love is the elixir of life, its essence,
and a sanctuary for a heart that finds none to offer shelter.
The Poem “Your Eyes and the Magic Within”
By Khalil Gibran:
Your eyes, and the magic that lies within them,
have transformed me into an enchanting poet.
You taught me love and its nuances,
the full moon, the branch, and the passing bird.
If I am absent from your gaze in twilight,
I seek the radiant moon for answers.
I wander gardens at dawn,
to whisper to the nightingale that shares my heart.
And I crush the rose in my hand,
for it carries an aroma that captivates the soul.
Do you recall the devoted lover from before?
How many a time did I awake a dormant heart,
seeking to stir a slumbering dreamer?
He became like me, lost and adrift,
upon witnessing my aimlessness in the meadows,
and he began to murmur as I shared my tale of passion,
the pains of love, the distance, and the grievances.
The Poem “My Eyes Yearn for My Beloved”
By Ibn Al-Rumi:
My eyes are fixated upon the one I cherish,
while the patience needed for his beauty wanes.
Long has my yearning persisted for a delicate one,
whose alluring moves captivate my heart.
Should her radiant glow appear in darkness,
the curtains of night would surely lift.
When will I find a moment to share with her,
where my thirst mingles with the sweet taste of her lips?
Is she among the wonders of creation,
or an enigma sent from above?
O noble forehead, void of blemish,
the embodiment of allure, where beauty prevails?
We have ejected your charms from our memory,
and have regurgitated the bitter taste of allure.
Yet, if you stroll by, let it be known,
your elegance incites a longing, without compare.
The Poem “The Beauty of Layla”
By Al-Lawah:
The beauty of Layla lies therein,
a culmination of my desires and trials.
Were it not for my affection for Layla,
I would not have been cast into the lands of Hijaz.
And I find solace only in my love for Layla,
even if companions left my side, and are wearily far.
My heart cherishes her, both near and far,
and I do not heed the whispers of sorrow.
And love must not submit to the constraints
of time, as it is unwritten in the annals of passion.
The Poem “O Allah, What Can Love Accomplish?”
By Al-Mu’tamid ibn Abbad:
O Allah, what burdens can love bear?
Time’s ruler bows low in its face.
Love commands with a power immense,
and whatever is uttered, my heart attunes.
If the master of my soul chooses abandonment,
I approach him humility, seeking help.
What benefit is found in such a state of love,
when love’s condition always stands high and beyond?
The Poem “Are You Unsure That You Are the Most Beautiful Woman?”
By Nizar Qabbani:
Are you unsure that you are the most beautiful woman in the world? And the most important one in existence? Are you uncertain that when I discovered you, I possessed the keys to all realms? Are you puzzled that when I touched your hands, the very fabric of the universe transformed? Are you doubtful that your entry into my heart marked the greatest day in history, and the most beautiful news? Are you skeptical of who you truly are,
the one who fills my every moment?
You are a woman who shatters silence as she passes by,
making me question what happens within me.
It appears you are my first true love,
as if before you, I had never loved or embraced.
Your presence is my birthright,
and before your warmth, I cannot recall living,
as if, O my queen, I emerged from within you like a fledgling bird.
The Poem “I Love You Until My Light Fades”
By Nizar Qabbani:
I love you, until my light fades,
with eyes as wide as the sky,
until I disappear vein by vein,
down into the depths of chestnut waters.
Until I feel you are a part of me,
some of my thoughts, and portions of my blood.
I love you, in a trance where I cannot awaken,
I am thirst that cannot be quenched.
I am a fold in the fabric of a shirt,
recognizing my pride in every breath.
I am—by your eyes—everything
in the spring of spring, in the gift of gifts.
I love you; do not ask what makes me ache,
for I’ve burned under sunlight while claiming.
If I love you, then my soul desires you,
for we are the melody and its echo.
The Poem “Your Conversation Is a Persian Carpet”
By Nizar Qabbani:
Your conversation is a Persian carpet,
and your eyes are two Damascene birds,
fluttering between the walls and soaring.
My heart flies like a dove above the waters of your hands,
and takes a nap in the shadow of your bracelet.
I do love you, yet I fear getting lost in you,
I fear becoming one with you,
I fear becoming engulfed in you,
for experiences have taught me to avoid the charms of women,
and the waves of the sea.
I do not dispute your love, for it is my daylight,
and I shall not contest the sun’s ascent.
I do not dictate your love; it determines
when it comes and when it departs,
and it prescribes the time and the shape of our dialogue.
The Poem “I Confess To You, My Lady”
By Nizar Qabbani:
I confess to you, my lady,
you were a woman of remarkable rarity
and my foolishness infamously unique.
Allow me to recite before you my regrets
for all the wise words I once uttered.
It is confirmed for me,
after losing the race and my gold,
and my dreams,
that wisdom is the worst dish we present
to a woman we love.
The Poem “O My Lady”
By Nizar Qabbani:
O my lady,
do not tremble like a bird during the festive seasons.
Nothing about me will alter.
The river of love will not cease to flow;
the heartbeat shall not still its pulse,
nor will my hair cease to dance.
When love is vast and the beloved resembles the moon,
this bond will not shift into a bundle of straw consumed by flames.
O my lady, there is nothing beneath the sky
that fills my eyes: no lights, no decorations,
no ringing bells of the holiday,
nor trees of celebration.
The streets mean nothing to me,
nor does the tavern have any significance.
Any words scribbled on holiday cards
carry no weight.
O my lady, I recall only your voice
as the bells toll on Sunday.
I remember only your scent
when I lay upon the grass.
I only remember your face when the snow
whispers above my attire,
and the crackling of the firewood awakens me.
What delights me, O my lady,
is to nestle like a frightened sparrow
amid the gardens of your lashes… and what astonishes me,
O my lady,
is to be gifted a pen,
so I may embrace it and sleep, as blissful as a child.