Poem: The Heart of a Poet
The poet Farouk Goweda expresses his thoughts in the poem “The Heart of a Poet”:
And we continue to be carried by the years,
One day to sorrows, taking us,
And another to nostalgia…
O Lord, how did You create us?
Love is the path of the broken-hearted.
We may find rest from torment,
Perhaps bury our sorrows in a melody echoed by desire,
Or a glance that flows in a memory… a reproach.
Or a tear shed for the dreams of youth.
O Lord…
The image of love no longer bears us,
To the whispers of feelings.
Love has become a commodity,
Like bread… like a dress… or cigarettes!
As for me…
I once carried within the depths of my soul,
Once… the heart of a poet.
Love to me was the most beautiful expression,
And poetry in my life faded… like shadows.
And I became, like the rest of humanity, carrying everything—love,
Friendship, and loyalty…
Like bread… like a dress… like guests in the evening.
I forgot that I once carried,
The beats in a grand heart,
And that my love was profound,
Like a small child.
And I found myself coming to an end…
And my life became like fog,
Wandering through it… like a stranger.
I forgot I was once a poet,
And that my love was, in its depths, a raging sea.
And that I became a heart aged,
With nothing but memories… or old tales,
Or a whisper that passed with the days,
Or a futile complaint,
Or a tear trembling in my eye,
Concealed by the call of pride,
Or a smile that once soared,
In my life… like light.
What can I say when you, my heart, are dying?
Return to life,
For all you need in this world is the purity of spirit or the whispers of feelings.
Don’t forget, my heart, that you were once… a poet.
Poem: O Heart, I Wish You Had Not Given in to Love
The poet Al-Sharif Al-Radi reflects in the poem “O Heart, I Wish You Had Not Given in to Love”:
O heart, I wish you had not given in to love
Nor hung on to your beloved like your love does.
Had the heat of longing led to a?
Chill of connection, I would have forgiven that.
No, rather you have been pierced by one who sleeps,
Empty in veins without feeling your pain.
If they awaken from the wine of love,
They have indeed quenched you with the essence of passion.
O, it would have been better if your anguish had been theirs,
Or if their emptiness had been yours.
In love, I cherish misery and greed.
Never, God forbid, what has made you so miserable.
O heart, how did you become ensnared in their traps?
I had known you to escape entanglements.
You’ve grown so overwhelmed that their arrows have struck you,
Though you used to deflect such things.
If you have melted away in sorrow, then love has dragged you down,
This sickness afflicts me, stemming from your doing.
Do not complain to me about your suffering beyond this,
This is what your hands have brought upon me.
I will punish you with anguish, for
If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have tasted love—without you.
O, reproachful one, let him be, for he
Will weave through your sighs like a plant beyond your grasp.
If your heart were his heart, I wouldn’t have blamed him—
Far removed from what he has, far removed from you.
Poem: Woe to the Heart of the Lover, What It Experiences
The poet Ibn Al-Nabiyeh comments in his poem “Woe to the Heart of the Lover, What It Experiences”:
Woe to the heart of the lover, what does it endure?
Each heart is as hard as stone.
O my eyelids, where are the tears? For they have ignited
My burning heart.
Yearning has consumed me with a love that is devastating,
Fading in my heart while he is unmindful.
From among the Turks, tender yet cruel,
The heart is easily deceived and hard to tether.
Eyes squinting, they reflect a quality of stinginess.
When generosity appears, it defies expectations.
Drawing the bow, she gained rosy cheeks,
Adorned with flowers from my heart’s fabric.
Two arrows thrown, one in my heart, the other on paper,
Underneath a sword, a lion in its den,
And above on the couch, a gazelle like the crowds.
O my companion, for God’s sake, be free of his memory,
And distract yourself with a cup.
Seize the sweetness of time; for it is nothing
But merriment and joy.
How delightful are the meadows along the Thura River,
And the green pastures are refreshing.
And the breeze that passes through the Gouta,
Revives the fragrant breaths.
The place of the minister’s abode, with its rich pasture,
Is lush, and the people rejoice in festivities.
Tell the observant one, say, I seek refuge with the Lord of mankind,
For this minister is the Lord of mankind.
A dignity fills hearts and a presence,
Which fills the eyes of the onlookers.
And a wisdom that flows across the seven seas,
And a dream that even the mountains yield to.
Poem: What Heart Remains Unwrought in Your Indifference?
The poet Mahmoud Sami Al-Baroudi asks in the poem “What Heart Remains Unwrought in Your Indifference?”:
What heart endures your indifference?
Hasn’t it been enough that I have withered away in love?
You have left nothing of my yearning except for
A whisper shadowed by sickness.
And tears carried by longing until
The tears of a cloud have outweighed.
So bestow upon me a glance from you that heals
The ailment of a heart forsaken by love.
For love has survived longer than this heart has.
Yet the pains of indifference have consumed what remained.
Do not interrogate me about my state,
For it is a passion I lack the words for.
Ask the stars of the night about me,
For they know all I’ve endured.
A breath that doesn’t betray weakness, a body
That bears the burden of decline, lay by.
So take care of my soul that has been touched by desire,
It has melted away, with tears that do not rise.
If your persistence is indifference, then my heart
Is in agreement, even if it suffers because of you.
Farewell from me; for I have died from longing, and
God is the best and the everlasting.
Poem: I Concealed Your Love in My Heart Towards You
The poet Ibrahim Al-Yazji conveys in his poem “I Concealed Your Love in My Heart Towards You”:
I concealed your love in my heart towards you,
Longing, and the purest of loves is that which remains hidden.
Do not think my heart has turned away from you,
Even if it bears the weight of sorrows.
But by the Lord of love, both love and passion are under scrutiny,
Always cautious and somewhat afraid.
I have inclined towards estrangement, not out of desire and acceptance,
But because it is repeated, and still ignored.
And with the signal coming, bound by your love,
I’ve preserved most of it, omitted some, and estimated its worth.
Poem: Every Heart Endures Affliction
The poet Abu Al-Qasim Al-Shabi writes in the poem “Every Heart Endures Affliction”:
Every heart carries affliction, yet does not
Suffer from the humiliation of base life.
Every people have been oppressed by their blood,
Without avenging the evident truth.
Leave him to death; let it consume him… for
His fortune is no different from unending annihilation.