S. R. Faruqi:

(1) My sorrow remained as long as the breath of life remained in me.
I grieved deeply over the loss of my heart.

(2) Your beauty, young man, drew the world's attention.
And a world of beauty remained even when the down appeared upon your face.

(3) I wept my heart out, but my tears couldn't reach even the hem of my tunic.
The heart, a mere drop of blood, clotted on my eyelashes.

(4) I heard that Laila's tent was black.
Perhaps they lamented in mourning for Majnun there?

[Black is the color of mourning. Most Arabian tents were black anyway because they were made of felt or leather. But the speaker here implies that Laila's tent was black because they mourned for Majnun in it.]

(5) Friends, don't be deceived by the pious man's formal garment, the sort donned by the hajji.
True, he was in the Kaaba but he remained a total stranger, a person before whom the mysteries must veil themselves.

(6) You undid your hair and revealed your face for only a moment,
but my heart's purposes were upended for a whole lifetime.

(7) I heard vitriolic words from her lips all the time.
But the poison that dripped from her lips worked like the elixir of life for me.

(8) The piece of paper on which was written the full and true account of my weeping
remained moist for a long, long time.

(9) Mir, the morning of hoary old age now verges upon the evening.
Alas, you paid no mind and now but little of the day remains.

 

FWP:

(inspired by SRF's translation)

(1) Until the last breath, grief remained.
At the heart's going, massive grief remained.

(2) Your beauty captivated the world.
Even with down on your cheeks-- a special 'world' remained.

(3) The heart never reached the garment-hem.
As a drop of blood, congealed on the eyelashes-- it remained.

(4) We hear that Laila's tent was black.
In it, perhaps, mourning for Majnun remained.

(5) Don't judge by the Ascetic's pilgrimage-robe!
He was inside the Ka'bah-- but an outsider he remained.

(6) When you loosened your curls, just a single glimpse--
And here, a lifetime of heart-disarray remained.

(7) I kept hearing bitterness from her lips.
For me, in her venomous words the 'Water of Life' remained.

(8) On it was the full account of my weeping--
for a long time, how moist that page remained!

(9) The dawn of old age turned to dusk, Mir.
You paid no heed-- here, how few days remained!

 

Zahra Sabri:

Zahra Sabri is a special guest translator for this site.

(1) My anguish remained as long as breath remained in my body
The anguish of losing my heart remained to an extreme degree

(2) Your beauty was greatly alluring for the whole world
Even when your beard started to appear, a state of beauty remained

(3) The heart didn’t even trickle down to the corner of the garment-hem
It was a drop of blood; it congealed upon the eyelash, and stayed put

(4) We hear Laila’s tent described as black in colour
Perhaps it remained a site of mourning for Majnun

(5) Don’t go by the devout one’s pilgrimage-robe
Though he was in the Holy Sanctuary, he remained alien to its secrets

(6) When you unfurled your tresses, you came into view for just a moment
Here, for a lifetime, the affairs of the heart remained in disarray

(7) We kept on hearing bitter, biting words from her lips
For us, venom kept working as the ‘water of life’

(8) On which my tale of tears was narrated
For a great length of time, that sheet of paper remained damp

(9) The morning of old age is about to turn to evening, “Mir”
You didn’t rouse yourself; very little time of the day remains here