S. R. Faruqi:

(1) Oh what fire is hidden in the heart of home-destroying love?
A fire seems to be smoldering through my whole body.

(2) Although the garden abounds in the joyous color red of rose and poppy,
everything here seems to be on fire in her absence.

(3) The soles of my feet are covered with blisters,
as if live embers were buried under each and every step of love.

(4) All mansions of the heart burned ceaselessly, turned to ash.
What a city! And how recklessly set alight by love.

(5) The heat and cold of the times have upset the even tenor of life.
My heart is water sometimes, at other times fire.

(6) Why shouldn't her fiery temperament burn me all the time?
I count for no more than a handful of straw whereas she is both a peri and fire.

(7) The love that fires the world can never be tainted by lust--
the fish lives by water, the salamander by fire.

(8) Ever since the dawn of eternity, hearts have been roasted like kebabs.
It's not just today that love's fire has been burning, my friends.

(9) Pieces of my heart never fell from my eyes before like live coals.
Now it's usual--my lap, my sides packed full of fire all the time

(10) Lovers breasts, oh Lord, are always burning.
What kind of fire, Lord, did you put in their hearts?

(11) They punish and hurt, the cold spirits of those whose souls are burnt, oh Mir.
Fan them a bit with the hem of your garment, because the fire in their hearts is now dead.

 

FWP:

(inspired by SRF's translation)

(1) In home-burning passion-- what hidden fire!
In my whole body flares up a single fire.

(2) Although the whole garden is full of tulips and roses--
without her, it all seems to be on fire.

(3) My feet are all covered with blisters--
as if every step on the path of passion is fire.

(4) The whole edifice of the heart burned down to ashes.
To what kind of a city, ah! has love set fire?

(5) The heat and cold of the world now keep me unbalanced.
If my heart is sometimes water, it's sometimes fire.

(6) How should her fiery temperament not burn me?
I am no more than a handful of straw-- she is a Pari of fire.

(7) How could world-burning passion feel desire?
The life of the fish is water, the salamander lives in fire.

(8) From eternity, my friends, livers have turned into kabobs.
It's not as if passion only nowadays catches fire!

(9) Formerly, liver-bits used to fall like sparks
from time to time, into my lap. Now, it's full of fire.

(10) Oh Lord, their breasts keep on burning all the time!
In the lovers' hearts you've put-- what kind of a fire?

(11) The coldness of the burnt-out ones is deadly, Mir!
Just fan them a little, for their hearts have lost their fire.

 

Zahra Sabri:

Zahra Sabri is a special guest translator for this site.

(1) What a fire it is that is concealed inside the heart of house-burning passion
A fire is blazing through my entire body and being

(2) The garden is all filled with the brightness of tulips and roses, but
Devoid of her presence, it feels terribly like I’m set on fire

(3) The soles of my feet are covered with blisters
As if the path of passion, at every step, is paved beneath with fire

(4) Burning steadily, the heart’s edifice has turned to ash
Oh, what a city love has set on fire!

(5) The ups and downs of fortune have rendered my state unstable
My heart is sometimes water, and sometimes it is fire

(6) How can her fiery temperament not burn me?
I hold the status of a fistful of straw, and that fairy-faced one is fire

(7) How can world-incinerating passion experience lust?
Water is life to the fish, the salamander’s soul is fire

(8) Hearts have been burning to cinders since before eternity
Is it just now, my friends, that the fire of passion has been born?

(9) Formerly, bits of my liver wouldn’t rain down like sparks
Now and then; my lap is now filled entirely with fire

(10) Oh God, breasts are always aflame
What kind of fire is this that’s kept inside the hearts of lovers?

(11) The desolation of the burnt-souled ones is terrible, ‘Mir’
Flutter your hem a bit, for the hearts’ fire has gone out