I Used To Think That Man Could Endure
Recited by Ḥājj Dākōn and recorded by Sam Liebhaber at the Khalīj Hotel, al-Ghaydha, October 7, 2003.
| Poem | Translation |
|---|---|
| 1) kōbī maḫḫəlīḳ yṣawber // we-śśəǧwē ḏ-beh yḫeyfeh | I used to think that man could endure // and hide the distress that is in him |
| 2) śefh maḫḫəlīḳ bhīmet // ʾōker ḏe-ryēḥ yneyfeh | But it turns out that man is pitiful // a dusty whirl of wind will banish him |
| 3) w-ekkdeyt men emḥabbeh // tesdidh we-tkeyfeh | Or a biting word from a lover // is enough for him and suffices. |
| 4) mōna yeḥmōl ereddet // men essehb ḏēd yźeyfeh | Who can stand against the force // of a wave that surges around him, |
| 5) sehb ḏe-rwōrem ṯ̣ōlem // ʾām ber ḳeyṣef beh yǧeyfeh | A wave from the overpowering seas // that, if it bears down on him, will flip him over? |
| 6) we-ylūbed beh śrōyer // ʾamḳ ḏe-mkəsēr yseyfeh | It turns [his boat] to splinters, // rolling it into the deeps of a dangerous channel |
| 7) ʾār w-reḥmōn eḫḫōreǧ / heh yḳawder we-yheyfeh | And then only The Merciful may pull him out // and is able to revive him. |