A Slippery Father
In this poem, Ḳantōrī Belḥāf complains that love brings discomfort, like sitting cross-legged for too long. His discomfort is the result of his beloved’s (Wśēr’s) father, who will not acquiesce to his marriage proposal. Instead, he avoids answering Ḳantōrī one way or the other and leaves him with nothing “to grab hold of.”
| Poem | Translation |
|---|---|
| 1) w-ʾāǧēb ḏe-wśēr // medd we-ġźawf | Love for Wśēr // [is like] stretching your legs comfortably and then sitting cross-legged. |
| 2) hwēlī aḳayr // w-fōn awḳawf | At first I concealed [it] // and then afterwards I was silent |
| 3) tōlī źheyr // we-hnafh ḥḳawf | Finally it revealed a bit [of itself] // and then revealed itself completely. |
| 4) ʾār ḥaybes ḫzoh // šāḏōr we-nźōf | But her father refused // he made excuses and “washed his hands” of the matter. |
| 5) w-ḳatleb hayr // el-ʾād beh meltəḳawf | He became “slippery” // and there was nothing on him to grab hold of. |