The cup kept coming and going among us,
until no blood was left in our veins, no wine in our goblets.
So long did it stay in the cold, like a rooster's eye,
that my crown turned red as a rooster's comb.
Explanation: The comparisons to a rooster's eye and comb evoke the redness brought on by cold and by drinking. The imagery of an emptied cup and drained veins suggests the passing of time and the exhaustion of life.
Original · Persian
شمارهٔ ۲۴
می آمد و می رفت پیاله بر ما
تا خون بنماند در رگ و ساغر ما
چون چشم خروه بس که شد در سرما
چون تاج خروه لعل شد افسرما