English
Pour Me That Cup of Wine
Cupbearer, hand me that jug of liquid ruby wine.
Why speak of rubies? Give me that soul-sustaining strength.
Let the old father drink cup after cup first,
so the young challengers have nothing to boast about.
Unless you are drunk, you cannot carry the burden of a lover's grief.
Yes, only an intoxicated camel can bear the heavy load.
Your face is the peace of every heart in the world;
without your face, people might as well not look at the world at all.
What can be said of the beauty and depth you possess?
Your loveliness has left every tongue too stunned to praise you.
The bee stores up its honey,
yet the sweetness of your lips outshines what the bee makes.
The way the sight of you steals my heart away,
I fear that in the end I will not carry my life out of your hands.
Either strike my wounded heart with the arrow of death,
or take my life so you may hand me the arrow of mercy.
And when you do shoot me, tell me first,
so I can kiss your hand and your bow beforehand.
Saadi has not suffered so lightly from being apart from you
that the joy of reunion could ever make him forget it.
And even if a wound heals with medicine,
you can never erase the scar it leaves behind.