Quatrain 23

RubāʿīIraqi style
English

Quatrain 23

The warrior races and struggles toward martyrdom, but the one whom longing for you has killed stands higher than he. On the day of resurrection, how could these two be alike? One was slain by the enemy, the other slain by the beloved.
Explanation: The poem contrasts the holy warrior who dies fighting an enemy with the lover who dies of longing for the beloved, ranking the lover's death as nobler.

Original · Persian

رباعی شمارهٔ ۲۳

غازی ز پی شهادت اندر تک و پوست وآن را که غم تو کُشت، فاضل‌تر ازوست
فردای قیامت این بدان کی ماند کآن کشتهٔ دشمن‌ست و آن کشتهٔ دوست؟