Number 22

Iraqi style
English

Number 22

My father was your servant from the start; he spent his whole life in devotion to you. And the child born of that servant, when he came into the world, first opened his eyes upon your face. He will serve no other master, for it was your kindness that raised me.
Explanation: The poem plays on the idea of an inherited bond of servitude to God, passed from father to son.

Original · Persian

شمارهٔ ۲۲

پدرم بندهٔ قدیم تو بود عمر در بندگی به سر بردست
بنده‌زاده که در وجود آمد هم به روی تو دیده بر کردست
خدمت دیگری نخواهد کرد که مرا نعمت تو پروردست