Poem #200
English Translation
Persian
You know what harp and lute so clearly say?
Drink wine in secret, for they punish open display.
دانی که چنگ و عود چه تَقریر می‌کنند؟
پنهان خورید باده که تَعزیر می‌کنند
They steal love's honor and the lovers' fame
They fault the youth and put the old to shame.
ناموسِ عشق و رونقِ عُشّاق می‌بَرند
عیبِ جوان و سرزنشِ پیر می‌کنند
Nothing came of it but a darkened heart
Yet still they dream they've mastered alchemy's art.
جز قلبِ تیره هیچ نشد حاصل و هنوز
باطل در این خیال که اِکسیر می‌کنند
They say: 'Don't speak or hear Love's secret tale'
A difficult story that makes wise men pale.
گویند رمزِ عشق مگویید و مشنوید
مشکل حکایتیست که تَقریر می‌کنند
Deceived outside the door by tricks a hundred-fold
While hidden schemes inside the veil unfold.
ما از برونِ در شده مغرورِ صد فریب
تا خود درونِ پرده چه تدبیر می‌کنند
Again they trouble the Magian elder's peace
Behold what these false pilgrims do, that never cease.
تشویشِ وقتِ پیرِ مغان می‌دهند باز
این سالِکان نگر که چه با پیر می‌کنند
A hundred hearts can buy with half a glance
Yet beauties fail to seize this fair romance.
صد مُلکِ دل به نیم نظر می‌توان خرید
خوبان در این معامله تقصیر می‌کنند
Some seek the Friend with earnest work and prayer
Others just trust in fate and leave it there.
قومی به جِدّ و جهد نهادند وصلِ دوست
قومی دگر حواله به تقدیر می‌کنند
In sum, don't trust the world to stay the same
It's but a workshop where they shift the game.
فِی‌الجُمله اعتماد مکُن بر ثباتِ دهر
کـ‌این کارخانه‌ایست که تغییر می‌کنند
Drink wine! For sheikh and Hafez, mufti, all the rest
When you look close, are hypocrites at best.
مِی خور که شیخ و حافظ و مفتی و محتسب
چون نیک بنگری همه تزویر می‌کنند
Cultural Context
US Interest Rank: 9/10. This is one of Hafez's most famous and profound poems. The opening verse about drinking wine 'hidden' because they do 'punishment' is a powerful statement about hypocrisy. The observation that 'a hundred kingdoms of the heart' can be bought 'with half a glance' but the beautiful ones do 'fault' in this transaction is a striking statement. The verse about not trusting 'the stability of the world' because it's 'a workshop that change' is a profound statement. The poem's combination of social critique, mystical insight, and fatalism makes it extremely engaging.
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