Poem #39
English Translation
Persian
What need has my garden for tall cypress or pine?
Our home-bred boxwood—tell me, where is it less fine?
باغِ مرا چه حاجتِ سرو و صنوبر است؟
شمشادِ خانه‌پرورِ ما از که کمتر است؟
O gentle youth, what creed have you now made
that deems our blood more lawful than a mother's milk once laid?
ای نازنین‌پسر، تو چه مذهب گرفته‌ای؟
کِت خونِ ما حلال‌تر از شیرِ مادر است
Should grief's dark form appear afar, seek wine to feel
for we have named the illness and prescribed the heal.
چون نقشِ غم ز دور بِبینی شراب خواه
تشخیص کرده‌ایم و مداوا مقرّر است
Why leave the Magian Elder's threshold, why demur?
There fortune fills the hall and openings grace the door.
از آستانِ پیرِ مغان، سر چرا کشیم؟
دولت در آن سرا و گشایش در آن در است
Love's sorrow is one tale, yet wonder on persists
from every tongue I hear it told anew, it twists.
یک قِصّه بیش نیست غمِ عشق، وین عجب
کز هر زبان که می‌شنوم، نامکرّر است
Yesterday she vowed to meet me with wine within her head
today what will she utter? What new designs are bred?
دی وعده داد وصلم و در سر شراب داشت
امروز تا چه گوید و بازش چه در سر است
Shiraz with Ruknabad's cool stream and this sweet breeze
find no defect; it is the beauty mark of seven seas.
شیراز و آبِ رکنی و این بادِ خوش نسیم
عیبش مکن که خالِ رُخِ هفت کشور است
There's distance from Khidr's water hid in midnight's keep
to ours whose fountain thunders 'God is Great!' in leap.
فرق است از آبِ خِضر که ظُلمات جای او است
تا آبِ ما که مَنبَعش الله اکبر است
We won't disgrace the shining face of poverty's embrace
tell the king that daily bread is heaven's measured grace.
ما آبرویِ فقر و قناعت نمی‌بریم
با پادشه بگوی که روزی مقدّر است
Hafez, your sugarcane pen bears fruit beyond compare
more pleasing than honeyed drops or sugar crystals rare.
حافظ چه طُرفه شاخ نباتیست کِلکِ تو
کِش میوه دلپذیرتر از شهد و شکّر است
Cultural Context
US Interest Rank: 7/10. This poem celebrates Shiraz and its beauty (Ruknabad water, morning breeze), creating a strong sense of place. The reference to Khidr (a figure in Islamic tradition who found the water of life) and the contrast with water whose source is 'Allahu Akbar' adds spiritual dimension. The verse about love's grief being 'one story' that is 'unrepeated' from every tongue is a profound observation about love's universality. The poem's defense of poverty and contentment, and the reference to predestined sustenance, shows philosophical acceptance. The final self-praise about the pen is charming. The poem's mix of local pride, spiritual insight, and wisdom is engaging.
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