The Luzumiyat of Abu'l-Ala, LXXXVII

translated from the Arabic by Ameen Rihani

The subtle ways of Destiny I know; 
In me she plays her game of “Give and Go.”
     Misfortune I receive in cash, but joy, 
In drafts on Heaven or on the winds that blow. 

Credit

The Luzumiyat of Abu’l-Ala (James T. White & Co., 1920) by Abū al-‘Alā’ al-Ma‘arrī. Translated from the Arabic by Ameen Rihani. Copyright © 1920 by Ameen Rihani. This poem is in the public domain.