The Luzumiyat of Abu’l-Ala, XXXIX

translated from the Arabic by Ameen Rihani

And she:   “How long must I the burden bear?
How long this tattered garment must I wear?”
      And I:   “Why wear it?  Leave it here, and go
Away without it—little do I care.”

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.

Translators
Ameen Rihani
1876 –
1940