Red in aspect, sweet in taste
by Samuel ha NagidEnglish version by Bernard Lewis
Original Language Hebrew
Red in aspect, sweet in taste
poured in Spain, famed in India
faint in the cup, but raised to the head
wine holds sway over heads that bow.
The mourner mingling blood and tears
finds his sorrows melted by the blood of the grape,
friends passing the cup from hand to hand
seem like gamblers dicing for a precious stone.
-- from Music of a Distant Drum: Classical Arabic, Persian, Turkish & Hebrew Poems, Translated by Bernard Lewis |
<<Previous Poem | More Poems by Samuel ha Nagid | Next Poem >>
View All Poems by Samuel ha Nagid
Recommended Books: Samuel ha Nagid