A beautiful performance of two of the most beautiful poems from the North African tradition. The first is from the first lines of the famous Qasidah al-Burda of Shaykh al-Busiri, while the second is from the beloved Fiyashiyyah of Sidi Bahloul Cherki.
Listen to them back to back, the transition is lovely.
The Burda:
Translation:
Is it from remembering the neighbors at Dhu Salam that you mingle with blood tears shed from your eyes
Or has the wind blown from before Kāẓimah, and lightning flashed in the darkness of Iḍam
What ails your eyes, that when you bid them cease they weep still more? What ails your heart, that when you bid it wake, it wanders
Reckons the lovelorn that his love may be concealed, when part of him’s a torrent, and the other is a blaze?
But for passion, you wouldn’t weep at an abandoned camp, nor lie awake at night recalling the willow and the mountain
So how can you deny your love, when the witness of tears and sickness have testified against you?
Love has carved upon your cheeks two tracks of tears like yellow spice and red ‘Anam fruit
Yes, my loved one’s spirit haunted me, and denied me my sleep. For love ever obstructs pleasures with pain.
You who blame me for this chaste love: I seek your pardon! Yet had you judged fairly, you would not have blamed me at all.
May you be spared my state! my secret not hidden from the haters—my sickness will not leave me
You offer me advice, but I hear it not. The lover is to all reproachers deaf
I suspect the advice of even the white-haired in their censure, even though their advice is far from suspicion
Original:
أمن تذكــــــر جيــــــرانٍ بذى ســــــلم مزجت دمعا جَرَى من مقلةٍ بـــــدم
َمْ هبَّــــت الريـــــحُ مِنْ تلقاءِ كاظمــةٍ وأَومض البرق في الظَّلْماءِ من إِضم
فما لعينيك إن قلت اكْفُفاهمتـــــــــــــــا وما لقلبك إن قلت استفق يهـــــــــم
أيحسب الصب أن الحب منكتـــــــــــم ما بين منسجم منه ومضطــــــــرم
لولا الهوى لم ترق دمعاً على طـــــللٍ ولا أرقت لذكر البانِ والعلــــــــــمِ
فكيف تنكر حباً بعد ما شـــــــــــــهدت به عليك عدول الدمع والســـــــــقمِ
وأثبت الوجد خطَّيْ عبرةٍ وضــــــــنى مثل البهار على خديك والعنــــــــم
نعم سرى طيف من أهوى فأرقنـــــــي والحب يعترض اللذات بالألــــــــمِ
يا لائمي في الهوى العذري معـــــذرة مني إليك ولو أنصفت لم تلــــــــــمِ
عدتك حالي لا سري بمســــــــــــــتتر عن الوشاة ولا دائي بمنحســـــــــم
محضتني النصح لكن لست أســـــمعهُ إن المحب عن العذال في صــــــممِ
إنى اتهمت نصيح الشيب في عـــــذلي والشيب أبعد في نصح عن التهـــتـمِ
في التحذير من هوى النفس
translation from :
Fiyashiyyah
Translation:
I don’t have any cares
What could cares have to do with me?
Why worry about my livelihood,
While Creator provides it for me?
I am a servant of my Lord, His is the Power
Before which every difficulty vanishes.
Although I am weak servant,
My Lord is powerful over everything.
In the darkness of the womb,
He formed me from a drop,
And started all kinds of blessings for me.
Having nothing but my nakedness,
Not knowing this from that
The Bountiful God covered me
And made the earth a bed for me
Earth he made my bed, and the sky a solid roof.
My heart, do not worry about anything,
Leave them for the Inward,
Fate is decreed, look at its traces and providential blessings
He who lives by the heart’s strength
Is happy in this world.
I, my friend, I have a doctor whose medicine cures me.
My heart follows after the beloved, my lord, the Messenger of God.
Original:
Chorus:
انا ما لي في اش أش عليّ مني
نقلق من رزقي لاش والخالق يرزقني
انــا عبـــد رب لــه قــــــــدرة يهـون بها كـل امر عسيـر
فان كـنت عبدا ضعيف القوى فربي على كل شيء قديـر
في ظلمة الارحام صورني من نطفة
و بدا لي بالانعام نعـم مـن كـل صنفـا
ما زدت الا عريان ما نعرف ذا من ذا
ستر الله المنان جعل لي الارض فراش
جعل لي الارض فراش و السماء سقفا مبني
يا قلبي لا تهتم و اترك هم الباطن
المقدور محتم شوف اثرا و انعاين
من قوى قلب عاش في الدنيا متهني
*و انا سيدي عندي الطبيب وعلجني بدوان
قلبي متوال بالحبيب سيدي رسول الله
other versions: