Ya Hayati wa-Anta Fi Dhati - Oh my Life, and You who are within my very Self#
| Maqam |
|---|
Verses#
yā ḥayātī wa-anta fī dhātī
Chorus 1#
يَا حَيَاتِي وَأَنْتَ فِي ذَاتِي
yā ḥayātī wa-anta fī dhātī
O my Life, and You who are within my very self,
حَاضِرٌ لَا تَغِيبْ
ḥāḍirun lā taghīb
present, never absent.
1#
أَنْتَ أَسْكَرْتَنِي عَلَى سُكْرِي
anta askartanī ʿalā sukrī
You made me drunk upon my own drunkenness
مِنْ لَذِيذِ الشَّرَابْ
min ladhīdh ash-sharāb
from that exquisite drink;
2#
ثُمَّ خَاطَبْتَنِي كَمَا تَدْرِي
thumma khāṭabtanī kamā tadrī
then You addressed me—as You know—
فَفَهِمْتُ الْخِطَابْ
fa-fahimtu al-khiṭāb
and I understood the address.
3#
ثُمَّ شَاهَدْتُ وَجْهَكَ الْبَدْرِي
thumma shāhadtu wajhaka al-badrī
Then I beheld Your full-moon face
عِنْدَ رَفْعِ الْحِجَابْ
ʿinda rafʿi al-ḥijāb
when the veil was lifted;
4#
ثُمَّ صَيَّرْتَنِي رَقِيبْ ذَاتِي
thumma ṣayyartanī raqīb dhātī
then You made me the watcher over my own self—
كُنْتَ أَنْتَ الرَّقِيبْ
kunta anta ar-raqīb
You had been the Watcher.
5#
اُدْخُلْ الْحَانَ وَشَاهِدِ الْمَعْنَى
udkhul al-ḥān wa-shāhidi al-maʿnā
Enter the tavern and behold the meaning,
لِتَنَالَ الْأَمَانْ
li-tanāla al-amān
that you may attain safety,
6#
كَيْ تَرَانِي بَيْنَ الدَّنَانِ عَاكِفًا
kay tarānī bayna ad-danān ʿākifan
so that you may see me among the jars, devoted,
شَاخِصاً لِلدِيَانْ
shākhiṣan liddiyān
my gaze fixed upon the One.
7#
وَسَقَانِي سَاقِي الْمُدَامْ دَوْرِي
wa-saqānī sāqī al-mudām dawrī
And the Cupbearer of the wine served me my turn
قَبْلَ دَوْرِ الزَّمَانْ
qabla dawri az-zamān
before time itself had its turn.
8#
أنْتَ تَدْرِي مَنْ كَانَ سَاقِيَنَا
anta tadrī man kāna sāqīnā
You know who our Cupbearer was—
الْقَرِيبُ الْمُجِيبْ
al-qarīb al-mujīb
the One near, the One who responds.
9#
أَنَا مِنْ فَيْضِ فَضْلِ سَادَاتِي
anā min fayḍ faḍl sādatī
From the overflowing grace of my masters
نِلْتُ أَعْلَى الرُّتَبْ
niltu aʿlā ar-rutab
I attained the highest ranks;
10#
وَعَلَى قَدْرِ هِمَّةِ الطَّالِبِ
wa-ʿalā qadri himmat aṭ-ṭālib
and according to the aspirant’s resolve
سَيَكُونُ الطَّلَبْ
sayakūnu aṭ-ṭalab
so will be the quest.
11#
ثُمَّ قَضَيْتُ سَايرْ أَوْقَاتِي
thumma qaḍaytu sāyir awqātī
Then I passed all my moments
بِالْفَرَحْ وَالطَّرَبْ
bi-l-faraḥ wa-ṭ-ṭarab
in joy and inner exultation,
12#
وَسَمِعْتُ الْخِطَابَ مِنْ ذَاتِي
wa-samiʿtu al-khiṭāb min dhātī
and I heard the address from within my own self,
مِنْ مَكَانٍ قَرِيبْ
min makānin qarīb
from a place very near.
About#
This version of the qasida omits the original first line, which is also the original title. This is because it is better known as ‘Ya Hayati’ in the inshād world, and the first line is usually omitted. In the original poem, al-Imam al-Shushtari repeats the verse ‘Yā ḥayātī wa-anta fī dhātī … ḥāḍirun lā taghīb’ at the beginning and after every four verses, for a total of four times — even when the poem is not sung.
Author#
Al-Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Shushtari
Sources#
- Arabic - Poets gate
- English Transliteration - AI Transliterated
- English Translation - AI assisted and reviewed by Sh Ma’n