Ah! How beautiful is Kabul encircled by her arid mountains
And Rose, of the trails of thorns she envies
Her gusts of powdered soil, slightly sting my eyes
But I love her, for knowing and loving are born of this same dust

My song exhalts her dazzling tulips
And at the beauty of her trees, I blush
How sparkling the water flows from Pul-I-Bastaan!
May Allah protect such beauty from the evil eye of man!

Khizr chose the path to Kabul in order to reach Paradise
For her mountains brought him close to the delights of heaven
From the fort with sprawling walls, A Dragon of protection
Each stone is there more precious than the treasure of Shayagan

Every street of Kabul is enthralling to the eye
Through the bazaars, caravans of Egypt pass
One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs
And the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls

Her laughter of mornings has the gaiety of flowers
Her nights of darkness, the reflections of lustrous hair
Her melodious nightingales, with passion sing their songs
Ardent tunes, as leaves enflamed, cascading from their throats

And I, I sing in the gardens of Jahanara, of Sharbara
And even the trumpets of heaven envy their green pastures

(Translated by Dr. Josephine Davis)                                   

喀布尔[1]

注：

[1] 原诗为波斯文，译者以Josephine Davis和无名氏的两种英文译本为底本译出。两首英文译诗有个别费解字句，译者另参考波斯文原诗酌改。为了加深读者理解，译者参考了Nancy Hatch Dupree的An Historical Guide to Kabul，为诗句添加了注释。

[2] 米尔扎·穆罕默德·阿里·赛依伯（1601-1677），著名诗人，出生于大不里士，也称大不里士的赛依伯。1626年应莫卧儿帝国国王沙贾汗之召，前往印度当他的宫廷诗人。此诗为诗人1627年归途路过喀布尔所作。

[3] 当时的波斯诗人喜欢把美丽女孩的睫毛比喻成能够刺穿爱人的心的荆棘，赛依伯在这里使用了这个意象。

[4] 阿舒翰（Ashukhan）和阿热凡（Arefan）是喀布尔的两个圣人，分别代表爱人和智慧。

[5] 基尔兹，传说中的伊斯兰教先知。

[6] 诗人用太阳来比喻美丽的喀布尔妇女。

[7] 贾哈娜拉和沙尔巴拉都是莫卧儿帝国国王沙贾汗的女儿。

[8] 传说中天堂才有的极其美丽的树。