Arabic Literature & Poetry
February 8, 2022 By Mohammed Taher Al-Hamdani

The Winds and the Ships

← Back to Articles
Originally published on the Mafateeh Al-Hamdani | The Veteran blog
A sailing ship braving stormy ocean waves
A sailing ship navigating stormy seas through sheer willpower and resolve.

They taught us in school the famous poetic line:

ليس كل ما يتمناه المرء يدركه    تجري الرياح بما لا تشتهي السفن

"Not everything a person wishes for can be attained;
The winds blow counter to what ships desire."

However, they did not teach us the rest of the empowering verses:

تجري الرياح كما تجري سفينتنا      نحن الرياح ونحن البحر والسفن

إن الذي يرتجي شيئاً بهمته      يلقاه لو حاربته الإنس والجن

فاقصد إلى قمم الأشياء تدركها      تجري الرياح كما رادت لها سفنٌ

"The winds blow just as our ship sails — for we are the winds, we are the sea, and we are the ships.

Whoever seeks a goal with unyielding resolve shall achieve it, even if mankind and jinn unite against him.

So aim for the highest peaks of endeavor and you shall reach them — for the winds blow as the ships command!"

The original article is published on the Mafateeh Al-Hamdani | The Veteran blog by Mohammed Taher Al-Hamdani.