Wednesday, March 25, 2009

***Translation of Arabic sung in 'The Dryness & The Rain' by Mewithoutyou

So I went and googled the phrases in Arabic and there was a forum by some Arab-Americans where someone asked my exact question. Here's what he says it means. I'm not so naive as to believe that maybe one or so words might be finagled to be read another way. Even so, here ya go. In the liner notes it is written like this:
(Chorus) Isa ruhu-lah 'alaihis-salat was-salam
(Bridge) Nastagh-firuka ya Hakam. Ya Dhal-Jalali wal-Ikram. Isa ruhu-lah 'alaihis-salat was-salam. Ya Halim, ya Qahhar. Ya Muntaqim, ya Ghaffar! La Ilaha ilallahu, Allahu Akbar!

The Arabic line spoken throughout the song translates to:

(Chorus) Jesus Christ, peace, we pray, be upon you ("alayhi wasalaam" meaning “peace be upon him” a formality when speaking the name of Jesus. “salat” meaning a prayer). In the last paragraph, wherever there’s a capital O or The, it’s one of the names for God. There are 99 such names written in the Qur'an.

(Bridge) We ask for Your forgiveness, O Judge. O Lord of Majesty and Generosity. Jesus Christ, peace, we pray, be upon you. The Patient One, The All-Compelling Subduer, The Avenger, The Ever-Forgiving. There is nothing worthy of worship except God, God is the greatest!''

I think these are pretty beautiful words to express. Not to mention they sound pretty epic when sung in Arabic. This post was really to clear that question up if someone came across this song and needed to know what Mewithoutyou is saying.
Shalom.

2 comments:

  1. Thank you!!! and I agree... beautiful words...very epic sung in Arabic.

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  2. Vereidigte Übersetzer a very welcome edition for intertestamental studies.

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