If I were promised safety, <br />if I could meet the Sultan <br />I would say to him: O my lord the Sultan! <br />my cloak has been torn by your ravenous dogs, <br />your spies are following me all the time. <br />Their eyes <br />their noses <br />their feet are chasing me <br />like destiny, like fate <br />They interrogate my wife <br />and write down all the names of my friends. <br />O Sultan! <br />Because I dare to approach your deaf walls, <br />because I tried to reveal my sadness and <br />tribulation, <br />I was beaten with my shoes. <br />O my lord the Sultan! <br />you have lost the war twice <br />because half our people <br />has no tongue.<br /><br />Nizar Qabbani<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/sultan/
