Ruba‘i, or Quatrain

A ruba‘i is a four-line poem following a specific meter, in which lines one, two, and four follow the same rhyme pattern. (In some cases, all four lines rhyme.) In the example below, not only does the final word (pinhan, “hidden”) rhyme, but so too does the last part of the previous word (-ahi).


Persian Text

bingar bi-jahan sirr-i ilahi pinhan
chun ab-i hayat dar siyahi pinhan
payda amad zi bahr mahi anbuh
shud bahr zi anbuhi-yi mahi pinhan


Translation

Look at the world:
the Divine Secret is hidden.

Like the Fountain of Life,
it’s hidden in darkness.

Millions of fish
appeared in the sea —

Because of their number,
the sea went into hiding.


Abu Sa‘id Abi ’l-Khayr

The Forms of Sufi Poetry