L'alchimiste [English translation]

...I was nothing, or - well - something quite close to that

...I was empty, and - well - that is what was inside my pockets ('vain' in French means 'empty' as well as 'vain', this wordplay is hard to translate)

...I felt (had) hatred, a mixture of fear, ignorance and shame

...I cried from pain, from [the inconsistancy of] not being myself (I think 'pleuvais' (='rained') is an error and should be replaced by 'pleurais' (='cried')

...I was dead, and you brought me back to life

...I said "I have, or I don't have"; you thought me to say "I am"

...You said to me: "black, arab, white or jew are to man what flowers are to water" (No, I don't understand this either)

...Oh, you, whom I love and you, whom I love

...I walked so many streets, awaited your coming so much

...that, on seeing you, I didn't know anymore if it was you, if it was me

...Yes, it was you, heh, you whom I love, I create your name(??)

...In the desert of the cities that I passed through because

...Certain of your existence, I knew that you waited for me

...And you, whom I love, oh, you ... whom I love.

...Oh, you whom I love and you, whom I love

...Neither the street, nor the dramas, have veiled me when I saw you (lit.: at your sight)

...Even at the darkest hour (lit.: at the lowest point), even when I said that everything was lost

...I loved you as if I saw you

...For if I didn't see you, I knew that I was seen by you

...And you, whom I love. You are a lion and your hear is a sun

...The ultimate rescue of those lost in their sleep

...And you, whom I love. Oh you... whom I love

• Artist:Abd al Malik