Dunash ben Labrat (d. 990)

The Poet Refuses an Invitation to Drink

He said: 'Do not sleep! Drink old wine
amidst myrrh and lilies, henna and aloes,
in an orchard of pomegranates, palms, and vines,
full of pleasant plants and tamarisks,
to the hum of fountains and the throb of lutes,
to the sound of singers, flutes and lyres.
There every tree is tall, branches are fair with fruit,
and winged birds of every kind sing amongst the leaves.
The doves moan melodiously, and the turtle-doves reply,
cooing like reed pipes. There we shall drink among flower-beds
fenced in by lilies, putting sorrow to rout with songs of praise.
We shall eat sweets as we drink by the bowlful.
We shall act like giants, drinking out of huge goblets.
And in the mornings I shall rise to slaughter
fat choice bulls and rams and calves.
We shall anoint ourselves with fragrant oil and burn aloe incense.
Oh, before doom overtakes us, let us enjoy ourselves in peace!'

But I reproached him thus: 'Silence!
How dare you - when the Holy House, the footstool of God,
is in the hands of the gentiles.
You have spoken foolishly, you have chosen sloth,
you have uttered nonsense, like the mockers and fools.
You have forsaken the study of the Supreme God's law.
Even as you rejoice, jackals run wild in Zion.
Then how could we drink wine, how even raise our eyes -
when we are loathed and abhorred, and less than nothing?