God forgive me for my sins
Arabic translation: rabbi-ghfirli bima azhnabtu رب اغفر لي بما أذنبت
| 15:06 Jun 21, 2001 |
| English to Arabic translations [Non-PRO] Art/Literary | ||||
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|  Selected response from: Alaa Zeineldine Egypt Local time: 00:05 | |||
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1 hr peer agreement (net): +1
rabbi-ghfirli bima azhnabtu رب اغفر لي بما أذنبت Explanation: Your supplication is characterized by the use of the function word "for", which causes the meaning to be "God forgive me, because I have sinned", as opposed to "God forgive my sins". That is how I based by translation above. If you do want to say "God forgive my sins", you would say: rabbi-ghgirli zhunubi رب اغفر لي ذنوبي Now, this is the basic translation, but there is more. In the Islamic tradition, it is most effective to use supplications from the Quran and the Sunna (the recorded tradition of the prophet may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). There are many that fit your supplication above. Here are two examples: 1. From the quran, Adam and Eve pleading for and gaining redemption for their sin: "rabana zhalamna anfusana wa in lam taghfir lana wa tarhamna la-nakunnanna min alkhasirin" ربنا ظلمنا أنفسنا و إن لم تغفر لنا و ترحمنا لنكونن من الخاسرين Meaning: Our Lord we have wronged ourselves and unless You forgive us and treat us with mercy we will surely be among the losing ones. 2. From the Sunna, one of the supplications used during the prostration of the daily prayers: "Allahumma inni zhalamtu nafsi zhulman kathiran wa la yaghfiru-zhunuba ila ant, fa-ghfirli maghfiratan min 'indika innaka anta alghafuru-rrahim" اللهم إني ظلمت نفسي ظلما كثيرا و لا يغفر الذنوب إلا أنت، فاغفر لي مغفرة من عندك إنك أنت الغفور الرحيم Meaning: O Allah, I have wronged myself many a time, and none but You can forgive the sins, so redeem me with your forgiveness, you are indeed the One who is Oft-Forgiving Oft-Merciful. Hope this helps, Alaa Zeineldine Quran Chpt 7 (surat al-aaraaf) Sahih Al-Bukhari |
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2 hrs
Asa’aluka allaahumma unn taghfira lee khataya-ya Explanation: Forgive me: Sameehnee سامحني or: Eghfer lee اغفر لي or: Esfaah a’nnee اصفح عني My Sins (plural): Aathaamee آثامي (th like theatre) Khattaaya-ya خطاياي Thonoobee ذنوبي (th like then) Sa-ye-aatee سيئاتي aaw-zaa-ree أوزاري Thonoobee: (thanbon ذنب singular) and Aathaamee (ethmon إثم singular) and aaw-zaa-ree (weezron وزر singular) = fault, misdeed, sin, crime, guilt. khattaaya-ya: (khateea’ton خطيئة singular) is an intended sin. It is also the ORIGINAL SIN (alkhateea’ato alassleeyato: الخطيئة الأصلية) God forgive me for my sins: If you mean here “God forgive me for I have sinned” then the rough translation would be: Rabbee eghfer lee faqad akhta’to. رب اغفر لي فقد أخطأت Christians usually refer to the word rabbee (my God) as: Aabataaho: أبتاه Aabataaho eghfer lee faqad akhta’to أبتاه اغفر لي فقد أخطأت But if you mean: “God forgive my sins”; there are so many beautiful ways to say it, some of them are: Rabbee eghfer lee Sa-ye-aatee ربّ اغفر لي سيئاتي Or: Samehnee rabbee a’la thonoobee سامحني ربي على ذنوبي Or: Asa’aluka allaahumma unn taghfira lee khataya-ya أسألك اللهم أن تغفر لي خطاياي The two terms I like most are: Allaahumma ghufranaka (your forgiveness God) اللهم غفرانك And/or: Ghufranaka rabbee (your forgiveness God) غفرانك ربي It is a nice question to end the day with. |
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7 hrs
يا الله اغفر لي خَطاياي Explanation: If you are unable to display Arabic text on your computer, or simply cannot read Arabic, here is the Arabic translation in Latin characters (to help you pronounce it): YA ALLAH, IGHFIR LI KHATAYAY. (The letter group GH sounds like a French R. The letter group CH sounds like the German CH, as in “Bach”). That is an extremely literal translation, which often is the only translation I feel comfortable presenting when no background information is provided to help fine tune the translation to fit the intended use. We call such background information, “context,” and it consists of all the textual and extra-textual factors that a translator should consider when translating a sentence. Here is a rundown of factors to consider when translating this sentence: 1. Is this a prayer of petition: It most probably is, but the lack of proper English punctuation marks casts some doubt about the intended meaning. 2. Is the word “God” a second person, as in “O God, forgive me for my sins,” or is it a third person, as in “May God forgive me for my sins.” This purely structural difference may be immaterial if the required translation is merely functional (more on this point below). 3. Are you interested in a highly literal translation, which is appropriate when the text being translated will be subjected to analysis, or are you interested in a functional translation, which is appropriate when the purpose of translating the text is to communicate a message most effectively and idiomatically in the target language? Raghad’s amazing array of renditions are fine examples of functional translations. 4. The translation of religious and ideological material is significantly shaped by the internal lexicon of the community that the material represents. For instance, Arabic-speaking Muslims will most likely call such a sentence DU’A’, while Arabic-speaking Christians will most likely call it SALA. Neither one is wrong, but each community is at home with its own distinctive lexicon and verbal mannerism that set it apart and give it a measure of cohesiveness. In general, The Christian Arabic lexicon is extremely limited in comparison with its Muslim counterpart, and needlessly so. This is not the place to muse on the historical causes of this severe limitation. It is relevant in this sentence because Arabic-speaking Christians tend to use one word only for “sin,” and that is KHATEE’A (plural, KHATAYA; “my sins”: KHATAYAY). Muslims, on the other hand, tend to use a much more variegated vocabulary. Raghad’s suggestions give us more than a hint of that lexical richness. The issue of lexical tradition is also significant here for another reason. In general, prayers of petition are rather awkward expressions, because they seem to tell God what to do. In the Islamic tradition, the expression ALLAHUMMA has the effect, whether intended or not, of softening the inherent harshness of imperative verbs addressed to God (forgive me, give me, help me, heal me, bless me, guide me, etc.). In the Christian tradition, the expression ALLAHUMMA is not commonly used. Note: ALLAHUMMA is used for other meanings as well, but I do not wish to digress. Now, let us look at all these factors and see how they affect the translation. Assuming that we have a prayer of petition, and that the word “God” is a second person, then a very literal translation would be: In a Christian contest: YA ALLAH, IGHFIR LI KHATAYAY In a Muslim Context: ALLAHUMMA IGHFIR LI KHATAYAY ALLAHUMMA IGHFIR LI THUNOOBI (TH sounds like the TH in “this”) ALLAHUMMA IGHFIR LI SAYYI’ATI If the intended translation is functional, then a number of changes can be introduced, with varying effects. The following possibilities are explained in back-translation: My God, forgive me for my sins: ILAHI, IGHFIR LI KHATAYAY Lord, forgive me for my sins: YA RABB IGHFIR LI KHATAYAY My Lord, forgive me for my sins. RABBI IGHFIR LI KHATAYAY For my taste, the most beautiful (and pithiest) are the ones suggested by Raghad at the end of her answer. They are most fitting within a Muslim context. Fuad Hans Wehr's Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic |
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3 days 22 hrs
There are other ways! Explanation: You indicate that I helped you with you tattoo'd prayer. Although I did not know this beforehand, but now that makes me uneasy. This forum is not where I should discuss religious issues, so I will use it only to request the favor of getting your email address. Before you go ahead with your tattoo please give me the opportuniy to send you one brief email message to clear my own conscience. You can email me at [email protected]. Regards, Alaa Zeineldine |
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6 days peer agreement (net): +1
Li yasmaha rabbe dhunuube Explanation: I hope it helps you |
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