# سرت عنا



## Mr. Knowledge

Hi,
I have this sentence about the loss of a beloved family member, can you please help me understand it?
my main problem is understanding the meaning of سرت عنا

thanks:

وقد عجز اللسان عن رصف الكلمات ونسي كل من ابجدية الشعراء, تلك الابجدية التي سرت عنا كيف يكون رثاء الملكات, سرت عنا كيف يكون الحزن في سطور وكلمات​


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## rayloom

*سرت عنا* means left us,
But I think who wrote this meant to write أسرت عنا asarrat 3anna, which means concealed from us.By the way, كل kull should be كلا kullan (accusative)*.
*


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## Mr. Knowledge

Ok, but if it's "left us", how do you understand the whole sentence?
I mean, it doesn't add up - did the Alphabet letters left us? no, it is somehow connected to the رثاء الملكات and to the الحزن في سطور وكلمات...

thank again!


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## rayloom

It can't be "left us" سرت عنا
It doesn't make sense.


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## Mahaodeh

I think it's sarrat 3anna = سرّت عنا from the verb سرّى يُسرِّ from the root س ر و
; according to the Lisaan: سرّى عنه أي كشف عنه الخوف, however,  I've seen it used to mean "make happy" or "lessen the sadness".

Frankly, I didn't quite understand the sentence - where did you get it from?


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## Mr. Knowledge

Hi again,
if it's "concealed from us" - what is concealed? the alphabet? it still doesn't make sense, the way I see it...
maybe the fact the he forgot the letters somehow makes it harder for him the express his sorrow and sadness?


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## rayloom

My attempt:

Now that the tongue has forgotten how to put words together and has forgotten all of the alphabet of the poets; that alphabet which has concealed from us how to lament queens (or how it should be), concealed from us how grief can be (written) in lines and words.


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## Mr. Knowledge

thanks a lot!
but still, how is it that the alphabet has concealed how grief can be written? shouldn't it be that forgetting the alphabet would concealed such a thing?


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## rayloom

Oh definitely; that sentence has major flaws, flaws in meaning, style, spelling and grammar.

Well not major, but it's so far away from perfect!


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## Mr. Knowledge

Well, thanks, I guess... such a strange sentence!


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## cherine

Hi guys,

I think you missed Maha's post in the midst of your discussion.  Her reply is the correct one. There's no concealing here, but "lessening the sadness". سَرَّى عني means خَفَّف من حزني or هوَّن عليّ الأمر .

Although I still don't get the structure very well myself ,  I think this meaning is closer than "to conceal".


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## Mr. Knowledge

Hi cherine,
So according to what you are saying, maybe I can understand that the letters of the alphabet made it easier to express the grief etc.?


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## AndyRoo

Mr. Knowledge said:


> وقد عجز اللسان عن رصف الكلمات ونسي كل من ابجدية الشعراء, تلك الابجدية التي سرت عنا كيف يكون رثاء الملكات, سرت عنا كيف يكون الحزن في سطور وكلمات​


 
Hans Wehr says سرّى عنه = rid s.o. of worries.

I think it's something like this:

The tongue cannot form words and has forgotten the alphabet of the poets [or it might be: and the alphabet of the poets has been forgotten]. That alphabet which used to dispel our cares - how can it [now] be [used for] the elegy of queens? It used to dispel our cares - how can sadness be in [penned] lines and words?

It is written in a poetic way.


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## Mr. Knowledge

Thank you all, but honestly - I still don't have a clue what does this sentence mean...


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## cherine

Mr. Knowledge said:


> Thank you all, but honestly - I still don't have a clue what does this sentence mean...


Honestly, I find it hard too. Could you provide the source? And I think there's at least a mistake in كل من أبجدية الشعراء , I think this "min" is extra.



Mr. Knowledge said:


> وقد عجز اللسان عن رصف الكلمات ونسي كل من ابجدية الشعراء, تلك الابجدية التي سرت عنا كيف يكون رثاء الملكات, سرت عنا كيف يكون الحزن في سطور وكلمات​


And frankly I can't understand the structure سرَّى عني كيف أفعل كذا I know the verb to be used like this: سرّى عني = made me less sad, or سرَّى عني كذا = made it less painful, less saddening. 

Waiting for the source, and maybe a little more  context. Hopefully, this will help us all understand what this sentence means.


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## Mr. Knowledge

Hi, 
there really is no context. It's about someone who just passed away, a young woman. It was written by her brother, but this sentence stands by itself, it isn't connected to the one before or after it...


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## cherine

Ok, where did you read it? Do you have a link or a photo of the text?
I a sentence starting with وقد really standing by itself?


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## Mr. Knowledge

Here is a part of it.


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## cherine

Thanks for the text. I still believe, and agree with Rayloom, that this sentence has flaws. But anyway,
First, there's a couple of words you've forgotten in your first post:


Mr. Knowledge said:


> ماذا نقول، وقد عجز اللسان عن رصف الكلمات ونسي كل ما تعلمه من ابجدية الشعراء... تلك الأبجدية التي سرت عنا كيف يكون رثاء الملكات، سرت عنا كيف يكون الحزن في سطور وكلمات​


Second,


Mr. Knowledge said:


> Hi cherine,
> So according to what you are saying, maybe I can understand that the letters of the alphabet made it easier to express the grief etc.?


I think this is general meaning, yes. But I wouldn't use the literal (letters of the alphabet), rather: poetical words, or simply: poetry. It seems that this text was meant to be some kind of poetry.

I think the writer missused the verb سرى , I think he should have used something like علمتنا (poetry taught us how to express our sorrow...). But this is just my opinion.


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## Mahaodeh

I agree, I think the writer either does not really know what it means (since a meaning that matches is neither in classical dictionaries nor in modern usage) or he misspelled another word that he intended to use.


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## ayed

It might be :
sarrat 3anna :to hide/conceal


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