ProverbHub
Arabic · Arabic scriptProverb: Verified

«طَاهِرْتَ انَا عَنْبَرْ قَامْ فَرْشَحْ سِعِيدْ»

Meanings

Each meaning is reviewed on its own.

Meaning: Verified
English translation

No sooner is one job finished than the next is already lined up and waiting.

Literal wording

I circumcised Anbar, and up got Sa'id and spread his legs.

Meaning and lesson

The saying captures the frustration of a task that never really ends. Just as someone completes one burden and hopes for a moment of rest, a fresh demand of the same kind steps forward and claims their effort all over again. The tone is wry exasperation, not hostility toward anyone.

The humor comes from the picture of a circumciser barely finishing with one boy when the next is already in position and eager. Anbar and Sa'id are ordinary stand-in names, not particular people. It mocks the endless queue of obligations, suggesting relief is always postponed by whatever comes next.

When it is used

Say it with weary humor when a duty you have just cleared is instantly replaced by another, such as one chore finished and the next already demanding attention. Its frank bodily imagery may strike some as crude, so keep it to informal talk and avoid formal settings.

Cite or copy proverb