Asalaamu Alaikum, {may the peace and blessings of God be upon you.}
I've added yet another page. I felt poetry was definitely essential in a fundamentally literature blog. :) Historical poems are so deep, meaningful. They have a purpose and have many layers of external/internal meanings. I like to figure it out but without the act of actually fathoming it, it's pointless. So I try to be patient and interpret its meaning, and, if I may say so myself, it doesn't usually take me too long to get it. Every word of intellect is savorable and beautiful to me; it's another thing to ponder, to wonder about. I want to hold on to each sentence, word, letter of these great individuals. Every good word is charity, because they consist of either advice or knowledge, and most of all, peace to the mind. Take a break and indulge yourself. I hope you find these words as inciteful and enticing.
To invigorate yourself, read on.
Excerpt from And Patience Flees my Heart.
Desire for your face,
Would split the hardest stone.
Life takes wing and soars,
In my joy of having you.
Fire becomes like water,
My reason is destroyed.
And imagining you
Kills any hope of sleep.
—Jalal ud-Din Rumi
--Aysha
October 10, 2011
Something missing in my heart tonight
Has made my eyes so soft.
My voice
So tender
My need of God
Absolutely
Clear.
—Hafiz
Absolutely
Clear.
—Hafiz
Don’t
Surrender
Your Loneliness so quickly.
Let it cut more
Deep.
—Hafiz
I think we are frightened every
Moment of our lives
Until we
Know
Him.
—Hafiz
Listen: this world is the lunatic’s sphere,
Don’t always agree it’s real,
Even with my feet upon it
And the postman knowing my door
My address is somewhere else.
—Hafiz
This
Sky
Where we live
Is no place to lose your wings
So love, love,
Love.
—Hafiz
Slipping
On my shoes,
Boiling water,
Toasting bread,
Buttering the sky:
That should be enough contact
With God in one day
To make anyone
Crazy.
—Hafiz
Running
Through the streets
Screaming
Throwing rocks through windows,
Using my own head to ring
Great bells,
Pulling out my hair
Tearing off my clothes,
Tying everything I own
To a stick,
And setting it on
Fire.
What else can Hafiz do tonight
To celebrate the madness,
The Joy,
Of seeing God
Everywhere!
—Hafiz
We
Are not
In pursuit of formalities
Or fake religious
Laws,
For through the stairway of existence
We have come to God’s
Door.
We are
People who need love, because
Love is the soul’s life,
Love is simply creation’s greatest joy.
Through
The stairway of existence,
O, through the stairway of existence, Hafiz,
Have
You now come,
Have we all come to
The Beloved’s
Door.
—Hafiz
Love this one! Please read:
Even
After
All this time
The sun never says to the earth,
—
—
“You owe
Me.”
—
—
Look
What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the
Whole
Sky.
—Hafiz
Every
Child
Has Known God,
Not the God of names,
Not the God of dont's,
Not the God who does
Anything Weird,
But the God who only knows four words
And keeps repeating them, saying:
“Come Dance with Me.”
Come
Dance.
—Hafiz
I cry and weep before my Beloved, for that appears well pleasing to Him
And in both worlds our crying and sorrowful sighs are loved by Him.
Blessed is that eye that cries in the remembrance of the Beloved
And blessed is the heart that is embroiled in His love.
And in both worlds our crying and sorrowful sighs are loved by Him.
Blessed is that eye that cries in the remembrance of the Beloved
And blessed is the heart that is embroiled in His love.
For as long as the babe does not cry,
Milk does not flow forth from mother breasts
And as long as the clouds don’t shed raindrops,
The garden does not become green.
From the ‘crying’ of the clouds, the garden becomes green and fertile.
And as much as the candle cries, so much it increases its light.
And where tears flow, mercy prevails.
Allah equates the tears of the sinner in grief
To the blood flowing from a martyr.
Crying and weeping is a great wealth.
And the Mercy of Allah is a great blessing.
The wealth of this world consists of gold and silver.
The capital in Allah’s sight is Love and two crying eyes.
[From: Ma-aarif - e - Mathnavi : of Maulana Hakim Mohammad Akhtar]
—Rumi
Milk does not flow forth from mother breasts
And as long as the clouds don’t shed raindrops,
The garden does not become green.
From the ‘crying’ of the clouds, the garden becomes green and fertile.
And as much as the candle cries, so much it increases its light.
And where tears flow, mercy prevails.
Allah equates the tears of the sinner in grief
To the blood flowing from a martyr.
Crying and weeping is a great wealth.
And the Mercy of Allah is a great blessing.
The wealth of this world consists of gold and silver.
The capital in Allah’s sight is Love and two crying eyes.
[From: Ma-aarif - e - Mathnavi : of Maulana Hakim Mohammad Akhtar]
—Rumi
By me!
Insects
as the horse treads through grass gracefully
daintily, unintentionally catching flowers
on its hoof
i wonder
can you, my dear horse,
catch the insect-infested mud, too?
the sky catches
luminous stars twinkling, glittering in the moonlight,
the sun proudly lighting the day,
wispy clouds,
planet Earth…
just as it catches
dirt.
smoke.
rubble.
debris. And flying
insects.
--------------------------------------------
Day's End
Oxen an dsheep were brought back down
Long ago, and bramble gates closed. Over
Mountains and rivers, far from my old garden,
A windswept moon rises into clear night.
Springs trickle down dark cliffs, and autumn
Dew fills ridgeline grasses. My hair seems
Whiter in lamplight. The flame flockers
Good fortune over and over - and for what?
-Du Fu
Poem LJ
The Moving Finger writes: and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cencel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.
-Omar Khayyam
First Poem
The old pond
a frog jumps in
the sound of water
Old pond
leap---splash
a frog.
Old dark sleepy pool
quick unexpected frog
goes plop! Watersplash.
-Basho
Second Poem
From time to time
The clouds give rest
To the moon beholders
Clouds-
a chance to dodge
moonviewing.
Glorious the moon
therefore our thanks, dark clouds
come to rest our necks.
-Basho
Third Poem
Delight, then sorrow,
aboard the cormorant
fishing boat
-Basho
The next one is so so very adorable. Makes me want to cry and smile simultaneously.
Colored Toys
When I bring to you colored toys, my child,
I understand why there is such a play of colors on
clouds, on water,
and why flowers are painted in tints
-when I give colored toys to you, my child.
When I sing to make you dance
I truly know why there is music in leaves,
and why waves send their chorus of voices to the heart
of the listening earth
-when I sing to make you dance.
When I bring sweet things to your greedy hands
I know why there is honey in the cup of flowers
and why fruits are secretly filled with sweet juice
-when I bring sweet things to your greedy hands,
When I kiss your face to make you smile, my darling,
I surely understand what pleasure streams from the sky
in the morning light,
and what delight that is which the summer breeze
brings to my body
-when I kiss you to make you smile.
-Rabindranath Tagore
Ditty of First Desire
In the green morning
I wanted to be a heart.
A heart.
And in the ripe evening
I wanted to be a nightinggale.
A nightingale.
(Soul,
turn orange-colored.
Soul,
turn the color of love.)
In the vivid morning
I wanted to be myself.
A heart.
And at the evening's end
I wanted to be my voice.
A nightingale.
Soul,
turn orange-colored.
Soul,
turn the color of love.
-Fredrico Garcia Lorca
The White Man's Burden
Lost in the forest, I broke off a dark twig
and lifted its whisper to my thirsty lips:
maybe it was the voice of the rain crying,
a cracked bell, or a torn heart.
Something from far off it seemed
deep and secret to me, hidden by the earth,
a shout muffled by huge autumns,
by the moist half-open darkness of the leaves.
Wakening from the dreaming forest there, the hazel sprig
sang under my tongue, its drifting fragrance
climbed up through my conscious mind
as if suddenly the roots I had left behind
cried out to me, the land I had lost with my childhood -
and I stopped, wounded by the wandering scent.
-Pablo Neruda
A mystic poem on the same line of thoughts:
In the dead of night, a Sufi began to weep.
He said, “This world is like a closed coffin, in which
We are shut and in which, through our ignorance,
We spend our lives in folly and desolation.
When Death comes to open the lid of the coffin,
Each one who has wings will fly off to Eternity,
But those without will remain locked in the coffin.
So, my friends, before the lid of this coffin is taken off,
Do all you can to become a bird of the Way to God;
Do all you can to develop your wings and your feathers.”
-Farid ud Din Attar, translation by Andrew Harvey and Eryk Hanut - ‘Perfume of the Desert’
Rumi's Masnavi:
"Lover’s nationality is separate from all other religions,
The lover’s religion and nationality is the Beloved (God).
"The lover’s cause is separate from all other causes
Love is the astrolabe of God’s mysteries."
"Flee to God’s Qur’an, take refuge in it
there with the spirits of the prophets merge.
The Book conveys the prophets’ circumstances
those fish of the pure sea of Majesty."
"I am the servant of the Qur’an as long as I have life.
I am the dust on the path of Muhammad, the Chosen One.
If anyone quotes anything except this from my sayings,
I am quit of him and outraged by these words."
............................................
True Knowledge
Such is true knowledge, O friend-
Those who take refuge in a boat sink midstream;
The shelterless and forlorn, reach the opposite shore.
Those who take refuge in a boat sink midstream;
The shelterless and forlorn, reach the opposite shore.
Those who take the arduous thorny path reach the town;
Who take the easy highway are robbed midway.
In one string all are entangled, be they worldly, be they recluse.
Who take the easy highway are robbed midway.
In one string all are entangled, be they worldly, be they recluse.
Those who take shelter under the edifice of forms and rituals,
Are rocked and drenched by the storm;
Who remain in the open, Are left dry and safe.
Are rocked and drenched by the storm;
Who remain in the open, Are left dry and safe.
Those wounded by the arrow, Attain everlasting bliss;
They suffer pain and misery who remain unhurt.
Those without eyes see the entire creation;
Who possess eyes remain blind. Says kabir;
When I realized the truth, I saw the world’s strange character.
They suffer pain and misery who remain unhurt.
Those without eyes see the entire creation;
Who possess eyes remain blind. Says kabir;
When I realized the truth, I saw the world’s strange character.
-Kabir
I’ve Been Thinking
I have been thinking of the difference between water
and the waves on it. Rising,
water’s still water, falling back,
it is water, will you give me a hint
how to tell them apart?
Because someone has made up the wordand the waves on it. Rising,
water’s still water, falling back,
it is water, will you give me a hint
how to tell them apart?
“wave,” do I have to distinguish it from water?
There is a Secret One inside us;
the planets in all the galaxies
pass through his hands like beads.
That is a string of beads one should look at with luminous eyes.
-Kabir
O my Lord
the stars glitter
and the eyes of men are closed.
Kings have locked their doors
and each lover is alone with his love.
Here, I am alone with You.
-Rabi'a
Thou art a copying,
A mirror, wherein showed
The beauty of the King.
All God ever wrought
Dwelleth not apart;
All thou hast ever sought,
Find it in thy heart.
Rumi
I was passionate,
filled with longing.
I search far and wide.
But the day
that the Truthful One
found me,
I was at home.
-Lal Ded
Budha Hoya Sheikh Farid
Shaykh Fareed has grown old, and his body has begun to tremble.
Even if he could live for hundreds of years, his body will eventually turn to dust.
See, Fareed, what has happened: your beard has become grey.
That which is coming is near, and the past is left far behind.
Fareed, houses, mansions and balconies – do not attach your consciousness to these.
When these collapse into heaps of dust, none of them will be your friend.
Fareed, your beautiful body shall break apart, and the subtle thread of the breath shall be snapped.
In which house will the Messenger of Death be a guest today?
Fareed, your beautiful body shall break apart, and the subtle thread of the breath shall be snapped.
Those friends who were a burden on the earth – how can they come today?
How long can the tree remain implanted on the river-bank?
Fareed, how long can water be kept in a soft clay pot?
Fareed, the crane perches on the river bank, playing joyfully.
While it is playing, a hawk suddenly pounces on it.
When the Hawk of God attacks, playful sport is forgotten.
God does what is not expected or even considered.
To your mind feed understanding,
to your heart, tolerance and compassion.
The simpler your life, the more meaningful.
The less you desire of the world,
the more room you will have in it
to fill with the Beloved.
–Shaykh Abu Saeed Abil Kheir
With my Beloved I alone have been,
When secrets tenderer than evening airs
Passed, and the Vision blest
Was granted to my prayers,
That crowned me, else obscure, with endless fame;
The while amazed between
His Beauty and His Majesty
I stood in silent ecstasy
Revealing that which o’er my spirit went and came.
Lo, in His face commingled
Is every charm and grace;
The whole of Beauty singled
Into a perfect face
Beholding Him would cry,
‘There is no God but He, and He is the most High.’
~Rabia Al-Adawiyah
Let me hide in You
From everything that distracts me from You,
From everything that comes in my way
When I want to run to You.
–Rabia Al-Adawiyah
Lord, fill a Muslim’s heart
With a desire so fervent
That it will set his heart aflame
And stir his soul.
–Muhammad Iqbal
Forgiveness is part of the treasure you need
To craft your falcon wings
And return
To your true realm of
Divine freedom.
–Hafiz
Even if he could live for hundreds of years, his body will eventually turn to dust.
See, Fareed, what has happened: your beard has become grey.
That which is coming is near, and the past is left far behind.
Fareed, houses, mansions and balconies – do not attach your consciousness to these.
When these collapse into heaps of dust, none of them will be your friend.
Fareed, your beautiful body shall break apart, and the subtle thread of the breath shall be snapped.
In which house will the Messenger of Death be a guest today?
Fareed, your beautiful body shall break apart, and the subtle thread of the breath shall be snapped.
Those friends who were a burden on the earth – how can they come today?
How long can the tree remain implanted on the river-bank?
Fareed, how long can water be kept in a soft clay pot?
Fareed, the crane perches on the river bank, playing joyfully.
While it is playing, a hawk suddenly pounces on it.
When the Hawk of God attacks, playful sport is forgotten.
God does what is not expected or even considered.
To your mind feed understanding,
to your heart, tolerance and compassion.
The simpler your life, the more meaningful.
The less you desire of the world,
the more room you will have in it
to fill with the Beloved.
–Shaykh Abu Saeed Abil Kheir
With my Beloved I alone have been,
When secrets tenderer than evening airs
Passed, and the Vision blest
Was granted to my prayers,
That crowned me, else obscure, with endless fame;
The while amazed between
His Beauty and His Majesty
I stood in silent ecstasy
Revealing that which o’er my spirit went and came.
Lo, in His face commingled
Is every charm and grace;
The whole of Beauty singled
Into a perfect face
Beholding Him would cry,
‘There is no God but He, and He is the most High.’
~Rabia Al-Adawiyah
Let me hide in You
From everything that distracts me from You,
From everything that comes in my way
When I want to run to You.
–Rabia Al-Adawiyah
Lord, fill a Muslim’s heart
With a desire so fervent
That it will set his heart aflame
And stir his soul.
–Muhammad Iqbal
Forgiveness is part of the treasure you need
To craft your falcon wings
And return
To your true realm of
Divine freedom.
–Hafiz
