Frontpage Archives February 2005

Ah! there He comes and there He goes.
Hope-seeds in my sleepless heart He sows.
Ah! there He comes and there He goes.
To a goalless shore my life-boat flows.

Sri Chinmoy
From: A Seekers Universe

Sunday February 20, 2005 9:57

The Garden

The garden is breathing out the air of Paradise today,
Toward me, a friend with a sweet nature, and this wine.

It's all right for the beggar to brag that he is a King today.
His royal tent is a shadow thrown by a cloud; his throne
room is a sown field.

This meadow is composing a tale of a spring day in May;
The serious man lets the future go and accepts the cash now.

Do you really believe your enemy will be faithful to you?
The candle the hermit lights goes out in the worldly church.

Make your soul strong then by feeding it the secret wine.
When we have turned to dust, this rotten world will press
our dust into bricks.

My life is a black book. But don't rebuke me too much.
No person can ever read the words written on his own
forehead.

When Hafez's coffin comes by, it'll be all right to follow
behind.
Although he is a captive of sin, he is on his way to the
Garden.

Hafez

From: 'The Soul is Here for its Own Joy' Robert Bly

February 18, 2005
Someone Untied Your Camel

I cannot sit still with my countrymen in chains.
I cannot act mute
Hearing the world's loneliness
Crying near the Beloved's heart.

My love for God is such
That I could dance with him tonight without you.
But I would rather have you there.

Is your caravan lost?

It is,
If you no longer weep from gratitude or happiness,
Or weep
From being cut deep with the awareness
Of the extraordinary beauty
That emanates from the most simple act
And common object.

My dear, is your caravan lost?

It is if you can no longer be kind to yourself
And loving to those who must live
With the sometimes difficult task of loving you.

At least come to know
That someone untied your camel last night
For I hear its gentle voice
Calling for God in the desert.

At least come to know
That Hafiz will always hold a lantern

With galaxies blooming inside
And that

I will always guide your soul to
The divine warmth and exhilaration
Of our Beloved's
Tent.

'The Gift - Poems by Hafiz The Great Sufi Master'
Translations by Daniel Ladinsky

Monday February 14, 2005 17:40

Tuesday February 8, 2005 18:43

I am listening to Barbers Adagio for strings whilst looking at the photos of Rosie Swalepole on her run around the world. At the moment she is in Siberia and the Telegraph recently did a feature on her and the photographer, Luke Tchalenko, took some great shots. This one is really haunting me. Her strength and determination are awesome. If you see her on the road, say "Bore da".

Friday February 4, 2005 7:08

Come here and catch a kiss
from those ruby lips.
And if it costs you your life,
consider it a bargain!

But that kiss is too pure to mix with dust -
You must first become a floating spirit,
free from this body.

The Ocean of Purity said to me:
*Nothing is attained without effort.
To get the precious pearl
you must first smash the shell.*

For the rose's kiss
This whole world is parching its lily-lips.

I dare say,
Even if you have the splendor of every king,
And the beauty of Mars and Venus,
don't accept a kiss
from that beguiling Maiden.

O Moon of the dark sky - come in.
I have opened the window for you.
Tonight, touch my face,
press your lips upon mine.

Close the door of words
that the window of your heart may open -
The Moon's kiss
only comes
through an open window.

Rumi
'In the Arms of the Beloved'
Translations by Jonathan Star

Wednesday February 2, 2005 19:22

Daniel Ladinsky's translations of Hafiz's poetry never fail to move me. This is another beautiful expression found in "The Gift".

What Do White Birds Say

The earth has disappeared beneath my feet,
It fled from all my ecstasy,

Now like a singing air creature
I feel the Rose
Keep opening.

My heart turned to effulgent wings.
When has love not given freedom?
When has adoration not made one free?

A woman broken in tears and sweat
Stands in a field
Watching the sun and me
Trade jokes.

But never would Hafiz laugh
At your blessed labor
Of finding peace.

What do the dancing white birds say
Looking down upon burnt meadows?

All that you think is rain is not.
Behind the veil Hafiz and angels sometimes weep

Because most eyes are rarely glad
And your divine beauty is still too frightened
To unfurl its thousand swaying arms.

The earth has disappeared beneath my feet,
Illusion fled from all my ecstasy.

Now like a radiant sky creature
God keeps opening,

God keeps opening
Inside of
Me.

'The Gift - Poems by Hafiz The Great Sufi Master'
Translations by Daniel Ladinsky

This page was last updated: April 10, 2005 13:48