Remembering Hafiz

If a person is seeking rewards, stay away

From the path of lovers, since such thoughts spoil the play.

Love must not be contaminated by desire

And all intentions will be tested in life’s fire.

Become content with risking everything for love;

Don’t be concerned with Hell below or Heaven above.

People have gone mad while pursuing worldly dreams,

Become mad with love for things are not as they seem.

When young we forget that youth will soon disappear

Into the lowly depths of a time we all fear.

Love is eternal and will stay beyond life’s end;

So give up your delusions and embrace the Friend.

Some think that strength and power are all that one needs;

The armor of seekers is made from loving deeds.

The wail of separation comes from deep within;

Who will hear one’s lament amidst this worldly din.

We are all consumed with our own lonely affair,

Yet, there is One who listens and is always there …

Waiting and watching and pouring the secret wine

Into a cup of love that is marked with a sign

That will be known by those who are willing to drink.

Depart from your obsession with having to think!

Our senses are clogged with residues of the day,

As food, sleep, feelings, or comforts all have their say.

The heart, soul, and spirit have all been swept aside

While being inundated by a worldly tide.

Take passage on love’s ship and become a deck hand

For work, not money, is what transports you from land.

Glide through true waters beyond reefs of falsity;

Wash down the Ego’s deck; lower the flag of Me.

Don’t worry about your reputation on shore

For complaints often are made about those who may soar.

Drown yourself in the Ocean of Divinity

Don’t fear what awaits in waters of mystery.

Swim toward the light-filled depths and forget surface waves;

Explore the treasures that lie waiting in love’s caves.

Do understand that the molecules of the Sea

Are bound together by forces of purity.

Love’s attractive nature makes the waters as one

Mirror that reflects endless beauty from the Sun.

And love’s presence is what holds together one’s life

When the soul is buffeted with the winds of strife.

Storms, placid seas, and rolling waves are all part

Of the tale that discloses meanings to your heart.

The journey does not go from worldly place to place

But, rather, guides one through stations of inner grace.

Our cups are made with elements of Adam’s clay

But the wine which it holds comes through Muhammad’s way.

Thoughts are cast in the mold of Hafiz’s adab,

But they are expressed through the colors of Anab.