Although not a poem in Arabic, this moving account of Divine “pillow talk” or munājāt (intimate discourses) by Ibn ‘Arabi was beautifully translated by Henri Corbin in poetic form (and modified by me to better correspond to the Arabic). Translation: Listen, O dearly beloved! I am the sought essence in the cosmos I am the centre…
The Music of Hafez
These are two of the most musical ghazals of the most musical of Persian poets, Hafez. The beauty of their melodies and rhythms are only surpassed by the sublimity of their meanings: Translation: Without the beloved’s beauty, the soul has no interest in the world He who doesn’t have that, in truth has no…
‘Iraqi and Shushtari—The Wealth of Poverty
‘Iraqi Translation: I have seen that the lane of piety stretches out, far, far into the distance; My dearest friends, can you not show me then the way of the madman? Bring me a glass of Magian wine that I may drink deep for I have given up all thought of ascetic piety; or…