Hafez Come tell me what it is that I have gained From loving you, Apart from losing all the faith I had And knowledge too? Though longing for you scatters on the wind All my life’s work Still, by the dust on your dear feet, I have kept faith with you And even…
Zen and the snowman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJI5gaWuf6w&nohtml5=False At the peak of my soul’s depths I sit in silent reverie The sun above, weather below The vast blue breathes in, out of me The Snow Man by Wallace Stevens One must have a mind of winter To regard the frost and the boughs Of the pine-trees crusted with snow; And have been…
Camaron and Hafez: Love’s Minstrels
Translation of Lyrics: Strumming the strings of his guitar, Strumming the strings of his guitar, A Sultan complained of his Queen. Two wells of stars, your black eyes, And a moonless rose, your black hair, Your black hair, your black hair, Two wells of stars, your black eyes. The rosemary bush smells of your body,…
Flamenco is Love and Pain
“Flamenco is love and pain,” he said. “Heartbreak. In art there has to be pain, that is clear – it is like life, whether you want it or not, it is there.” -Vicente Amigo in an interview http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCoyXkD_n3I Hafez says… مرا می*بینی و هر دم زیادت می*کنی دردم Marâ mibini o hardam, ziyâdat mikoni dardam…
Like water…
“Consider the creatures as pure and limpid water, within which shine the Attributes of the Almighty. Their knowledge, their justice, their kindness all are stars of heaven reflected in flowing water. Kings are a locus of manifestation for God’s Kingliness, the learned a locus for His Knowledge. Generations have passed, and this is a new…
Rumi – I do not know myself
What is to be done, O Muslims? for I do not know myself. I am neither Christian, nor Jew, nor Magian, nor Muslim. I am not of the East, nor of the West, nor of the land, nor of the sea; I am not of Nature’s quarry, nor of the heaven circling above….
Variations on a Theme: Emptiness
Love came and emptied me of self, Every vein and every pore, Made into a container to be filled by the Beloved. Of me, only a name is left, The rest is You my Friend, my Beloved. -Abu Sai’d Abu’l Khayr (trans. Vraje Abramian) from Nobody Son of Nobody. Hohm Press, 2001 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xyn3rHLw3zY Turn…
Variations on a Theme: Heaven and Hell
My Beloved, this torture and pain I suffer because I am so addicted to Your Beauty. People ask me whether I prefer Your company to being in heaven. Heedless fools, what would heaven itself mean without the Friend’s Presence? -Abu Sa’id Abu’l Khayr (trans. Vraje Abramian) from Nobody Son of Nobody. Hohm Press, 2001 Selected…
Variations on a Theme: Alone with Love
In music and words… 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 al-Basri (trans. Charles Upton) The lovers have all gone to bed And I’m alone…