[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]Rise from this well as Joseph did and gain
The throne of Egypt s fabulous domain,
Where you and Joseph will together reign.
Dear pigeon, welcome -- with what joy you yearn
To fly away, how sadly you return!
Your heart is wrung with grief, you share the gaol
That Jonah knew, the belly of a whale --
The Self has swallowed you for its delight;
How long will you endure its mindless spite?
Cut off its head, seek out the moon, and fly
Beyond the utmost limits of the sky;
Escape this monster and become the friend
Of Jonah in that ocean without end.
Welcome, sweet turtle-dove, and softly coo
Until the heavens scatter jewels on you --
But what ingratitude you show! Around
Your neck a ring of loyalty is bound,
But while you live you blithely acquiesce
From head to claw in smug ungratefulness;
Abandon such self-love and you will see
The Way that leads us to Reality.
There knowledge is your guide, and Khezr will bring
Clear water drawn from life s eternal spring.
And welcome, hawk! Your flight is high and proud,
But you return with head politely bowed --
In blood and in affliction you must drown,
And I suggest you keep your head bent down!
What are you here? Mere carrion, rotten flesh,
Withheld from Truth by this world s clumsy mesh;
Outsoar both this world and the next, and there,
Released from both, take off the hood you wear --
When you have turned from both worlds you will land
On Zulgharnin s outstretched and welcome hand.
And little goldfinch, welcome! May your fire
Be an external sign of fierce desire.
Whatever happens, burn in those bright flames,
And shut your eyes and soul to earthly claims.
Then, as you burn, whatever pain you feel,
Remember God will recompense your zeal;
When you perceive His hidden secrets, give
Your life to God s affairs and truly live --
At last, made perfect in Reality,
You will be gone, and only God will be.
* A reference to the Companion of the Cave. During a period of danger the Prophet
Mohammad and a close companion, Abou Bakr, hid for a while in a cave on Mount Thaur.
In mystical poetry this episode became a symbol of withdrawal from the world.
The birds assemble and the hoopoe tells them of the Simorgh
The world s birds gathered for their conference
And said: Our constitution makes no sense.
All nations in the world require a king;
How is it we alone have no such thing?
Only a kingdom can be justly run;
We need a king and must inquire for one.
They argued how to set about their quest.
The hoopoe fluttered forward; on his breast
There shone the symbol of the Spirit s Way
And on his head Truth s crown, a feathered spray.
Discerning, righteous and intelligent,
He spoke: My purposes are heaven-sent;
I keep God s secrets, mundane and divine,
In proof of which behold the holy sign
Bisillah * etched for ever on my beak.
No one can share the grief with which I seek
Our longed-for Lord, and quickened by my haste
My wits find water in the trackless waste.
I come as Solomon s close friend and claim
The matchless wisdom of that mighty name
(He never asked for those who quit his court,
But when I left him once alone he sought
With anxious vigilance for my return --
Measure my worth by this great king s concern!).
I bore his letters -- back again I flew --
Whatever secrets he divined I knew;
A prophet loved me; God has trusted me;
What other bird has won such dignity?
For years I travelled over many lands,
Past oceans, mountains, valleys, desert sands,
And when the Deluge rose I flew around
The world itself and never glimpsed dry ground;
With Solomon I set out to explore
The limits of the earth from shore to shore.
I know our king -- but how can I alone
Endure the journey to His distant throne?
Join me, and when at last we end our quest
Our king will greet you as His honoured guest.
How long will you persist in blasphemy?
Escape your self-hood s vicious tyranny --
Whoever can evade the Self transcends
This world and as a lover he ascends.
Set free your soul; impatient of delay,
Step out along our sovereign s royal Way:
We have a king; beyond Kaf s mountain peak
The Simorgh lives, the sovereign whom you seek,
And He is always near to us, though we
Live far from His transcendent majesty.
A hundred thousand veils of dark and light
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