Sunday, March 31, 2013

Truth




seeker of truth

follow no path
all paths lead where

truth is here

~ e. e. cummings ~
(Complete Poems 1904-1962)
(credit)

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Lies !


They say,
"The King of Love will turn from His lovers." - Lies!
They say, "The darkness will never turn to dawn." - Lies!

They say,
 "Do not sacrifice your life for love's sake. When the body dies, you will die." - Lies!

They say,
 "You can go beyond the cycle of time but your soul can travel no further." - Lies!

People who are caught in their own vanity say,
"The lives of the prophets are nothing but fairy tales." - Lies!

People who have lost their way say,
"The servant can never reach God." - Lies!

They say,
"The Knower of Secrets does not tell His servants all the mysteries of the Unseen." - Lies!

They say,
"He does not reveal the heart's innermost secrets. He does not lift His servants up to heaven." - Lies!

They say,
 "One who is born of Earth will never join the angels of heaven." - Lies!

They say,
 "The Sun of God does not fill this whole world; He misses a few atoms." - Lies!

Now go to that inner stillness.
Some say, "You will not hear the voice of God there." - Lies!
 
Version by Jonathan Star
"Rumi - In the Arms of the Beloved "
Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam, New York 1997


 
(No more lies by yana182 - deviantart)

They say,
 "The king of love is not faithful." Lies! 
They say,
"Your night will never have a dawn." Lies!
They say,
 "Why do you slay yourself for love's sake? There is no survival after the body's death." Lies!
They say,
 "Your tears shed in love are vain; once the eyes are closed, there will be no encounter." Lies!
They say,
 "When we have gone outside the cycle of time, beyond this soul of ours will not travel." Lies!
 
Those persons who have not escaped from fancy say, 
"The stories of the prophets were all mere fancies." Lies!
Those persons who have not gone on the right way say, 
"The servant has no way to come to God." Lies!

They say, 
"He who knows all secrets tells not the servant the secrets and mysteries of the Unseen without intermediary!" Lies!
They say,
 "They open not to the servant the heart's secret, and He does not graciously carry the servant up to heaven." Lies!
They say, 
"That one who has earth in his composition will never be familiar with the heavenly host." Lies!
They say, 
"The ' pure soul will never fly on the wings of love out of this earthly nest to the free air." Lies!
They say, 
"that sun of God will never bring retribution for the several atoms' weight of evil and good of men." Lies!
 
Keep silent from speaking; and if anyone says to you, 
"Speech has no other expression but letters and sounds" -- Lies!

Translation by A. J. Arberry
"Mystical Poems of Rumi 1"
The University of Chicago Press, 1968

Monday, March 11, 2013

Only you exist....



A step toward your own heart
is a step toward the Beloved.

In this house of mirrors
you see a lot of things –
Rub your eyes.
Only you exist.

Version by Jonathan Star and Shahram Shiva
A Garden Beyond Paradise
Bantam Books, 1992


Friday, March 01, 2013

Tired of hunting, I surrender...


i was ready to tell
the story of my life
but the ripple of tears
and the agony of my heart
wouldn't let me

i began to stutter
saying a word here and there
and all along i felt
as tender as a crystal
ready to be shattered

in this stormy sea
we call life
all the big ships
come apart
board by board

how can i survive
riding a lonely
little boat
with no oars
and no arms

my boat did finally break
by the waves
and i broke free
as i tied myself
to a single board

though the panic is gone
i am now offended
why should i be so helpless
rising with one wave
and falling with the next

i don't know
if i am
nonexistence
while i exist
but i know for sure
when i am
i am not
but
when i am not
then i am

now how can i be
a skeptic
about the
resurrection and
coming to life again

since in this world
i have many times
like my own imagination
died and
been born again

that is why
after a long agonizing life
as a hunter
i finally let go and got
hunted down and became free

Translation by Nader Khalili
"Rumi -- Fountain of Fire"
Cal-Earth Press, 1994


I was going to tell you my story
but waves of pain drowned my voice.
I tried to utter a word but my thoughts
became fragile and shattered like glass.
Even the largest ship can capsize
in the stormy sea of love,
let alone my feeble boat
which shattered to pieces leaving me nothing
but a strip of wood to hold on to.
Small and helpless, rising to heaven
on one wave of love and falling with the next
I don't even know if I am or I am not.
When I think I am, I find myself worthless,
when I think I am not, I find my value.
Like my thoughts, I die and rise again each day
so how can I doubt the resurrection?
Tired of hunting for love in this world,
at last I surrender in the valley of love
and become free.

Translation by Azima Melita Kolin and Maryam Mafi
"Rumi: Hidden Music"
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 2001


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