Saturday, September 17, 2011

Classic Poetry - "Your Mother and My Mother" by Shams-ud-din Muhammed aka Hafiz of Shiraz




Hafiz of Shiraz, 1320 - 1389

Fear is the cheapest room in the house
I would like to see you living
In better conditions,

for your mother and my mother
Were friends.

I know the Innkeeper
In this part of the universe.
Get some rest tonight,
Come to my verse tomorrow.
We’ll go speak to the Friend together.

I should not make any promises right now,
But I know if you
Pray
Somewhere in this world-
Something good will happen.

God wants to see
More love and playfulness in your eyes
For that is your greatest witness to Him.


Your soul and my soul
Once sat together in the Beloved’s womb
Playing footsie.

Your heart and my heart
are very, very old
Friends.

Hafiz, also known as Hafez, was born Shams-ud-din Muhammed in Shiraz, Persia, and was a contemporary of Chaucer in England. Hafiz lived most of his life in his home town, became a Sufi master and is believed to have written over 5,000 poems. Fewer than 700 are in existence today.

Fellow poet and friend, Sherry Blue Sky, wrote an informative article last year about Hafiz and another Persian poet, Rumi. Check it out here.

To read more work by Hafiz, read The Gift, translated by Daniel Ladinsky.

10 comments:

  1. wonderful post.I dont know how they did it, but these Arabic or Persian masters, Sufi saints many of them, had the capacity to recurrently produce lines that would almost be dripping with sweet melancholy.unparalleled gems.I have a read a bit of Ghalib and Rumi, and the rhythm and melody is one of honeyed delight.

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  2. What a wonderful offering. Hafiz and Rumi are two of my faves. They write with such joy. Thanks for this one, Kim. I hadn't read it before and I totally love it. I wish it could be written across the sky!

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  3. It's good to read something like this that actually goes to show how a religion like Islam actually positively enriched the metaphysical thinking of its followers as opposed to what we think of them now.

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  4. I truly love the Sufi poets ... and have often found answers within their words. Most excellent. Thank you.

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  5. beautiful poem, i have never encountered works by sufi poets before, would love to read more now since this poem touched my heart. there is a deep benevolence etched in these words. thanks a lot for sharing.

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  6. ...I know if you
    Pray
    Somewhere in this world-
    Something good will happen...


    Oh such life-reaffirming anodyne...

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  7. Beautiful poem...Thank you for this post..

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  8. This is lovely. I love both Hafiz and Rumi, and am glad to see something I hadn't come across before. Thank you.

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  9. I became familiar with Rumi & Hafiz from reading Sherry's article and someone from PU left a link to Hafiz poems a while ago.
    Since then, I'm really starting to enjoy them.

    Excellent choice Kim!
    Thanks for sharing.

    P.S.
    Sorry I've not been around much...I been ill & am still bedridden. Hoping to rejoin you all soon.

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