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A New World by Hafiz (1320 - 1389) Timeline English version by Haleh Pourafzal and Roger Montgomery Original Language Persian/Farsi Muslim / Sufi 14th Century Let's offer flowers, pour a cup of libation, split open the skies and start anew on creation. If the forces of grief invade our lovers' veins, cupbearer and I will wash away this temptation. With rose water we'll mellow crimson wine's bitter cup; we'll sugar the fire to sweeten smoke's emanation. Take this fine lyre, musician, strike up a love song; let's dance, sing all night, go wild in celebration. As dust, O West Wind, let us rise to the Heavens, floating free in Creator's glow of elation. If mind desires to return while heart cries to stay, here's a quarrel for love's deliberation. Alas, these words and songs go for naught in this land; come, Hafez, let's create a new generation.     -- from The Spiritual Wisdom of Hafez: Teachings of the Philosopher of Love, by Haleh Pourafzal / Roger Montgomery Amazon.com   / Photo by Paul Keller - A new generation at the Tomb of Hafez /	Themes   Awakening   Fire   Freedom   Garden   Heart Recommended Books Drunk on the Wine of Beloved: 100 Poems of Hafiz, by Thomas Rain Crowe The Gift: Poems by Hafiz the Great Sufi Master, by Daniel Ladinsky The Hafez Poems of Gertrude Bell: With the Original Persian on the Facing Page, by Gertrude Bell Hafez: Teachings of the Philosopher of Love, by Haleh Pourafzal The Hand of Poetry: Five Mystic Poets of Persia, with Lectures by Inayat Khan, Translated by Coleman Barks More >>
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Commentary by Ivan M. Granger

It's been far too long since we last had a selection by Hafiz, so today... A New World.

split open the skies and start anew on creation.

The lines of this poem read like lovely poetic embellishments, but there is more going on here than ecstatic wordplay. Beneath the poetry, Hafiz is using precise esoteric language. The "rose" of the rose water. A "fire" that is also sweet. Becoming as egoless as dust before the West Wind... Meanings to contemplate and explore within.

If mind desires to return while heart cries to stay,
here's a quarrel for love's deliberation.

I particularly like these lines. The "mind" Hafiz is talking about is the conceptualizing, projecting mind. It is this mind that must be absent (or stilled) before we can see reality directly. When we do this, our sense of self shifts. We no longer imagine ourselves to be the little ego, we find ourselves centered deeply at home within the heart. For the first time we fully recognize the heart as being present.

But -- if the mind desires to return once we have discovered the presence of the heart, well, that's a dilemma... "a quarrel of love's deliberation."

come, Hafez, let's create a new generation.

Ivan M. Granger's original poetry, stories and commentaries are Copyright © 2002 - 2011 by Ivan M. Granger.
All other material is copyrighted by the respective authors, translators and/or publishers.