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As sunlight is attributed to the moon, so is the Beloved's form ascribed to the lover; but in truth by Fakhruddin Iraqi (? - 1289) Timeline English version by William Chittick and Peter Lamborn Wilson Original Language Persian/Farsi Muslim / Sufi 13th Century As sunlight is attributed to the moon, so is the Beloved's form ascribed to the lover; but in truth each image painted      on the canvas of existence is the form      of the artist himself. Eternal Ocean      spews forth new waves. "Waves" we call them;      but there is only the Sea.     -- from Fakhruddin Iraqi: Divine Flashes (Classics of Western Spirituality) , by William Chittick / Nasr Seyyed Hossein Amazon.com	Themes   Lover and Beloved   Moon   Water     Recommended Books The Drunken Universe: An Anthology of Persian Sufi Poetry, Translated by Peter Lamborn Wilson / Translated by Nasrollah Pourjavady Fakhruddin Iraqi: Divine Flashes (Classics of Western Spirituality) , by William Chittick / Nasr Seyyed Hossein Love's Alchemy: Poems from the Sufi Tradition, Translated by David Fideler / Translated by Sabrineh Fideler Poetry for the Spirit: Poems of Universal Wisdom and Beauty, Edited by Alan Jacobs
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Commentary by Ivan M. Granger

This brief poem is a beautiful metaphor illustrating how the fragmented, separated sense of existence is finally recognized as numberless expressions of the Eternal Unity.

What is he saying, first of all, when he suggests that "sunlight is attributed to the moon"? In reality, the moon has no light of its own. The light we call moonlight is actually reflected sunlight. This was understood by the Persian world, which had an advanced understanding of astronomy at the time.

The moon, therefore, is sometimes used to represent the individual awareness matured into enlightened awareness. The individual mind, full and pure, comes to reflect the eternal light of Spirit.

Sometimes, though, the moon, because of its cyclical nature, symbolizes more broadly the material world.

What I think 'Iraqi is saying is that what we fall in love with in another person, that glimmer of light that infatuates us (the moon), is really the reflected light of the Eternal Beloved. The consciousness and life we see around us, is, like the moon, a reflection of the eternal consciousness.

He then builds on this metaphor to convey how everyone and everything is a reflection of the Divine. Thousands of paintings emerge from the hand of a single artist. We look at the surface of the ocean and see wave after wave, but that is an artificial distinction of the mind. Is a wave separate from the sea? In truth, "there is only the Sea."

Ivan M. Granger's original poetry, stories and commentaries are Copyright © 2002 - 2011 by Ivan M. Granger.
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