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Muslim / Sufi
11th Century

About Omar Khayyam

Timeline (11th Century)

Omar Khayyam, Omar Khayyam poetry, Muslim / Sufi, Muslim / Sufi poetry,  poetry, [TRADITION SUB2] poetry,  poetry

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English version by
Edward FitzGerald

Original Language
Persian/Farsi

[74] Ah, Moon of my Delight who know'st no wane,

Commentary by
Ivan M. Granger

Themes
  Bliss
  Garden
  Moon
 
 

 

Recommended Books

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, by Omar Khayyam / Translated by Edward FitzGerald
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, by Omar Khayyam / Translated by Peter Avery
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam (Illustrated Edition), by Omar Khayyam / Translated by Edward FitzGerald
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Explained, by Paramhansa Yogananda / Edited by J. Donald Walters (Kriyananda)
The Sufism of the Rubaiyat or the Secret of the Great Paradox, by Norton F. W. Hazeldine

More >>

Ah, Moon of my Delight who know'st no wane,
The Moon of Heav'n is rising once again:
     How oft hereafter rising shall she look
Through this same Garden after me -- in vain!

 

 

-- from The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, by Omar Khayyam / Translated by Edward FitzGerald

Amazon.com

 

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Commentary by Ivan M. Granger

In this quatrain, Khayyam speaks of the moon that does not wane.

The state of mystical realization reveals itself as a shining light, as a luminescence permeating the still field of the mind. There is a sense of light from an undefined "above," silence, a fullness of vitality, and deep rest.

Sacred poets throughout the world often use the metaphor of the full moon in the night sky to describe this. The full moon is the soft light that illumines the land below when all is at rest.

Khayyam also has the enigmatic line suggesting that this moon will look for him in vain. This is a reference to the sense that the individual self -- the little self or the ego -- disappears in the light of illumination. The moon rises, it shines, but there is no "you" to be found within that light.


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Ivan M. Granger's original poetry, stories and commentaries are Copyright © 2002 - 2008 by Ivan M. Granger.
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