Poetry Chaikhana
Sacred Poetry from Around the World

Christian : Catholic

13th Century

About Mechthild of Magdeburg

Timeline (1207 - 1297)

| View All Poems by Mechthild of Magdeburg | Next Poem >>

English version by
Jane Hirshfield

Original Language
German

A fish cannot drown in water,

Themes

Birds

Fire

Water

Recommended Books

	Christian Mystics: Their Lives and Legacies throughout the Ages, by Ursula King
	Ecstatic Transformation: Transpersonal Psychology in the Work of Mechthild of Magdeburg, by Ulrike Wiethaus
	The Enlightened Heart: An Anthology of Sacred Poetry, by Stephen Mitchell
	German Mystical Writings: Hildegard of Bingen, Meister Eckhart, Jacob Boehme, and others, Edited by Karen J. Campbell
	Mechthild of Magdeburg: The Flowing Light of the Godhead (Classics of Western Spirituality), by Mechthild of Magdeburg / Translated by Frank J. Tobin

More >>

A fish cannot drown in water,
A bird does not fall in air.
In the fire of creation,
God doesn't vanish:
The fire brightens.
Each creature God made
must live in its own true nature;
How could I resist my nature,
That lives for oneness with God?

-- from The Enlightened Heart: An Anthology of Sacred Poetry, by Stephen Mitchell

Amazon.com

| View More Poems by Mechthild of Magdeburg | Next Poem >>

Please support the Poetry Chaikhana, as well as the authors and publishers of sacred poetry, by purchasing some of the recommended books through the links on this site. Thank you!

Poetry Chaikhana Sacred Poetry from Around the World

About Mechthild of Magdeburg

Poetry Chaikhana
Sacred Poetry from Around the World