Be the dust at Beloved's door, and speak...by Hafiz

O fool, do something,
so you won't just stand there looking dumb.

If you are not traveling and on the road,
how can you call yourself a guide?

In the School of Truth,
one sits at the feet of the Master of Love.

So listen, son,
so that one day you may be an old father, too!

All this eating and sleeping
has made you ignorant and fat;

By denying yourself food and sleep,
you may still have a chance.

Know this:
If Beloved should shine His lovelight on your heart,
I promise you'll shine brighter than a dozen suns.

And I say:
wash the tarnished copper of your life from your hands;
To be Love's alchemist, you should be working with gold.

Don't sit there thinking;
go out and immerse yourself in His sea.
Having only one hair wet with water
will not put knowledge in that head.

For those who see only Beloved, their vision
Is pure, and not a doubt remains.

Even if our world is turned upside down
and blown over by the wind,
If you are doubtless, you won't lose a thing.

O Hafiz,
if it is union with the Beloved that you seek,
Be the dust at Beloved's door, and speak !

~ Hafiz
From: 'Drunk On the Wind of the Beloved'
Translated by Thomas Rain Crowe