O Pilgrim....by Hafiz

O Pilgrim. 
Come and look 
into the mirror of this glass of wine !

And pick up your net, 
the Pure Bird can never be caught.
There is nothing in this cage but wind.

Live for the moment ! 
When the water in the lake dried up,
Even Adam left the Garden of Safe Joy.

At the Mardi Gras of Life, 
have one or two cups of wine, then leave.
Don’t hang around 
waiting for an enlightened drunk!

Say to your heart: “My youth is gone.”
Even though you have picked no roses, 
use your old head skillfully,
then do the right thing.

The puritan know-it-all never sees the drunkard
Or secrets hidden behind the veil.

O Wise One, those of us 
who sit all day on Your threshold 
have more than Earned our pay. 
For service rendered, 
to pay Your slaves in pity is OK.

When I handed the reins of my heart to You,
I gave up, forever, 
any hope of becoming anything other than a horse.

O student of the cup of Hafiz: drink! 
And then go like the wind
To the Beloved, 
and tell him the story of this great wine !

~ Hafiz 
(O Pilgrim)
from: Drunk on The Wine of The Beloved
Thomas Rain Crowe
Art by Tim Thorpe