Writing in Code....by Hafiz

O morning breeze, 
bring your happy face 
as soon as you can
To the Beloved’s Street !

You are the Messenger of Mystery,
and now I know
I am on the Right path.
So don’t give me orders,
but urge me gently on.

Winebringer,
give me some of your reddest wine,
As my soul is slipping from my hands.

Let me tie all my hope
to Your woven gold belt.
This diet of reason
I've been on has led me nowhere.

That waistline of Yours traces
a divine subtlety. Now I know.

From where I sit,
the sight of Your sword
is a sure sign of drought,
So take me captive
and slay me with water
and buckets of ice.

I have written these words in code,
made only for Your eyes.
Please take them, and read them right away!

For Hafiz,
speaking Turkish and Arabic
are like talking in the same tongue:

He tells Love’s story
in every language that he knows !

~ Hafiz
(Writing in Code)
Thomas Rain Crowe
from Drink on The Wine of The Beloved
Shambhala, 2001.