My soul, why do you tarry so long in the land of exile....by Rumi

My soul, 
why do you tarry so long in the land of exile? 

Return from this exile; 
how long will you be dispersed?

I sent a hundred letters, I signaled a hundred ways; either
you do not know the way or you do not read the letter.

If you do not read the letter, the letter itself reads you; and
if you do not know the way,
you are in the grip of Him who knows the way.

Return, for in this prison no one knows your worth; sit not
with the stonyhearted, for you are a gem of this mine.

You who have escaped from heart and soul,
washed your hands of heart and soul,
leaped forth from the snares of the world
return, for you are one of the falcons.

You are both water and stream and are seeking for water;
you are both lion and deer and are better than they.

How far is it from you to the Soul?
Are you more remarkable than the Soul?

Are you commingled with the Soul,
or a ray of the Beloved?

~ Rumi
From Mystical poems of rumi
by A.J Arberry

Aedh Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven....by William Butler Yeats

 Had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,

The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half light,

I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;

I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

~ William Butler Yeats

There are so many positions of love...by Hafiz

There are so many positions of love:
each curve on a
branch,

the thousand ways your eyes can hold us,
the infinite shapes each mind
can draw,

the spring orchestra of scents and sounds
wafting through the air,

the currents of light combusting like
passionate
lips,

the revolution of the universe’s skirt,
whose folds contain other worlds,

Our every sigh that falls against
His inconceivably close,
omnipresent,
divine
body.

~ Hafiz

And For No Reason......by Hafiz

And
For no reason
I start skipping like a child!

And
For no reason
I turn into a leaf
That is carried so high
I kiss the sun's mouth
And dissolve!

And
For no reason
A thousand birds
Choose my head for a conference table
Start passing their
Cups of wine
And their wild songbooks all around!

And
For every reason in existence
I begin to eternally.
To eternally laugh and love!

When I turn into a leaf
And start dancing,
I run to kiss our beautiful Friend
And I dissolve in the Truth
That I am.

~ Hafiz
Translation by Daniel Ladinsky

How sweet is selflessness....by Rumi

Whether it’s sugar or poison, 
How sweet is selflessness !

You grab a hat, you have no head. 
How sweet is selflessness !

When you fall into its trap, and try to get out
but find no escape…
when you take just a sip of its wine,
How sweet is selflessness !

Face your fear and be a man;
you’re alive, so be in motion.
Abandon gold for a heart of gold.
How sweet is selflessness !

You spread yourself like freezing rain.
Experience the miracle of melting.
Don’t be sad about this material world.
How sweet is selflessness !

Don’t complain that you’re trapped,
that your cup of life is full to the brim.
Find new life even in old age.
How sweet is selflessness !

How can you stay sober in this ocean of wine !
Surrender your skepticism !
How sweet is selflessness !

When those black curls of Hers appear,
ambergris seems less than worthless,
but what musk, what fragrant ambergris
is this sweet selflessness !

Come on to the rose garden, friend,
join the gathering of the drunks,
A glass in every hand !
How sweet is selflessness !

See the Power truly present,
witnessing each and every soul,
far beyond even selflessness.
How sweet is selflessness !

~ Rumi
Divani Shamsi Tabrizi
From Love's Ripening: Rumi on the Heart's Journey
Translated by K Helminski & A. Rezwani

Ah my friend, what have you brought me ?...by Rumi

Ah my friend, 
what have you brought me ?

You know 
a traveler should not arrive empty handed 
at the door of a friend like me. 
That's going to the grinding stone
without your wheat.

He will ask at the Resurrection,
'Did you bring Me a present? Did you forget?
Did you think you wouldn't see Me?'

Beloved kept teasing,
"Lets have it. I want my gift!"

The Friend began,
"You can't imagine how
I've looked for something for you.
Nothing seemed appropriate.
You don't take gold down into a goldmine, or a
drop of water to the Sea of Oman!

Everything I thought of was like
bringing cumin seed to Kirmanshah where
cumin comes from.

You have all seeds in your barn.
You even have my love and my soul,
so I can't even bring those.

I've brought you a mirror.
Look at yourself, and remember me."

He took the mirror out from his robe
where he was hiding it.

What is the mirror of being?
Non-being.

Always bring a mirror of non-existence
as a gift.
Any other present is foolish.

~ Rumi
Mathnawi, I,
Version by Coleman Barks
(Developed from the translation by Nicholson)
"The Essential Rumi"
HarperSanFrancisco, 1995

As long as you are not displeased with me, I do not care what I face...by Rabia Basri

To You, my Beloved,
I complain of my weakness,
and my lack of support
and the humiliation I suffer from my fellowmen.

O the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful!
You are the Lord of the weak,
and you are my Beloved.
To whom do You leave me?
To a distant person who receives me with hostility?
Or to an enemy You have given power over me?

As long as You are not displeased with me,
I do not care what I face.
Your forgiveness is all
that matters to me

I seek refuge in the light of Your Countenance
By which all darkness is dispelled
and dissolve all challenges of the world
and the hereafter,
lest Your wrath descends upon me.

I desire Your pleasure and satisfaction
To You is the supplication
Until it reaches Your Rida

Verily there is no power
and might
other than You.

~ Rabia Basri
(What is Rida ?
It is the Perfect Contentment out of Love of the Beloved.)