Arrogance

For even a moment be our companion, the world is just a breath [1]
There is no one that each moment his heart not with someone else

How could You be the prey for I, whose crops afire [2]
Whoever heard the eagle preyed upon by a fly

I am not the one and only desiring Your face
Whosoever there is, must have Your desire in head [3]

Yearning for You shall never leave our heart, not even one breath
The harvest of our arrogant life, merely this miserable ‘Self’ [4]

You are not the one ever neglected by my eyes
Since each moment It is with all drifting woods on all waters [5]

Moment by moment, running away from the floods of my eyes
Since each droplet gushing from the fountains of Ars [6]

Because I am entangled in Your trap, no other trap avails
How can you hunt a bird already bound in a cage?

While the Beloved wafting above the caravan, fell asleep how?
Since all around were moans and clang of bells aloud [7]

Khajoo boasted: “I am the lowest in Your court of all slaves proud”
But It responded: “Pass through this gate since Mine slaves only one” [8]





[1] I am not sure if Khajoo is asking the Lord to be our companion or other human beings. My feeling is that he is asking for other human beings to be his friends, because this life is so short there is no way worth the enmities. He claims that anyway there is no way your heart can be free of anyone else’s love! This is true… we strive as hard as we can each moment of our life to love someone or something without much deliberation. 'Breath' in Farsi refers to a brief moment of time like a sigh.

[2] The term “crops afire” means someone who is a loser without any power or influence. Khajoo narrates how can a loser even think possible to seek the Lord of the universe the Almighty power with no parallel!? And he compares that to a fly attempting to hunt an eagle. How silly we are!

[3] Khajoo recognizes his own arrogance in this verse and later the conclusion of this poem! Wanna-be Sufis, cosmetic Sheikhs, hollow Ayatollahs and all those arrogant scholarly types, the old men with long dangling beards and robes should uncover the gem Khajoo proffers to us for free: All things in the universe are filled with desire and love of Allah though they may not even know or we may not be able to comprehend their expression of such divine love. When sun loves Allah it bursts out with magnificent radiation the expression of its love for Almighty the Supreme Creator. When DNA praises the love of the Creator, it doubles itself non-stops the expression (gene expression) of most undying love for its Master. When blossoms smile with untried love of their Creator, they break through the sheath of their branches. Man be not arrogant! Sheikhs, Sages and Yogis be all gone!!!!!!!!!!! You have NO exclusives here.

[4] Again Khajoo emphasizes that love of Allah leaves not our lives and our hearts. Unlike the wealth and all that which we work for foolishly… shall depart from us, all is left behind at the end, like at the beginning, is the Self. That miserable poor and desolate Self who is loved ONLY by the Beloved nonetheless.

[5] How can we look for Allah????? Allah is looking upon us moment by moment and we face The Majest every second of our life and death. Imagine this, the Creator is gazing upon every leaf rolling down a brook carefully. There is no such leaf or brook not looked upon and carefully considered by Allah. Then how can you even think being away from the eyes of Allah?

[6] ‘Ars’ is a river bordering Azarbeijan and Iran running by Teblisi (Teflis) the birthplace of my father!

[7] Imagine Allah the most prized King of a caravan being carried above the throne wafting aloft and all the raucous surrounding this caravan is being not heard by us such that we fall deep asleep negligent in this worldly life? Clang of bells refers to the bells hanging from the necks of camels,

[8] If you think you are humbled to your Lord, even if that pleasure of a thought occurred to you, then you a pompous arrogant human being not worthy of the Lord. When Khajoo makes such arrogant expression of his ignorance, he is replied to, “there is only one slave for Allah i.e. all things and people are Its slave the same way, the same amount and same how!” Only the arrogant men classify righteousness for their own pleasures and worldly gains.


© 2003-2002,  By Dara Shayda