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684-733

  • At dawn I show my face to reprimand you, lest from egoism ye become (included) among the people of the left hand.”
  • Leave that (topic), for that topic is lengthy: (he who is the final cause of) the command “Be!” hath forbidden lengthiness. 685
  • How Mustafá (Mohammed), on whom be peace, made trial of ‘Á’isha, may God be pleased with her, and said, “Why art thou hiding? Do not hide, for the blind man cannot see thee,” in order that it might appear whether ‘Á’isha was acquainted with the secret thoughts of Mustafá, on whom be peace, or whether she was (merely) one who would follow his expressed wishes.
  • The Prophet said by way of trial, “He cannot see thee: do not hide.”
  • ‘Á’isha made a sign with her hands (as though to say), “(If) he does not see (me), yet I see him.”
  • Reason's jealousy of the beauty of the Spirit is (the cause of) this sincere admonition being full of similitudes and allegories.
  • Notwithstanding that this Spirit is so hidden, why is Reason so jealous of Him?
  • O jealous one, from whom art thou hiding Him whose face is concealed by His light? 690
  • This Sun goes with face uncovered: His face is veiled by the excess of His light.
  • From whom art thou hiding Him, O jealous one? The sun (itself) cannot see a trace of Him.
  • (Reason says), “The jealousy in my body is (all) the greater because I desire to hide Him even from myself.
  • On account of the fire of fell jealousy I am at war with my own eyes and ears.”
  • Since thou hast such a (mighty) jealousy, O my soul and heart, close thy mouth and leave off speaking. 695
  • (Reason says), “If I keep silence, I fear that that Sun will rend the veil and (display Himself) from another quarter.”
  • In (keeping) silence our (inward) speaking (of Him) is (only) made more evident, since the desire (for manifestation) is increased by suppression.
  • If the Sea roar, its roaring turns to foam and becomes the surge of “I desired to be known.”
  • To utter words (concerning Him) is to shut the window (through which He reveals Himself): the very act of expression is the concealment (of Him).
  • Sing, like nightingales, in the presence of the Rose, in order that you may divert them from the scent of the Rose, 700
  • So that their ears will be engaged in (listening to) the song, and their attention will not fly to the face of the Rose.
  • Before this Sun, which is exceedingly radiant, every guide is in reality a highway robber.
  • Story of the minstrel who began to sing this ode at the banquet of the Turkish Amír: “Art Thou a rose or a lily or a cypress or a man? I know not. What dost Thou desire from this bewildered one who has lost his heart? I know not”— and how the Turk shouted at him, “Tell of that which you know!”—and the minstrel's reply to the Amír.
  • In the presence of the drunken Turk the minstrel began (to sing of) the mysteries of Alast under the veil of melody—
  • “I know not whether Thou art a moon or an idol, I know not what Thou desirest of me.
  • I know not what service I shall pay Thee, whether I shall keep silence or express Thee in words. 705
  • ’Tis marvellous that Thou art not separate from me, (and yet) where am I, and where Thou, I know not.
  • I know not how Thou art drawing me: Thou drawest me now into Thy bosom, now into blood.”
  • In this fashion he opened his lips (only) to say “I know not”: he made a tune of “I know not, I know not.”
  • When (the refrain) “I know not” passed beyond bounds, our Turk was amazed and his heart became sick of this ditty.
  • The Turk leaped up and fetched an iron mace to smite the minstrel's head with it on the spot; 710
  • (But) an officer seized the mace with his hand, saying, “Nay; ’tis wicked to kill the minstrel at this moment.”
  • He (the Turk) replied, “This endless and countless repetition of his has pounded my nerves: I will pound his head.
  • O cuckold, (if) you don't know, don't talk nonsense; and if you do know, play (a tune) to the purpose.
  • Tell of that which you know, O crazy fool: don't draw out (repeat continually) ‘I know not, I know not.’
  • (Suppose) I ask, ‘Where do you come from, hypocrite, eh?’ you will say, ‘Not from Balkh, and not from Herát, 715
  • Not from Baghdád and not from Mosul and not from Tiráz’: you will draw out a long journey in (saying) ‘not’ and ‘not.’
  • Just say where you come from and escape (from further discussion): in this case it is folly to elaborate the point at issue.
  • Or (suppose) I asked, ‘What had you for breakfast?’ you would say, ‘Not wine and not roast-meat,
  • Not qadíd and not tharíd and not lentils’: tell me what you did eat, only (that) and no more.
  • Wherefore is this long palaver?” “Because,” said the minstrel, “my object is recondite. 720
  • Before (until) you deny (all else), affirmation (of God) evades (you): I denied (everything) in order that you might get a scent of (perceive the means of attaining to) affirmation.
  • I play the tune of negation: when you die, death will declare the mystery.
  • [Commentary on his (the Prophet's) saying—peace be upon him!— ‘Die before ye die.’ ‘O friend, die before thy death if thou desirest life; for by so dying Idrís became a dweller in Paradise before (the rest of) us.’]
  • You have suffered much agony, but you are (still) in the veil, because dying (to self) was the fundamental principle, and you have not fulfilled it.
  • Your agony is not finished till you die: you cannot reach the roof without completing the ladder.
  • When two rungs out of a hundred are wanting, the striver will be forbidden to (set foot on) the roof. 725
  • When the rope lacks one ell out of a hundred, how should the water go from the well into the bucket?
  • O Amír, you will not experience the wreck of this ship (of self-existence) till you put into it the last mann.
  • Know that the last mann is fundamental, for it is (like) the (piercing) star that rises at night: it wrecks the ship of evil suggestion and error.
  • The ship of (self-)consciousness, when it is utterly wrecked, becomes (like) the sun in the blue vault (of heaven).
  • Inasmuch as you have not died, your agony has been prolonged: be extinguished in the dawn, O candle of Tiráz! 730
  • Know that the Sun of the world is hidden till our stars have become hidden.
  • Wield the mace against yourself: shatter egoism to pieces, for the bodily eye is (as) cottonwool in the ear.
  • You are wielding the mace against yourself, O base man: this egoism is the reflexion of yourself in (the mirror of) my actions.