hafiz

Gates of Wisdom: The Poems of Hafiz

A New Interpretation

by Swami Anand Nisarg

Table of Contents

The Life of Hafiz.................................................................................................................................................... 3

How to Read Hafiz ................................................................................................................................................. 4

Pass around the cup fair maiden.............................................................................................................................. 5

If the Shirazi Turk would only grant my heart's desire............................................................................................. 6

Zephyr, reach my charming gazelle and say ............................................................................................................ 7

My heart is going wild............................................................................................................................................ 8

Come, fair maiden.................................................................................................................................................. 9

Good news, lovely nightingale.............................................................................................................................. 10

Brother believers .................................................................................................................................................. 11

Fair maiden, make bright our cups with wine ........................................................................................................ 12

The beauty of your face, my Beloved.................................................................................................................... 13

The Friend's Love sets my heart afire....................................................................................................................14

Morning Wind, take me to the Friend.................................................................................................................... 15

Do not look at the Lovers and say......................................................................................................................... 16

Beloved, I think of you always.............................................................................................................................. 17

Uncombed hair, smiling lips and drunkenness....................................................................................................... 18

I swear by all Hafiz's Truth................................................................................................................................... 19

When I long for you, I don't want wine ................................................................................................................. 20

The dark of my eye is your resting place ............................................................................................................... 21

Come now, don't depend on the house of chance................................................................................................... 22

Allah be praised, the tavern door is still open ........................................................................................................ 23

The warm wind blows seeds through the air .......................................................................................................... 24

The rose looks like dark wine ............................................................................................................................... 25

The book of poetry and the cup of wine ................................................................................................................ 26

I have sworn to always love all beauty .................................................................................................................. 27

I wish the priest good luck with his morning prayers ............................................................................................. 28

My poor heart is the sanctuary of Allah's Love...................................................................................................... 29

Warm wind, if you blow through the lands of my Beloved .................................................................................... 30

Enjoy good company, in the garden in spring........................................................................................................ 31

Hey Nightingale ................................................................................................................................................... 32

The pridefully religious do not know me............................................................................................................... 33

Love isn't safe, its a dangerous road...................................................................................................................... 34

The nightingale held a rose in its beak................................................................................................................... 35

Now that the sweet-smelling breeze...................................................................................................................... 36

Pious priests ......................................................................................................................................................... 37

Gates of Wisdom: The Poems of Hafiz page 1 http://www.mystery-school.net

The world's a prisoner of your grace and beauty.................................................................................................... 38

The advice of the Teacher will never leave my memory ........................................................................................ 39

If your religion needs the blood of Lovers............................................................................................................. 40

Plant the seed of friendship, and you gain the world.............................................................................................. 41

If you make friends with the Friends of Allah ....................................................................................................... 42

The musicians of Love played a beautiful song ..................................................................................................... 43

Without the Friend, nothing in life matters to me................................................................................................... 44

The full moon doesn't glow as brightly as your face.............................................................................................. 45

The nightingale gets its rose.................................................................................................................................. 46

I fly like the warm wind to the home of the Friend ................................................................................................ 47

You cannot touch the Beloved's curls twice........................................................................................................... 48

My Beloved has gone, without saying a word ....................................................................................................... 49

Only when your eyes are blurred by the dust of the Tavern.................................................................................... 50

My heart will only accept the beauty of Love........................................................................................................ 51

If the Saki keeps serving wine like this .................................................................................................................52

This world isn't worth even one sad moment......................................................................................................... 53

In the beginning, Allah emanated rays of beauty ................................................................................................... 54

Do not admire the Sufi's teachings ........................................................................................................................ 55

Aloneness is good if it leads me to the Beloved..................................................................................................... 56

When the garden's roses are blooming .................................................................................................................. 57

Once more the warm wind spreads perfume with its breeze................................................................................... 58

The day of separation and the night of solitude...................................................................................................... 59

A star was born, and it became our School's Moon................................................................................................ 60

My soul is consumed, but for nothing ................................................................................................................... 61

The pious priests visited the tavern last night ........................................................................................................ 62

Good news! The warm wind has come again......................................................................................................... 63

The warm wind came to greet the drunken Teacher............................................................................................... 64

At dawn the watchman of luck came to my bed..................................................................................................... 65

Don't hope to catch beauty in your heart................................................................................................................ 66

The Pure in Heart will find their way to truth ........................................................................................................ 67

Good news! The days of sorrow and pain are over ................................................................................................ 68

Yesterday at dawn I found relief from suffering .................................................................................................... 69

The angels knocked at the door of the tavern last night.......................................................................................... 70


Copyright (c) 2007 by Swami Anand Nisarg. All rights reserved. This copyright protects Swami Anand Nisarg's right to publication of this work. Nonprofit, activist, and educational groups may circulate this work (forward it, reprint it, translate it, post it, or reproduce it) for nonprofit uses. Please do not change any part of it without permission.


The Life of Hafiz Hafiz was born some time around 1320, in Shiraz. At an early age, he demonstrated prodigious ability with poetry, both writing and with memorizing. It is said he had memorized the entire Koran, as well as the works of Sufi masters Farid and Rumi by the time he was in his teens. At the age of 21, Hafiz was initiated into the Sufi school of Attar. After this, the quality of his poetry had become such that he went from being a poor baker to serving as the court poet of the Shah. However, his controversial writings and teachings led him to fall out of favour, earning the wrath of both the Shah and the orthodox Muslim clergy, and in his late fourties Hafiz was forced to flee for his life to Isfahan. Eventually, however, the public demand for his return was such that the Shah pardoned him and he was allowed to return to the city of his birth. At the age of 60, determined to become Awakened, Hafiz drew a circle in the ground and remained within that circle for fourty days. At the end of this time, and on the fortieth anniversary of his initiation, Hafiz attained Awakening. For the next nine years until his death, Hafiz wrote more than half of his total body of poetic work (these are the poems which are considered to be the true core of his teaching), and taught students of his own as a Sufi Master. When Hafiz died, his enemies in the Muslim clergy refused to grant him a Muslim burial. But again, the public outcry from the people of Shiraz was so great that the Muslim clergy agreed to undertake a test to see if Allah deemed Hafiz worthy. Hafiz's poems were divided into two-line couplets, and all of these couplets were put together in a bunch. A young boy was chosen who would draw a single couplet at random, and the Priests and Hafiz's followers agreed that if the couplet bore a clear message that demonstrated divine favour, Hafiz would be given a Muslim burial. If not, he would be buried as a heretic. The couplet that was drawn said:

"Neither Hafiz's body nor his life can deny, For all his mischief, only heaven awaits him"

Hafiz was buried in a shrine in Shiraz, where he is still venerated as a Sufi master to this day.


How to Read Hafiz These poems of Hafiz are my reworking of the poems' literal translation. In translating literally, much would be lost, as is the case with so much holy writing. So I go back to Hafiz and write, in English, what his writing was meant to impart in Persian. To those unaccustomed to Sufi teaching, the poems might appear to be a "confusing" mixture. This is because they are utilizing the Sufi method of instruction, which is one that works specifically by breaking up usual patterns of thought in order to provoke contemplation, and affect both the conscious and subconscious awareness. These teachings have complex layers of thought where one symbol might connect to another in one way in the literal dimension, and connect in completely different ways at deeper levels. In other words, Hafiz's words aren't like a painting, they're like a sculpture, they have multiple dimensions and depth. The right way to study Hafiz or other Sufi writings is to first read the poem in its literal form, without trying to analyze it for metaphor. Then read it again, looking at each stanza separately, trying to see the message of each stanza. Then read the poem as a whole a third time, trying to tie together the various parts to get a holistic perspective. In the latter two readings, a good mental framework to have while reading, for the sake of analysis, is to imagine you would later have to teach or explain these meanings and insights to


Pass around the cup fair maiden Pass around the cup fair maiden, Because Love seemed easy at first, But now I see how difficult it is. The hearts of Lovers bleed, and will be doomed to break, when the scent of the Beloved blows away in the wind. How can the traveller stay safe when the clarion calls its sound of parting? The Master tells us: "soak your prayer rug red with wine, my friend". Those who are still on the shore feel they have peace of mind, they don't know our storms and dark nights. But at last, I find the Secret, hidden in street corners, revealed before me. Hafiz, enjoy her Love And instruct her, "suffer the darkness for the sake of the light".


If the Shirazi Turk would only grant my heart's desire If the Shirazi Turk would only grant my heart's desire, I'd give up Samarkand and Bukhara for the poorest part of her. Fair maiden, serve all of the old Wine now, if you wait for paradise you won't find drinking partners such as these! The heavenly musicians play well, Like plundering Turks, they have plundered all my patience. For my poor love has been rejected by my Beloved, Before my Beloved's beauty, my talk of "love" is like an insult. My Beloved is as beautiful as Joseph, My Beloved's Love strong enough to enchant Zulaikha. I long for you, even as your words of rejection still sound in the air; Anything sounds sweet, if your lips say it. Enjoy Wine and Music in every moment, O fortunate young people, heed the advice of Hafiz!


Zephyr, reach my charming gazelle and say Zephyr, reach my charming gazelle and say: because of you I've wandered through hill and desert, look kindly on my excitement and awe, favour me with your sweet divine lips! You're so proud of your roselike charm, that you will never think to ask of your nightingale. Wise birds cannot be caught by tricks or cunning, only by gentle good-tempered Love. Anyone who harps on their beauty and charm Hides a lack of loyalty, friendship, true devotion. When you enjoy drinks with your caring friends, Remember my love, consider my true feeling. There's no loyalty found in mere appearances. But Hafiz, your sweet sincere songs can move the Angels themselves.


My heart is going wild My heart is going wild! Help me, o masters! My secret love becomes revealed for all time! We are broken boats, you will not help us wind, move on, perhaps you'll be more useful to a friend. The love of this world lasts only a few days. It is all fantasy and sentiment. Be good to your friends, while you still have the chance. "how badly I want the morning's drink", said the nightingale last evening, while surrounded by sweet flowers. Be grateful for the blessings you have, fortunate man! Help the poor mystic as much as you're able. There is happiness in heaven and earth, if only two creeds are followed: "Be just to your friend, make peace with your foe". And if you have never reached the houses of fame and fortune, Admit that you cannot change what is written. When you feel miserable and self-pitying, Drink wine, and take pleasure, in this way the pauper can find the richest secret. The cup of wine is like the mirror of Alexander, through it he took the kingdom of Darius. Forgive me o well-dressed Priest, It is the will of Allah, if my cloth is smeared with wine.


Come, fair maiden Come, fair maiden! And bring us pure Wine to help us forget the sufferings of time. Help us throw off the cloak of falseness and its ways, I don't care to be respected, though it does no harm to those who are truly wise. The flame of my burning heart has burnt away all poorer hearts with its bright rays of good. My love-crazy heart cries out, saying: "Who can I tell the divine secret to?" I enjoy the divine company of my Beloved, Even though my Beloved has taken away all my peace of mind. The cypress, the flowers, and all work of art, They mean nothing to me, now that my Beloved has given me this gift. O Hafiz, suffer the challenge, and be wise. You are destined to find your home.


Good news, lovely nightingale Good news, lovely nightingale! The garden is filled with life again! Warm wind, when you fly along the pastures, send word to the delicate flowers: "I will stay forever at the door of the tavern, because the serving-girl is too beautiful to miss, Beloved! I have lost myself in lovesickness for you, In your heart I sail as safely as in Noah's Ark" Those who condemn the drinkers will lose all their piousness and beliefs in the tavern. Why do people struggle to make goals out of greed, when they know that someday we all end in the grave? Hafiz, drink, and be a friend to bandits if you like, but never dare to go near the criminal Priests!


Brother believers Brother believers, whatever shall we do? The priest left the mosque for the tavern yesterday! How can the believers turn to Mecca to pray? When our Mullah turns to the tavern instead?! The joy of the Beloved is insane, we are madmen trapped in the curls of her hair. It was written that we would find this life All is written, and our lives prove this. The face of the beloved is grace, When I see it, I can see nothing but beauty around me. Does the fire of my sighs And the flame of the beloved's shadow in me Affect your stony hearts? I had wondered if it might! Hafiz, your sighs are darts that pierce time and space! How can anything stand against such power?


Fair maiden, make bright our cups with wine Fair maiden, make bright our cups with wine, call for the singers, the world is on our side! O you who are ignorant of the bliss of wine: know I drink wine because in the cup I see the Friend's reflection. In the Book of Life, my name is eternal. No one dies who's heart is on fire with Love. warm wind, if you ever fly past the Friend say: "Why should I try to forget my name? There will come a time when you, too, will forget it!" It is good to find peace in the eyes of the Friend, for that reason I drink wine. The "clean foods" of the Priest, and my "Unclean drinks" will make no difference in the final judgement; I think they'll earn the same. But Hafiz; wipe your tears, for you will catch happiness right now!


The beauty of your face, my Beloved The beauty of your face, my Beloved, strikes my heart like a piercing arrow. Before creation existed, there was Love. Love is the greatest work of the Divine. Narcissus found love only by happenstance, and Helen's eyes caused wars by a mere gaze. But when I wandered last night through the garden, The budding flowers reminded me of your lips. The wind-blown violets, fresh and joyous brought my memory back to the beauty of your curls. Now I wash my cloak in clear wine, no man can escape what is Written. Hafiz: endure love, and you'll succeed, if you admit that this is what is Written. The whole world now turns to the desire of my heart, because I have become sincere in my devotion to the Beloved.


The Friend's Love sets my heart afire The Friend's Love sets my heart afire, and this fire burns my entire being. My body wasted away from the separation from the Friend, My soul wastes away! What is the purpose of Love? Even the candles feel sorry for my suffering, I burn more than they do. All my beliefs are tested by the wine of the tavern, All of my notions are washed away by it! When I tried to put aside the cup, it was cause for regret, My heart aches without wine! Come close, Friend, and speak Truth, I seek out your gaze, painful as it is for me. Hafiz: be Still, and drink deep from the wine, the candle has burnt through the night, and you did not fall asleep.


Morning Wind, take me to the Friend Morning Wind, take me to the Friend Where is that killer of lusts to be found? Though it is a dark night, we are on the path to refuge, Divine light, take me to the meeting-place! All who have entered this world will leave it. If so, why take things so seriously in the tavern? Look to my Beloved's curls and gaze, if you want to know where my heart is kept. The musicians, the serving maid, and the wine are all ready for me. But none of these are any good without the Beloved. Where is the Beloved to be found? Hafiz! Do not lament the autumn winds. Be reasonable! There are no roses without thorns.


Do not look at the Lovers and say Do not look at the Lovers and say "those are mistaken", You are not qualified to judge them, child. What is there, when I'm with myself? The more still I become, the louder it sounds. All the joy of life doesn't matter at all to me, Except when my Beloved's beauty shines in it, like the Sun. The monks and nuns are soaked in the blood of hearts they've murdered, I pray that one day they cleanse themselves with wine. I'm respected at the fire-altars of heathens, because the fire that burns forever is within me. I can remember, though long past, with what mastery the musician played his instrument This has stayed in my heart. Last night, your love-note came to me, and now my heart brims with Bliss.


Beloved, I think of you always Beloved, I think of you always! Your sweet-smelling curls wake up my lonesome soul. My love, I see your beauty even in your imperfections, The only sin is to claim not to care about loving you. The pucker of your lips transmits a secret truth: Thousands of Lovers have fallen deep in this abyss. Misfortune and and smallness have kept me from you, I could not reach your embrace soon enough. Tell the gatekeeper of the heart to let in the honest Lover. Hafiz does not bother often, nor will he leave your side. Just answer him but once a year, that's all he asks. My heart cherishes your Love and wise ways, However often I have missed you.


Uncombed hair, smiling lips and drunkenness Uncombed hair, smiling lips and drunkenness Clothing bared, singing lips and glass in hand; With mischievous eyes my Beloved gives the teaching, sitting beside me at midnight. With sadness of voice my Beloved says to me: "You seek sleep, my Lover? Shame on you! To drink at midnight takes great discipline, or in Love's eyes you will be a sinner!" O arrogant Priests! Drinkers are not the evil ones, their place was Written since the beginning of time! Whatever Allah has poured into our cup is ours, Do not claim "this is from heaven, but that is from hell!" My Beloved's beauty and the wineglass Have taken away all of Hafiz's false guilt in an instant.


I swear by all Hafiz's Truth I swear by all Hafiz's Truth, that my morning prayers are devoted to you. My tears fall like Noah's storm, but they do not wash away your Love. Purchase my wounded heart! I will sell it at a bargain; and you will see it is the purest of any you could find. My heart: don't demand that the Beloved's penetrating Grace come cheap, For there to be Love, selfishness cannot exist. Just be True, because Truth makes your words shine. Insincerity will darken the most beautiful of faces. I've wandered seeking through deserts and barren places, but pity not my haunted heart. Hafiz, pretty lies are not your friend! A garden with no life gives the gardener no work.


When I long for you, I don't want wine When I long for you, I don't want wine, may the barrels rot and the tavern age. Even if its the wine of heaven, throw it away! Wine has no purpose if the Beloved is not there. Alas! The Friend is gone and cannot speak with me of the Beloved, now nothing interests my tear-filled eyes. Beware my eyes, I am a danger to others, with the same flood of tears and sentiment that drown me. The Friend spends his time freely with others, But with a stranger like me he keeps hidden. The fields are green, So let us not grieve, Drink wine, Time and Space are only illusions. Hafiz is a libertine, but a faithful lover. Love is not limited by outside circumstances.


The dark of my eye is your resting place The dark of my eye is your resting place: Enter, and reside there, it belongs to you. Nightingale! Enjoy the rosiness of the Beloved's cheeks, Your song is celebrated by all. The Beloved's tender lips cure all ills, The Beloved's treasure-house is filled with rubies. My body may not always have you near, But my heart is always the gateway to your resting place. My heart would never permit a cheaper love to enter it, The treasure-house of my heart is sealed with your magic name. Since the world loves the Beloved, I must Love the world. If Heaven too is in Love, then how can Hafiz be a sinner? Hafiz, your poetry makes Heaven shine, your sweet words make well-earned your fame.


Come now, don't depend on the house of chance Come now, don't depend on the house of chance, Serve wine to all you see, your life will soon be done. I'm the slave of Him, under one sky, who is entirely free of all attachment. Last night I was in the tavern, Drunk and making merry, I heard the Djinn bring good news: "Ambitious falcon, don't think yourself grand for flying high, Your nest is a home to sorrow and grief. The minaret of heaven cries out: "This material trap is too small to be worthy of you"" Remember my son; don't fret over sorrows, over the passing concerns of what is and may come. "enough with your moping!" says the inner voice, "Find happiness in the moment, for there is nothing else." Don't chase after the future or cling to the present, Too many have taken this false hag for their bride. There's no percentage in wanting a rose to bloom forever, The heartless nightingale's call lasts only an eve. And do not envy Hafiz's poetry, it is only borrowed from the Creator of all things!


Allah be praised, the tavern door is still open Allah be praised, the tavern door is still open! And I can visit it whenever I need to. Inside we drink barrels-full of wine, Wine is the Truth, that kills all lies. The "beloved" you see is a being full of vanity and intrigue, But in me you'll find simplicity and sincerity. I can tell my Beloved the secrets that I would never dare to tell anyone else. Since I gazed in the beloved's face, I can find no greater bliss or happiness. The beloved is Mecca, and whoever turns to the Beloved and sees, will fall to their knees in awe. Hafiz is a brief candle, he will soon be gone, but even after he is out, his Love will still consume and give warmth.


The warm wind blows seeds through the air The warm wind blows seeds through the air, Wine brings joy. The lyre calls you to come and drink, beware the authorities my boy! Enjoy wine, lovely maidens, poetry, This is wise, because Time is a traitor. Hide your cup under your woolen cloak, Soon treasonous Time will murder you. Cry false tears and beg forgiveness for your drunkeness, when the hypocritical priests are around, make like you're fasting. There is no Joy in this spinning world that does not have the dregs of Loss at the bottom of its barrel. But the One Sky still remains, long after tyrants are dead, and only their bones lie in the mud. Hafiz your verses conquered Arak and Fars, Now its time to march on Bagdhdad and Tabriz.


The rose looks like dark wine The rose looks like dark wine, The nightingale sings its praises. Wander through the fields with the book of Love, This isn't the time for giving lectures! The drunken judge proclaimed last night: "Drinking is wickedness and embezzlement is wrong!" The wine is Written for you, but not for long. Enjoy the wine and the musicians while you can. Or worry about looking pious and of good reputation, hide from people and the world. Being a Priest is good business after all; Pretending to be pious earns priests more money than a goldsmith or a weaver. Hafiz, these words are secrets for wise men. They are gold to the mystic that knows true gold.


The book of poetry and the cup of wine The book of poetry and the cup of wine are your dearest friends. Watch the road, it twists and turns. Enjoy the wine, because you live only once. If you're wise, it will show. Speaking wise words without showing wise actions is a sign of falsehood. In the eye of wisdom, all the goals of this world are but dreams, though they might be pretty. Without you my heart aches. Only death separates me from the Friend. Take refuge in the Beloved and speak no words, our fate is Written in the stars. Drink the wine eternal, Hafiz, and do not hold back; Do not let yourself be sober for even a moment.


I have sworn to always love all beauty I have sworn to always love all beauty, This Loving suffering is my shelter. Only the eyes of the Aware can see the whole of the Beloved, The eyes of common men aren't up to it. Stay a while, my Friend for I need your Friendship, I long to see your face, my tears are numerous as stars. Your Love is central to my verse, If people read my poems, it is because of you. Grant me the wealth of Poverty, O Lord! This is the source of wisdom and glory. I can't be small enough to make friends with politicians. My Heart is a Palace for a King, even if it is full of worry. Hafiz, speak not of the Beloved, The Friend's sweet lips know your Love better than you.


I wish the priest good luck with his morning prayers I wish the priest good luck with his morning prayers, I'll be as always, resting in a corner of the tavern. If music and Wine can't fill me then its no use anyways, Only sighing will console me then, not prayers. I don't want either richness or poorness, Lord. The only thing of value are those who love the Beloved. I seek Allah, whether he be found in mosque or Tavern. By Allah, there is nothing else I seek. Until the sword of death cuts and breaks this vessel, I will not turn away from the Gate of life. I bowed toward that Gate this morning, and it raised me up to the Sun. Hafiz, you say that your imperfections were given to you. Then as a gift, it is only polite to show them.


My poor heart is the sanctuary of Allah's Love My poor heart is the sanctuary of Allah's Love. My eyes only reflect the beauty of the Beloved. I cannot hope to grasp the secrets of this world or the other, Only Allah can provide refuge, only Allah gives grace. The priests seek the gardens of paradise. I only want the Friend. People can only understand in accordance to their merits. O priest, so what if my robe is full of dirt? We both know the Friend's robe is clean. All the flowers in the valley only grow by Allah's Love. Now is our turn, the great lovers of the past are gone. Everyone only has has a few brief days, and these days run out. The kingdom of Love, and the treasures of Bliss, I have received only by the will of Allah. Don't be worried that your poverty is extreme, Hafiz. Allah's Love has transformed your heart into the greatest jewel.


Warm wind, if you blow through the lands of my Beloved Warm wind, if you blow through the lands of my Beloved, Bring me the Beloved's scents. I would give my life to the Beloved, for but one sound brought as message by the warm wind. If by misfortune I've missed the Beloved's presence, then bless me with the dust from somewhere the Beloved walked. What a sorry sight, a Sufi in distress. I can only see the Beloved, others think me mad. My firm heart trembles like a reed, wishing only the kiss of the Beloved. The Beloved has bought my heart for free, And I will not sell the Beloved for all the world's fortune. Hafiz, if your heart is ever truly freed from sorrow, it will miss such a faithful servant.


Enjoy good company, in the garden in spring Enjoy good company, in the garden in spring. Where is the serving girl, why is she waiting? Make the most of your time, wherever you are, no one knows what comes tomorrow. Your life hangs by a thread; enjoy yourself, be free of worries. The "water of life" and "garden of paradise" are only the wine at river's edge, with my Beloved. The hidden and the plain beauties are both from one source. So there is no question of which need be followed. If even heaven doesn't know the Secret, then why argue with the junior mullah? If you say Allah wouldn't forgive all of my sins, then what hope would the unbelievers have of Allah's mercy? The "religious" desire paradise, Hafiz only desires wine. But the only desire that counts is Allah's wish for us.


Hey Nightingale Hey Nightingale! Feel sorry and cry for me, there's nothing else to do. Pour the wine! I'm not proud of my wine-stained cloak; but the Priests aren't sober, they're drunk on pride. To the brutish-lovers, you give no pain; only us free-thinkers would want to be bound like that. Pure Love comes from a divine source; not from ruby-lips and pretty figures. Beauty isn't in the eyes, the hair, the skin, the face; There's many secrets there, but Baraka isn't one of them. The fine silk robes of the ignorant aren't worth a penny in the Kingdom of Truth. Its nearly impossible to reach you; its hard to climb that high in the sky. Hafiz: don't pester the Beloved with moaning, Limitless Bliss comes to those who do not bother.


The pridefully religious do not know me The pridefully religious do not know me, so why would I care what they say about me? If you are walking a straight road, you cannot get lost. Take whatever comes and accept it as Written. Sacrifice the pawn to escape checkmate, Never expose the King, even if you are losing the game. The great dome is simple, yet complex in form. No mystic knows the secrets behind the gate. What's the secret, O Lord, the Mighty, the Powerful? There are so many pains, and no cure. The Master is neither ignorant nor blind, but he keeps no records of our Love or our hates. Allah is not proud, he has no doorkeepers. Come as you are; He will welcome us all! I'm true to the Master, for his Love is pure. Whereas the priest's morality rises and falls. Hafiz has reserved no seats in the front row, Lovers of Freedom do not worry about what their lot will be.


Love isn't safe, its a dangerous road Love isn't safe, its a dangerous road, There's no choice, but to leave life to chance. Love must always be welcome in your heart. Goodness must be welcome at home and away. Wisdom leads me to the place of Wine, Though wisdom is unwelcome in this land. My martyrdom is the fault of the Beloved, I rode to my fate on a chariot of Love. The moon of my Love is not visible to the naked eye, Only eyes that can see will spot my natural Moon. Drink, and make the most of your moment, Few people know what this chance is worth. You do not listen to Hafiz's cries, Won't your hardened hearts be touched by my story?


The nightingale held a rose in its beak The nightingale held a rose in its beak, Sighs mingled with its beautiful song. "you have a rose", I said, "so why are you sighing?" It said: "Because Romance has teased me into this state" Its no surprise she does not sit with me, She has so many who seek her, what interest one more? Her teasing won't buy my attention, Blessed is he whose cup Love will fill. The painter makes works of wondrous beauty, With his masterful pen and compass. If you serve Love, then you must fear no shame. The wise priest sold his robes to pay for the tavern. The bubbling streams of the garden of paradise Are the tears of Hafiz at the house of the Beloved.


Now that the sweet-smelling breeze Now that the sweet-smelling breeze has come to the garden, I enjoy the cool wine and the beautiful maidens. Now any beggar could seize the Kingdom of riches, my garden is full of green valleys, my bliss is like a summer rain. My son, the green grass tells the story of spring Love. Don't miss the bliss of the present for promises of the future. Enjoy Love and fulfill your soul. The world will make bricks and break bricks out of the clay of our selves. Your societies are not faithful, The monastery candle is not bright enough to light the altar. Don't blame me for being shameless, who knows what is Written? Neither Hafiz's body nor his life can deny, For all his mischief, only heaven awaits him.


Pious priests Pious priests! Don't worry about lovers of freedom like me, No one wants you to account for the sins of others. Mind your own sins, why are you so concerned about the rest? What you sow, so shall you reap. The sober and the drunk both want to be Lovers. But in the Mosque you see the love of power. I will bow before the door of the tavern, its more pure. My enemies are free to hang me if they choose. Don't question the grace of Allah, you don't know who before Allah is good or evil. And I'm not alone among the sinners, my father was Adam, who gave up paradise. Hafiz: after the tavern, paradise will be your home, so long as when you die, you get a cup of wine.


The world's a prisoner of your grace and beauty The world's a prisoner of your grace and beauty, by being united, you gain the universe. Even a candle, if it gives away the secrets of the Friend, will be burnt by its own tongue and die out. The secret flame of Love in my heart is best compared to the shining sun. The rose, seeking to imitate its scent and colour, was punished by the warm wind and made to renounce. The flame caused me to admire the Saki's image, reflected by the light in the wine-cup. Drink, those who know what is coming are eased in their suffering by the weight of the cup. On the rose, with the blood of the ocean, is written: "only men who are already experienced, will be able to choose the purple wine". Hafiz, how can the jealous ones damn you, if Divine Grace wets your pen?


The advice of the Teacher will never leave my memory The advice of the Teacher will never leave my memory: "The pain of separation is beyond explaining". The prophet's talk of suffering in hell described nothing more than being apart from the Friend. Who can I ask about my wandering Friend? The warm wind speaks in grief, and so cannot be understood. Alas, my truant Friend is cruel, How easily the Friend turns attentions elsewhere! Even though my enemies mock me, I'm still happy, to be honest, my heart is used to pain. So remedy your old pains with ancient Wine, "Wine will bring you joy" said the Divine Teacher. This was the warm wind's advice to King Solomon, "Don't try to catch the wind, you're bound to fail!" This life of only a few days shouldn't trick you, The cunning old crone will always find you. Take it easy, it is a lucky man who strives to help his Friend. Who said, "Hafiz forgot the Beloved?" I can never look away from such sweet beauty!


If your religion needs the blood of Lovers If your religion needs the blood of Lovers, Then just say so, and I'll shed mine. Your hair is as dark as the night, Your face as bright as morning. No one can escape from the curls of the Beloved's hair, No one can escape from the dart of the Beloved's eye. I shed a river of tears because of your fickleness, Its a river no sailor would dare swim. When your life-giving lips met mine, They proved true in giving me life, and Baraka too. I had to ask many times before your lips would kiss mine, I had to give up everything to earn this bliss. All the Lovers pray for the joy of you, And to keep living for as long as there are days and nights. Sensibility and piety, Hafiz never had those, But no one should expect those from a mad Lover.


Plant the seed of friendship, and you gain the world Plant the seed of friendship, and you gain the world. Dig up the weeds of conflict, they only cause suffering. When you're at the tavern, behave properly; Don't be surprised when the wine gives you a hangover! Enjoy the company of night, you'll die anyways, And this world will keep spinning many days and nights after you are gone. Bring a riding horse for Leila, beauty of the moon, May Allah guide her way to find her beloved Manjoon. Seek with all your effort the water of life. Listening to sentimental nightingales will only lead you to the dirt. The Beloved's curls made a pure contract with my heart, The Beloved's sweet lips will secure my comfort. Hafiz! Sit still under the beautiful cypress tree, Never mind whether its Allah's will or your own!


If you make friends with the Friends of Allah If you make friends with the Friends of Allah, Then Allah will help you in everything you do. The Friend's story must be told only to the Friend, For the Friend's secret can only be kept by the Friend. O heart! Live pure, for if you slip The angels are waiting for your with outstretched hands. If you demand loyalty from the Beloved, Be loyal to the Beloved, for the Beloved will be loyal to you. I told her: "Let my heart go with you!" "I can't help you", she said, "Let Allah do so" My heart! Give your body and soul to the Friend, Who'll be loyal to you forever. Help Hafiz find the dust of the Beloved's path, To keep as a remembrance in my home.


The musicians of Love played a beautiful song The musicians of Love played a beautiful song, their notes came from heaven itself. The world is never free from the cries of the lovers, The song of Love is a melancholy dirge. Though he has no gold to give, merciful Allah forgives the wine-selling Mystic. Value my heart, it is a true Lover. My heart is exalted thinking of you. If a King sometimes gives gifts to his poor neighbour, it is only just. I showed my doctor my bloody tears, He said: "The disease of Love has a heartbreaking cure" You'd best give up on your dedication to just dreaming, In the Kingdom of Love, it is deeds that are rewarded. How well the Saki said, beautiful and pure, "be devoted to he who's face shows the Truth". O Queen! At your threshold Hafiz will pray, In response he looks only for a kind word.


Without the Friend, nothing in life matters to me Without the Friend, nothing in life matters to me. My life without Him is suffering and hardship. There's no sign of Allah! How could I define HIM? Either He gives no sign, or I don't know Him. You cannot turn away from your true home. O caravan guide, stop! The road is endless. The lyre rings out to happiness and joy, Listen to its song. "Learn from the clever Guardsman, He may be drunk, but no one thinks him gentle! "Even the treasures of Croesus are plundered by time; Don't bother hiding your gold!" says the harp. Do not give away secrets to the enemy, even the headless candle has a tongue! Hafiz is the greatest of true servants, and his Master is also the greatest.


The full moon doesn't glow as brightly as your face The full moon doesn't glow as brightly as your face, A rose compared to you is just a withered shrub. Your eyebrows are the refuge of my soul, A King couldn't have a better altar than you. Look! Vain Narcissus has taken notice of you, And bared himself shamefully. I will suffer, since the Beloved's heart is timid, And won't bear to listen to the cries of my complaints. If you cant find your way to the Beloved's gate, Bathe your sleeves in the blood of your liver. I'm not the only one taken hostage by the Beloved's curls, Many are held captive by the Beloved's dark hair. If Hafiz shows devotion, do not complain. One who has committed the sin of Love, is guilty of nothing.


The nightingale gets its rose The nightingale gets its rose, but only with much bleeding, as the angry wind made the thorns cut its flesh. A parrot was happy spending its life dreaming of sugar, Till the flood of death swept it away. I wish the Friend would understand my suffering. The Beloved came so easily, and made my life so hard! Help me, O camel-driver, for Allah's sake! It is my hope of help that led me to this caravan. Don't ignore my wet eyes and dirty face, That is where the heavens have made their abode. Alas! The jealous moon of the blue sky will cause all earthly beauty to die. Hafiz, you die and can't enjoy the Beloved's face; The foul game of Time deprives you of the Beloved's joy.


I fly like the warm wind to the home of the Friend I fly like the warm wind to the home of the Friend, My breath mingles with the sweet scent of the Beloved. There's no life without the Friend, no wine or song. I can't endure this waste of time any longer! I would trade all my fame of being wise and spiritual for the dust of the Beloved's path. The candle of my life is lit by the Love of Allah. I throw all of myself at Allah's gate. I will consume myself in remembering the Beloved's eyes. In this way I will fulfill my birthright. O warm wind, I offer up my bleeding roselike heart as ransom for the scent of the Friend. Hafiz, hatred and falsehood steal peace from the heart. I have chosen to play the part of a Lover of Freedom!


You cannot touch the Beloved's curls twice You cannot touch the Beloved's curls twice, Nor can you count on the warm wind, or on what it says. I'd do anything to reach you, but man can't change the plans of destiny. With a bleeding heart I near the Beloved's cloak, I wouldn't let it go, even if my enemies neared. The Beloved's face resembles the moon in the sky, Even then, its higher than the moon. On a clear day, one might see the vision of the Beloved's face If one looks in the mirror the way one should. The riddle of Love is beyond the wisdom of man, It cannot be solved in man's mortal kingdom. I'm jealous that the Beloved is loved by all, But I won't be able to defeat them all by being alone. What can I say when you are so tender and aware, that even my prayers will make you take notice! I will always direct my devotion toward your eyes, To devote myself to anything else would be a sin.


My Beloved has gone, without saying a word My Beloved has gone, without saying a word, The Beloved has forgotten the traveling friend. Either I have been unlucky in seeing the Beloved's loyalty, Or the Beloved has never been loyal at all. I thought my tears could soften the Beloved's heart, But the Beloved's heart is like stone. My heart is an impatient bird, that will never be able to forget the Beloved's love-snare. Any who have seen the Beloved would never blame me, My eyes thought hard about who they would pick. Hafiz gives up his soul, burning like a candle. Like the cold dawn wind, the Beloved gives no consolation.


Only when your eyes are blurred by the dust of the Tavern Only when your eyes are blurred by the dust of the Tavern will you be able to glimpse the mysteries of the Cup of Kings. Enjoy music and wine in this hellish world, it is the only way to overcome your suffering. If you are always true to the cause of Love, you will gain much. As long as you remain in the land of skin, you will find no path to the house of Truth. The Friend has no covering, no scarf over his face, shake off the dust of lies if you want his Grace. As long as you long for the cup and the Beloved's lips, you will long for nothing else in the world. Oh Heart! If you come to know the light of Truth, You will burn brightly, like a laughing candle! Hafiz, obey this prompt advice: Find your way to the road of Truth.


My heart will only accept the beauty of Love My heart will only accept the beauty of Love, I have no understanding of anything but Love. O Counselor: tell me of Love and its Bliss, There is nothing I would rather hear about. O blushing Saki: bring the blushing wine! Happiness can't be found anywhere else. I disguise my cup, people might think its a book. This isn't surprising, since hypocrisy's ink has no colour. I'm going to burn my ragged cloak, since the Teacher doesn't accept it in place of a cup. The Beloved's ruby lips reveal nothing but truth, So it doesn't appeal to the "men of truth". Don't ask me to forget your eyes and face, If I'm obedient in this I could not be wise. Your cunning, intelligent, enchanting eyes have hunted my heart with the savageness of wild birds. O Rich Man: remember the Sufi today, He goes nowhere and knows no path. Hafiz, your sweet poems are recited well, The King will shower you with riches and gold.


If the Saki keeps serving wine like this If the Saki keeps serving wine like this, All pious men will drink wine all day. If the Beloved's face is covered by the Beloved's hair, many birds of wisdom would fall into the Beloved's chin. Happy the drunk who falls at the Beloved's feet! He sacrifices his head, and his body, and everything. Boorish Zahid is loyal to wine only by circumstance, But mature wine will make your inexperience greater. Get wisdom in the daylight, not time to drink. Drinking during the day obscures the mind. The best time to enjoy the bright wine is in the dark of the night. Never drink wine with the Sheriff, He'll drink your wine and then steal your cup! If Hafiz's luck leads him to catch his Moon, He'd joyfully rise to the light of the Sun.


This world isn't worth even one sad moment This world isn't worth even one sad moment, I've sold my only cloak for wine. They wouldn't accept my cloak at the tavern for a cup, So why would I keep such an unholy cloak? My foe told me to stay away, with scorn. He meant to say: "your head isn't worthy of this door". If you gain a kingdom but lose your head for it, That isn't wise, its a fool's bargain. It seems easy to dive into the sea, and hope for profit, But the pearl isn't worth the pain of the storm. O Friend! Avoid Lovers, keep them at arm's length. A friend of Lovers is never compensated well. Hafiz, give up this mean world and its goals, It isn't worth it, to have to beg for your gold from cruel men.


In the beginning, Allah emanated rays of beauty In the beginning, Allah emanated rays of beauty; Love manifested, and all of existence lit up. And because Allah's Love wasn't appealing to the Angels, This brilliant force settled on human Adam instead. Wisdom sought light from Allah's torch, but was singed by the heat of Allah's compassion. A stranger desired Allah's secrets, But a hidden hand struck him angrily in the busom. All humans get their share pleasures; yet my sore heart remains alone and suffering. My mighty soul seeks the apple of the Beloved's chin, My soul is trapped by the Beloved's hair, admiring beauty. Hafiz, your Love-story could only be written once happiness had broken its pen.


Do not admire the Sufi's teachings Do not admire the Sufi's teachings, His false cloak deserves to be burned. The sufi looks sad with the morning dregs of wine, But just watch how happy he'll be at night! How good it would be if there were a magic stone, that would change colours at the touch of a hypocrite. If you touch the Saki's cup, your face might become red, purple, or rosy. Rich men cannot find the Friend. Only lovers of freedom can understand the suffering of love. Never mind the mean world, drink up! Wise men should never worry. Hafiz: if the Saki is willing to pour another cup, The Taverner will trade your prayer-rug and cloak for it.


Aloneness is good if it leads me to the Beloved Aloneness is good if it leads me to the Beloved, I burn like a candle for the Beloved's sake. I wouldn't take King Solomon's ring for even a penny, if it might be touched by the hands of a demon. O Lord! I hope to meet the Beloved daily, Yet I've thought ill of the Beloved when I'm suffering. If a parrot is valued more than a raptor, then the hawks are afraid to show their true might. There's no need to show your concern, Let your burning heart be your burning words. I can never take your teachings off my mind, A lonely traveller always longs for home. Hafiz, if you had ten tongues, you'd still be struck dumb in the presence of the Beloved.


When the garden's roses are blooming When the garden's roses are blooming, its a good time to take the cup in hand. Enjoy your time, value your days of happiness, not every oyster bears a pearl. In the rose garden enjoy your time with a drink, I doubt you'd find clearer wine, even in paradise. If you're in my school, put away all your books, None of them will teach you the science of Love. Love a true beauty who needs no make-up, Who's beautiful already without any jewelry. Only those who are blind to Your beauty will have objections to Hafiz' poetry.


Once more the warm wind spreads perfume with its breeze Once more the warm wind spreads perfume with its breeze, the entire world is reborn. The flowers serve their sweet perfumes like in cups, They look for each other in wonderment. The cries of the birds are their longing search, silenced when they reach the flowers. I rushed off from the Mosque to the Tavern, I had no time to waste on the priest's sermons. If you put off today's pleasures for tomorrow, You'll find that if you have not lived, you cannot borrow life later. The flowers are precious, enjoy them, my treasure. For the flowers will soon be gone from the garden. Let the musicians play, have a good time, forget the future, or what's already past. Hafiz, from your birth the Beloved was written for you, Bid farewell to the Beloved, for the Beloved will pass soon.


The day of separation and the night of solitude The day of separation and the night of solitude are at an end, This is your fortune: your fortune depends on you. Autumn showed pride and vanity, All this comes to an end with the spring. The fortunate star of the crown of flowers brought an end to autumn winds and hurtful thorns. A twilight of hope flickered behind the curtain of the Mystery, The dark nights are gone, and victory is assured. The worries of winter nights and the grief of my heart Came to an end when I glimpsed the Beloved. Time breaches all contracts; so I can't believe that the Friend's good fortune could be enough to end my own sorrow. Saki! We all depend on your cup of wonder, Your grace will end all our worries and hangovers. Though no one cared for Hafiz, Both good fortune and bad comes and goes, thank Allah!


A star was born, and it became our School's Moon A star was born, and it became our School's Moon, It comforted our sorry hearts. The Friend did not go to school, and could not write, But with just the blink of an eye taught many Teachers. The happy home of Love will be prospering again, Its cornerstone is the curve of the Beloved's eye. Your gaze made a wine that left lovers drunk, its softness is beyond any wisdom's understanding. The words of Hafiz are as sweet as gold, It is a cure for those too aged or too young. Keep away from the tavern road, Hafiz lost everything in that house.


My soul is consumed, but for nothing My soul is consumed, but for nothing. I've burned for no reason, all my hopes were in vain. The Beloved said, with tears, "I will see you tonight". But the Beloved has never brightened my sad days. The Beloved ordered me to be a true lover of freedom. I became Free, but did not see the Beloved yet. While drunk I thought of the Beloved's lips. I drink blood from the cup, but I miss the Beloved. In the house of Love you need a smart guide, Without a guide, we are doomed to fail. Alas! Seeking the pleasure of the Beloved's company, I've tried everything, but did not win this prize. Hafiz, you've thought up so many plans, But the wild heart of the Beloved pays them no mind!


The pious priests visited the tavern last night The pious priests visited the tavern last night, they broke their own rules and drank much wine. Last night the mystic went mad and broke the cup, but a new one made him whole again. The Beloved always sees everything young, and takes pity on the old man, giving love. The birds will drink from the light of the rose, The laugh-flickering candle will burn the butterfly. My crying-nightmare of the morning was not in vain, one of my tears turned into the rarest of pearls. Saki's bright eyes made magic, my tragic spell-prayers are legendary. Hafiz's home is as big as a palace, the ship of his heart launched from the Beloved's port.


Good news! The warm wind has come again Good news! The warm wind has come again, the birds sing good news and will stay awhile. Morning bird, sing your beautiful song, The king of flowers is blooming. Where is the master who knows the language of flowers? He should ask them why they came, then left again? I am glad Allah's grace is always present, my beautiful moon is true once more. The flower with a scent of the dawn wine grew in my garden to ease its sore heart. My eyes fixed on the highway, looking for the caravan, to be able to hear my heart sing that the Beloved is arriving. Though Hafiz broke his loyalty because he was dismayed, The Beloved is forgiving and will soon be here.


The warm wind came to greet the drunken Teacher The warm wind came to greet the drunken Teacher, So let's all join to meet in happy drinking! The breath of Christ spreads a sweet scent on the hill, Trees are green, the birds sing sweetly. The flower was ravaged by the spring wind, The bud drips, the flower curls. Give up division and seek union, when the Demon disappears the Angel manifests. A mysterious voice came to me at dawn, it said: "take my advice, be happy!" What do the flowers say to the early birds? Their many voices thunder a pondering silence. There's no place here for those who aren't initiates of Love; Hide the cup if a priest comes along! Hafiz: move your home from the Mosque to the Tavern, and perhaps you'll awaken from your lazy illusions.


At dawn the watchman of luck came to my bed At dawn the watchman of luck came to my bed, saying "wake up! The greatest beauty is here!" Go for a stroll, have a nice drink, One cannot imagine the glory that is here. Good news! My dear sweet Friend, Savage untamed, spend some time with me. My troubled face was watered with tears, I think crying is good for lovers. My heart is still deep in beauty's love, But the dove must beware; the falcon of death soon swoops. Saki, serve the wine and forget friends or enemies, enjoy wine; friends and enemies come and go. When that infidel, time, saw the clouds of spring, he cried over the blooming flowers. The warm wind hears Hafiz's voice in the sound of birds; And spreads sweet incense on the flowers with the breeze.


Don't hope to catch beauty in your heart Don't hope to catch beauty in your heart, You cannot trap the world in a crystal ball. Those who strut through town with fancy hats, will lack a bare head to receive the crown of the kingdom. Just as a poor man expects no praise from his prayers, The Friend knows well what his students are hiding. I love the Lovers of Freedom, who risk their lives, Though they be poor, they have the secret of the alchemical formula. Its good, but hard, to be loyal. Its far too easy to be unreliable. I lost my heart, still I failed to see, how beauty holds the secret of the spirits. Not everyone with long hair is a Sufi, Mystics are secret, they hide where they're not expected. Only those who truly love the word, are truly aware of Hafiz' poetry.


The Pure in Heart will find their way to truth The Pure in Heart will find their way to truth, While the ignorant of truth will hide in denial. Don't complain that I can't hide my secret, Its better to be exposed than to live in false pride. The Guards fake at being pious, but revel in debauchery, While my debaucheries are told in every street corner. My heart has been true to Love throughout eternity. All else pases under the blue sky. The flower tries to imitate the colour of your eyes, but fails and thus remains a wonder. I value nothing more than the song of Love, The heavens cannot bring an end to such sweet experience. I wore a cloak that hid all my faults, But Alas! Now I've pawned it for music and wine. Hafiz saw the Beloved's curly hair for only one day, And now will stay bound for eternity.


Good news! The days of sorrow and pain are over Good news! The days of sorrow and pain are over, They were never so, and will never be so again. Before the Friend, I was worthless as dust, Now my attackers will also be struck down! Misfortune does not trouble me, In the Book of Life there will be no record of it. At the great King's party this song was sung: "Enjoy your wine, for soon the King will be dead!" O candle, enjoy the love of the butterfly, You will both be gone by the morning. Wealthy man, make rich your heart instead! Your treasures of gold will slip away from you anyways. Hafiz: don't be troubled for the love of the Friend. There will come a time when even the Friend will be gone.


Yesterday at dawn I found relief from suffering Yesterday at dawn I found relief from suffering, For an instant, I had received the water of life. In ecstasy I could see Allah's creation, The cup of change was given to me. What a blessed, glorious night! What an awesome vision, a unique moment! In the mirror of Allah's beauty shone my face, Many divine secrets were made clear to me. No wonder I feel light in spirit, I needed blessings and they were granted in time. "good news! Great luck!" said a mysterious voice, That's why I can suffer all the tricks of the Beloved. All the honey that drips from my tongue is the Beloved's reward for my long work. Hafiz's ambition and pious morning prayers relieved me from sorrow, anger and scorn.


The angels knocked at the door of the tavern last night The angels knocked at the door of the tavern last night, They took the clay called man, and fashioned a cup. The dwellers of Allah's paradise drank wine with me- a wandering beggar! Heaven couldn't stand this event, that such honors could be given to a madman. Religious talk is just pretentiousness, Those who haven't seen Truth speak much nonsense. Praise Allah! There is peace between He and I. So the dervishes can take their cup happily. The wind that causes the candle to flicker is not the flame. The burning fire is my real goal. No one can express ideas like Hafiz, No such words are written by the hand of man.

Gates of Wisdom: The Poems of Hafiz

A New Interpretation

by Swami Anand Nisarg

Copyright (c) 2007 by Swami Anand Nisarg. All rights reserved. This copyright protects Swami Anand Nisarg's right to publication of this work. Nonprofit, activist, and educational groups may circulate this work (forward it, reprint it,

translate it, post it, or reproduce it) for nonprofit uses. Please do not change any part of it without permission.

Table of Contents

The Life of Hafiz.................................................................................................................................................... 2

How to Read Hafiz ................................................................................................................................................. 3

Pass around the cup fair maiden.............................................................................................................................. 4

If the Shirazi Turk would only grant my heart's desire............................................................................................. 5

Zephyr, reach my charming gazelle and say ............................................................................................................ 6

My heart is going wild............................................................................................................................................ 7

Come, fair maiden.................................................................................................................................................. 8

Good news, lovely nightingale................................................................................................................................ 9

Brother believers .................................................................................................................................................. 10

Fair maiden, make bright our cups with wine ........................................................................................................ 11

The beauty of your face, my Beloved.................................................................................................................... 12

The Friend's Love sets my heart afire....................................................................................................................13

Morning Wind, take me to the Friend.................................................................................................................... 14

Do not look at the Lovers and say......................................................................................................................... 15

Beloved, I think of you always.............................................................................................................................. 16

Uncombed hair, smiling lips and drunkenness....................................................................................................... 17

I swear by all Hafiz's Truth................................................................................................................................... 18

When I long for you, I don't want wine ................................................................................................................. 19

The dark of my eye is your resting place ............................................................................................................... 20

Come now, don't depend on the house of chance................................................................................................... 21

Allah be praised, the tavern door is still open ........................................................................................................ 22

The warm wind blows seeds through the air .......................................................................................................... 23

The rose looks like dark wine ............................................................................................................................... 24

The book of poetry and the cup of wine ................................................................................................................ 25

I have sworn to always love all beauty .................................................................................................................. 26

I wish the priest good luck with his morning prayers ............................................................................................. 27

My poor heart is the sanctuary of Allah's Love...................................................................................................... 28

Warm wind, if you blow through the lands of my Beloved .................................................................................... 29

Enjoy good company, in the garden in spring........................................................................................................ 30

Hey Nightingale ................................................................................................................................................... 31

The pridefully religious do not know me............................................................................................................... 32

Love isn't safe, its a dangerous road...................................................................................................................... 33

The nightingale held a rose in its beak................................................................................................................... 34

Now that the sweet-smelling breeze...................................................................................................................... 35

Pious priests ......................................................................................................................................................... 36


The world's a prisoner of your grace and beauty.................................................................................................... 37

The advice of the Teacher will never leave my memory ........................................................................................ 38

If your religion needs the blood of Lovers............................................................................................................. 39

Plant the seed of friendship, and you gain the world.............................................................................................. 40

If you make friends with the Friends of Allah ....................................................................................................... 41

The musicians of Love played a beautiful song ..................................................................................................... 42

Without the Friend, nothing in life matters to me................................................................................................... 43

The full moon doesn't glow as brightly as your face.............................................................................................. 44

The nightingale gets its rose.................................................................................................................................. 45

I fly like the warm wind to the home of the Friend ................................................................................................ 46

You cannot touch the Beloved's curls twice........................................................................................................... 47

My Beloved has gone, without saying a word ....................................................................................................... 48

Only when your eyes are blurred by the dust of the Tavern.................................................................................... 49

My heart will only accept the beauty of Love........................................................................................................ 50

If the Saki keeps serving wine like this .................................................................................................................51

This world isn't worth even one sad moment......................................................................................................... 52

In the beginning, Allah emanated rays of beauty ................................................................................................... 53

Do not admire the Sufi's teachings ........................................................................................................................ 54

Aloneness is good if it leads me to the Beloved..................................................................................................... 55

When the garden's roses are blooming .................................................................................................................. 56

Once more the warm wind spreads perfume with its breeze................................................................................... 57

The day of separation and the night of solitude...................................................................................................... 58

A star was born, and it became our School's Moon................................................................................................ 59

My soul is consumed, but for nothing ................................................................................................................... 60

The pious priests visited the tavern last night ........................................................................................................ 61

Good news! The warm wind has come again......................................................................................................... 62

The warm wind came to greet the drunken Teacher............................................................................................... 63

At dawn the watchman of luck came to my bed..................................................................................................... 64

Don't hope to catch beauty in your heart................................................................................................................ 65

The Pure in Heart will find their way to truth ........................................................................................................ 66

Good news! The days of sorrow and pain are over ................................................................................................ 67

Yesterday at dawn I found relief from suffering .................................................................................................... 68

The angels knocked at the door of the tavern last night.......................................................................................... 69


The Life of Hafiz Hafiz was born some time around 1320, in Shiraz. At an early age, he demonstrated prodigious ability with poetry, both writing and with memorizing. It is said he had memorized the entire Koran, as well as the works of Sufi masters Farid and Rumi by the time he was in his teens. At the age of 21, Hafiz was initiated into the Sufi school of Attar. After this, the quality of his poetry had become such that he went from being a poor baker to serving as the court poet of the Shah. However, his controversial writings and teachings led him to fall out of favour, earning the wrath of both the Shah and the orthodox Muslim clergy, and in his late fourties Hafiz was forced to flee for his life to Isfahan. Eventually, however, the public demand for his return was such that the Shah pardoned him and he was allowed to return to the city of his birth. At the age of 60, determined to become Awakened, Hafiz drew a circle in the ground and remained within that circle for fourty days. At the end of this time, and on the fortieth anniversary of his initiation, Hafiz attained Awakening. For the next nine years until his death, Hafiz wrote more than half of his total body of poetic work (these are the poems which are considered to be the true core of his teaching), and taught students of his own as a Sufi Master. When Hafiz died, his enemies in the Muslim clergy refused to grant him a Muslim burial. But again, the public outcry from the people of Shiraz was so great that the Muslim clergy agreed to undertake a test to see if Allah deemed Hafiz worthy. Hafiz's poems were divided into two-line couplets, and all of these couplets were put together in a bunch. A young boy was chosen who would draw a single couplet at random, and the Priests and Hafiz's followers agreed that if the couplet bore a clear message that demonstrated divine favour, Hafiz would be given a Muslim burial. If not, he would be buried as a heretic. The couplet that was drawn said:

"Neither Hafiz's body nor his life can deny, For all his mischief, only heaven awaits him"

Hafiz was buried in a shrine in Shiraz, where he is still venerated as a Sufi master to this day.


How to Read Hafiz These poems of Hafiz are my reworking of the poems' literal translation. In translating literally, much would be lost, as is the case with so much holy writing. So I go back to Hafiz and write, in English, what his writing was meant to impart in Persian. To those unaccustomed to Sufi teaching, the poems might appear to be a "confusing" mixture. This is because they are utilizing the Sufi method of instruction, which is one that works specifically by breaking up usual patterns of thought in order to provoke contemplation, and affect both the conscious and subconscious awareness. These teachings have complex layers of thought where one symbol might connect to another in one way in the literal dimension, and connect in completely different ways at deeper levels. In other words, Hafiz's words aren't like a painting, they're like a sculpture, they have multiple dimensions and depth. The right way to study Hafiz or other Sufi writings is to first read the poem in its literal form, without trying to analyze it for metaphor. Then read it again, looking at each stanza separately, trying to see the message of each stanza. Then read the poem as a whole a third time, trying to tie together the various parts to get a holistic perspective. In the latter two readings, a good mental framework to have while reading, for the sake of analysis, is to imagine you would later have to teach or explain these meanings and insights to


Pass around the cup fair maiden Pass around the cup fair maiden, Because Love seemed easy at first, But now I see how difficult it is. The hearts of Lovers bleed, and will be doomed to break, when the scent of the Beloved blows away in the wind. How can the traveller stay safe when the clarion calls its sound of parting? The Master tells us: "soak your prayer rug red with wine, my friend". Those who are still on the shore feel they have peace of mind, they don't know our storms and dark nights. But at last, I find the Secret, hidden in street corners, revealed before me. Hafiz, enjoy her Love And instruct her, "suffer the darkness for the sake of the light".


If the Shirazi Turk would only grant my heart's desire If the Shirazi Turk would only grant my heart's desire, I'd give up Samarkand and Bukhara for the poorest part of her. Fair maiden, serve all of the old Wine now, if you wait for paradise you won't find drinking partners such as these! The heavenly musicians play well, Like plundering Turks, they have plundered all my patience. For my poor love has been rejected by my Beloved, Before my Beloved's beauty, my talk of "love" is like an insult. My Beloved is as beautiful as Joseph, My Beloved's Love strong enough to enchant Zulaikha. I long for you, even as your words of rejection still sound in the air; Anything sounds sweet, if your lips say it. Enjoy Wine and Music in every moment, O fortunate young people, heed the advice of Hafiz!


Zephyr, reach my charming gazelle and say Zephyr, reach my charming gazelle and say: because of you I've wandered through hill and desert, look kindly on my excitement and awe, favour me with your sweet divine lips! You're so proud of your roselike charm, that you will never think to ask of your nightingale. Wise birds cannot be caught by tricks or cunning, only by gentle good-tempered Love. Anyone who harps on their beauty and charm Hides a lack of loyalty, friendship, true devotion. When you enjoy drinks with your caring friends, Remember my love, consider my true feeling. There's no loyalty found in mere appearances. But Hafiz, your sweet sincere songs can move the Angels themselves.


My heart is going wild My heart is going wild! Help me, o masters! My secret love becomes revealed for all time! We are broken boats, you will not help us wind, move on, perhaps you'll be more useful to a friend. The love of this world lasts only a few days. It is all fantasy and sentiment. Be good to your friends, while you still have the chance. "how badly I want the morning's drink", said the nightingale last evening, while surrounded by sweet flowers. Be grateful for the blessings you have, fortunate man! Help the poor mystic as much as you're able. There is happiness in heaven and earth, if only two creeds are followed: "Be just to your friend, make peace with your foe". And if you have never reached the houses of fame and fortune, Admit that you cannot change what is written. When you feel miserable and self-pitying, Drink wine, and take pleasure, in this way the pauper can find the richest secret. The cup of wine is like the mirror of Alexander, through it he took the kingdom of Darius. Forgive me o well-dressed Priest, It is the will of Allah, if my cloth is smeared with wine.


Come, fair maiden Come, fair maiden! And bring us pure Wine to help us forget the sufferings of time. Help us throw off the cloak of falseness and its ways, I don't care to be respected, though it does no harm to those who are truly wise. The flame of my burning heart has burnt away all poorer hearts with its bright rays of good. My love-crazy heart cries out, saying: "Who can I tell the divine secret to?" I enjoy the divine company of my Beloved, Even though my Beloved has taken away all my peace of mind. The cypress, the flowers, and all work of art, They mean nothing to me, now that my Beloved has given me this gift. O Hafiz, suffer the challenge, and be wise. You are destined to find your home.


Good news, lovely nightingale Good news, lovely nightingale! The garden is filled with life again! Warm wind, when you fly along the pastures, send word to the delicate flowers: "I will stay forever at the door of the tavern, because the serving-girl is too beautiful to miss, Beloved! I have lost myself in lovesickness for you, In your heart I sail as safely as in Noah's Ark" Those who condemn the drinkers will lose all their piousness and beliefs in the tavern. Why do people struggle to make goals out of greed, when they know that someday we all end in the grave? Hafiz, drink, and be a friend to bandits if you like, but never dare to go near the criminal Priests!


Brother believers Brother believers, whatever shall we do? The priest left the mosque for the tavern yesterday! How can the believers turn to Mecca to pray? When our Mullah turns to the tavern instead?! The joy of the Beloved is insane, we are madmen trapped in the curls of her hair. It was written that we would find this life All is written, and our lives prove this. The face of the beloved is grace, When I see it, I can see nothing but beauty around me. Does the fire of my sighs And the flame of the beloved's shadow in me Affect your stony hearts? I had wondered if it might! Hafiz, your sighs are darts that pierce time and space! How can anything stand against such power?


Fair maiden, make bright our cups with wine Fair maiden, make bright our cups with wine, call for the singers, the world is on our side! O you who are ignorant of the bliss of wine: know I drink wine because in the cup I see the Friend's reflection. In the Book of Life, my name is eternal. No one dies who's heart is on fire with Love. warm wind, if you ever fly past the Friend say: "Why should I try to forget my name? There will come a time when you, too, will forget it!" It is good to find peace in the eyes of the Friend, for that reason I drink wine. The "clean foods" of the Priest, and my "Unclean drinks" will make no difference in the final judgement; I think they'll earn the same. But Hafiz; wipe your tears, for you will catch happiness right now!


The beauty of your face, my Beloved The beauty of your face, my Beloved, strikes my heart like a piercing arrow. Before creation existed, there was Love. Love is the greatest work of the Divine. Narcissus found love only by happenstance, and Helen's eyes caused wars by a mere gaze. But when I wandered last night through the garden, The budding flowers reminded me of your lips. The wind-blown violets, fresh and joyous brought my memory back to the beauty of your curls. Now I wash my cloak in clear wine, no man can escape what is Written. Hafiz: endure love, and you'll succeed, if you admit that this is what is Written. The whole world now turns to the desire of my heart, because I have become sincere in my devotion to the Beloved.


The Friend's Love sets my heart afire The Friend's Love sets my heart afire, and this fire burns my entire being. My body wasted away from the separation from the Friend, My soul wastes away! What is the purpose of Love? Even the candles feel sorry for my suffering, I burn more than they do. All my beliefs are tested by the wine of the tavern, All of my notions are washed away by it! When I tried to put aside the cup, it was cause for regret, My heart aches without wine! Come close, Friend, and speak Truth, I seek out your gaze, painful as it is for me. Hafiz: be Still, and drink deep from the wine, the candle has burnt through the night, and you did not fall asleep.


Morning Wind, take me to the Friend Morning Wind, take me to the Friend Where is that killer of lusts to be found? Though it is a dark night, we are on the path to refuge, Divine light, take me to the meeting-place! All who have entered this world will leave it. If so, why take things so seriously in the tavern? Look to my Beloved's curls and gaze, if you want to know where my heart is kept. The musicians, the serving maid, and the wine are all ready for me. But none of these are any good without the Beloved. Where is the Beloved to be found? Hafiz! Do not lament the autumn winds. Be reasonable! There are no roses without thorns.


Do not look at the Lovers and say Do not look at the Lovers and say "those are mistaken", You are not qualified to judge them, child. What is there, when I'm with myself? The more still I become, the louder it sounds. All the joy of life doesn't matter at all to me, Except when my Beloved's beauty shines in it, like the Sun. The monks and nuns are soaked in the blood of hearts they've murdered, I pray that one day they cleanse themselves with wine. I'm respected at the fire-altars of heathens, because the fire that burns forever is within me. I can remember, though long past, with what mastery the musician played his instrument This has stayed in my heart. Last night, your love-note came to me, and now my heart brims with Bliss.


Beloved, I think of you always Beloved, I think of you always! Your sweet-smelling curls wake up my lonesome soul. My love, I see your beauty even in your imperfections, The only sin is to claim not to care about loving you. The pucker of your lips transmits a secret truth: Thousands of Lovers have fallen deep in this abyss. Misfortune and and smallness have kept me from you, I could not reach your embrace soon enough. Tell the gatekeeper of the heart to let in the honest Lover. Hafiz does not bother often, nor will he leave your side. Just answer him but once a year, that's all he asks. My heart cherishes your Love and wise ways, However often I have missed you.


Uncombed hair, smiling lips and drunkenness Uncombed hair, smiling lips and drunkenness Clothing bared, singing lips and glass in hand; With mischievous eyes my Beloved gives the teaching, sitting beside me at midnight. With sadness of voice my Beloved says to me: "You seek sleep, my Lover? Shame on you! To drink at midnight takes great discipline, or in Love's eyes you will be a sinner!" O arrogant Priests! Drinkers are not the evil ones, their place was Written since the beginning of time! Whatever Allah has poured into our cup is ours, Do not claim "this is from heaven, but that is from hell!" My Beloved's beauty and the wineglass Have taken away all of Hafiz's false guilt in an instant.


I swear by all Hafiz's Truth I swear by all Hafiz's Truth, that my morning prayers are devoted to you. My tears fall like Noah's storm, but they do not wash away your Love. Purchase my wounded heart! I will sell it at a bargain; and you will see it is the purest of any you could find. My heart: don't demand that the Beloved's penetrating Grace come cheap, For there to be Love, selfishness cannot exist. Just be True, because Truth makes your words shine. Insincerity will darken the most beautiful of faces. I've wandered seeking through deserts and barren places, but pity not my haunted heart. Hafiz, pretty lies are not your friend! A garden with no life gives the gardener no work.


When I long for you, I don't want wine When I long for you, I don't want wine, may the barrels rot and the tavern age. Even if its the wine of heaven, throw it away! Wine has no purpose if the Beloved is not there. Alas! The Friend is gone and cannot speak with me of the Beloved, now nothing interests my tear-filled eyes. Beware my eyes, I am a danger to others, with the same flood of tears and sentiment that drown me. The Friend spends his time freely with others, But with a stranger like me he keeps hidden. The fields are green, So let us not grieve, Drink wine, Time and Space are only illusions. Hafiz is a libertine, but a faithful lover. Love is not limited by outside circumstances.


The dark of my eye is your resting place The dark of my eye is your resting place: Enter, and reside there, it belongs to you. Nightingale! Enjoy the rosiness of the Beloved's cheeks, Your song is celebrated by all. The Beloved's tender lips cure all ills, The Beloved's treasure-house is filled with rubies. My body may not always have you near, But my heart is always the gateway to your resting place. My heart would never permit a cheaper love to enter it, The treasure-house of my heart is sealed with your magic name. Since the world loves the Beloved, I must Love the world. If Heaven too is in Love, then how can Hafiz be a sinner? Hafiz, your poetry makes Heaven shine, your sweet words make well-earned your fame.


Come now, don't depend on the house of chance Come now, don't depend on the house of chance, Serve wine to all you see, your life will soon be done. I'm the slave of Him, under one sky, who is entirely free of all attachment. Last night I was in the tavern, Drunk and making merry, I heard the Djinn bring good news: "Ambitious falcon, don't think yourself grand for flying high, Your nest is a home to sorrow and grief. The minaret of heaven cries out: "This material trap is too small to be worthy of you"" Remember my son; don't fret over sorrows, over the passing concerns of what is and may come. "enough with your moping!" says the inner voice, "Find happiness in the moment, for there is nothing else." Don't chase after the future or cling to the present, Too many have taken this false hag for their bride. There's no percentage in wanting a rose to bloom forever, The heartless nightingale's call lasts only an eve. And do not envy Hafiz's poetry, it is only borrowed from the Creator of all things!


Allah be praised, the tavern door is still open Allah be praised, the tavern door is still open! And I can visit it whenever I need to. Inside we drink barrels-full of wine, Wine is the Truth, that kills all lies. The "beloved" you see is a being full of vanity and intrigue, But in me you'll find simplicity and sincerity. I can tell my Beloved the secrets that I would never dare to tell anyone else. Since I gazed in the beloved's face, I can find no greater bliss or happiness. The beloved is Mecca, and whoever turns to the Beloved and sees, will fall to their knees in awe. Hafiz is a brief candle, he will soon be gone, but even after he is out, his Love will still consume and give warmth.


The warm wind blows seeds through the air The warm wind blows seeds through the air, Wine brings joy. The lyre calls you to come and drink, beware the authorities my boy! Enjoy wine, lovely maidens, poetry, This is wise, because Time is a traitor. Hide your cup under your woolen cloak, Soon treasonous Time will murder you. Cry false tears and beg forgiveness for your drunkeness, when the hypocritical priests are around, make like you're fasting. There is no Joy in this spinning world that does not have the dregs of Loss at the bottom of its barrel. But the One Sky still remains, long after tyrants are dead, and only their bones lie in the mud. Hafiz your verses conquered Arak and Fars, Now its time to march on Bagdhdad and Tabriz.


The rose looks like dark wine The rose looks like dark wine, The nightingale sings its praises. Wander through the fields with the book of Love, This isn't the time for giving lectures! The drunken judge proclaimed last night: "Drinking is wickedness and embezzlement is wrong!" The wine is Written for you, but not for long. Enjoy the wine and the musicians while you can. Or worry about looking pious and of good reputation, hide from people and the world. Being a Priest is good business after all; Pretending to be pious earns priests more money than a goldsmith or a weaver. Hafiz, these words are secrets for wise men. They are gold to the mystic that knows true gold.


The book of poetry and the cup of wine The book of poetry and the cup of wine are your dearest friends. Watch the road, it twists and turns. Enjoy the wine, because you live only once. If you're wise, it will show. Speaking wise words without showing wise actions is a sign of falsehood. In the eye of wisdom, all the goals of this world are but dreams, though they might be pretty. Without you my heart aches. Only death separates me from the Friend. Take refuge in the Beloved and speak no words, our fate is Written in the stars. Drink the wine eternal, Hafiz, and do not hold back; Do not let yourself be sober for even a moment.


I have sworn to always love all beauty I have sworn to always love all beauty, This Loving suffering is my shelter. Only the eyes of the Aware can see the whole of the Beloved, The eyes of common men aren't up to it. Stay a while, my Friend for I need your Friendship, I long to see your face, my tears are numerous as stars. Your Love is central to my verse, If people read my poems, it is because of you. Grant me the wealth of Poverty, O Lord! This is the source of wisdom and glory. I can't be small enough to make friends with politicians. My Heart is a Palace for a King, even if it is full of worry. Hafiz, speak not of the Beloved, The Friend's sweet lips know your Love better than you.


I wish the priest good luck with his morning prayers I wish the priest good luck with his morning prayers, I'll be as always, resting in a corner of the tavern. If music and Wine can't fill me then its no use anyways, Only sighing will console me then, not prayers. I don't want either richness or poorness, Lord. The only thing of value are those who love the Beloved. I seek Allah, whether he be found in mosque or Tavern. By Allah, there is nothing else I seek. Until the sword of death cuts and breaks this vessel, I will not turn away from the Gate of life. I bowed toward that Gate this morning, and it raised me up to the Sun. Hafiz, you say that your imperfections were given to you. Then as a gift, it is only polite to show them.


My poor heart is the sanctuary of Allah's Love My poor heart is the sanctuary of Allah's Love. My eyes only reflect the beauty of the Beloved. I cannot hope to grasp the secrets of this world or the other, Only Allah can provide refuge, only Allah gives grace. The priests seek the gardens of paradise. I only want the Friend. People can only understand in accordance to their merits. O priest, so what if my robe is full of dirt? We both know the Friend's robe is clean. All the flowers in the valley only grow by Allah's Love. Now is our turn, the great lovers of the past are gone. Everyone only has has a few brief days, and these days run out. The kingdom of Love, and the treasures of Bliss, I have received only by the will of Allah. Don't be worried that your poverty is extreme, Hafiz. Allah's Love has transformed your heart into the greatest jewel.


Warm wind, if you blow through the lands of my Beloved Warm wind, if you blow through the lands of my Beloved, Bring me the Beloved's scents. I would give my life to the Beloved, for but one sound brought as message by the warm wind. If by misfortune I've missed the Beloved's presence, then bless me with the dust from somewhere the Beloved walked. What a sorry sight, a Sufi in distress. I can only see the Beloved, others think me mad. My firm heart trembles like a reed, wishing only the kiss of the Beloved. The Beloved has bought my heart for free, And I will not sell the Beloved for all the world's fortune. Hafiz, if your heart is ever truly freed from sorrow, it will miss such a faithful servant.


Enjoy good company, in the garden in spring Enjoy good company, in the garden in spring. Where is the serving girl, why is she waiting? Make the most of your time, wherever you are, no one knows what comes tomorrow. Your life hangs by a thread; enjoy yourself, be free of worries. The "water of life" and "garden of paradise" are only the wine at river's edge, with my Beloved. The hidden and the plain beauties are both from one source. So there is no question of which need be followed. If even heaven doesn't know the Secret, then why argue with the junior mullah? If you say Allah wouldn't forgive all of my sins, then what hope would the unbelievers have of Allah's mercy? The "religious" desire paradise, Hafiz only desires wine. But the only desire that counts is Allah's wish for us.


Hey Nightingale Hey Nightingale! Feel sorry and cry for me, there's nothing else to do. Pour the wine! I'm not proud of my wine-stained cloak; but the Priests aren't sober, they're drunk on pride. To the brutish-lovers, you give no pain; only us free-thinkers would want to be bound like that. Pure Love comes from a divine source; not from ruby-lips and pretty figures. Beauty isn't in the eyes, the hair, the skin, the face; There's many secrets there, but Baraka isn't one of them. The fine silk robes of the ignorant aren't worth a penny in the Kingdom of Truth. Its nearly impossible to reach you; its hard to climb that high in the sky. Hafiz: don't pester the Beloved with moaning, Limitless Bliss comes to those who do not bother.


The pridefully religious do not know me The pridefully religious do not know me, so why would I care what they say about me? If you are walking a straight road, you cannot get lost. Take whatever comes and accept it as Written. Sacrifice the pawn to escape checkmate, Never expose the King, even if you are losing the game. The great dome is simple, yet complex in form. No mystic knows the secrets behind the gate. What's the secret, O Lord, the Mighty, the Powerful? There are so many pains, and no cure. The Master is neither ignorant nor blind, but he keeps no records of our Love or our hates. Allah is not proud, he has no doorkeepers. Come as you are; He will welcome us all! I'm true to the Master, for his Love is pure. Whereas the priest's morality rises and falls. Hafiz has reserved no seats in the front row, Lovers of Freedom do not worry about what their lot will be.


Love isn't safe, its a dangerous road Love isn't safe, its a dangerous road, There's no choice, but to leave life to chance. Love must always be welcome in your heart. Goodness must be welcome at home and away. Wisdom leads me to the place of Wine, Though wisdom is unwelcome in this land. My martyrdom is the fault of the Beloved, I rode to my fate on a chariot of Love. The moon of my Love is not visible to the naked eye, Only eyes that can see will spot my natural Moon. Drink, and make the most of your moment, Few people know what this chance is worth. You do not listen to Hafiz's cries, Won't your hardened hearts be touched by my story?


The nightingale held a rose in its beak The nightingale held a rose in its beak, Sighs mingled with its beautiful song. "you have a rose", I said, "so why are you sighing?" It said: "Because Romance has teased me into this state" Its no surprise she does not sit with me, She has so many who seek her, what interest one more? Her teasing won't buy my attention, Blessed is he whose cup Love will fill. The painter makes works of wondrous beauty, With his masterful pen and compass. If you serve Love, then you must fear no shame. The wise priest sold his robes to pay for the tavern. The bubbling streams of the garden of paradise Are the tears of Hafiz at the house of the Beloved.


Now that the sweet-smelling breeze Now that the sweet-smelling breeze has come to the garden, I enjoy the cool wine and the beautiful maidens. Now any beggar could seize the Kingdom of riches, my garden is full of green valleys, my bliss is like a summer rain. My son, the green grass tells the story of spring Love. Don't miss the bliss of the present for promises of the future. Enjoy Love and fulfill your soul. The world will make bricks and break bricks out of the clay of our selves. Your societies are not faithful, The monastery candle is not bright enough to light the altar. Don't blame me for being shameless, who knows what is Written? Neither Hafiz's body nor his life can deny, For all his mischief, only heaven awaits him.


Pious priests Pious priests! Don't worry about lovers of freedom like me, No one wants you to account for the sins of others. Mind your own sins, why are you so concerned about the rest? What you sow, so shall you reap. The sober and the drunk both want to be Lovers. But in the Mosque you see the love of power. I will bow before the door of the tavern, its more pure. My enemies are free to hang me if they choose. Don't question the grace of Allah, you don't know who before Allah is good or evil. And I'm not alone among the sinners, my father was Adam, who gave up paradise. Hafiz: after the tavern, paradise will be your home, so long as when you die, you get a cup of wine.


The world's a prisoner of your grace and beauty The world's a prisoner of your grace and beauty, by being united, you gain the universe. Even a candle, if it gives away the secrets of the Friend, will be burnt by its own tongue and die out. The secret flame of Love in my heart is best compared to the shining sun. The rose, seeking to imitate its scent and colour, was punished by the warm wind and made to renounce. The flame caused me to admire the Saki's image, reflected by the light in the wine-cup. Drink, those who know what is coming are eased in their suffering by the weight of the cup. On the rose, with the blood of the ocean, is written: "only men who are already experienced, will be able to choose the purple wine". Hafiz, how can the jealous ones damn you, if Divine Grace wets your pen?


The advice of the Teacher will never leave my memory The advice of the Teacher will never leave my memory: "The pain of separation is beyond explaining". The prophet's talk of suffering in hell described nothing more than being apart from the Friend. Who can I ask about my wandering Friend? The warm wind speaks in grief, and so cannot be understood. Alas, my truant Friend is cruel, How easily the Friend turns attentions elsewhere! Even though my enemies mock me, I'm still happy, to be honest, my heart is used to pain. So remedy your old pains with ancient Wine, "Wine will bring you joy" said the Divine Teacher. This was the warm wind's advice to King Solomon, "Don't try to catch the wind, you're bound to fail!" This life of only a few days shouldn't trick you, The cunning old crone will always find you. Take it easy, it is a lucky man who strives to help his Friend. Who said, "Hafiz forgot the Beloved?" I can never look away from such sweet beauty!


If your religion needs the blood of Lovers If your religion needs the blood of Lovers, Then just say so, and I'll shed mine. Your hair is as dark as the night, Your face as bright as morning. No one can escape from the curls of the Beloved's hair, No one can escape from the dart of the Beloved's eye. I shed a river of tears because of your fickleness, Its a river no sailor would dare swim. When your life-giving lips met mine, They proved true in giving me life, and Baraka too. I had to ask many times before your lips would kiss mine, I had to give up everything to earn this bliss. All the Lovers pray for the joy of you, And to keep living for as long as there are days and nights. Sensibility and piety, Hafiz never had those, But no one should expect those from a mad Lover.


Plant the seed of friendship, and you gain the world Plant the seed of friendship, and you gain the world. Dig up the weeds of conflict, they only cause suffering. When you're at the tavern, behave properly; Don't be surprised when the wine gives you a hangover! Enjoy the company of night, you'll die anyways, And this world will keep spinning many days and nights after you are gone. Bring a riding horse for Leila, beauty of the moon, May Allah guide her way to find her beloved Manjoon. Seek with all your effort the water of life. Listening to sentimental nightingales will only lead you to the dirt. The Beloved's curls made a pure contract with my heart, The Beloved's sweet lips will secure my comfort. Hafiz! Sit still under the beautiful cypress tree, Never mind whether its Allah's will or your own!


If you make friends with the Friends of Allah If you make friends with the Friends of Allah, Then Allah will help you in everything you do. The Friend's story must be told only to the Friend, For the Friend's secret can only be kept by the Friend. O heart! Live pure, for if you slip The angels are waiting for your with outstretched hands. If you demand loyalty from the Beloved, Be loyal to the Beloved, for the Beloved will be loyal to you. I told her: "Let my heart go with you!" "I can't help you", she said, "Let Allah do so" My heart! Give your body and soul to the Friend, Who'll be loyal to you forever. Help Hafiz find the dust of the Beloved's path, To keep as a remembrance in my home.


The musicians of Love played a beautiful song The musicians of Love played a beautiful song, their notes came from heaven itself. The world is never free from the cries of the lovers, The song of Love is a melancholy dirge. Though he has no gold to give, merciful Allah forgives the wine-selling Mystic. Value my heart, it is a true Lover. My heart is exalted thinking of you. If a King sometimes gives gifts to his poor neighbour, it is only just. I showed my doctor my bloody tears, He said: "The disease of Love has a heartbreaking cure" You'd best give up on your dedication to just dreaming, In the Kingdom of Love, it is deeds that are rewarded. How well the Saki said, beautiful and pure, "be devoted to he who's face shows the Truth". O Queen! At your threshold Hafiz will pray, In response he looks only for a kind word.


Without the Friend, nothing in life matters to me Without the Friend, nothing in life matters to me. My life without Him is suffering and hardship. There's no sign of Allah! How could I define HIM? Either He gives no sign, or I don't know Him. You cannot turn away from your true home. O caravan guide, stop! The road is endless. The lyre rings out to happiness and joy, Listen to its song. "Learn from the clever Guardsman, He may be drunk, but no one thinks him gentle! "Even the treasures of Croesus are plundered by time; Don't bother hiding your gold!" says the harp. Do not give away secrets to the enemy, even the headless candle has a tongue! Hafiz is the greatest of true servants, and his Master is also the greatest.


The full moon doesn't glow as brightly as your face The full moon doesn't glow as brightly as your face, A rose compared to you is just a withered shrub. Your eyebrows are the refuge of my soul, A King couldn't have a better altar than you. Look! Vain Narcissus has taken notice of you, And bared himself shamefully. I will suffer, since the Beloved's heart is timid, And won't bear to listen to the cries of my complaints. If you cant find your way to the Beloved's gate, Bathe your sleeves in the blood of your liver. I'm not the only one taken hostage by the Beloved's curls, Many are held captive by the Beloved's dark hair. If Hafiz shows devotion, do not complain. One who has committed the sin of Love, is guilty of nothing.


The nightingale gets its rose The nightingale gets its rose, but only with much bleeding, as the angry wind made the thorns cut its flesh. A parrot was happy spending its life dreaming of sugar, Till the flood of death swept it away. I wish the Friend would understand my suffering. The Beloved came so easily, and made my life so hard! Help me, O camel-driver, for Allah's sake! It is my hope of help that led me to this caravan. Don't ignore my wet eyes and dirty face, That is where the heavens have made their abode. Alas! The jealous moon of the blue sky will cause all earthly beauty to die. Hafiz, you die and can't enjoy the Beloved's face; The foul game of Time deprives you of the Beloved's joy.


I fly like the warm wind to the home of the Friend I fly like the warm wind to the home of the Friend, My breath mingles with the sweet scent of the Beloved. There's no life without the Friend, no wine or song. I can't endure this waste of time any longer! I would trade all my fame of being wise and spiritual for the dust of the Beloved's path. The candle of my life is lit by the Love of Allah. I throw all of myself at Allah's gate. I will consume myself in remembering the Beloved's eyes. In this way I will fulfill my birthright. O warm wind, I offer up my bleeding roselike heart as ransom for the scent of the Friend. Hafiz, hatred and falsehood steal peace from the heart. I have chosen to play the part of a Lover of Freedom!


You cannot touch the Beloved's curls twice You cannot touch the Beloved's curls twice, Nor can you count on the warm wind, or on what it says. I'd do anything to reach you, but man can't change the plans of destiny. With a bleeding heart I near the Beloved's cloak, I wouldn't let it go, even if my enemies neared. The Beloved's face resembles the moon in the sky, Even then, its higher than the moon. On a clear day, one might see the vision of the Beloved's face If one looks in the mirror the way one should. The riddle of Love is beyond the wisdom of man, It cannot be solved in man's mortal kingdom. I'm jealous that the Beloved is loved by all, But I won't be able to defeat them all by being alone. What can I say when you are so tender and aware, that even my prayers will make you take notice! I will always direct my devotion toward your eyes, To devote myself to anything else would be a sin.


My Beloved has gone, without saying a word My Beloved has gone, without saying a word, The Beloved has forgotten the traveling friend. Either I have been unlucky in seeing the Beloved's loyalty, Or the Beloved has never been loyal at all. I thought my tears could soften the Beloved's heart, But the Beloved's heart is like stone. My heart is an impatient bird, that will never be able to forget the Beloved's love-snare. Any who have seen the Beloved would never blame me, My eyes thought hard about who they would pick. Hafiz gives up his soul, burning like a candle. Like the cold dawn wind, the Beloved gives no consolation.


Only when your eyes are blurred by the dust of the Tavern Only when your eyes are blurred by the dust of the Tavern will you be able to glimpse the mysteries of the Cup of Kings. Enjoy music and wine in this hellish world, it is the only way to overcome your suffering. If you are always true to the cause of Love, you will gain much. As long as you remain in the land of skin, you will find no path to the house of Truth. The Friend has no covering, no scarf over his face, shake off the dust of lies if you want his Grace. As long as you long for the cup and the Beloved's lips, you will long for nothing else in the world. Oh Heart! If you come to know the light of Truth, You will burn brightly, like a laughing candle! Hafiz, obey this prompt advice: Find your way to the road of Truth.


My heart will only accept the beauty of Love My heart will only accept the beauty of Love, I have no understanding of anything but Love. O Counselor: tell me of Love and its Bliss, There is nothing I would rather hear about. O blushing Saki: bring the blushing wine! Happiness can't be found anywhere else. I disguise my cup, people might think its a book. This isn't surprising, since hypocrisy's ink has no colour. I'm going to burn my ragged cloak, since the Teacher doesn't accept it in place of a cup. The Beloved's ruby lips reveal nothing but truth, So it doesn't appeal to the "men of truth". Don't ask me to forget your eyes and face, If I'm obedient in this I could not be wise. Your cunning, intelligent, enchanting eyes have hunted my heart with the savageness of wild birds. O Rich Man: remember the Sufi today, He goes nowhere and knows no path. Hafiz, your sweet poems are recited well, The King will shower you with riches and gold.


If the Saki keeps serving wine like this If the Saki keeps serving wine like this, All pious men will drink wine all day. If the Beloved's face is covered by the Beloved's hair, many birds of wisdom would fall into the Beloved's chin. Happy the drunk who falls at the Beloved's feet! He sacrifices his head, and his body, and everything. Boorish Zahid is loyal to wine only by circumstance, But mature wine will make your inexperience greater. Get wisdom in the daylight, not time to drink. Drinking during the day obscures the mind. The best time to enjoy the bright wine is in the dark of the night. Never drink wine with the Sheriff, He'll drink your wine and then steal your cup! If Hafiz's luck leads him to catch his Moon, He'd joyfully rise to the light of the Sun.


This world isn't worth even one sad moment This world isn't worth even one sad moment, I've sold my only cloak for wine. They wouldn't accept my cloak at the tavern for a cup, So why would I keep such an unholy cloak? My foe told me to stay away, with scorn. He meant to say: "your head isn't worthy of this door". If you gain a kingdom but lose your head for it, That isn't wise, its a fool's bargain. It seems easy to dive into the sea, and hope for profit, But the pearl isn't worth the pain of the storm. O Friend! Avoid Lovers, keep them at arm's length. A friend of Lovers is never compensated well. Hafiz, give up this mean world and its goals, It isn't worth it, to have to beg for your gold from cruel men.


In the beginning, Allah emanated rays of beauty In the beginning, Allah emanated rays of beauty; Love manifested, and all of existence lit up. And because Allah's Love wasn't appealing to the Angels, This brilliant force settled on human Adam instead. Wisdom sought light from Allah's torch, but was singed by the heat of Allah's compassion. A stranger desired Allah's secrets, But a hidden hand struck him angrily in the busom. All humans get their share pleasures; yet my sore heart remains alone and suffering. My mighty soul seeks the apple of the Beloved's chin, My soul is trapped by the Beloved's hair, admiring beauty. Hafiz, your Love-story could only be written once happiness had broken its pen.


Do not admire the Sufi's teachings Do not admire the Sufi's teachings, His false cloak deserves to be burned. The sufi looks sad with the morning dregs of wine, But just watch how happy he'll be at night! How good it would be if there were a magic stone, that would change colours at the touch of a hypocrite. If you touch the Saki's cup, your face might become red, purple, or rosy. Rich men cannot find the Friend. Only lovers of freedom can understand the suffering of love. Never mind the mean world, drink up! Wise men should never worry. Hafiz: if the Saki is willing to pour another cup, The Taverner will trade your prayer-rug and cloak for it.


Aloneness is good if it leads me to the Beloved Aloneness is good if it leads me to the Beloved, I burn like a candle for the Beloved's sake. I wouldn't take King Solomon's ring for even a penny, if it might be touched by the hands of a demon. O Lord! I hope to meet the Beloved daily, Yet I've thought ill of the Beloved when I'm suffering. If a parrot is valued more than a raptor, then the hawks are afraid to show their true might. There's no need to show your concern, Let your burning heart be your burning words. I can never take your teachings off my mind, A lonely traveller always longs for home. Hafiz, if you had ten tongues, you'd still be struck dumb in the presence of the Beloved.


When the garden's roses are blooming When the garden's roses are blooming, its a good time to take the cup in hand. Enjoy your time, value your days of happiness, not every oyster bears a pearl. In the rose garden enjoy your time with a drink, I doubt you'd find clearer wine, even in paradise. If you're in my school, put away all your books, None of them will teach you the science of Love. Love a true beauty who needs no make-up, Who's beautiful already without any jewelry. Only those who are blind to Your beauty will have objections to Hafiz' poetry.


Once more the warm wind spreads perfume with its breeze Once more the warm wind spreads perfume with its breeze, the entire world is reborn. The flowers serve their sweet perfumes like in cups, They look for each other in wonderment. The cries of the birds are their longing search, silenced when they reach the flowers. I rushed off from the Mosque to the Tavern, I had no time to waste on the priest's sermons. If you put off today's pleasures for tomorrow, You'll find that if you have not lived, you cannot borrow life later. The flowers are precious, enjoy them, my treasure. For the flowers will soon be gone from the garden. Let the musicians play, have a good time, forget the future, or what's already past. Hafiz, from your birth the Beloved was written for you, Bid farewell to the Beloved, for the Beloved will pass soon.


The day of separation and the night of solitude The day of separation and the night of solitude are at an end, This is your fortune: your fortune depends on you. Autumn showed pride and vanity, All this comes to an end with the spring. The fortunate star of the crown of flowers brought an end to autumn winds and hurtful thorns. A twilight of hope flickered behind the curtain of the Mystery, The dark nights are gone, and victory is assured. The worries of winter nights and the grief of my heart Came to an end when I glimpsed the Beloved. Time breaches all contracts; so I can't believe that the Friend's good fortune could be enough to end my own sorrow. Saki! We all depend on your cup of wonder, Your grace will end all our worries and hangovers. Though no one cared for Hafiz, Both good fortune and bad comes and goes, thank Allah!


A star was born, and it became our School's Moon A star was born, and it became our School's Moon, It comforted our sorry hearts. The Friend did not go to school, and could not write, But with just the blink of an eye taught many Teachers. The happy home of Love will be prospering again, Its cornerstone is the curve of the Beloved's eye. Your gaze made a wine that left lovers drunk, its softness is beyond any wisdom's understanding. The words of Hafiz are as sweet as gold, It is a cure for those too aged or too young. Keep away from the tavern road, Hafiz lost everything in that house.


My soul is consumed, but for nothing My soul is consumed, but for nothing. I've burned for no reason, all my hopes were in vain. The Beloved said, with tears, "I will see you tonight". But the Beloved has never brightened my sad days. The Beloved ordered me to be a true lover of freedom. I became Free, but did not see the Beloved yet. While drunk I thought of the Beloved's lips. I drink blood from the cup, but I miss the Beloved. In the house of Love you need a smart guide, Without a guide, we are doomed to fail. Alas! Seeking the pleasure of the Beloved's company, I've tried everything, but did not win this prize. Hafiz, you've thought up so many plans, But the wild heart of the Beloved pays them no mind!


The pious priests visited the tavern last night The pious priests visited the tavern last night, they broke their own rules and drank much wine. Last night the mystic went mad and broke the cup, but a new one made him whole again. The Beloved always sees everything young, and takes pity on the old man, giving love. The birds will drink from the light of the rose, The laugh-flickering candle will burn the butterfly. My crying-nightmare of the morning was not in vain, one of my tears turned into the rarest of pearls. Saki's bright eyes made magic, my tragic spell-prayers are legendary. Hafiz's home is as big as a palace, the ship of his heart launched from the Beloved's port.


Good news! The warm wind has come again Good news! The warm wind has come again, the birds sing good news and will stay awhile. Morning bird, sing your beautiful song, The king of flowers is blooming. Where is the master who knows the language of flowers? He should ask them why they came, then left again? I am glad Allah's grace is always present, my beautiful moon is true once more. The flower with a scent of the dawn wine grew in my garden to ease its sore heart. My eyes fixed on the highway, looking for the caravan, to be able to hear my heart sing that the Beloved is arriving. Though Hafiz broke his loyalty because he was dismayed, The Beloved is forgiving and will soon be here.


The warm wind came to greet the drunken Teacher The warm wind came to greet the drunken Teacher, So let's all join to meet in happy drinking! The breath of Christ spreads a sweet scent on the hill, Trees are green, the birds sing sweetly. The flower was ravaged by the spring wind, The bud drips, the flower curls. Give up division and seek union, when the Demon disappears the Angel manifests. A mysterious voice came to me at dawn, it said: "take my advice, be happy!" What do the flowers say to the early birds? Their many voices thunder a pondering silence. There's no place here for those who aren't initiates of Love; Hide the cup if a priest comes along! Hafiz: move your home from the Mosque to the Tavern, and perhaps you'll awaken from your lazy illusions.


At dawn the watchman of luck came to my bed At dawn the watchman of luck came to my bed, saying "wake up! The greatest beauty is here!" Go for a stroll, have a nice drink, One cannot imagine the glory that is here. Good news! My dear sweet Friend, Savage untamed, spend some time with me. My troubled face was watered with tears, I think crying is good for lovers. My heart is still deep in beauty's love, But the dove must beware; the falcon of death soon swoops. Saki, serve the wine and forget friends or enemies, enjoy wine; friends and enemies come and go. When that infidel, time, saw the clouds of spring, he cried over the blooming flowers. The warm wind hears Hafiz's voice in the sound of birds; And spreads sweet incense on the flowers with the breeze.


Don't hope to catch beauty in your heart Don't hope to catch beauty in your heart, You cannot trap the world in a crystal ball. Those who strut through town with fancy hats, will lack a bare head to receive the crown of the kingdom. Just as a poor man expects no praise from his prayers, The Friend knows well what his students are hiding. I love the Lovers of Freedom, who risk their lives, Though they be poor, they have the secret of the alchemical formula. Its good, but hard, to be loyal. Its far too easy to be unreliable. I lost my heart, still I failed to see, how beauty holds the secret of the spirits. Not everyone with long hair is a Sufi, Mystics are secret, they hide where they're not expected. Only those who truly love the word, are truly aware of Hafiz' poetry.


The Pure in Heart will find their way to truth The Pure in Heart will find their way to truth, While the ignorant of truth will hide in denial. Don't complain that I can't hide my secret, Its better to be exposed than to live in false pride. The Guards fake at being pious, but revel in debauchery, While my debaucheries are told in every street corner. My heart has been true to Love throughout eternity. All else pases under the blue sky. The flower tries to imitate the colour of your eyes, but fails and thus remains a wonder. I value nothing more than the song of Love, The heavens cannot bring an end to such sweet experience. I wore a cloak that hid all my faults, But Alas! Now I've pawned it for music and wine. Hafiz saw the Beloved's curly hair for only one day, And now will stay bound for eternity.


Good news! The days of sorrow and pain are over Good news! The days of sorrow and pain are over, They were never so, and will never be so again. Before the Friend, I was worthless as dust, Now my attackers will also be struck down! Misfortune does not trouble me, In the Book of Life there will be no record of it. At the great King's party this song was sung: "Enjoy your wine, for soon the King will be dead!" O candle, enjoy the love of the butterfly, You will both be gone by the morning. Wealthy man, make rich your heart instead! Your treasures of gold will slip away from you anyways. Hafiz: don't be troubled for the love of the Friend. There will come a time when even the Friend will be gone.


Yesterday at dawn I found relief from suffering Yesterday at dawn I found relief from suffering, For an instant, I had received the water of life. In ecstasy I could see Allah's creation, The cup of change was given to me. What a blessed, glorious night! What an awesome vision, a unique moment! In the mirror of Allah's beauty shone my face, Many divine secrets were made clear to me. No wonder I feel light in spirit, I needed blessings and they were granted in time. "good news! Great luck!" said a mysterious voice, That's why I can suffer all the tricks of the Beloved. All the honey that drips from my tongue is the Beloved's reward for my long work. Hafiz's ambition and pious morning prayers relieved me from sorrow, anger and scorn.


The angels knocked at the door of the tavern last night The angels knocked at the door of the tavern last night, They took the clay called man, and fashioned a cup. The dwellers of Allah's paradise drank wine with me- a wandering beggar! Heaven couldn't stand this event, that such honors could be given to a madman. Religious talk is just pretentiousness, Those who haven't seen Truth speak much nonsense. Praise Allah! There is peace between He and I. So the dervishes can take their cup happily. The wind that causes the candle to flicker is not the flame. The burning fire is my real goal. No one can express ideas like Hafiz, No such words are written by the hand of man.

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