By Seyh Ibrahim
Efendi
(1591 - 1651)
English version by Jennifer Ferraro & Latif Bolat
They say
the Sufi way
is to give one's life
away.
The Sufi way is to become a sultan
on the throne of the
soul.
In the station of the Path,
it is to destroy
appearances.
In the station of Reality,
it is to become a
guest
in the innermost palace of the heart.
They say it is to be pure of body,
the light of the
Beloved.
The Sufi way is to gradually take off
the dress of earth and
water.
They say it is to burn up in Love's fire--
The Sufi way is to be utterly inflamed
with the light of the
Beloved.
They say it is to believe and follow the rules--
The Sufi way is to discover the rules
of the multitude of
heavens.
They say it is to become a medicine for every ailment--
The Sufi way is to know and become all the secrets
of creation.
They say it is to destroy the illusion of bodies--
The Sufi way is to open the secrets of the body
with the key of the
Divine Names.
O Sufi, to comprehend it, one must be it.
The one who gets lost in words
will never be
their meaning.
They say it is to become the secret of God
within one's innermost
heart--
The Sufi way is to read the outer signs
and know the inner
meanings.
They say it is to be in wonder
at the greatness of
creation--
The Sufi way is to be constantly amazed
by the nature of
Reality.
They say it is to make each heart
the throne of God--
The Sufi way is to remove all else but God
from the heart's
dwelling.
They say it is to watch over all humanity--
The Sufi way is to cover East and West
with every breath.
They say it is to shine as brightly as the sun--
The Sufi way is to perceive God
in every minute thing.
They say it is to be in harmony
with every kind of
person--
The Sufi way is to appear
in a hundred thousand forms daily.
They say it is to be like Solomon
to the whole universe;
The Sufi way is to understand
and speak in every
language.
They say it is to become an ocean
from a single drop--
The Sufi way is to make your heart a cellar
to hold the wine of
the Truth.
They say it is to become a human being
illuminated with the
light of Being--
The Sufi way is to destroy Being utterly
in the light of
Non-Being.
They say it is to become a life
for each particle of
life--
The Sufi way is to die a thousand times
and return to life
each moment.
They say it is to become a master
of wisdom and eternal
justice--
The Sufi way is to become an eye
looking out from every
hair.
They say it is to surrender
your soul to the
Beloved--
The Sufi way is to become
the soul of the
Beloved.
They say it is the proof
of Muhammad's
message--
The Sufi way, O Ibrahim,
is to embody God
as one's own self.
 |
--
from Quarreling
with God: Mystic Rebel Poems of the Dervishes of
Turkey,
Translated by Jennifer Ferraro / Translated by
Latif Bolat Amazon.com
|
/ Photo by M.Omair /
