Damascus. The Gate of Moon
الشام. باب السلام
Shivering beam, the beam of moon
Crumbled glass it mirror'd, - blues
Enigmatic, frail bedyed
Rivers, rivers of the night...
Intermingled rivers then, -
The lunar magic it became...
On the water - glow from lamps
Does accompany this trance;
Rays vibrate and break in pieces, -
Tinctures fall upon the windows;
Strolling echo gathers tones
To compile a lunar stone...
I am holding piece of glass -
Ray of moon has crumbled thus...
"Silvery morsel - verse maybé?
Let the water make thee free..."
In the water hurled it I,
It did melt, became the rhyme...
Whiff of witchery I am,
Crystal brittle piece of trance,
Dream I am which can entrance...
O the verse, but how thou
Can affect the senses, rouse
The sleepwalker's doze, say...
- I am energy in vessel caved,
The power I have to stir, because
I am the words of ghost...
What spirit into me imbued -
I that produce...
Then thou art a sort of gate
By means of which a state attained?
- The elevating spirit I am, aye!
If weak are wings of thine,
Do take then mine...
In the lunar tune I drowned,
And became an argent chaunt;
In a window I reflected,
Dissipated in the spectrum...
Then again assembled in
Some dim-lit window clean.
Ancient Gate I see and near -
A very noble old man, "Here!
Comest here!" In my heart thus echoed, seer
I behold before me, clad
In a starry mantle black.
In his hand is staff like axe -
The staff of shredding veils...
Sufi lord:
Peace be to thee, afraidest not!
A seeker came for lunar stone;
Thy questions I upon the water saw...
But lo! Who came - oneself enriched:
Of the lifting spirits thou
Art eager to know...
But every speech poetic can
Lift thee to some degree, but men
Of mysteries who left the shells
Can elevate you to the realm
Of winds and visions, tunes...
Just take the shell and listen to
What sea does speak to you...
للحق ظهوران في العالم يفنى به ويبقى
فالعالم بين فناء وبقاء
Two manifestations belong to God in the world:
with one He melts, and with another does preserve.
So the world is between Fanā¹ (melting, state of
abstraction), and Baqā (presence, remaining).²
Ibn 'Arabi
And when they came thither to the hill, behold,
a band of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God
came mightily upon him, and he prophesied among
them. And it came to pass, when all that knew him
beforetime saw that, behold, he prophesied with
the prophets, then the people said one to another,
What is this that is come unto the son of Kish?
Is Saul also among the prophets?
1 Samuel 10:10,11
If thou hast a heart attentive, then
You shall understand...
Take heed, that wind does raise on high
A feather subtle, light...
Ah yet another cloud
Left trace upon the water... "How
To behave with master right..."
But hearken to reply:
فكما أنّ للدعاء أوقاتاً وآداباً وشروطاً - لأنه
مخاطبة الله تعالى - فللقول مع الشيخ أيضاً
آداب وشروط؛ لأنه من معاملة الله تعالى
As for a prayer - its time, rules, and ethics, -
Because it is the talk with God, exalted is He,
So for a talk with Sheikh are also rules
and ethics, because he is linked to God.
Umar Suhrawardi
But who is Sufi master - gate
Between terrene and lofty planes;
A chest of tablets cuneiform, and stones
Runíc... The sea behind the shawl -
Before thee sea...
فأحسن أدب المريد مع الشيخ
السكوت والخمود والجمود
The best ethics for a seeker with a Sheikh
are: calmness, extinction, inertia.
Umar Suhrawardi
With whom you speak, O seeker, - with
The gate of realm antique -
With Name of God you talk, therefore
Be listening silent pond, and know
That all your thoughts are floating on
The surface of his sea...
كما جاء في الخبر: اتَّقُوا فِراسَةَ العَالِم
فإنَّه يَنْظُرُ بِنُورِ اللهِ تعالى
As it is related in tradition:
Beware of the clairvoyance of gnostic, for
he sees with the light of God,
transcendent is He.
Al-Makki
The spoken words of prayer flashed,
Inside the heart the billows clashed;
And then began the visions clear -
As half-a-dream t' appear...
The mews came flying, crying, "Hey!
Let us to shout, tidings we
Have brought from yonder vale,
Be speechless, read..."
But some espied by magic lake
Amid the weed the sugar cane,
And said, "Ah what is it?
Of poor look, some faddist máybe,
'Tis just a weed...
Hey fellows, look upon this fox -
A crazy, slacker, quack, or sot,
Or warlock some..." - But hist!
Beware, and read:
هست اندر نَقْشِ این روباه، شیر
سویِ این روبَهْ نَشایَد شُد دلیر
هر که او در پیشِ این شیرِ نَهان
بی‌‌اَدَب چون گُرگ بُگْشاید دَهان
هَمچو گُرگ آن شیر بَردرّانَدَش
فَانْتَقَمْنا مِنْهُمُ بر خوانَدَش
There is the Lion in the image of this fox,
To be bold towards this fox should not.
Whoever though his mouth openeth before
This hidden Lion disrespectfully like wolf, -
That Lion him will tear as that wretch'd
Wolf, on saying: We have on them avenged.
Rumi, Masnavi 1:3132, 3137-8
A stone hurl and hurt the wave!
Then yet another take..!
Do strike a blow! Loud sigh...
The wave from pain has drooped and sighed,
Then again a heavy blow...
The bleeding wave from pang did groan,
Scarse breathing, almost broke...
But roaring ocean full of wrauth
Uprose thus saying, "Now -
My time to strike the blows..."
Although, for this night enough,
For thee the last:
فإن عند المحققين أن لا فاعل إلا الله
Among the men of Realization -
There is no doer but God.³
Ibn 'Arabi
Me: Thank you, master...
January 2020
1 Fanā فناء - melting, extinction, absence, state of
abstraction
2 Ibn 'Arabi, The Book of Interpretations
كتاب التراجم
Umar Suhrawardi, The Knowledge of the Spiritually Learned
عوارف المعارف
Abu Talib Al-Makki, The Sustenance of Hearts 1
قوت القلوب في معاملة المحبوب
3 Ibn 'Arabi, The Epistle to Imam Al-Rāzi
رسالة إلى الإمام الرازي
Translations from Arabic and Farsi
by Denis Bezmelnitsin
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