XXXIV: There is a different scar branded upon every…

There is a different scar branded upon every one's breast,
Whether he be the beggar, or the sovereign of the land.

There is no obtaining satiety from this fountain of the world;
And its thirsty-ones are, severally, in dissension and in strife.

A. little peace is obtained, only after much pain and trouble--
A mere straw of this world, without it, is unlawful and unmeet.

This life's joys are not attainable, without bitterness and woe--
From the miser's house, ever so little alms, is a misfortune.

Why then may not tranquillity be prohibited unto them,
Who have entered within the caravansary of this world?

As to the state of Majnun, why should any one inquire?
The whole world, house by house, is Majnun and Layla too!

Love hath breathed upon the entire universe a spell, so potent,
That the lover, though keen-sighted, is to all things blind.

The Almighty hath accorded unto every one a different lot;
And every man's own portion is, separately, determined.

Giving and taking--buying and selling--all are in others' hands
There is, I perceive, no opening here, either for thee or for me.

All matters, if in accordance with the will of the master,
Though unlawful towards the bondsman, are legal and right.

Willing or unwilling--whether it be one's wish, or whether it be not--
The fulfilment of one's destiny, agreeable, or hateful, is inevitable.

Life and faith, it behoveth to intrust, entirely, unto Him,
Whose decrees have gone out upon every human being.

Into the hands of whomsoever the ruler hath delegated authority,
The whole world boweth unto his wishes and his views.

O Rahman! if the Most High should not be one's companion,
Though armies may be with him, he still is all alone!