Ode XXXII

No joy have I found in the two worlds apart from thee, Beloved.
Many wonders I have seen: I have not seen a wonder like thee.
They say that blazing fire is the infidel’s portion:
I have seen none, save Abu Lahab, excluded from thy fire.
Often have I laid the spiritual ear at the window of the heart:
I heard much discourse, but the lips I did not see.
Of a sudden thou didst lavish grace upon thy servant:
I saw no cause for it but thy infinite kindness.
O chosen Cup-bearer, O apple of mine eyes, the like of thee
Ne’er appeared in Persia, nor in Arabia have I found it.
Pour out wine till I become a wanderer from myself;
For in selfhood and existence I have felt only fatigue.
O thou who art milk and sugar, O thou who art sun and moon,
O thou. who art mother and father, I have known no kin but thee.
O indestructible Love, O divine Minstrel,
Thou art both stay and refuge: a name equal to thee I have not found.
We are pieces of steel, and thy love is the magnet:
Thou art the source of all aspiration, in myself I have seen none.
Silence, O brother! put learning and culture away:
Till Thou namedst culture, I knew no culture but Thee.