Ghazal 2530 from the Diwan-e Shams, in a version by Coleman Barks, in translation by Annemarie Schimmel, and in translation by A.J. Arberry:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I become a pen in the Friend’s hand,
tonight writing “say,” tomorrow “ray.”
He trims the pen for fine calligraphy.
The pen says, “I am here, but who am I?”
He blackens the pen’s face.
He wipes it in his hair. He holds it upside down.
Now he begins to use it.
On one sheet he cancels everything.
On another he adds a dangerous conjunction.
The writing depends entirely on the scribe,
who knows how to split the head of the pen.
Galen knows what a patient needs.
The pen cannot speak for itself, or know what
to disapprove of in its own nature.
Whether I say “pen” or “flag”, it is with this wonderful
conscious unconsciousness: the mind unable to include
its own description, composing blindly.
Held in a hand, yet free.
– Version by Coleman Barks
(Based on the translation by A.J. Arberry)
“These Branching Moments”
Copper Beech Press, 1988
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My heart became like a pen
that’s in the Beloved’s fingers:
Tonight he may write a Z,
perhaps tomorrow, a B.
He cuts and prepares his pen well
to write in riqa and naskh;*
The pen says: “Lo, I obey,
for you know best what to do.”
Sometimes he blackens its face,
he wipes it then in his hair,
He holds it now upside down,
sometimes he writes with it too. . .
– Translation by Annemarie Schimmel
“I Am Wind, You are Fire”
Shambhala, 1992
*riqa and naskh: two styles of writing Persian.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My heart came like a pen in the fingers of the Beloved; tonight
it is writing “zay,” tomorrow it will write “ray.”*
He trims a pen for epistolary style, copying and the rest; the
pen says, “I am resigned, you know; who am I, lord?”
Now he blackens its face, now he rubs it in his hair; now he
holds it upside down, now he uses it for a task.
On one sheet he cancels a world and makes it headless; on
another sheet he delivers a [perilous] conjunction from calamity.
The splendor of the pen is according to the dignity of the
scribe, whether it is in the hand of a king or a commander.
He splits its head for the reason he knows; Galen* knows best
what is best for the patient.
That pen is unable to utter by its own reason any applause;
that pen knows not of its own nature to make disapproval.
Whether I call it pen or all it flag, in it is sense and senselessness –
bravo, the conscious senseless one!
The mind can not compass its description, for in it is the union
of opposites, a composition without composition, amazing! –
constrained yet with free will.
– Translation by A. J. Arberry
“Mystical Poems of Rumi 2″
The University of Chicago Press, 1991
Sunlight footnotes:
*zay and ray: the letters “z” and “r,” respectively.
*Galen: the famous second century Greek physician.
– Footnotes (c) Ibrahim Gamard, 2000
Here, Sunlight offers Ghazal 2530 from the Diwan-e Shams,in a version by Coleman Barks, in translation by AnnemarieSchimmel, and in translation by A.J. Arberry:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I become a pen in the Friend’s hand,tonight writing “say,” tomorrow “ray.”He trims the pen for fine calligraphy.The pen says, “I am here, but who am I?”
He blackens the pen’s face.He wipes it in his hair. He holds it upside down.Now he begins to use it.
On one sheet he cancels everything.On another he adds a dangerous conjunction.The writing depends entirely on the scribe,who knows how to split the head of the pen.
Galen knows what a patient needs.The pen cannot speak for itself, or know whatto disapprove of in its own nature.
Whether I say “pen” or “flag”, it is with this wonderfulconscious unconsciousness: the mind unable to includeits own description, composing blindly.Held in a hand, yet free.
– Version by Coleman Barks(Based on the translation by A.J. Arberry)”These Branching Moments”Copper Beech Press, 1988
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My heart became like a penthat’s in the Beloved’s fingers:Tonight he may write a Z,perhaps tomorrow, a B.He cuts and prepares his pen wellto write in riqa and naskh;*The pen says: “Lo, I obey,for you know best what to do.”Sometimes he blackens its face,he wipes it then in his hair,He holds it now upside down,sometimes he writes with it too. . .
– Translation by Annemarie Schimmel”I Am Wind, You are Fire”Shambhala, 1992
*riqa and naskh: two styles of writing Persian.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My heart came like a pen in the fingers of the Beloved; tonightit is writing “zay,” tomorrow it will write “ray.”*He trims a pen for epistolary style, copying and the rest; thepen says, “I am resigned, you know; who am I, lord?”Now he blackens its face, now he rubs it in his hair; now heholds it upside down, now he uses it for a task.On one sheet he cancels a world and makes it headless; onanother sheet he delivers a [perilous] conjunction from calamity.The splendor of the pen is according to the dignity of thescribe, whether it is in the hand of a king or a commander.He splits its head for the reason he knows; Galen* knows bestwhat is best for the patient.That pen is unable to utter by its own reason any applause;that pen knows not of its own nature to make disapproval.Whether I call it pen or all it flag, in it is sense and senselessness –bravo, the conscious senseless one!The mind can not compass its description, for in it is the unionof opposites, a composition without composition, amazing! –constrained yet with free will.
– Translation by A. J. Arberry”Mystical Poems of Rumi 2″The University of Chicago Press, 1991
Sunlight footnotes:*zay and ray: the letters “z” and “r,” respectively.*Galen: the famous second century Greek physician.
– Footnotes (c) Ibrahim Gamard, 2000
Personal, Poetry, Rumi, Sufi poetry, Sufism
A.J. Arberry, Coleman Barks, pen, poet, Poetry, Rumi
USE THE PEN TO FIGHT FOR TRUTH. – A basic tenet of Zoroastranis. (Roughly tr. The essense is : Fight for Truth and Values”).
Raza : You have a balanced pen. Please research on Hindutva-Terrorism. Read a dozen books. Gather material… and IF you are convinced that the case is genuine.. write a classic article and try to get it published in Time / Newsweek / CFR / Major Think Tanks of the US.
Are Hindu Politicians / terrorist groups hiring unemployed Pakistani youth (@ rate of Rs. 10-15 lakhs per life)… and committing terrorist acts inside India… and/or are RSS cadre growing beards., wearing kurtas and skull caps… and committing acts of terrorism in India ?
Gather material and write a solid balanced reference article. Base it on facts., so that its integrity stands out.
Another evidence : Here it is :
Four more persons involved in Goa bomb blast: NIA Buzz Up Share
Twitter Delicious Myspace Digg Stumble Upon Facebook Sat, Feb 27 03:56 PM
Four more persons, hailing from Karnataka and Maharashtra, were aware of the plans to trigger bomb blast in Margao last year, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has told a court here.
In an affidavit filed two days back before Judicial Magistrate at Margao, about 20 km from here, NIA Superintendent of Police S Vijayan has named these suspects along with four accused already arrested.
The NIA said the four suspects were present during the testing of explosions, held two months before the October 16 blast, in the forests of Talaulim village in north Goa.
The suspects have been named in the affidavit as Prashant Juvekar (Ratnagiri), Sarang Kulkarni (Pune), Jayprakash alias Anna (Mangalore) and an unidentified person.
The affidavit was filed to seek police custody of the arrested accused — Vinay Talekar, Vinayak Patil, Dilip Mangaonkar and Dhananjay Ashtekar –currently in judicial custody.
Two persons were killed in the Margao blast last year. Some IEDs were recovered by police which were later defused.
According to the investigators, the two victims were carrying an Improvised Explosive Device in a scooter when it went off accidentally.
Agencies
—–
Expose the HIndutva-Terrorists, please. Al Kaida and Taliban are kid-stuff compared to the well organised terrorist machine of RSS., with its INSTITUTIONALISED RIOT SYSTEMS.
Please reflect on this… and IF your head and heart commend you to lift the pen., lift it in the cause of truth.
What I like most about Rumi is the layers in his poetry; add layers of your own experience and understanding to those, and every time you read him, a new layer of appreciation gets added. The cadence of “Diwan-E-Shams” is a mystical, musical one and you have chosen pieces that are re-create Rumi’s ecstasy.
Thank you.
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