Poems from the Divan of Hafiz

1897·4.4 MB·English

by  Hafiz, 14th cent

THE LIBRARY
OF
THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA
LOS ANGELES

POEMS FROM THE
DIVAN OF HAFIZ

POEMS FROM THE
DIVAN OF HAFIZ
TRANSLATED BY
GERTRUDE LOWTHIAN BELL
LONDON
WILLIAM HEINEMANN
1897
Allrights reserved
College
library
?K
TO
HAFIZ OF SHIRAZ
Thus said the Poet: " When Death comes toyou,
Allye whose life-sandthrough the hour-glass slips,
He lays twofingers onyour ears, andtwo
Uponyour eyes he lays, one onyour lips,
Whispering: Silence!" Although deafthine ear,
Thine eye, my Hafiz, suffer Time's eclipse,
The songs thou sangest still all men may hear.
Songs ofdead laughter, songs oflove once hot,
Songs ofa cup onceflushed rose-red with wine,
Songs ofa rose whose beauty isforgot,
A
nightingale thatpiped hushed lays divine:
And still a graver music runs beneath
The tender love notes ofthose songs ofthine,
Oh, Seeker ofthe keys ofLife and Death !
DEDICATION
While thou wert singing, the soft summer wind
That o'er Mosallds garden blew, the stream
OfRuknabadflowing where roses twined,
Carried thy voicefarther than thou could'st dream.
To Isfahan and Baghdad's Tartar horde,
O'er waste and sea to Yezd and distant Ind;
Yea, to the sun-setting they bore thy word.
Behold we laugh, we warm us at Love'sfire,
We thirst and scarce dare tell what wine we crave,
We
lift our voices in Griefs dark-robed choir;
Sing thou the wisdomjoy and sorrow gave!
Ifmypoor rhymes held aught ofthe hearts lore,
Fresh wreaths were theirs to lay upon thygrave
Master and Poet, all was thine before!