Looking up the sky

Hafez (1325 – 1389): From Ghazal No. 168

Looking up the sky,
I saw the heavenly farm, and the sickle of the moon,
I thought of my harvest- off the seeds I had sown. 

I said to myself,
You slept away, the sun will rise soon!
You missed on your fortune!

And I heard back:
“Do not despair away- 
for the time gone to waste!
If you still reach- for the heights, as pure as the Christ,
the sun may be eclipsed- by the rays of your light!

And never hold on- to the turn of the stars!
They have led to wreckage – countless rulers, crowns!

Hafez, also beware! 
The flames of deceit will burn all the yields- of the faiths and the creeds!
Get rid of your rags, the burdens you drag, bare yourself and leave! 


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Translation: Maryam Dilmaghani, May 2012, Halifax.
Artwork: Omens of Hafez by M. Iman Maleki:
http://imanmaleki.com/fa/Galery/images/2Omens-of-Hafez.jpg