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[316] If you do not give up the crowds by Abu-Said Abil-Kheir (967 - 1049) Timeline English version by Vraje Abramian Original Language Persian/Farsi Muslim / Sufi 11th Century If you do not give up the crowds you won't find your way to Oneness. If you do not drop your self you won't find your true worth. If you do not offer all you have to the Beloved, you will live this life free of that pain which makes it worth living.     -- from Nobody, Son of Nobody: Poems of Shaikh Abu-Saeed Abil-Kheir, Translated by Vraje Abramian Amazon.com	Themes   Freedom   Lover and Beloved   Pain and Wounding     Recommended Books The Drunken Universe: An Anthology of Persian Sufi Poetry, Translated by Peter Lamborn Wilson / Translated by Nasrollah Pourjavady Love's Alchemy: Poems from the Sufi Tradition, Translated by David Fideler / Translated by Sabrineh Fideler The Mystics of Islam, by Reynold A. Nicholson Nobody, Son of Nobody: Poems of Shaikh Abu-Saeed Abil-Kheir, Translated by Vraje Abramian Under the Sufi's Cloak: Stories of Abu Said and His Mystical Teaching, by Mohammad Ali Jamnia / Mojdeh Bayat
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Commentary by Ivan M. Granger

This is the proper attitude that leads to mystical union. In order to "find your way to Oneness," you can't follow the path of the mass of people or hope to fit in. Is anyone around you attaining That? If not, don't follow their example!

For the awareness to know the true Self, it must relinquish the little self. You must "drop" the ego in order to know your true divine worth.

The final line of this poem might seem confusing. Why wouldn't you want to be free from pain?

The Sufis love to turn imagery on its head, such as using wine -- a worldly drink that is forbidden in Islam -- as a reference to divine bliss.

In the language of some of the Sufi poets, the all-consuming love for God is described as sweet pain, a deeply aching yearning that turns the entire awareness toward God. It gives orientation to the soul and meaning to life. It is that pain that leads to true joy.

Ivan M. Granger's original poetry, stories and commentaries are Copyright © 2002 - 2009 by Ivan M. Granger.
All other material is copyrighted by the respective authors, translators and/or publishers.