The Appearance of Piety from Golestan by Saadi Shirazi
One of the nobles once said to a pious man, “What do you think of that certain worshipper — the one people speak of mockingly …
When Light Fades Hafez and the Midnight of Separation
This ghazal is one of Hafez’s most heart-wrenching meditations on separation, memory, and the soul’s exhaustion in love. Hafez Starts by: Without the radiance of …
Contentment and Fairness from Golestan by Saadi Shirazi
Saadi tells us: A beggar from the Maghreb — the western lands — was once standing among the cloth merchants of Aleppo. He cried out, …
Burned to Nothing Attar’s Song of Annihilation
There are poems that whisper, and there are poems that consume. This ghazal by Attar of Nishapur does not whisper; it burns. It is not …
The Dying Old Man from Golestan by Saadi Shirazi
Saadi writes: I was once in the Great Mosque of Damascus, engaged in discussion with a group of scholars, when a young man entered and …
The Hidden Treasury of Pain A Reflection on Khaqani’s Ghazal
There are some poets whose words feel carved from the bone of longing itself; their verses bleed, ache, and shimmer all at once. Khaqani Shirvani …
The Hidden Treasury of Pain A Reflection on Khaqani’s Ghazal
There are some poets whose words feel carved from the bone of longing itself; their verses bleed, ache, and shimmer all at once. Khaqani Shirvani …
The Eyes of Envy from Golestan by Saadi Shirazi
Saadi says: I once told a friend, “I’ve grown silent most of the time, because whenever we speak, both good and bad may slip out …