My Granny Nanny Darling (yes–that is the name by which my grandmother prefers to be addressed) and I exchange letters, books and poems from time to time. I shared with her some Bedouin poetry that I had come across in my grad school research and she shared the below excerpt from The Sufi Poems of Sultan Bahu 1628-1658. Sultan Bahu was a Sufi saint and prolific writer. I love the poem below--it captures beautifully many aspects of Sufism but also the prospect of facing death at the end of life. He remains one of the most popular poets in India and Pakistan today.
Neither am I Sunni nor am I Shi’a–my heart is bitter with both
of them.
All long, dry marches came to an end when I entered the sea
of mercy.
Many nonswimmers tried and lost; a few climbed the other
bank.
They made it across safe and sound, Bahu, who clung to the
guide’s hem.
From “Death Before Dying”
More links:
Sufi Poetry Blog
Some of my favorite poetry books:
No comments:
Post a Comment