O jewel of my eye, the axis of my love,
O you of sweet words, you of sweet eyes! May the journey of your life pass safe and sound,
Poetry
Poems by Akrom Malik, newest first. Pick one for your mood.
The affairs of this world cannot be set right,
The affairs of no person can be set right. Mend one side, and another side will crack,
You are the Only One, You are the One, O God,
You are in need of no one at all. Every flaw is far removed from Your Being,
You who looked into my innermost self
Sensed my wretchedness and stayed away. You who grew weary looking at my sorrow
Knowing myself from close up,
I had been bearing it, having no choice. Now whoever comes to me as a friend,
You who, calling on God, became slaves of the world,
You straws turned to ash in Satan’s fire, When at times egos stray and make mistakes,
There are all kinds of people in the world, after all,
To know each one is hard, so very hard. For one puts on a mask, while full of filth within,
Often I shudder all of a sudden,
A trembling plays through my whole being. The door is knocking — the ill-wisher is knocking,
In matters of love I had no will of my own —
I could not keep my heart’s love locked away. I was forever drunk on the wine of love,
I had been scattered piece by piece,
And you are gathering me speck by speck. I chewed myself, I ate myself in bits,
Great nation that built the world anew!
Nation that loves the Truth and is ever beloved of the Truth! Nation whose heart was at times scorched by tyranny and darkness!
Each one does the deeds that suit his nature,
This justice of eternity will never break: To love the book is the way of kings,
A young man followed an old, white-bearded man
And called out, “I have a question for you!” The sage looked up, raising his head:
Once a teacher was asked this question:
“Tell us, who in this world is happy?” The teacher answered: “It is clear as day —
My Lord, cleanse my heart of every stain,
Leave no room in it for malice and enmity. Perhaps, if You grant me a place in the eternal garden,
I had been scattered piece by piece,
And you are gathering me speck by speck. I chewed myself, I ate myself in bits,
I am a creature as lowly as an ant. Alas,
Did I call the ant lowly? Forgive me... How heedless I am, for from the very start, O Allah,
The greatest blessing is to know God,
To know God and to seek refuge in Him. Expecting from Him every grace and gift,
Divine manifestations have filled this world,
It is the servant’s duty to plead and to beseech. If your heart can see, it will confess and affirm —
Would I ever want you to grieve?
Do I need the pains of your heart? Would I press you to a task beyond your strength?!
The greatest blessing is to know God,
To know God and to seek refuge in Him. Expecting from Him every grace and gift,
Do not take offense at people, you too are human,
At times you are wise, at times a fool. Looking at your flaws and virtues, you are often bewildered,
Divine manifestations have filled this world,
It is the servant’s duty to plead and to beseech. If your heart can see, it will confess and affirm —
Not the cloud itself, but the water it brings is sweet,
You drink its water and forget the cloud itself. We too are like the cloud, for all our surging and roaring —