Alternate versions of the first ghazal in Hafiz's divan


O Bartender

O bartender, my friend, won't you pour me some wine
I thought that love would be easy, but it just grows harder with time

It was in the night a breeze brought the scent of musk from the head of that one so fair
and ever since that night, how my poor heart aches, from just one twist of his hair

Dye your prayer mat red with wine if the master tells you to
that holy one knows the secrets of the path and he will surely guide you through

How can I be happy and free from doubt on this path to my Beloved one
At any moment the caravan bell may ring out and say "your time in this resting place is done"

Death is like a cold, dark whirlpool, a wave of suffering, just waiting to wash us away
you who rest in comfort upon the shoreline, how can you know our state?

I have followed my own whim, and now all my work has brought nothing but disgrace and shame
this whole world talks about the mystery of love, but it remains a secret just the same

O Hafiz, if you long to be with him, don't be absent from him, no
when you visit with your Beloved one, abandon the world and let it go
 

Translator:

Newell, J. R.  (2001) The Songs of Hafiz. Nashville: Blue Sadhana.

 

 

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