Salaam and Greetings of Peace:
Alhamdulillah! The wild geese have come back again. I can see them in the pond now, preening their feathers and honking their song. Spring is in the air! And so, Sufi wisdom and a poem as the days lengthen and the heart rejoices :)
NATURE SPEAKS LOUDER THAN THE CALL FROM THE MINARET.
-Hazrat Inayat Khan
WILD GEESE
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting–
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
– Mary Oliver
– From the Sufi Family Yahoo Group
Ya Haqq!
Dear Brother,
I have always loved this poem. Somehow today, framed in your love, they mean even more…
How liberating to love the soft animal of our bodies. To feel life offering itself to our imaginations….
to remember our part in the family of things.
You are a leader in the truest sense of the word. Full of tenderness and humility and non judgement.
I am so grateful for you dear brother.
Sending you the love that lights the little stars, and the peace that the wild geese know,
Maithri
In Iran spring has another color. Now we are cleaning the house, ordering the 7 sin things and waiting for new year eve. I like persian new year. It comes with spring..
BTW very beautiful poem.. :)
Salaams Brother:
I live in Pennsylvania, USA, and we see the geese, too. They are called “Canadian Geese” here. They are a sure enough sign of spring!
Dear Brother…what a wonderful composition … I could not read the wonderful writings of my dear friends for a few days… but its to refreshing and delightful to feel this joy and happiness .. blessings to u..
Yes – the wild geese are on the move here in Cumbria too. I love their calls – so mysterious and exciting. And thank you for sharing this beautiful poem.
Funny: I saw Canadian geese in my mind when I read this lovely poem. :) I like Canadian geese very much.
Our geese aren’t back yet, that would be too early. But my favorite willowtree is waking up!
It’s the 1st of Rabiul-Awal today and what a beautiful day it is… feels ever-more beautiful by reading your wonderful post Brother Irving :) Peace be you :)
And yes, the geese are here also! :D
Dear Brother,
God has a plan all his own…
I was talking to a dear beloved friend today who is going through a time of crisis…
I remembered the words from this poem… about being true to the soft animal of your body….
it seemed to fit… to make sense…
Is it not amazing… how the world is conspiring to bring the little pieces of the puzzle together… in love….
Thank you for being,
Sending the songs of unbreakable peace to you and your family,
Maithri
Asalaamoalaikum,
Mary Oliver writes from the heart. We dont have geese here, but the poem is picturesque and comforting!
JazaaikALlah hu Khairan
God, the loveliness of the poem swept me off my feet…what does Ya haqq! mean?
Salaam Dear Brothers and Sisters:
Thank you all for the kind comments :) Indeed it is a lovely poem, and true to the heart of nature speaking to us of God, as Hazrat Inayat Khan so rightly says.
Ya Haqq is a name of God, and means The Truth, and is not only what each darvish strives for, in both his inward heart and outward being, but also a form of greeting and farewell in the Nimatullahi Sufi Order. It signifies that we come and go, speak and work from the deepest truths of our heart.
Ya Haqq!
Salaams Baba Darvish
Jazak Allah for this – just what the doctor ordered!
Allah! I really needed that.
Abdur Rahman
Assalamu Br darvish
“NATURE SPEAKS LOUDER THAN THE CALL FROM THE MINARET.”
– Powerful statement. Thank you for this quotations.
katib