Sunday, June 15, 2008

After Hafez

Ghazel By: Mimi Khalvati

"How ever large earth's garden, mine's enough.
One rose and the shade of a vine's enough.

I don't want more wealth, I don't need more dross.
The grape has its bloom and it shines enough.

Why ask for the moon? The moon's in your cup,
a beggar, a tramp, for whom wine's enough.

Look at the stream as it winds out of sight.
One glance, one glimpse of a chine's enough.

Like the sun in bazaars, streaming in shafts,
any slant on the grand design's enough.

When you're here, my love, what more could I want?
Just mentioning love in a line's enough.

Heaven can wait. To have found, heaven knows,
a bed and a roof's divine enough.

I've no grounds for complaint. As Hafez says,
isn't a ghazal that he signs enough?"

from The Meanest Flower © 2007

To learn more about Mimi Khalvati visit her site at http://www.mimikhalvati.co.uk/index.htm

1 comment:

OM said...

Beautiful. I'd like to read more of Hafiz. I recently read this book "Septembers of Shiraz" by Dalia Sofer who mentioned Hafiz's poetry several times in the story. It's great stuff! Thanks for posting.