A poem from a Sufi mystic poet

[Javad]

Hey. I was just reading this poem from one of the Persian mystic poets from ~800 years ago or so, and it sat right in my heart and I thought I could share it with you.

A little context: the poetry book is called "the logic of the bird" if translated word by word. But it's better translated as "the way of the bird" or "the logic of the flight". Flying is a metaphor for the path toward enlightenment. It's a story of a group of birds who decide that their kingless realm needs a king, as a kingless realm will end up in chaos. So the birds gather to go on a journey to meet up with the great phoenix to ask him to be their king. But in this path, there are many traps. Phoenix in persian is called سیمرغ (read: Simorgh/Simorq), and bird is called مرغ (Morgh/Morq). And "Si" means the number 30. So there is this clever use of language to show a metaphor: the 30 birds that went to the phoenix, were actually one and the same: Simorgh (phoenix) = Si-Morgh (30 birds). So they were the king all along.

The book isn't translated in English I believe, and I'm not great at literary skills, so sadly the beauty of the poetry will be butchered, but I hope the meaning captures you as much as it did me.

 

"See the travelers at the doorway,
Coming together, one after another.

There is in every speck another doorway,
So from each speck there is another way.

How would you ever know which way you'd be walking,
And from which way you'd reach the doorway?

He's hidden when you seek him in the obvious,
And obvious when you seek him in the hidden.

And as you look into both places at once,
no trace of him still, he's out of both.

You haven't lost anything, don't seek a thing
Whatever you say it's not it, don't say a thing,

All you say and all you know is you,
Know thyself, that you are all there is to know."

- Attar of Neishabur (Mantegh-ol-tayr - the way of the bird)

[BipolarGrowth]

Good one

[Guest Bazooka Jesus]

Beautiful stuff.

[Kambido]

@Javad "All you say and all you know is you,
Know thyself, that you are all there is to know."" 

Out of so many posts i've read about we are all... this relates to me the most, bc i know i am all, but i also understand that i am not all bc the all want me to be me... that is what you learn when you are beyond stages, it circles back to you... who are you? Who are you to the infinite? Who are you in infinity? That is beautiful if you understand where i'm coming from.