A Lover of God
Sometimes a lover of God may faint
in the presence. Then the beloved bends
and whispers in his ear, “Beggar,
spread out your robe. I’ll fill it with gold.
I’ve come to protect your consciousness.
Where has it gone? Come back!”
This fainting is because lovers want so much.
A chicken invites a camel into her henhouse,
and the whole structure is demolished.
A rabbit nestles down with its eyes closed
in the arms of a lion. There is an excess in
spiritual searching that is profound ignorance.
Let that ignorance be our teacher!
The Friend breathes into one who has no breath.
A deep silence revives the listening
of those two who meet on the riverbank.
Like the ground turning green in a spring wind,
like birdsong beginning inside the egg,
like this universe coming into existence,
the lover wakes and whirls in a dancing joy,
then kneels down in praise.
From The Book of Love
Translated by Coleman Barks
