Translation by
E. H. Whinfield (1883)
1.
At
dawn a cry through all the tavern shrilled,
"Arise,
my brethren of the revelers' guild,
That I may fill our measure full of
wine,
Or
e'er the measure of our days be filled."
2.
Who
was it brought thee here at nightfall, who?
Forth
from the harem in this manner, who?
To him who in thy absence burns as
fire,
And
trembles like hot air, who was it, who?
3.
'Tis
but a day we sojourn here below,
And
all the gain we get is grief and woe,
Then, leaving our life's riddles all
unsolved,
And
burdened with regrets, we have to go.
4.
Khaja!
grant one request, and only one,
Wish
me God‑speed, and get your preaching done;
I walk aright, 'tis you
who see awry;
Go!
heal your purblind eyes, leave me alone.
5.
Arise!
and come, and of thy courtesy
Resolve
my weary heart's perplexity,
And fill my goblet, so that I may
drink,
Or
e'er they make their goblets out of me.
6.
When
I am dead, with wine my body lave,
For
obit chant a bacchanalian stave,
And, if you need me at the day of
doom,
Beneath
the tavern threshold seek my grave.
7.
Since
no one can assure thee of the morrow,
Rejoice
thy heart to‑day, and banish sorrow
With moonbright wine, fair moon, for
heaven's moon
Will
look for us in vain on many a morrow.
8.
Let
lovers all distraught and frenzied be,
And
flown with wine, and reprobates, like me;
When sober, I find everything amiss,
But
in my cups cry, "Let what will be, be."
9.
In
Allah's name, say, wherefore set the wise
Their
hearts upon this house of vanities?
Whene'er they think to rest them
from their toils,
Death
takes them by the hand, and says, "Arise."
10.
Men
say the Koran holds all heavenly lore,
But
on its pages seldom care to pore;
The lucid lines engraven on the bowl
‑
That
is the text they dwell on evermore.
11.
Blame
not the drunkards, you who wine eschew,
Had
I but grace, I would abstain like you,
And mark me, vaunting zealot, you
commit
A
hundredfold worse sins than drunkards do.
12.
What
though 'tis fair to view, this form of man,
I
know not why the heavenly Artizan
Hath set these tulip cheeks and
cypress forms
To
deck the mournful halls of earth's divan.
13.
My
fire gives forth no smoke‑cloud here below,
My
stock‑in‑trade no profit here below,
And you, who call me tavern‑haunter,
know
There
is indeed no tavern here below.
14.
Thus
spake an idol to his worshiper,
"Why
dost thou worship this dead stone, fair sir?
'Tis because He who gazeth through
thine eyes
Doth
some part of His charms on it confer. "
15.
Whate'er
thou doest, never grieve thy brother,
Nor
kindle fumes of wrath his peace to smother;
Dost thou desire to taste eternal
bliss,
Vex
thine own heart, but never vex another!
16.
O
Thou! to please whose love and wrath as well,
Allah
created heaven and likewise hell;
Thou hast thy court in heaven, and I
have naught,
Why
not admit me in thy courts to dwell?
17.
So
many cups of wine will I consume,
Its
bouquet shall exhale from out my tomb,
And every one that passes by shall
halt,
And
reel and stagger with that mighty fume.
18.
Young
wooer, charm all hearts with lover's art,
Glad
winner, lead thy paragon apart!
A hundred Kaabas equal not one
heart,
Seek
not the Kaaba, rather seek a heart!
19.
What
time, my cup in hand, its draughts I drain,
And
with rapt heart unconsciousness attain,
Behold what wondrous miracles are
wrought ‑
Songs
flow as water from my burning brain.
20.
To‑day
is but a breathing space, quaff wine!
Thou
wilt not see again this life of thine;
So, as the world becomes the spoil
of time,
Offer
thyself to be the spoil of wine!
21.
'Tis
we who to wine's yoke our necks incline,
And
risk our lives to gain the smiles of wine;
The henchman grasps the flagon by
its throat
And
squeezes out the life‑blood of the vine.
22.
Here
in this tavern‑haunt I make my lair,
Pawning
for wine, heart, soul, and all I wear,
Without a hope of bliss, or fear of
bale,
Rapt
above water, earth, and fire, and air.
23.
Quoth
fish to duck, "Twill be a sad affair,
If
this brook leaves its channel dry and bare ";
To whom the duck, "When I am
dead and roasted
The
brook may run with wine for aught I care. "
24.
From
doubt to clear assurance is a breath,
A
breath from infidelity to faith;
O precious breath! enjoy it while
you may,
'Tis
all that life can give, and then comes death.
25.
Ah!
wheel of heaven to tyranny inclined,
'Twas
e'er your wont to show yourself unkind;
And, cruel earth, if they should
cleave your breast,
What
store of buried jewels they would find!
26.
My
life lasts but a day or two, and fast
Sweeps
by, like torrent stream or desert blast,
Howbeit, of two days I take no heed ‑
The
day to come, and that already past.
27.
That
pearl is from a mine unknown to thee,
That
ruby bears a stamp thou canst not see,
The tale of love some other tongue
must tell,
All
our conjectures are mere fantasy.
28.
Now
with its joyful prime my age is rife,
quaff enchanting wine, and list to fife;
Chide not at wine for all its bitter
taste,
Its
bitterness sorts well with human life!
29.
O
soul! whose lot it is to bleed with pain,
nd
daily change of fortune to sustain,
Into this body wherefore didst thou
come,
Seeing
thou must at last go forth again?
30.
To‑day
is thine to spend, but not to‑morrow,
ounting
on morrows breedeth naught but sorrow;
Oh! squander not this breath that
heaven hath lent thee,
Nor
make too sure another breath to borrow!
31.
'Tis
labor lost thus to all doors to crawl,
Take
thy good fortune, and thy bad withal;
Know for a surety each must play his
game,
As
from heaven's dice‑box fate's dice chance to fall.
32.
This
jug did once, like me, love's sorrows taste,
And
bonds of beauty's tresses once embraced,
This handle, which you see upon its
side,
Has
many a time twined round a slender waist!
33.
Days
changed to nights, ere you were born, or I,
And
on its business ever rolled the sky;
See you tread gently on this dust‑perchance
'Twas
once the apple of some beauty's eye.
34.
Pagodas,
just as mosques, are homes of prayer,
'Tis
prayer that church‑bells chime unto the air,
Yea, Church and Kaaba, Rosary and
Cross
Are
all but divers tongues of world‑wide prayer.
35.
'Twas
writ at first, whatever was to be,
By
pen, unheeding bliss or misery,
Yea, writ upon the tablet once for
all,
To
murmur or resist is vanity.
36.
There
is a mystery I know full well,
Which
to all, good and bad, I can not tell;
My words are dark, but I can not
unfold
The
secrets of the station where I dwell.
37.
No
base or light‑weight coins pass current here,
Of
such a broom has swept our dwelling clear;
Forth from the tavern comes a sage
and cries,
"Drink!
for ye all must sleep through ages drear."
38.
With
outward seeming we can cheat mankind,
But
to God's will we can but be resigned;
The deepest wiles my cunning e'er
devised,
To
balk resistless fate no way could find.
39.
Is
a friend faithless? spurn him as a foe;
Upon
trustworthy foes respect bestow;
Hold healing poison for an antidote,
And
baneful sweets for deadly eisel know.
40.
No
heart is there but bleeds when torn from Thee,
No
sight so clear but craves Thy face to see;
And though perchance Thou carest not
for them,
No
soul is there but pines with care for Thee.
41.
Sobriety
doth dry up all delight,
And
drunkenness doth drown my sense outright;
There is a middle state, it is my
life ‑
Not
altogether drunk, nor sober quite.
42.
Behold
these cups! Can He who deigned to make them,
In
wanton freak let ruin overtake them,
So many shapely feet and hands and
heads ‑
What
love drives Him to make, what wrath to break them?
43.
Death's
terrors spring from baseless fantasy,
Death
yields the tree of immortality;
Since 'Isa breathed new life into my
soul,
Eternal
death has washed its hands of me!
44.
Like
tulips in the Spring your cups lift up,
And,
with a tulip‑cheeked companion, sup
With joy your wine, or e'er this
azure wheel
With
some unlooked‑for blast upset your cup.
45.
Facts
will not change to humor man's caprice,
So
vaunt not human powers, but hold your peace;
Here must we stay, weighed down with
grief for this.
That
we were born so late, so soon decease.
46.
Khayyam!
why weep you that your life is bad?
What
boots it thus to mourn? Rather be glad.
He that sins not can make no claim
to mercy,
Mercy
was made for sinners ‑ be not sad.
47.
All
mortal ken is bounded by the veil,
To
see beyond man's sight is all too frail;
Yea! earth's dark bosom is his only
home: ‑
Alas!
'twere long to tell the doleful tale.
48.
This
faithless world, my home, I have surveyed,
Yea,
and with all my wit deep question made,
But found no moon with face so
bright as thine,
No
cypress in such stateliness arrayed.
49.
In
synagogue and cloister, mosque and school,
Hell's
terrors and heaven's lures men's bosoms rule,
But they who master Allah's
mysteries,
Sow
not this empty chad their hearts to fool.
50.
You
see the world, but all you see is naught,
And
all you say, and all you hear is naught,
Naught the four quarters of the
mighty earth,
The
secrets treasured in your chamber naught.
51.
I
dreamt a sage said, "Wherefore life consume
In
sleep? Can sleep make pleasure's roses bloom?
For gather not with death's twin‑brother
sleep,
Thou
wilt have sleep enough within thy tomb! "
52.
If
the heart knew life's secrets here below,
At
death 'twould know God's secrets too, I trow;
But, if you know naught here, while
still yourself,
To‑morrow,
stripped of self, what can you know?
53.
On
that dread day, when wrath shall rend the sky,
And
darkness dim the bright stars' galaxy,
I'll seize the Loved One by His
skirt, and cry,
"Why
hast Thou doomed these guiltless ones to die? "
54.
To
knaves Thy secret we must not confide,
To
comprehend it is to fools denied,
See then to what hard case Thou
doomest men,
Our
hopes from one and all perforce we hide.
55.
Cupbearer!
what though fate's blows here betide us,
And
a safe resting‑place be here denied us,
So long as the bright wine‑cup
stands between us,
We
have the very Truth at hand to guide us.
56.
Long
time in wine and rose I took delight,
But
then my business never went aright;
Since wine could not accomplish my
desire,
I
have abandoned and forsworn it quite.
57.
Bring
wine! my heart with dancing spirit teems,
Wake
I fortune's waking is as feeting dreams;
Quicksilver‑like our days are
swift of foot,
And
youthful fire subsides as torrent streams.
58.
Love's
devotees, not Muslims here you see,
Not
Solomons, but ants of low degree;
Here are but faces wan and tattered
rags,
No
store of Cairene cloth or silk have we.
59.
My
law it is in pleasure's paths to stray,
My
creed to shun the theologic fray;
I wedded Luck, and offered her a
dower,
She
said, "I want none, so thy heart be gay."
60.
From
mosque an outcast, and to church a foe,
Allah!
of what clay didst thou form me so?
Like skeptic monk, or ugly
courtesan,
No
hopes have I above, no joys below.
61.
Men's
lusts, like house‑dogs, still the house distress
With
clamor, barking for mere wantonness;
Foxes are they, and sleep the sleep
of hares;
Crafty
as wolves, as tigers pitiless.
62.
Yon
turf, fringing the margent of the stream,
As
down upon a cherub's lip might seem,
Or growth from dust of buried tulip
cheeks;
Tread
not that turf with scorn, or light esteem!
63.
Hearts
with the light of love illumined well,
Whether
in mosque or synagogue they dwell,
Have their names written in the book
of love,
Unvexed
by hopes of heaven or fears of hell.
64.
One
draught of wine outweighs the realm of Tus,
Throne
of Kobad and crown of Kai Kawus;
Sweeter are sighs that lovers heave
at morn,
Than
all the groanings zealot breasts produce.
65.
Though
Muslims for my sins condemn and chide me,
Like
heathens to my idol I confide me;
Yea, when I perish of a drunken
bout,
I'll
call on wine, whatever doom betide me.
66.
In
drinking thus it is not my design
To
riot, or transgress the law divine,
No! to attain unconsciousness of
self
Is
the sole cause I drink me drunk with wine.
67.
Drunkards
are doomed to hell, so men declare,
Believe
it not, 'tis but a foolish scare;
Heaven will be empty as this hand of
mine,
If
none who love good drink find entrance there.
68.
'Tis
wrong, according to the strict Koran,
To
drink in Rajab, likewise in Sha'ban,
God and the Prophet claim those
months as theirs;
Was
Ramadan then made for thirsty man?
69.
Now
Ramadan is come, no wine must flow,
Our
simple pastimes we must now forego,
The wine we have in store we must
not drink,
Nor
on our mistresses one kiss bestow.
70.
What
is the world? A caravanserai,
A
pied pavilion of night and day;
A feast whereat a thousand Jamshids
sat,
A
couch whereon a thousand Bahrams lay.
71.
Now
that your roses bloom with Sowers of bliss,
To
grasp your goblets be not so remiss;
Drink while you may! Time is a
treacherous foe,
You
may not see another day like this.
72.
Here
in this palace, where Bahram held sway,
The
wild roes drop their young, and tigers stray;
And that great hunter king ‑
ah! well‑a‑day!
Now
to the hunter death is fallen a prey.
73.
Down
fall the tears from skies enwrapt in gloom,
Without
this drink, the flowers could never bloom!
As now these flowerets yield delight
to me,
So
shall my dust yield flowers ‑ God knows for whom.
74.
To‑day
is Friday, as the Muslim says,
Drink
then from bowls served up in quick relays;
Suppose on common days you drink one
bowl,
To‑day
drink two, for 'tis the prince of days.
75.
The
very wine a myriad forms sustains,
And
to take shapes of plants and creatures deigns
But deem not that its essence ever
dies,
Its
forms may perish, but its self remains.
76.
'Tis
naught but smoke this people's fire doth bear,
For
my well‑being not a soul doth care;
With hands fate makes me lift up in
despair,
I
grasp men's skirts, but find no succor there.
77.
This
bosom friend, on whom you so rely,
Seems
to clear wisdom's eyes an enemy;
Choose not your friends from this
rude multitude,
Their
converse is a plague 'tis best to fly.
78.
O
foolish one! this molded earth is naught;
This
parti‑colored vault of heaven is naught;
Our sojourn in this seat of life and
death
Is
but one breath, and what is that but naught?
79.
Some
wine, a Houri (Houris if there be),
A
green bank by a stream, with minstrelsy; ‑
Toil not to find a better Paradise
If
other Paradise indeed there be!
80.
To
the wine‑house I saw the sage repair,
Bearing
a wine‑cup, and a mat for prayer;
I said, "O Shaikh, what does
this conduct mean?"
Said
he, "Go drink! the world is naught but air."
81.
The
Bulbul to the garden winged his way,
Viewed
lily cups, and roses smiling gay,
Cried in ecstatic notes, "O
live your life,
You
never will relive this fleeting day. "
82.
Thy
body is a tent, where harborage
The
Sultan spirit takes for one brief age;
When he departs, comes the tent‑pitcher
death,
Strikes
it, and onward moves, another stage.
83.
Khayyam,
who long time stitched the tents of learning,
Has
fallen into a furnace, and lies burning,
Death's shears have cut his thread
of life asunder,
Fate's
brokers sell him off with scorn and spurning.
84.
In
the sweet spring a grassy bank I sought,
And
thither wine, and a fair Houri brought;
And, though the people called me
graceless dog,
Gave
not to Paradise another thought!
85.
Sweet
is rose‑ruddy wine in goblets gay,
And
sweet are lute and harp and roundelay;
But for the zealot who ignores the
cup,
'Tis
sweet when he is twenty leagues away!
86.
Life,
void of wine, and minstrels with their lutes,
And
the soft murmurs of Iraqian futes,
Were nothing worth: I scan the world
and see:
Save
pleasure, life yields only bitter fruits.
87.
Make
haste! soon must you quit this life below,
And
pass the veil, and Allah's secrets know;
Make haste to take your pleasure
while you may,
You
wot not whence you come, nor whither go.
88.
Depart
we must! what boots it then to be,
To
walk in vain desires continually?
Nay, but if heaven vouchsafe no
place of rest,
What
power to cease our wanderings have we?
89.
To
chant wine's praises is my daily task,
I
live encompassed by cup, bowl, and flask;
Zealot! if reason be thy guide, then
know
That
guide of me doth ofttimes guidance ask.
90.
O
men of morals! why do ye defame,
And
thus misjudge me? I am not to blame.
Save weakness for the grape, and
female charms,
What
sins of mine can any of ye name?
91.
Who
treads in passion's footsteps here below,
A
helpless pauper will depart, I trow;
Remember who you are, and whence you
come.
Consider
what you do, and whither go.
92.
Skies
like a zone our weary lives enclose,
And
from our tear‑stained eyes a Jihun flows;
Hell is a fire enkindled of our
griefs;
Heaven
but a moment's peace, stolen from our woes.
93.
I
drown in sin ‑ show me Thy clemency!
My
soul is dark ‑ make me Thy light to see!
A heaven that must be earned by
painful works,
I
call a wage, not a gift fair and free.
94.
Did
He who made me fashion me for hell,
Or
destine me for heaven? I can not tell.
Yet will I not renounce cup, lute, and
love,
Nor
earthly cash for heavenly credit sell.
95.
From
right and left the censors came and stood,
Saying,
"Renounce this wine, this foe of good";
But if wine be the foe of holy
faith,
By
Allah, right it is to drink its blood!
96.
The
good and evil with man's nature blent,
The
weal and woe that heaven's decrees have sent ‑
Impute them not to motions of the
skies ‑
Skies
than thyself ten times more impotent.
97.
Against
death's arrows what are buckles worth?
What
all the pomps and riches of the earth?
When I survey the world, I see no
good
But
goodness, all beside is nothing worth.
98.
Weak
souls, who from the world can not refrain,
Hold
life‑long fellowship with rule and pain;
Hearts free from worldly cares have
store of bliss,
All
others seeds of bitter woe contain.
99.
He,
in whose bosom wisdom's seed is sown,
To
waste a single day was never known;
Either he strives to work great
Allah's will,
Or
else exalts the cup, and works his own.
100.
When
Allah mixed my clay He knew full well
My
future acts, and could each one foretell;
Without His will no act of mine was
wrought;
Is
it then just to punish me in hell?
101.
Ye,
who cease not to drink on common days,
Do
not on Friday quit your drinking ways;
Adopt my creed, and count all days
the same,
Be
worshipers of God, and not of days
102.
If
grace be grace, and Allah gracious be,
Adam
from Paradise why banished He?
Grace to poor sinners shown is grace
indeed;
In
grace hard earned by works no grace I see
103.
Dame
Fortune's smiles are full of guile, beware!
Her
scimitar is sharp to smite, take care!
If e'er she drop a sweetmeat in thy
mouth,
'Tis
poisonous‑to swallow it forbear!
104.
Where'er
you see a rose or tulip bed,
Know
that a mighty monarch's blood was shed
And where the violet rears her
purple tuft,
Be
sure a black‑moled girl hath laid her head
105.
Wine
is a melting ruby, cup its mine;
Cup
is the body, and the soul is wine;
These crystal goblets smile with
ruddy wine
Like
tears, that blood of wounded hearts enshrine
106.
Drink
wine! 'tis life etern, and travail's meed,
Fruitage
of youth, and balm of age's need:
'Tis the glad time of roses, wine,
and friends;
Rejoice
thy spirit ‑ that is life indeed
107.
Drink
wine! long must you sleep within the tomb,
Without
a friend, or wife to cheer your gloom;
Hear what I say, and tell it not
again,
"Never
again can withered tulips bloom"
108.
They
preach how sweet those Houri brides will be,
But
I say wine is sweeter ‑ taste and see!
Hold fast this cash, and let that
credit go,
And
shun the din of empty drums like me
109.
Once
and again my soul did me implore,
To
teach her, if I might, the heavenly lore;
I bade her learn the Alif well by
heart
Who
knows that letter well need learn no more
110.
I
came not hither of my own free will,
And
go against my wish, a puppet still;
upbearer!
gird thy loins, and fetch some wine;
To
purge the world's despite, my goblet fill
111.
How
long must I make bricks upon the sea?
Beshrew
this vain task of idolatry;
Call not Khayyam a denizen of hell;
One
while in heaven, and one in hell is he
112.
Sweet
is the breath of Spring to rose's face,
And
thy sweet face adds charm to this fair place;
To‑day is sweet, but yesterday
is sad,
And
sad all mention of its parted grace
113.
To‑night
pour wine, and sing a dulcet air,
And
I upon thy lips will hang, O fair;
Yea, pour some wine as rosy as thy
cheeks,
My
mind is troubled like thy ruffled hair
114.
Pen,
tablet, heaven and hell I looked to see
Above
the skies, from all eternity;
At last the master sage instructed
me,
"Pen,
tablet, heaven and hell are all in thee"
115.
The
fruit of certitude he can not pluck,
The
path that leads thereto who never struck,
Nor ever shook the bough with
strenuous hand;
To‑day
is lost; hope for to‑morrow's luck
116.
Now
spring‑tide showers its foison on the land,
And
lively hearts wend forth, a joyous band,
For 'Isa's breath wakes the dead
earth to life,
And
trees gleam white with flowers, like Musa's hand
117.
Alas
for that cold heart, which never glows
With
love, nor e'er that charming madness knows;
The days misspent with no redeeming
love; ‑
No
days are wasted half as much as those!
118.
The
zephyrs waft thy fragrance, and it takes
My
heart, and me, his master, he forsakes;
Careless of me he pants and leaps to
thee,
And
thee his pattern and ensample makes!
119.
Drink
wine! and then as Mahmud thou wilt reign,
And
hear a music passing David's strain:
Think not of past or future, seize
to‑day,
Then
all thy life will not be lived in vain
120.
Ten
Powers, and nine spheres, eight heavens made He,
And
planets seven, of six sides, as we see,
Five senses, and four elements,
three
souls,Two worlds, but only one, O man, like thee
121.
Jewry
hath seen a thousand prophets die,
Sinai
a thousand Musas mount the sky;
How many Caesars Rome's proud forum
crossed!
'Neath
Wasra's dome how many monarchs lie!
122.
Gold
breeds not wit, but to wit lacking bread
Earth's
flowery carpet seems a dungeon bed;
'Tis his full purse that makes the
rose to smile,
While
empty‑handed violets hang the head
123.
Heaven's
wheel has made full many a heart to moan,
And
many a budding rose to earth has thrown;
Plume thee not on thy youth and
lusty strength,
Full
many a bud is blasted ere 'tis blown
124.
What
lord is fit to rule but "Truth "? Not one.
What
beings disobey His rule? Not one.
All things that are, are such as He
decrees;
And
naught is there beside beneath the sun
125.
That
azure‑colored vault and golden tray
Have
turned, and will turn yet for many a day;
And just so we, impelled by turns of
fate ‑
Come
here but for a while, then pass away
126.
The
Master did himself these vessels frame,
Why
should he cast them out to scorn and shame?
If he has made them well, why should
he break them?
Yea,
though he marred them, they are not to blame
127.
Kindness
to friends and foes 'tis well to show,
No
kindly heart can prove unkind, I trow:
Harshness will alienate a bosom
friend,
And
kindness reconcile a deadly foe
128.
To
lovers true, what matters dark or fair?
Or
if the loved one silk or sackcloth wear,
Or lie on down or dust, or rise to
heaven?
Yea,
though she sink to hell, he'll seek her there
129.
Full
many a hill and vale I journeyed o'er;
Yea,
journeyed through the world's wide quarters four,
But never heard of pilgrim who
returned;
When
once they go, they go to come no more
130.
Wine‑houses
flourish through this thirst of mine,
Loads
of remorse weigh down this back of mine;
Yet, if I sinned not, what would
mercy do?
Mercy
depends upon these sins of mine
131.
Thy
being is the being of Another,
Thy
passion is the passion of Another.
Cover thy head, and think, and thou
wilt see
Thy
hand is but the cover of Another
132.
From
learning to the cup your bridle turn;
All
lore of world to come, save Kausar, spurn;
Your turban pawn for wine, or keep a
shred
To
bind your brow, and all the remnant burn
133.
See!
from the world what profit have I gained?
What
fruitage of my life in hand retained?
What use is Jamshid's goblet, once
'tis crushed?
What
pleasure's torch, when once its light has waned?
134.
When
life is spent, what's Balkh or Nishapore?
What
sweet or bitter, when the cup runs o'er?
Come drink! full many a moon will
wax and wane
In
times to come, when we are here no more
135.
O
fair! whose cheeks checkmate red eglantine,
And
draw the game with those fair maids of Chin;
You played one glance against the
king of Babil
And
took his pawns, and knights, and rooks, and queen
136.
Life's
caravan is hastening on its way;
Brood
not on troubles of the coming day,
But fill the wine‑cup ere
sweet night be gone,
And
snatch a pleasant moment, while you may
137.
He,
who the world's foundations erst did lay,
Doth
bruise full many a bosom day by day,
And many a ruby lip and musky tress
Doth
coffin in the earth, and shroud with clay
138.
Be
not beguiled by world's insidious wiles;
O
foolish ones, ye know her tricks and guiles;
Your precious lifetime cast not to
the winds;
Haste
to seek wine, and court a sweetheart's smile
139.
Comrades!
I pray you, physic me with wine,
Make
this wan amber face like rubies shine,
And, if I die, use wine to wash my
corpse,
And
frame my coffin out of planks of vine!
140.
When
Allah yoked the courses of the sun,
And
launched the Pleiades their race to run,
My
lot was fixed in fate's high chancery;
Then
why blame me for wrong that fate has done?
141.
Ah!
seasoned wine oft falls to rawest fools,
And
clumsiest workmen own the finest tools;
And Turki maids, fit to delight
men's hearts,
Lavish
their smiles on beardless boys in school!
142.
Whilom,
ere youth's conceit had waned, methought
Answers
to all life's problems I had wrought;
But now, grown old and wise, too
late I see
My
life is spent, and all my lore is naught
143.
They
who of prayer‑mats make such great display
Are
fools to bear hypocrisy's hard sway;
Strange! under cover of this saintly
show
They
live like heathen, and their faith betray
144.
To
him who would his sins extenuate,
Let
pious men this verse reiterate,
"To call God's prescience the
cause of sin
In
wisdom's purview is but folly's prate"
145.
He
brought me hither, and I felt surprise,
From
life I gather but a dark surmise,
I go against my will; ‑ thus,
why I come,
Why
live, why go, are all dark mysteries
146.
When
I recall my grievous sins to mind,
Fire
burns my breast, and tears my vision blind;
Yet, when a slave repents, is it not
meet
His
lord should pardon, and again be kind?
147.
They
at whose lore the whole world stands amazed,
Whose
high thoughts, like Borak, to heaven are raised,
Strive to know Thee in vain, and
like heaven's wheel
Their
heads are turning, and their brains are dazed
148.
Allah
hath promised wine in Paradise,
Why
then should wine on earth be deemed a vice?
An Arab in his cups cut Hamzah's girths
‑
For
that sole cause was drink declared a vice
149.
Now
of old joys naught but the name is left,
Of
all old friends but wine we are bereft,
And that wine new, but still cleave
to the cup,
For
save the cup, what single joy is left?
150.
The
world will last long after Khayyam's fame
Has
passed away, yea, and his very name;
Aforetime we were not, and none did
heed
When
we are dead and gone, 'twill be tie same
151.
The
sages who have compassed sea and land,
Their
secret to search out, and understand ‑
My mind misgives me if they ever
solve
The
scheme on which this universe is planned
152.
Ah!
wealth takes wings, and leaves our hands all bare,
And
death's rough hands delight our hearts to tear;
And from the nether world none e'er
escapes,
To
bring us news of the poor pilgrims there
153.
'Tis
passing strange, those titled noblemen
Find
their own lives a burden sore, but when
They meet with poorer men, not
slaves to sense,
They
scarcely deign to reckon them as men
154.
The
wheel on high, still busied with despite,
Will
ne'er unloose a wretch from his sad plight;
But when it lights upon a smitten
heart,
Straightway
essays another blow to smite
155.
Now
is the volume of my youth outworn,
And
all my spring‑tide blossoms rent and torn.
Ah, bird of youth! I marked not when
you came
Nor
when you fled, and left me thus forlorn
156.
These
fools, by dint of ignorance most crass,
Think
they in wisdom all mankind surpass;
And glibly do they damn as infidel
Whoever
is not, like themselves, an ass
157.
Still
be the wine‑house thronged with its glad choir,
And
Pharisaic skirts burnt up with fire;
Still be those tattered frocks and
azure robes
Trod
under feet of revelers in the mire
158.
Why
toil ye to ensure illusions vain,
And
good or evil of the world attain?
Ye rise like Zamzam, or the fount of
life,
And,
like them, in earth's bosom sink again
159.
Till
the Friend pours his wine to glad my heart,
No
kisses to my face will heaven impart:
They say, "Repent in time
"; but how repent,
Ere
Allah's grace hath softened my hard heart?
160.
When
I am dead, take me and grind me small,
So
that I be a caution unto all,
And knead me into clay with wine,
and then
Use
me to stop the wine‑jar's mouth withal
161.
What
though the sky with its blue canopy
Doth
close us in so that we can not see,
In the etern Cupbearer's wine
methinks
There
float a myriad bubbles like to me
162.
Take
heart! Long in the weary tomb you'll lie,
While
stars keep countless watches in the sky,
And see your ashes molded into
bricks,
To
build another's house and turrets high
163.
Glad
hearts, who seek not notoriety,
Nor
flaunt in gold and silken bravery,
Haunt not this ruined earth like
gloomy owls,
But
wing their way, Simurgh‑like, to the sky
164.
Wine's
power is known to wine‑bibbers alone,
To
narrow heads and hearts 'tis never shown;
I blame not them who never felt its
force,
For,
till they feel it, how can it be known?
165.
Needs
must the tavern‑hunter bathe in wine,
For
none can make a tarnished name to shine;
Go! bring me wine, for none can now
restore
Its
pristine sheen to this soiled veil of mine
166.
I
wasted life in hope, yet gathered not
In
all my life of happiness one jot;
Now my fear is that life may not
endure,
Till
I have taken vengeance on my lot!
167.
Be
very wary in the soul's domain,
And
on the world's affairs your lips refrain;
Be, as it were, sans tongue, sans
ear, sans eye,
While
tongue, and ears, and eyes you still retain
168.
Let
him rejoice who has a loaf of bread,
A
little nest wherein to lay his head,
Is slave to none, and no man slaves
for him ‑
In
truth his lot is wondrous well bested
169.
What
adds my service to Thy majesty?
Or
how can sin of mine dishonor Thee?
O pardon, then, and punish not, I
know
Thou'rt
slow to wrath, and prone to clemency
170.
Hands,
such as mine, that handle bowls of wine,
'Twere
shame to book and pulpit to confine;
Zealot! thou'rt dry, and I am moist
with drink,
Yea,
far too moist to catch that fire of thine!
171.
Whoso
aspires to gain a rose‑cheeked fair,
Sharp
pricks from fortune's thorns must learn to bear.
See! till this comb was cleft by
cruel cuts,
It
never dared to touch my lady's hair
172.
Forever
may my hands on wine be stayed,
And
my heart pant for some fair Houri maid!
They say, "May Allah aid thee
to repent!"
Repent
I could not, e'en with Allah's aid!
173.
Soon
shall I go, by time and fate deplored,
Of
all my precious pearls not one is bored;
Alas! there die with me a thousand
truths
To
which these fools fit audience ne'er accord
174.
To‑day
how sweetly breathes the temperate air,
The
rains have newly laved the parched parterre;
And Bulbuls cry in notes of ecstasy,
"Thou
too, O pallid rose, our wine must share! "
175.
Ere
you succumb to shocks of mortal pain,
The
rosy grape‑juice from your wine‑cup drain.
You are not gold, that, hidden in
the earth,
Your
friends should care to dig you up again!
176.
My
coming brought no profit to the sky,
Nor
does my going swell its majesty;
Coming and going put me to a stand,
Ear
never heard their wherefore nor their why
177.
The
heavenly Sage, whose wit exceeds compare,
Counteth
each vein, and numbereth every hair;
Men you may cheat by hypocritic
arts,
But
how cheat Him to whom all hearts are bare?
178.
Ah!
wine lends wings to many a weary wight,
And
beauty spots to ladies' faces bright;
All Ramadan I have not drunk a drop,
Thrice
welcome, then, O Bairam's blessed night!
179.
All
night in deep bewilderment I fret,
With
tear‑drops big as pearls my breast is wet;
I can not fill my cranium with wine;
How
can it hold wine, when 'tis thus upset?
180.
To
prayer and fasting when my heart inclined,
All
my desire I surely hoped to find;
Alas! my purity is stained with
wine,
My
prayers are wasted like a breath of wind
181.
I
worship rose‑red cheeks with heart and soul,
I
suffer not my hand to quit the bowl,
I make each part of me his function
do,
Or
e'er my parts be swallowed in the Whole
182.
This
worldly love of yours is counterfeit,
And,
like a half‑spent blaze, lacks light and heat;
True love is his, who for days,
months, and years,
Rests
not, nor sleeps, nor craves for drink or meat
183.
Why
spend life in vainglorious essay
All
Being and Not‑being to survey?
Since Death is ever pressing at your
heels,
'Tis
best to drink or dream your life away
184.
Some
hanker after that vain fantasy
Of
Houris, feigned in Paradise to be;
But, when the veil is lifted, they
will find
How
far they are from Thee, how far from Thee
185.
In
Paradise, they tell us, Houris dwell,
And
fountains run with wine and oxymel:
If these be lawful in the world to
come,
Surely
'tis right to love them here as well
186.
A
draught of wine would make a mountain dance,
Base
is the churl who looks at wine askance;
Wine is a soul our bodies to
inspire,
A
truce to this vain talk of temperance!
187.
Oft
doth my soul her prisoned state bemoan,
Eer
earth‑born co‑mate she would fain disown,
And quit, did not the stirrup of the
law
Upbear
her foot from dashing on the stone
188.
The
moon of Ramadan is risen, see!
Alas,
our wine must henceforth banished be;
Well! on Sha'ban's last day I'll
drink enough
To
keep me drunk till Bairam's jubilee
189.
From
life we draw now wine, now dregs to drink,
Now
flaunt in silk, and now in tatters shrink;
Such changes wisdom holds of slight
account
To
those who stand on death's appalling drink!
190.
What
sage tne eternal tangle e'er unraveled,
Or
one short step beyond his nature traveled?
From pupils to the masters turn your
eyes,
And
see, each mother's son alike is graveled
191.
Crave
not of worldly sweets to take your fill,
Nor
wait on turn of fortune, good or ill;
Be of light heart, as are the skies
above,
They
roll a round or two, and then lie still
192.
What
eye can pierce the veil of God's decrees,
Or
read the riddle of earth's destinies?
Pondered have I for years threescore
and ten,
But
still am baffled by these mysteries
193.
They
say, when the last trump shall sound its knell,
Our
Friend will sternly judge, and doom to hell.
Can aught but good from perfect
goodness come?
Compose
your trembling hearts, 'twill all be well
194.
Drink
wine to root up metaphysic weeds,
And
tangle of the two‑and‑seventy creeds;
Do not forswear that wondrous
alchemy,
'Twill
turn to gold, and cure a thousand needs
195.
Though
drink is wrong, take care with whom you drink,
And
who you are that drink, and what you drink;
And drink at will, for, these three
points observed,
Who
but the very wise can ever drink?
196.
To
drain a gallon beaker I design,
Yea,
two great beakers, brimmed with richest wine;
Old faith and reason thrice will I
divorce,
Then
take to wife the daughter of the vine
197.
True
I drink wine, like every man of sense,
For
I know Allah will not take offense;
Before time was, He know that I
should drink,
And
who am I to thwart His prescience?
198.
Rich
men, who take to drink, the world defy
With
shameless riot, and as beggars die;
Place in my ruby pipe some emerald
hemp,
'Twill
do as well to blind care's serpent eye
199.
These
fools have never burnt the midnight oil
In
deep research, nor do they ever toil
To step beyond themselves, but dress
them fine,
And
plot of credit others to despoil
200.
When
false dawn streaks the east with cold, gray line,
Pour
in your cups the pure blood of the vine;
The truth, they say, tastes bitter
in the mouth,
This
is a token that the "Truth " is wine
201.
Now
is the time earth decks her greenest bowers,
And
trees, like Musa's hand, grow white with flowers!
As 'twere at 'Isa's breath the
plants revive,
While
clouds brim o'er, like tearful eyes, with showers
202.
Oh
burden not thyself with drudgery,
Lord
of white silver and red gold to be;
But feast with friends, ere this
warm breath of thine
Be
chilled in death, and earthworms feast on thee
203.
The
showers of grape juice, which cupbearers pour,
Quench
fires of grief in many a sad heart's core.
Praise be to Allah, who hath sent
this balm
To
heal sore hearts, and spirits' health restore!
204.
Can
alien Pharisees Thy kindness tell,
Like
us, Thy intimates, who nigh Thee dwell?
Thou say'st, "All sinners will
I burn with fire."
Say
that to strangers‑we know Thee too well
205.
O
comrades dear, when hither ye repair
In
times to come, communion sweet to share,
While the cupbearer pours your old
Magh wine,
Call
poor Khayyam to mind, and breathe a prayer
206.
For
me heaven's sphere no music ever made,
Nor
yet with soothing voice my fears allayed;
If e'er I found brief respite from
my woes,
Back
to woe's thrall I was at once betrayed
207.
Sooner
with half a loaf contented be,
And
water from a broken crock, like me,
Than lord it over one poor fellow
man,
Or
to another bow the vassal knee
208.
While
Moon and Venus in the sky shall dwell,
None
shall see aught red grape‑juice to excel:
O foolish publicans, what can you
buy
One
half so precious as the goods you sell?
209.
They
who by genius, and by power of brain,
The
rank of man's enlighteners attain,
Not even they emerge from this dark
night,
But
tell their dreams, and fall asleep again
210.
At
dawn, when dews bedeck the tulip's face,
And
violets their heavy heads abase,
I love to see the roses' folded
buds,
With
petals closed against the wind's disgrace
211.
Like
as the skies rain down sweet jessamine,
And
sprinkle all the meads with eglantine,
Right so, from out this jug of
violet hue,
I
pour in lily cups this rosy wine
212.
Ah!
thou hast snared this head, though white as snow,
Which
oft has vowed the wine‑cup to forego;
And wrecked the mansion long resolve
did build,
And
rent the vesture penitence did sew!
213.
I
am not one whom Death doth much dismay,
Life's
terrors all Death's terrors far outweigh;
This life, that Heaven hath lent me
for a while,
I
will pay back, when it is time to pay
214.
The
stars, who dwell on heaven's exalted stage,
Baffle
the wise diviners of our age;
Take heed, hold fast the rope of
mother wit
These
augurs all distrust their own presage
215.
The
people who the heavenly world adorn,
Who
come each night, and go away each morn,
Now on Heaven's skirt, and now in
earth's deep pouch,
While
Allah lives, shall aye anew be born!
216.
Slaves
of vain wisdom and philosophy,
Who
toil at Being and Nonentity,
Parching your brains till they are
like dry grapes,
Be
wise in time, and drink grapejuice like me!
217.
Sense,
seeking happiness, bids us pursue
All
present joys, and present griefs eschew;
She says, we are not as the meadow
grass,
Which,
when they mow it down, springs up anew
218.
Now
Ramadan is past, Shawwal comes back,
And
feast and song and joy no more we lack;
The wine‑skin carriers throng
the streets and cry,
"Here
comes the porter with his precious pack"
219.
My
comrades are all gone; Death, deadly foe,
Has
caught them one by one, and trampled low;
They shared life's feast, and drank
its wine with me,
But
lost their heads, and dropped a while ago
220.
Those
hypocrites, all know so well, who lurk
In
streets to beg their bread, and will not work,
Claim to be saints, like Shibli and
Junaid,
No
Shiblis are they, though well known in Karkh!
221.
When
the great Founder molded me of old,
He
mixed much baser metal with my gold;
Better or fairer I can never be
Than
I first issued from his heavenly mold
222.
The
joyous souls who quaff potations deep,
And
saints who in the mosques sad vigils keep,
Are lost at sea alike, and find no
shore,
One
only wakes, all others are asleep
223.
Not‑being's
water served to mix my clay,
And
on my heart grief's fire doth ever prey,
And blown am I like wind about the
world,
And
last my crumbling earth is swept away
224.
Small
gains to learning on this earth accrue,
They
pluck life's fruitage, learning who eschew;
Take pattern by the fools who
learning shun,
And
then perchance shall fortune smile on you
225.
When
the fair soul this mansion doth vacate,
Each
element assumes its primal state,
And all the silken furniture of life
Is
then dismantled by the blows of fate
226.
These
people string their beads of learned lumber,
And
tell of Allah stories without number;
Yet never solve the riddle of the
skies,
But
wag the chin, and get them back to slumber
227.
These
folk are asses, laden with conceit,
And
glittering drums, that empty sounds repeat,
And humble slaves are they of name
and fame,
Acquire
a name, and, lo! they kiss thy feet
228.
On
the dread day of final scrutiny
Thou
wilt be rated by thy quality;
Get wisdom and fair qualities to‑day,
For,
as thou art, requited wilt thou be
229.
Many
fine heads, like bowls, the Brazier made,
And
thus his own similitude portrayed;
He sets one upside down above our
heads,
Which
keeps us all continually afraid
230.
My
true condition I may thus explain
In
two short verses which the whole contain:
"From love to Thee I now lay
down my life,
In
hope Thy love will raise me up again
231.
The
heart, like tapers, takes at beauty's eyes
A
flame, and lives by that whereby it dies;
And beauty is a flame where hearts,
like moths,
Offer
themselves a burning sacrifice
232.
To
please the righteous life itself I sell,
And,
though they tread me down, never rebel;
Men say, "Inform us what and
where is hell?"
Ill
company will make this earth a hell
233.
The
sun doth smite the roofs with Orient ray
And,
Khosrau like, his wine‑red sheen display;
Arise, and drink! the herald of the
dawn
Uplifts
his voice, and cries, "Oh, drink to‑day!"
234.
Comrades!
when e'er you meet together here,
Recall
your friend to mind, and drop a tear;
And when the circling wine‑cups
reach his seat,
Pray
turn one upside down his dust to cheer
235.
That
grace and favor at the first, what meant it?
That
lavishing of joy and peace, what meant it?
But now thy purpose is to grieve my
heart;
What
did I do to cause this change? What meant it?
236.
These
hypocrites who build on saintly show,
Treating
the body as the spirit's foe,
If they will shut their mouths with
lime, like jars,
My
jar of grape‑juice I will then forego
237.
Many
have come, and run their eager race,
Striving
for pleasures, luxuries, or place,
And quaffed their wine, and now all
silent lie,
Enfolded
in their parent earth's embrace
238.
Then,
when the good reap fruits of labors past,
My
hapless lot with drunkards will be cast;
If good, may I be numbered with the
first,
If
bad, find grace and mercy with the last
239.
Of
happy turns of fortune take your fill,
Seek
pleasure's couch, or wine‑cup, as you will;
Allah regards not if you sin, or
saint it,
So
take your pleasure, be it good or ill
240.
Heaven
multiplies our sorrows day by day,
And
grants no joys it does not take away;
If those unborn could know the ills
we bear,
What
think you, would they rather come or stay?
241.
Why
ponder thus the future to foresee,
And
jade thy brain to vain perplexity?
Cast off thy care, leave Allah's
plans to him ‑
He
formed them all without consulting thee
242.
The
tenants of the tombs to dust decay,
Nescient
of self, and all beside are they;
Their sundered atoms float about the
world,
Like
mirage clouds, until the judgment‑day
243.
O
soul! lay up all earthly goods in store,
Thy
mead with pleasure's flowerets spangled o'er;
And know 'tis all as dew, that decks
the flowers
For
one short night, and then is seen no more!
244.
Heed
not the Sunna, nor the law divine;
If
to the poor his portion you assign,
And never injure one, nor yet abuse,
I
guarantee you heaven, and now some wine!
245.
Vexed
by this wheel of things, that pets the base,
My
sorrow‑laden life drags on apace;
Like rosebud, from the storm I wrap
me close,
And
blood‑spots on my heart, like tulip, trace
246.
Youth
is the time to pay court to the vine,
To
quaff the cup, with revelers to recline;
A flood of water once laid waste the
earth,
Hence
learn to lay you waste with floods of wine
247.
The
world is baffled in its search for Thee,
Wealth
can not find Thee, no, nor poverty;
Thou'rt very near us, but our ears
are deaf,
Our
eyes are blinded that we may not see!
248.
Take
care you never hold a drinking‑bout
With
an ill‑tempered, ill‑conditioned lout;
He'll make a vile disturbance all
night long,
And
vile apologies next day, no doubt
249.
The
starry aspects are not all benign;
Why
toil then after vain desires, and pine
To lade thyself with load of
fortune's boons,
Only
to drop it with this life of thine?
250.
O
comrades! here is filtered wine, come drink!
Pledge
all your charming sweethearts as you drink;
'Tis the grape's blood, and this is
what it says,
"To
you I dedicate my life‑blood! drink! "
251.
Are
you depressed? Then take of bhang one grain,
Of
rosy grape‑juice take one pint or twain;
Sufis, you say, must not take this
or that,
Then
go and eat the pebbles off the plain!
252.
I
saw a busy potter by the way
Kneading
with might and main a lump of clay;
And, lo! the clay cried, "Use
me gently, pray;
I
was a man myself but yesterday!"
253.
Oh!
wine is richer that the realm of Jam,
More
fragrant than the food of Miriam;
Sweeter are sighs that drunkards
heave at morn
Than
strains of Bu Sa'id and Bin Adham
254.
Deep
in the rondure of the heavenly blue,
There
is a cup, concealed from mortals' view,
Which all must drink in turn; Oh,
sigh not then,
But
drink it boldly, when it comes to you!
255.
Though
you should live to four, or forty score,
Go
hence you must, as all have gone before;
Then, be you king, or beggar of the
streets,
They'll
rate you all the same, no less, no more
256.
If
you seek Him, abandon child and wife,
Arise,
and sever all these ties to life;
All these are bonds to check you on
your course
Arise,
and cut these bonds, as with a knife
257.
O
heart! this world is but a fleeting show,
Why
should its empty griefs distress thee so?
Bow down, and bear thy fate, the
eternal pen
Will
not unwrite its roll for thee, I trow!
258.
Whoe'er
returned of all that went before,
To
tell of that long road they travel o'er?
Leave naught undone of what you have
to do,
For
when you go, you will return no more
259.
Dark
wheel! how many lovers thou hast slain,
Like
Mahmud and Ayaz, O inhumane!
Come, let us drink, thou grantest
not two lives;
When
one is spent, we find it not again
260.
Illustrious
Prophet! whom all kings obey,
When
is our darkness lightened by wine's ray?
On Sunday, Monday, Tuesday,
Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday,
and Saturday, both night and day!
261.
O
turn away those roguish eyes of thine!
Be
still! seek not my peace to undermine!
Thou say'st, "Look not" I
might as well essay
To
slant my goblet, and not spill my wine
262.
In
taverns better far commune with Thee,
Than
pray in mosques, and fail Thy face to see!
O first and last of all Thy
creatures
Thou,'Tis
Thine to burn, and Thine to cherish me!
263.
To
wise and worthy men your life devote,
But
from the worthless keep your walk remote;
Dare to take poison from a sage's
hand,
But
from a fool refuse an antidote
264.
I
flew here, as a bird from the wild, in aim
Up
to a higher nest my course to frame;
But, finding here no guide who knows
the way,
Fly
out by the same door where through I came
265.
He
binds us in resistless Nature's chain,
And
yet bids us our natures to restrain;
Between these counter rules we stand
perplexed,
"Hold
the jar slant, but all the wine retain
266.
They
go away, and none is seen returning,
To
teach that other world's recondite learning;
'Twill not be shown for dull
mechanic prayers,
For
prayer is naught without true heartfelt yearning
267.
Go
to! Cast dust on those deaf skies, who spurn
Thy
orisons and bootless prayers, and learn
To quaff the cup, and hover round
the fair;
Of
all who go, did ever one return?
268.
Though
Khayyam strings no pearls of righteous deeds,
Nor
sweeps from off his soul sin's noisome weeds,
Yet will he not despair of heavenly
grace,
Seeing
that One as two he ne'er misreads
269.
Again
to tavern‑haunts do we repair,
And
say "Adieu" to the five hours of prayer;
Where'er we see a long‑necked
flask of wine,
We
elongate our necks that wine to share
270.
We
are but chessmen, destined, it is plain,
That
great chess‑player, Heaven, to entertain;
It moves us on life's chess‑board
to and fro,
And
then in death's dark box shuts up again
271.
You
ask what is this life so frail, so vain,
'Tis
long to tell, yet will I make it plain;
'Tis but a breath blown from the
vasty deeps,
And
then blown back to those same deeps again!
272.
To‑day
to heights of rapture have I soared,
Yea,
and with drunken Maghs pure wine adored;
I am become beside myself, and rest
In
that pure temple, "Am not I your Lord?"
273.
My
queen (long may she live to vex her slave!)
To‑day
a token of affection gave,
Darting a kind glance from her eyes,
she passed,
And
said, "Do good and cast it on the wave!"
274.
I
put my lips to the cup, for I did yearn
The
hidden cause of length of days to learn;
He leaned his lip to mine, and whispered
low,
"Drink!
for, once gone, you never will return"
275.
We
lay in the cloak of Naught, asleep and still,
Thou
said'st, "Awake! taste the world's good and ill";
Here we are puzzled by Thy strange
command,
From
slanted jars no single drop to spill
276.
O
Thou! who know'st the secret thoughts of all,
In
time of sorest need who aidest all,
Grant me repentance, and accept my
plea,
O
Thou who dost accept the pleas of all!
277.
I
saw a bird perched on the walls of Tus,
Before
him lay the skull of Kai Kawus,
And thus he made his moan,
"Alas, poor king!
Thy
drums are hushed, thy 'larums have rung truce"
278.
Ask
not the chances of the time to be,
And
for the past, 'tis vanished, as you see;
This ready‑money breath set
down as gain,
Future
and past concern not you or me
279.
What
launched that golden orb his course to run,
What
wrecks his firm foundations, when 'tis done,
No man of science ever weighed with
scales,
Nor
made assay with touchstone, no, not one!
280.
I
pray thee to my counsel lend thine ear,
Cast
off this false hypocrisy's veneer;
This life a moment is, the next all
time;
Sell
not eternity for earthly gear!
281.
Ofttimes
I plead my foolishness to Thee,
My
heart contracted with perplexity;
I gird me with the Magian zone, and
why?
For
shame so poor a Mussulman to be
282.
Khayyam!
rejoice that wine you still can pour,
And
still the charms of tulip cheeks adore;
You'll soon not be, rejoice then
that you are,
Think
how 'twould be in case you were no more!
283.
Once,
in a potter's shop, a company
Of
cups in converse did I chance to see,
And lo! one lifted up his voice, and
cried,
"Who
made, who sells, who buys this crockery? "
284.
Last
night, as I reeled from the tavern door,
I
saw a sage, who a great wine‑jug bore;
I said, "O Shaikh, have you no
shame?"
Said
he, "Allah hath boundless mercy in his store"
285.
Life's
fount is wine, Khizir its guardian,
I,
like Elias, find it where I can;
'Tis sustenance for heart and spirit
too,
Allah
himself calls wine "a boon to man."
286.
Though
wine is banned, yet drink, forever drink!
By
day and night, with strains of music drink!
Where'er thou lightest on a cup of
wine,
Spill
just one drop, and take the rest and drink!
287.
Although
the creeds number some seventy‑three,
I
hold with none but that of loving Thee;
What matter faith, unfaith,
obedience, sin?
Thou'rt
all we need, the rest is vanity
288.
Tell
one by one my scanty virtues o'er;
As
for my sins, forgive them by the score;
Let not my faults kindle Thy wrath
to flame;
By
blest Mohammed's tomb, forgive once more!
289.
Grieve
not at coming ill, you can't defeat it,
And
what far‑sighted person goes to meet it?
Cheer up! bear not about a world of
grief,
Your
fate is fixed, and grieving will not cheat it
290.
There
is a chalice made with wit profound,
With
tokens of the Maker's favor crowned;
Yet the world's Potter takes his
masterpiece,
And
dashes it to pieces on the ground!
291.
In
truth wine is a spirit thin as air,
A
limpid soul in the cup's earthen ware;
No dull, dense person shall be
friend of mine
Save
wine‑cups, which are dense and also rare
292.
O
wheel of heaven! no ties of bread you feel,
No
ties of salt, you flay me like an eel!
A woman's wheel spins clothes for
man and wife,
It
does more good than you, O heavenly wheel!
293.
Did
no fair rose my paradise adorn,
I
would make shift to deck it with a thorn;
And if I lacked my prayer‑mats,
beads, and Shaikh,
Those
Christian bells and stoles I would not scorn
294.
"If
heaven deny me peace and fame, " I said,
"Let
it be open war and shame instead;
The man who scorns bright wine had
best beware,
I'll
arm me with a stone, and break his head! "
295.
See!
the dawn breaks, and rends night's canopy:
Arise!
and drain a morning draught with me!
Away with gloom! full many a dawn
will break
Looking
for us, and we not here to see!
296.
O
you who tremble not at fires of hell,
Nor
wash in water of remorse's well,
When winds of death shall quench
your vital torch,
Beware
lest earth your guilty dust expel
297.
This
world a hollow pageant you should deem;
All
wise men know things are not what they seem;
Be of good cheer, and drink, and so
shake off
This
vain illusion of a baseless dream
298.
With
maids stately as cypresses, and fair
As
roses newly plucked, your wine‑cups share,
Or e'er Death's blasts shall rend
your robe of fiesh
Like
yonder rose‑leaves, lying scattered there!
299.
Cast
off dull care, O melancholy brother!
Woo
the sweet daughter of the grape, no other;
The daughter is forbidden, it is
true,
But
she is nicer than her lawful mother!
300.
My
love shone forth, and I was overcome,
My
heart was speaking, but my tongue was dumb;
Beside the water‑brooks I died
of thirst.
Was
ever known so strange a martyrdom?
301.
Give
me my cup in hand, and sing a glee
In
concert with the bulbul's symphony;
Wine would not gurgle as it leaves
the flask,
If
drinking mute were right for thee and me!
302.
The
"Truth " will not be shown to lofty thought,
Nor
yet with lavished gold may it be bought;
But, if you yield your life for
fifty years,
From
words to "states " you may perchance be brought
303.
I
solved all problems, down from Saturn's wreath
Unto
this lowly sphere of earth beneath,
And leapt out free from bonds of
fraud and lies,
Yea,
every knot was loosed, save that of death!
304.
Peace!
the eternal "Has been" and "To be"
Pass
man's experience, and man's theory;
In joyful seasons naught can vie
with wine,
To
all these riddles wine supplies the key!
305.
Allah,
our Lord, is merciful, though just;
Sinner!
despair not, but His mercy trust!
For though to‑day you perish
in your sins,
To‑morrow
He'll absolve your crumbling dust
306.
Your
course annoys me, O ye wheeling skies!
Unloose
me from your chain of tyrannies!
If none but fools your favors may
enjoy,
Then
favor me ‑ I am not very wise!
307.
O
City Mufti, you go more astray
Than
I do, though to wine I do give way;
I drink the blood of grapes, you
that of men:
Which
of us is the more bloodthirsty, pray?
308.
'Tis
well to drink, and leave anxiety
For
what is past, and what is yet to be;
Our prisoned spirits, lent us for a
day,
A
while from season's bondage shall go free!
309.
When
Khayyam quittance at Death's hand receives,
And
sheds his outworn life, as trees their leaves,
Full gladly will he sift this world
away,
'Ere
dustmen sift his ashes in their sieves
310.
This
wheel of heaven, which makes us all afraid,
I
liken to a lamp's revolving shade,
The sun the candlestick, the earth
the shade,
And
men the trembling forms thereon portrayed
311.
Who
was it that did mix my clay? Not I.
Who
spun my web of silk and wool? Not I.
Who wrote upon my forehead all my
good,
And
all my evil deeds? In truth not I
312.
O
let us not forecast to‑morrow's fears,
But
count to‑day as gain, my brave compeers!
To‑morrow we shall quit this
inn, and march
With
comrades who have marched seven thousand years
313.
Ne'er
for one moment leave your cup unused!
Wine
keeps heart, faith, and reason too, amused;
Had Iblis swallowed but a single
drop,
To
worship Adam he had ne'er refused!
314.
Come,
dance! while we applaud thee, and adore
Thy
sweet Narcissus eyes, and grape‑juice pour;
A score of cups is no such great
affair,
But
'tis enchanting when we reach three score!
315.
I
close the door of hope in my own face,
Nor
sue for favors from good men, or base;
I have but One to lend a helping
hand ‑
He
knows, as well as I, my sorry case
316.
Ah!
by these heavens, that ever circling run,
And
by my own base lusts I am undone,
Without the wit to abandon worldly
hopes,
And
wanting sense the world's allures to shun!
317.
On
earth's green carpet many sleepers lie,
And
hid beneath it others I descry;
And others, not yet come, or passed
away,
People
the desert of Non‑entity!
318.
Sure
of Thy grace, for sins why need I fear?
How
can the pilgrim faint whilst Thou art near?
On the last day Thy grace will wash
me white,
And
make my "black record" to disappear
319.
Think
not I dread from out the world to hie,
And
see my disembodied spirit fly;
I tremble not at death, for death is
true,
'Tis
my ill life that makes me fear to die!
320.
Let
us shake off dull reason's incubus,
Our
tale of days or years cease to discuss,
And take our jugs, and plenish them
with wine,
Or
e'er grim potters make their jugs of us!
321.
How
much more wilt thou chide, O raw divine,
For
that I drink, and am a libertine?
Thou hast thy weary beads, and
saintly show,
Leave
me my cheerful sweetheart, and my wine!
322.
Against
my lusts I ever war, in vain,
I
think on my ill deeds with shame and pain;
I trust Thou wilt assoil me of my
sins,
But
even so, my shame must still remain
323.
In
these twin compasses, O Love, you see
One
body with two heads, like you and me,
Which wander round one center,
circlewise,
But
at the last in one same point agree
324.
We
shall not stay here long, but while we do,
'Tis
folly wine and sweethearts to eschew;
Why ask if earth etern or transient
be?
Since
you must go, it matters not to you
325.
In
reverent sort to mosque I wend my way,
But,
by great Allah, it is not to pray;
No! but to steal a prayer‑mat!
When 'tis worn,
I
go again, another to purvey
326.
No
more let fate's annoys our peace consume,
But
let us rather rosy wine consume;
The world our murderer is, and wine
its blood,
Shall
we not then that murderer's blood consume?
327.
For
Thee I vow to cast repute away,
And,
if I shrink, the penalty to pay;
Though life might satisfy Thy
cruelty,
'Twere
naught, I'll bear it till the judgment‑day!
328.
In
Being's rondure de we stray belated,
Our
pride of manhood humbled and abated;
Would we were gone! long since have
we been wearied
With
this world's griefs, and with its pleasures sated
329.
The
world is false, so I'll be false as well,
And
with bright wine, and gladness ever dwell!
They say, "May Allah grant thee
penitence!"
He
grants it not, and, did he, I'd rebel!
330.
When
Death shall tread me down upon the plain,
And
pluck my feathers, and my life‑blood drain,
Then mold me to a cup, and fill with
wine;
Haply
its scent will make me breathe again
331.
So
far as this world's dealings I have traced,
I
find its favors shamefully misplaced;
Allah be praised! I see myself
debarred
From
all its boons, and wrongfully disgraced
332.
'Tis
dawn! my heart with wine I will recruit,
And
dash to bits the glass of good repute;
My long‑extending hopes I will
renounce,
And
grasp long tresses, and the charming lute
333.
Though
I had sinned the sins of all mankind,
I
know Thou would'st to mercy be inclined;
Thou sayest, "I will help in
time of need."
One
needier than I where wilt Thou find?
334.
Am
I a wine‑bibber? What if I am?
Gueber
or infidel? Suppose I am?
Each sect miscalls me, but I heed
them not,
I
am my own, and, what I am, I am
335.
All
my life long from drink I have not ceased.
And
drink I will to‑night on Sadr's feast:
And throw my arms about the wine‑jar's
neck,
And
kiss its lip, and clasp it to my breast!
336.
I
know what is, and what is not, I know
The
lore of things above, and things below;
But all this lore will cheerfully
renounce,
If
one a higher grade than drink can show
337.
Though
I drink wine, I am no libertine,
Nor
am I grasping, save of cups of wine;
I scruple to adore myself, like you;
For
this cause to wine‑worship I incline
338.
To
confidants like you I dare to say
What
mankind really are ‑ molded of clay,
Affliction's clay, and kneaded in
distress,
They
taste the world awhile, then pass away
339.
We
make the wine‑jar's lip our place of prayer,
And
drink in lessons of true manhood there,
And pass our lives in taverns, if
perchance
The
time misspent in mosques we may repair
340.
Man
is the whole creation's summary,
The
precious apple of great wisdom's eye;
The circle of existence is a ring,
Whereof
the signet is humanity
341.
With
fancies, as with wine, our heads we turn,
Aspire
to heaven, and earth's low trammels spurn;
But, when we drop this fleshly clog,
'tis seen
From
dust we came, and back to dust return
342.
If
so it be that I did break the fast,
Think
not I meant it; no! I thought 'twas past ‑
That day more weary than a sleepless
night ‑
And
blessed breakfast‑time had come at last!
343.
I
never drank of joy's sweet cordial,
But
grief's fell hand infused a drop of gall;
Nor dipped my bread in pleasure's
piquant salt,
But
briny sorrow made me smart withal!
344.
At
dawn to tavern‑haunts I wend my way,
And
with distraught Salendars pass the day;
O Thou! who know'st things secret,
and things known,
Grant
me Thy grace, that I may learn to pray!
345.
The
world's annoys I rate not at one grain,
So
I eat once a day I don't complain;
And, since earth's kitchen yields no
solid food,
I
pester no man with petitions vain
346.
Never
from worldly toils have I been free,
Never
for one short moment glad to be!
I served a long apprenticeship to
fate,
But
yet of fortune gained no mastery
347.
One
hand with Koran, one with wine‑cup dight,
I
half incline to wrong, and half to right;
The azure‑marbled sky looks
down on me,
A
sorry Muslim, yet not heathen quite
348.
Khayyam's
respects to Mustafa convey,
And
with due reverence ask him to say,
Why it has pleased him to forbid
pure wme,
When
he allows his people acid whey?
349.
Tell
Khayyam, for a master of the schools,
He
strangely misinterprets my plain rules:
Where have I said that wine is wrong
for all?
'Tis
lawful for the wise, but not for fools
350.
My
critics call me a philosopher,
But
Allah knows full well they greatly err;
I know not even what I am, much less
Why
on this earth I am a sojourner!
351.
The
more I die to self, I live the more,
The
more abase myself, the higher soar;
And, strange! the more I drink of
Being's wine,
More
sane I grow and sober than before
352.
Quoth
rose, "I am the Yusuf flower, I swear,
For
in my mouth rich golden gems I bear ":
I said, "Show me another
proof." Quoth she,
"Behold
this blood‑stained vesture that I wear! "
353.
I
studied with the masters long ago,
And
long ago did master all they know;
Here now the end and issue of it
all,
From
earth I came, and like the wind I go!
354.
Death
finds us soiled, though we were pure at birth,
With
grief we go, although we came with mirth;
Watered with tears, and burned with
fires of woe,
And,
casting life to winds, we rest in earth!
355.
To
find great Jamshid's world‑reflecting bowl
I
compassed sea and land, and viewed the whole;
But, when I asked the wary sage, I
learned
That
bowl was my own body, and my soul!
356.
Me,
cruel Queen! you love to captivate,
And
from a knight to a poor pawn trarlslate;
You marshal all your force to tire
me out,
You
take my rooks with yours, and then checkmate!
357.
If
Allah wills me not to will aright,
Row
can I frame my will to will aright?
Each single act I will must needs be
wrong,
Since
none but He has power to will aright
358.
"For
once, while roses are in bloom, " I said,
"I'll
break the law, and please myself instead,
With blooming youths, and maidens'
tulip cheeks
The
plain shall blossom like a tulip‑bed"
359.
Think
not I am existent of myself,
Or
walk this blood‑stained pathway of myself;
This being is not I, it is of Him
Pray
what, and where, and whence is this "myself"?
360.
Endure
this world without my wine I cannot!
Drag
on life's load without my cups I cannot!
I am the slave of that sweet moment,
when
They
say, "Take one more goblet," and I can not!
361.
You,
who both day and night the world pursue,
And
thoughts of that dread day of doom eschew,
Bethink you of your latter end; be
sure
As
time has treated others, so 'twill you!
362.
O
man, who are creation's summary,
Getting
and spending too much trouble thee!
Arise, and quaff the Etern
Cupbearer's wine,
And
so from troubles of both worlds be free!
363.
In
this eternally revolving zone,
Two
lucky species of men are known;
One knows all good and ill that are
on earth,
One
neither earth's affairs, nor yet his own
364.
Make
light to me the world's oppressive weight,
And
hide my failings from the people's hate,
And grant me peace to‑day, and
on the morrow
Deal
with me as Thy mercy may dictate!
365.
Souls
that are well informed of this world's state,
Its
weal and woe with equal mind await:
For, be it weal we meet, or be it
woe,
The
weal doth pass, and woe too hath its date
366.
Lament
not fortune's want of constancy,
But
up! and seize her favors ere they fee;
If fortune always cleaved to other
men,
How
could a turn of luck have come to thee?
367.
Chief
of old friends! harken to what I say,
Let
not heaven's treacherous wheel your heart dismay;
But rest contented in your humble
nook,
And
watch the games that wheel is wont to play
368.
Hear
now Khayyam's advice, and bear in mind,
Consort
with revelers, though they be maligned,
Cast down the gates of abstinence
and prayer,
Yea,
drink, and even rob, but, oh! be kind!
369.
This
world a body is, and God its soul,
And
angels are its senses, who control
Its limbs ‑ the creatures,
elements, and spheres;
The
One is the sole basis of the whole
370.
Last
night that idol who enchants my heart,
With
true desire to elevate my heart,
Gave me his cup to drink; when I
refused,
He
said, "Oh, drink to gratify my heart!"
371.
Would'st
thou have fortune bow her neck to thee,
Make
it thy care to feed thy soul with glee;
And hold a creed like mine, which is
to drain
The
cup of wine, not that of misery
372.
Though
you survey, O my enlightened friend,
This
world of vanity from end to end,
You will discover there no other
good
Than
wine and rosy cheeks, you may depend!
373.
Last
night upon the river bank we lay,
I
with my wine‑cup, and a maiden gay,
So bright it shone, like pearl
within its shell,
The
watchman cried, "Behold the break of day!"
374.
Have
you no shame for all the sins you do,
Sins
of omission and commission, too?
Suppose you gain the world, you can
but leave it,
You
can not carry it away with you!
375.
In
a lone waste I saw a debauchee,
He
had no home, no faith, no heresy,
No God, no truth, no law, no
certitude;
Where
in this world is man so bold as he?
376.
Some
look for truth in creeds, and forms, and rules;
Some
grope for doubts or dogmas in the schools;
But from behind the veil a voice
proclaims,
"Your
road lies neither here nor there, O fools"
377.
In
heaven is seen the bull we name Parwin,
Beneath
the earth another lurks unseen;
And thus to wisdom's eyes mankind
appear
A
drove of asses, two great bulls between!
378.
The
people say, "Why not drink somewhat less?
What
reasons have you for such great excess? "
First, my Love's face, second, my
morning draught;
Can
there be clearer reasons, now confess?
379.
Had
I the power great Allah to advise,
I'd
bid him sweep away this earth and skies,
And build a better, where, unclogged
and free,
The
clear soul might achieve her high emprise
380.
This
silly sorrow‑laden heart of mine
Is
ever pining for that love of mine;
When the Cupbearer poured the wine
of love,
With
my heart's blood he filled this cup of mine!
381.
To
drain the cup, to hover round the fair,
Can
hypocritic arts with these compare?
If all who love and drink are going
wrong,
There's
many a wight of heaven may well despair!
382.
'Tis
wrong with gloomy thoughts your mirth to drown ‑
To
let grief's millstone weigh your spirits down;
Since none can tell what is to be,
'tis best
With
wine and love your heart's desires to crown
383.
'Tis
well in reputation to abide,
'Tis
shameful against heaven to rail and chide;
Still, head had better ache with
over‑drink,
Than
be puffed up with Pharisaic pride!
384.
O
Lord! pity this prisoned heart, I pray,
Pity
this bosom stricken with dismay!
Pardon these hands that ever grasp the
cup,
These
feet that to the tavern ever stray!
385.
O
Lord! from self‑conceit deliver me,
Sever
from self, and occupy with Thee!
This self is captive to earth's good
and ill,
Make
me beside myself, and set me free!
386.
Behold
the tricks this wheeling dome doth play,
And
earth laid bare of old friends torn away!
O live this present moment, which is
thine,
Seek
not a morrow, mourn not yesterday!
387.
Since
all man's business in this world of woe
Is
sorrow's pangs to feel, and grief to know,
Happy are they that never come at
all,
And
they that, having come, the soonest go!
388.
By
reason's dictates it is right to live,
But
of ourselves we know not how to live,
So Fortune, like a master, rod in
hand,
Raps
our pates well to teach us how to live!
389.
Nor
you nor I can read the etern decree,
To
that enigma we can find no key;
They talk of you and me behtnd the
veil,
But,
if that veil be lifted, where are we?
390.
O
Love, forever doth heaven's wheel design
To
take away thy precious life, and mine;
Sit we upon this turf, 'twill not be
long
'Ere
turf shall grow upon my dust, and thine!
391.
When
life has Bed, and we rest in the tomb,
They'll
place a pair of bricks to mark our tomb;
And, a while after, mold our dust to
bricks,
To
furnish forth some other person's tomb!
392.
Yon
palace, towering to the welkin blue,
Where
kings did bow them down, and homage do,
I saw a ringdove on its arches
perched,
And
thus she made complaint, "Coo, Coo, Coo, Coo!"
393.
We
come and go, but for the gain, where is it?
And
spin life's woof, but for the warp, where is it?
And many a righteous man has burned
to dust
In
heaven's blue rondure, but their smoke, where is it?
394.
Life's
well‑spring lurks within that lip of thine!
Let
not the cup's lip touch that lip of thine!
Beshrew me, if I fail to drink his
blood,
For
who is he, to touch that lip of thine?
395.
Such
as I am, Thy power created me,
Thy
care hath kept me for a century!
Through all these years I make
experiment,
If
my sins or Thy mercy greater be
396.
"Take
up thy cup and goblet, Love, " I said,
"Haunt
purling river bank, and grassy glade;
Full many a moon‑like form has
heaven's wheel
Oft
into cup, oft into goblet, made!"
397.
We
buy new wine and old, our cups to fill,
And
sell for two grains this world's good and ill;
Know you where you will go to after
death?
Set
wine before me, and go where you will!
398.
Was
e'er man born who never went astray?
Did
ever mortal pass a sinless day?
If I do ill, do not requite with
ill!
Evil
for evil how can'st Thou repay?
399.
Bring
forth that ruby gem of Badakhshan,
That
heart's delight, that balm of Turkestan;
They say 'tis wrong for Mussulmans
to drink,
But
ah! where can we find a Mussulman?
400.
My
body's life and strength proceed from Thee!
My
soul within and spirit are of Thee!
My being is of Thee, and Thou art
mine,
And
I am Thine, since I am lost in Thee!
401.
Man,
like a ball, hither and thither goes,
As
fate's resistless bat directs the blows;
But He, who gives thee up to this
rude sport,
He
knows what drives thee, yea, He knows, He knows!
402.
O
Thou who givest sight to emmet's eyes,
And
strength to puny limbs of feeble flies,
To Thee we will ascribe Almighty
power,
And
not base, unbecoming qualities
403.
Let
not base avarice enslave thy mind,
Nor
vain ambition in its trammels bind;
Be sharp as fire, as running water
swift,
Not,
like earth's dust, the sport of every wind!
404.
'Tis
best all other blessings to forego
For
wine, that charming Turki maids bestow;
Kalendars' raptures pass all things
that are,
From
moon on high down into fish below!
405.
Friend!
trouble not yourself about your lot,
Let
futile care and sorrow be forgot;
Since this life's vesture crumbles
into dust,
What
matters stain of word or deed, or blot?
406.
O
thou who hast done ill, and ill alone,
And
thinkest to find mercy at the throne,
Hope not for mercy! for good left
undone
Can
not be done, nor evil done undone!
407.
Count
not to live beyond your sixtieth year,
To
walk in jovial courses persevere;
And ere your skull be turned into a
cup,
Let
wine‑cups ever to your hand adhere!
408.
These
heavens resemble an inverted cup,
Whereto
the wise with awe keep gazing up;
So stoops the bottle o'er his love,
the cup,
Feigning
to kiss, and gives her blood to sup!
409.
I
sweep the tavern threshold with my hair,
For
both world's good and ill I take no care;
Should the two worlds roll to my
house, like balls,
When
drunk, for one small coin I'd sell the pair!
410.
The
drop wept for his severance from the sea,
But
the sea smiled, for "I am all," said he,
"The Truth is all, nothing
exists beside,
That
one point circling apes plurality"
411.
Shall
I still sigh for what I have not got,
Or
try with cheerfulness to bear my lot?
Fill up my cup! I know not if the
breath
I
now am drawing is my last, or not!
412.
Yield
not to grief, though fortune prove unkind,
Nor
call sad thoughts of parted friends to mind;
Devote thy heart to sugary lips, and
wine,
Cast
not thy precious life unto the wind!
413.
Of
mosque and prayer and fast preach not to me,
Rather
go drink, were it on charity!
Yea, drink, Khayyam, your dust will
soon be made
A
jug, or pitcher, or a cup, may be!
414.
Bulbuls,
doting on roses, oft complain
How
froward breezes rend their veils in twain;
Sit we beneath this rose, which many
a time
Has
sunk to earth, and sprung from earth again
415.
Suppose
the world goes well with you, what then?
When
life's last page is read and turned, what then?
Suppose you live a hundred years of
bliss,
Yea,
and a hundred years besides, what then?
416.
How
is it that of all the leafy tribe,
Cypress
and lily men as "free " describe?
This has a dozen tongues, yet holds
her peace,
That
has a hundred hands which take no bribe
417.
Cupbearer,
bring my wine‑cup, let me grasp it!
Bring
that delicious darling, let me grasp it!
That pleasing chain which tangles in
its coils
Wise
men and fools together, let me grasp it!
418.
Alas!
my wasted life has gone to wrack!
What
with forbidden meats, and lusts, alack!
And leaving undone what 'twas right
to do,
And
doing wrong, my face is very black!
419.
I
could repent of all, but of wine, never!
I
could dispense with all, but with wine, never!
If so be I became a Mussulman,
Could
I abjure my Magian wine? no, never!
420.
We
rest our hopes on Thy free grace alone,
Nor
seek by merits for our sins to atone;
Mercy drops where it lists, and
estimates
Ill
done as undone, good undone as done
421.
This
is the form Thou gavest me of old,
Wherein
Thou workest marvels manifold;
Can I aspire to be a better man,
Or
other than I issued from Thy mold?
422.
O
Lord! to Thee all creatures worship pay,
To
Thee both small and great forever pray,
Thou takest woe away, and givest
weal,
Give
then, or, if it please Thee, take away!
423.
With
going to and fro in this sad vale
Thou
art grown double, and thy credit stale,
Thy nails are thickened like a
horse's hoof,
Thy
beard is ragged as an ass's tail
424.
O
unenlightened race of humankind,
Ye
are a nothing, built on empty wind!
Yea, a mere nothing, hovering in the
abyss,
A
void before you, and a void behind!
425.
Each
morn I say, "To‑night I will repent
Of
wine, and tavern‑haunts no more frequent ";
But while 'tis spring, and roses are
in bloom,
To
loose me from my promise, O consent!
426.
Vain
study of philosophy eschew!
Rather
let tangled curls attract your view;
And shed the bottle's life‑blood
in your cup,
Or
e'er death shed your blood, and feast on you
427.
O
heart! can'st thou the darksome riddle read,
Where
wisest men have failed, wilt thou succeed?
Quaff wine, and make thy heaven here
below,
Who
knows if heaven above will be thy meed?
428.
They
that have passed away, and gone before,
Sleep
in delusion's dust for evermore;
Go, boy, and fetch some wine, this
is the truth,
Their
dogmas were but air, and wind their lore!
429.
O
heart! when on the Loved One's sweets you feed,
You
lose yourself, but find your Self indeed;
And, when you drink of His entrancing
cup,
You
hasten your escape from quick and dead!
430.
Though
I am wont a wine‑bibber to be,
Why
should the people rail and chide at me?
Would that all evil actions made men
drunk,
For
then no sober people should I see!
431.
Child
of four elements and sevenfold heaven,
Who
fume and sweat because of these eleven,
Drink! I have told you seventy times
and seven,
Once
gone, nor hell will send you back, nor heaven
432.
With
many a snare Thou dost beset my way,
And
threatenest, if I fall therein, to slay;
Thy rule resistless sways the world,
yet Thou
Imputest
sin, when I do but obey!
433.
To
Thee, whose essence baffles human thought,
Our
sins and righteous deeds alike seem naught;
May Thy grace sober me, though drunk
with sins,
And
pardon all the ill that I have wrought!
434.
If
this life were indeed an empty play,
Each
day would be an 'lid of festal day,
And men might conquer all their
hearts' desire,
Fearless
of after penalties to pay!
435.
O
wheel of heaven, you thwart my heart's desire,
And
rend to shreds my scanty joy's attire,
The water that I drink you foul with
earth,
And
turn the very air I breathe to fire!
436.
O
soul! could you but doff this flesh and bone,
You'd
soar a sprite about the heavenly throne;
Had you no shame to leave your
starry home,
And
dwell an alien on this earthly zone?
437.
Ah,
potter, stay thine hand! with ruthless art
Put
not to such base use man's mortal part!
See, thou art mangling on thy cruel
wheel
Faridun's
fingers, and Kai Khosrau's heart!
438.
O
rose! all beauties' charms thou dost excel,
As
wine excels the pearl within its shell;
O fortune! thou dost ever show
thyself
More
strange, although I seem to know thee well!
439.
From
this world's kitchen crave not to obtain
Those
dainties, seeming real, but really vain,
Which greedy worldlings gorge to
their own loss;
Renounce
that loss, so loss shall prove thy gain!
440.
Plot
not of nights, thy fellows' peace to blight,
So
that they cry to God the live‑long night;
Nor plume thee on thy wealth and
might, which thieves
May
steal by night, or death, or fortune's might
441.
This
soul of mine was once Thy cherished bride,
What
caused Thee to divorce her from Thy side?
Thou didst not use to treat her thus
of yore,
Why
then now doom her in the world to abide?
442.
Ah!
would there were a place of rest from pain,
Which
we, poor pilgrims, might at last attain,
And after many thousand wintry
years,
Renew
our life, like flowers, and bloom again!
443.
While
in love's book I sought an augury;
An
ardent youth cried out in ecstasy,
"Who owns a sweetheart beauteous
as the moon
Might
wish his moments long as years to be!"
444.
Winter
is past, and spring‑tide has begun,
Soon
will the pages of life's book be done!
Well saith the sage, "Life is a
poison rank,
And
antidote, save grape‑juice, there is none"
445.
Beloved,
if thou a reverend Mullah be,
Quit
saintly show, and feigned austerity,
And quaff the wine that Murtaza
purveys,
And
sport with Houris 'neath some shady tree!
446.
Last
night I dashed my cup against a stone,
In
a mad drunken freak, as I must own,
And lo! the cup cries out in agony,
"You
too, like me, shall soon be overthrown."
447.
My
heart is weary of hypocrisy,
Cupbearer,
bring some wine, I beg of thee!
This hooded cowl and prayer‑mat
pawn for wine,
Then
will I boast me in security
448.
Audit
yourself, your truce account to frame,
See!
you go empty, as you empty came;
You say, "I will not drink and
peril life,"
But,
drink or no, you must die all the same!
449.
Open
the door ! O entrance who procurest,
And
guide the way, O Thou of guides the surest!
Directors born of men shall not
direct me,
Their
counsel comes to naught, but Thou endurest!
450.
In
slandering and reviling you persist,
Calling
me infidel and atheist:
My errors I will not deny, but yet
Does
foul abuse become a moralist?
451.
To
find a remedy, put up with pain,
Chafe
not at woe, and healing thou wilt gain;
Though poor, be ever of a thankful
mind,
'Tis
the sure method riches to obtain
452.
Give
me a skin of wine, a crust of bread,
A
pittance bare, a book of verse to read;
With thee, O love, to share my lowly
roof,
I
would not take the Sultan's realm instead!
453.
Reason
not of the five, nor of the four,
Be
their dark problems one, or many score;
We are but earth ‑ Go,
minstrel, bring the lute!
We
are but air ‑ Bring wine; I ask no more!
454.
Why
argue on Yasin and on Barat?
Write
me the draft for wine they call Barat!
The day my weariness is drowned in
wine
Will
seem to me as the great night Barat!
455.
Whilst
thou dost wear this fleshy livery,
Step
not beyond the bounds of destiny;
Bear up, though very Rustems be thy
foes,
And
crave no boon from friends like Hatim Tai!
456.
These
ruby lips, and wine, and minstrel boys,
And
lute, and harp, your dearly cherished toys,
Are mere redundancies, and you are
naught,
'Till
you renounce the world's delusive joys
457.
Bow
down, heaven's tyranny to undergo,
Quaff
wine to face the world, and all its woe;
Your origin and end are both in
earth,
But
now you are above earth, not below!
458.
You
know all secrets of this earthly sphere,
Why
then remain a prey to empty fear?
You can not bend things to your
will, but yet
Cheer
up for the few moments you are here!
459.
Behold,
where'er we turn our ravished eyes,
Sweet
verdure springs, and crystal Kausars rise;
And plains, once bare as hell, now
smile as heaven:
Enjoy
this heaven with maids of Paradise!
460.
Never
in this false world on friends rely,
(I
give this counsel confidentially);
Put up with pain, and seek no
antidote;
Endure
your grief, and ask no sympathy!
461.
Of
wisdom's dictates two are principal,
Surpassing
all your lore traditional;
Better to fast than eat of every
meat,
Better
to live alone than mate with all!
462.
Why
unripe grapes are sharp, prithee explain,
And
then grow sweet, while wine is sharp again?
When one has carved a block into a
lute,
Can
he from that same block a pipe obtain?
463.
When
dawn doth silver the dark firmament,
Why
shrills the bird of dawning his lament?
It is to show in dawn's bright
looking‑glass
How
of thy careless life a night is spent
464.
Cupbearer,
come! from thy full‑throated ewer
Pour
blood‑red wine, the world's despite to cure!
Where can I find another friend like
wine,
So
genuine, so solacing, so pure?
465.
Though
you should sit in sage Aristo's room,
Or
rival Csesar on his throne of Rum,
Drain Jemshid's goblet, for your
end's the tomb,
Yea,
were you Bahram's self, your end's the tomb!
466.
It
chanced into a potter's shop I strayed,
He
turned his wheel and deftly plied his trade,
And out of monarchs' heads, and
beggars' feet,
Fair
heads and handles for his pitchers made!
467.
If
you have sense, true senselessness attain,
And
the Etern Cupbearer's goblet drain;
If not, true senselessness is not
for you ‑
Not
every fool true senselessness can gain!
468.
O
Love! before you pass death's portal through,
And
potters make their jugs of me and you,
Pour from this jug some wine, of
headache void,
And
fill your cup, and fill my goblet too!
469.
O
Love! while yet you can, with tender art,
Lift
sorrow's burden from your lover's heart;
Your wealth of graces will not
always last,
But
slip from your possession, and depart!
470.
Bestir
thee, ere death's cup for thee shall flow,
And
blows of ruthless fortune lay thee low;
Acquire some substance here, there
is none there,
For
those who thither empty‑handed go!
471.
Who
framed the lots of quick and dead but Thou?
Who
turns the troublous wheel of heaven but Thou?
Though we are sinful slaves, is it
for Thee
To
blame us? Who created us but Thou?
472.
O
wine, most limpid, pure, and crystalline,
Would
I could drench this silly frame of mine
With thee, that passers‑by might
think 'twas thou,
And
cry, "Whence comest thou, fair master wine?"
473.
A
Shaikh beheld a harlot, and quoth he,
"You
seem a slave to drink and lechery ";
And she made answer, "What I
seem I am,
But,
Master, are you all you seem to be? "
474.
If,
like a ball, earth to my house were borne,
When
drunk, I'd rate it at a balrleycorn;
Last night they offered me in pawn
for wine,
But
the rude vintner laughed that pledge to scorn
475.
Now
in thick clouds Thy face Thou dost immerse,
And
now display it in this universe;
Thou the spectator, Thou the
spectacle,
Sole
to Thyself Thy glories dost rehearse
476.
Better
to make one soul rejoice with glee,
Than
plant a desert with a colony;
Rather one freeman bind with chains
of love,
Than
set a thousand prisoned captives free!
477.
O
thou who for thy pleasure dost impart
A
pang of sorrow to thy fellow's heart,
Go! mourn thy perished wit, and
peace of mind,
Thyself
hast slain them, like the fool thou art!
478.
Wherever
you can get two maunds of wine,
Set
to, and drink it like a libertine;
Whoso acts thus will set his spirit
free
From
saintly airs like yours, and grief like mine
479.
So
long as I possess two maunds of wine,
Bread
of the flower of wheat, and mutton chine,
And you, O Tulip cheek, to share my
hut,
Not
every Sultan's lot can vie with mine
480.
They
call you wicked, if to fame you're known,
And
an intriguer, if you live alone;
Trust me, though you were Khizr or
Elias,
'Tis
best to know none, and of none be known
481.
Yes!
here am I with wine and feres again!
I
did repent, but, ah! 'twas all in vain;
Preach not to me of Noah and his
flood,
But
pour a flood of wine to drown my pain!
482.
For
union with my love I sigh in vain,
The
pangs of absence I can scarce sustain,
My grief I dare not tell to any
friend;
O
trouble strange, sweet passion, bitter pain!
483.
'Tis
dawn! I hear the loud Muezzin's call,
And
here am I before the vintner's hall;
This is no time of pietyBe still!
And
drop your talk and airs devotional!
484.
Angel
of joyful foot! the dawn is nigh;
Pour
wine, and lift your tuneful voice on high,
Sing how Jemshids and Khosraus bit
the dust,
Whelmed
by the rolling months, from Tir to Dai!
485.
Frown
not at revelers, I beg of thee,
For
all thou keepest righteous company;
But drink, for, drink or no, 'tis
all the same,
If
doomed to hell, no heaven thou'lt ever see
486.
I
wish that Allah would rebuild these skies,
And
earth, and that at once, before my eyes,
And either 'rase my name from off
his roll,
Or
else relieve my dire necessities!
487.
Lord!
make thy bounty's cup for me to flow,
And
bread unbegged for day by day bestow;
Yea, with thy wine make me beside
myself
No
more to feel the headache of my woe!
488.
Omar!
of burning heart, perchance to burn
In
hell, and feed its bale‑fires in thy turn,
Presume not to teach Allah clemency,
For
who art thou to teach, or He to learn?
489.
Cheer
up! your lot was settled yesterday!
Heedless
of all that you might do or say,
Without so much as "By your
leave" they fixed
Your
lot for all the morrows yesterday!
490.
I
never would have come, had I been asked,
I
would as lief not go, if I were asked,
And, to be short, I would annihilate
All
coming, being, going, were I asked!
491.
Man
is a cup, his soul the wine therein,
Flesh
is a pipe, spirit the voice within;
O Khayyam, have you fathomed what
man is?
A
magic lantern with a light therein!
492.
O
skyey wheel, all base men you supply
With
baths, mills, and canals that run not dry,
While good men have to pawn their
goods for bread:
Pray,
who would give a fig for such a sky?
493.
A
potter at his work I chanced to see,
Pounding
some earth and shreds of pottery;
I looked with eyes of insight, and
methought
'Twas
Adam's dust with which he made so free!
494.
The
Saki knows my genus properly,
To
all woe's species he holds a key;
Whene'er my mood is sad he brings me
wine,
And
that makes all the difference to me!
495.
Dame
Fortune! all your acts and deeds confess
That
you are foul oppression's votaress;
You cherish bad men, and annoy the
good;
Is
this from dotage, or sheer foolishness?
496.
You,
who in carnal lusts your time employ,
Wearing
your precious spirit with annoy,
Know that these things you set your
heart upon
Sooner
or later must the soul destroy!
497.
Hear
from the spirit‑world this mystery:
Creation
is summed up, O man, in thee;
Angel and demon, man and beast art
thou,
Yea,
thou art all thou dost appear to be!
498.
If
popularity you would ensue,
Speak
well of Muslim, Christian, and Jew;
So shall you be esteemed of great
and small,
And
none will venture to speak ill of you
499.
O
wheel of heaven, what have I done to you,
That
you should thus annoy me? Tell me true;
To get a drink I have to cringe and
stoop,
And
for my bread you make me beg and sue
500.
No
longer hug your grief and vain despair,
But
in this unjust world be just and fair;
And since the issue of the world is
naught,
Think
you are naught, and so shake off dull care!