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The Four Valleys
The Four Valleys
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He is the Strong, the Well-Beloved!
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O light of truth, Hisám-i-Dín, the bounteous,
No prince hath the world begot like unto Thee!
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I am wondering why the tie of love was so
abruptly severed, and the firm covenant of
friendship broken. Did ever, God forbid, My
devotion lessen, or My deep affection fail, that
thou hast thus forgot Me and blotted Me from
thy thoughts?
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What fault of Mine hath made thee cease thy favors?
Is it that We are lowly and thou of high degree?
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Or is that a single arrow hath driven thee
from the battle?
Have they not told thee that
faithfulness is a duty on those who follow the
mystic way, that it is the true guide to His
Holy Presence? “But as for those who say,
‘Our Lord is God,’ and who go straight to
Him, the angels shall descend to them….”
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Likewise He saith, “Go straight on then as
thou hast been commanded.”
Wherefore, this
course is incumbent on those who dwell in the
presence of God.
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I do as bidden, and I bring the message,
Whether it give thee counsel or offense.
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Albeit I have received no answer to My letters
and it is contrary to the usage of the wise
to express My regard anew, yet this new love
hath broken all the old rules and ways.
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Tell us not the tale of Laylí or of Majnún’s woe—
Thy love hath made the world forget the loves of long ago.
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When once thy name was on the tongue, the lovers caught it
And it set the speakers and the hearers dancing to and fro.
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And of divine wisdom and heavenly counsel,
[Rúmí says]:
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Each moon, O my beloved, for three days I go mad;
Today’s the first of these—’Tis why thou seest me glad.
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We hear that thou hast journeyed to Tabríz
and Tiflis to disseminate knowledge, or
that some other high purpose hath taken thee to
Sanandaj.
,
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O My eminent friend! Those who progress
in mystic wayfaring are of four kinds. I shall
describe them in brief, that the grades and
qualities of each kind may become plain to
thee.
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