Wherever God lays his glance

Life starts clapping.

The Myriad

Creatures grab their instruments

And join the

Song.

Hafiz

Divine Beauty

I will relish you

in stillness

and gently

 take your divine beauty

into my secret shrine

I will get drunk

on your image

which has been

etched into my soul

Narayan

Children's laughter

If every child

laughed

at the same time

the angels

would dance

so ecstatically

that

we would hear

their beating wings

whirrrrrling

like a set of

new drums.

Narayan

Kisses

Hafiz 

thinks

I have a crush

on you

He told me this

while he was 

feeding his cow...

He might be right

His cow kept

throwing me kisses

and pointing 

to the Moon.

Narayan

Five Days

In five Days

I will be at your feet

surrounded by your Lovers

Twelve years gone by

yet so much

 remains

the same

I  bring on the

chocolate

You bring on

 the Love

Narayan

Needing a mirror

Your Eye 

is so wise

It keeps turning, turning

Needing to touch Beauty.

It keeps turning,

Needing to find a mirror

That will caress you

As I.

Hafiz

Faithful Lover

The Moon came to me last night

With a sweet question.

She said,

"The sun has been my faithful lover

For millions of years.

Whenever I offer my body to him

Brilliant light pours from his heart.

Thousands then notice my happiness

And delight in pointing

Toward my beauty.

Hafiz,

Is it true that our destiny

Is to turn into Light

Itself?

And I replied,

Dear Moon,

Now that your love is maturing,

We need to sit together

Close like this more often

So I might instruct you

How to become

Who you

Are!

Hafiz 

If I Could

If  I

could reach out,

and gently touch

your

Golden Heart,

If I could

wrap you

in a blanket

of Velvet blue light,

If I could drown you

in an ocean of Nectar

I would...

Narayan

No slouching

50 laps a day

last night

in the rain

I did the work

my favorite tapas

stroking through the raindrops

breathe and pull

until the water becomes mana

Hafiz said I had been slouching

too many cookies

not enough crunch
not enough burn

so I do the work

the good work

fine tuning

sharpening

the instrument

for the battles ahead
also

Just in case

he comes after me

with a stick again
Narayan

Busy, Busy Busy

Hafiz came to my office today

and asked me 

if I knew how to Twirl

I laughed and said,

"I am very busy, Hafiz,

I have a business to run

and people to serve"

Perhaps I'll see you tonight

He just sighed and walked away,

muttering under his breath,

"too busy, too busy, too busy for God...

busy,busy,busy"

Later on that evening,

I found him

on a hilltop

overlooking the sea

 dancing ecstatically

twirling

in a Field of wildflowers

Hafiz, I said ,

It's time to go home now,

it will be dark soon

He laughed

 intoxicated

and looked me

 right in the  eye

Crazy Boy, This, THIS IS  my home

dancing and singing 

in the fields with my beloved

spinning around 

 I remember her love

and she fills me with her nectar

Then  he got up and staggered towards me

and grabbed my fine dress shirt

"Crazy Boy,

you serve so many,

but you also have to serve

the Friend

and if you don't steal her away

from the house of rubies

your life is just an empty shell..

Now leave me be

while I twirl...

under the moonlight

with my beloved...

hmmm...

Busy, Busy,Busy..."
Narayan

Response from a Lousy Thief

The greatest thieves
always share their plunder
with their mates
Otherwise hoarding becomes just hard work
In fact,
If I could steal
a smile from my beloved's tender mouth,
or one moment of her ecstatic laughter
If I were to capture
a single moment of her Divine song...

I would share them ALL with YOU
because I've seen your Ruby Heart

Hafiz HAS taught me how to share
So,
Yes,
I WILL take the Moonlight back to my Tree house
and every night I will come back out and
dance in her exquisite beauty

Join me if you feel the sweet longing

because it's much more fun 

than dancing alone


  Hafiz will eventually find out
and that may get  nasty
He's REALLY tough for an old Sufi Saint
and when he found out
that I stole your picture
out of his coat
he chased after me

for miles
swinging a big stick.

Narayan

Among Strong Men

"My soul is like a doe eyed maid

With lips

Still bruised from last night's passion.

Among strong men in the tavern,

I can speak a truth

No one will laugh at:

My heart is like a wild alley cat in heat.

In every possible way I conspire

To know freedom and Love.

Forget about the common reason, Hafiz,

For it only enslaves.

There is something holy deep inside you

That is so ardent and awake,

That needs to lie down naked

Next to God."

Hafiz

Conversations with Hafiz

I spoke with Hafiz tonight

and he said we have to stop meeting like this

under the moonlight

where he dances

He said that If I continued playing with you

I would lose myself in good wine

and that special spot in the small of your back

(the one that makes you giggle)

But HE was drunk again and he had a picture of YOU in his pocket

Hafiz is a rascal!

He laughed

when I asked him about your picture

and said, Narayan, "If you wore the new moon in your hair,

and Venus sparkled on your nose

"If you wore Saturn's golden rings on beautiful slender fingers

and Mars and Jupiter wrapped around your soft ankles

that glowed like blue and red gems

then I would have YOUR picture in my pocket too!"

That's when I knew he was way to drunk to talk to

so I left him snoring in the sand

But thinking back,

I know now why he worships you so...

Wait... Did you know?

why he worships you so?

That the new moon gently rests in your hair

and Venus sparkles on your nose

that Saturn's golden rings adorn your delicate fingers

Well, now that YOU know

you can see my predicament

I took you home a very long time ago

when divine thunder broke down the golden door.

Narayan

Ruby Heart

Hafiz
stole your heart and
put it in his overcoat
inside a golden box
He actually told me that you gave it to him
but it's really hard to tell
because he steals our hearts so well
He showed me his box
under the Moonlight
(after much haggling I'll admit)
And Once I looked
inside his box
I was awestruck
and amazed!

I tried to steal
your ruby heart
from this thief ,
Hafiz
Once I saw its glow within
I could not turn away,
I quickly grabbed
your crimson heart
and Ran a beaten path
Hafiz just turned
and watched me go
Laughing at my folly
After racing hard
for quite some time
I found a quiet spot
Carefully,
I opened up
the box that I had taken
To my despair
To my chagrin
The Sufi's box
was  empty
Your Ruby Heart
had disappeared
like the dew 
In midday light

Before I could contain
 my grief
I felt an inner seething
I ran back to the place I'd left
and found Hafiz
still laughing
Rise up !!
Hafiz, You Rascal!
Rise up Hafiz, You thief!
Give me back
what I deserve
Her ruby heart
so pure, 
I need her light
to help along the Path
Hafiz spoke very sweetly then
Looking deep into my eyes
"Dear One,
Don't you understand
her heart was always yours?"
"This heart belongs to everyone..
Her gentle heart so bright"
Then He pointed up

 into the sky
to Venus
by the Moon

I recognized
her Crimson Heart
Full of Light and 

full of Fire
Hafiz took back
his golden box as he
 Whispered in my ear
".............................................."

Narayan

Cool Down the Madness

If we could understand

just how much

the Goddess loves us,

there would be no fear

If we could hold onto

the bowl of nectar we've been given,

there would be no sorrow

If we could always share

this Divine Gift with others,

there would be no hatred

If we could just remember

we are seeds of the Divine One

we would all grow

into her tapestry of light.

If we could only follow

the rhythm of our heart

then only Her Love would remain

only Her Love would remain...

Sing the Beloved's name

until the universe dissolves

Sing her praises

until nothing else exists

Cool down the madness of the wanderer..

and rid yourself of all petty desires

It's time to come Home!

Can't you hear her calling you?

Meditate with great reverence

on your beloved,

the sweet, sleeping Goddess

She is resting peacefully

in her Ocean of Blue Nectar

right within your heart

Give up chasing

after the shadows of this world

they will only leave you

tired, empty and confused

Seek out the Pure One

Beyond all Time and Space

which is only her creation

Offer her everything

hold nothing back

She will let you drown

in her Ocean of Nectar

She will let you

drown...

in Her Ocean of Love

Cow Fish Party

 

Just jump in!!!

Push through the swirling waves

Dive into the blue

embrace

the emptiness

The Goddess

so full of life

She'll wash away

everything....

Become her lover

Become invisible

let her lead the dance

lose yourself in her

 deep blue light

breathe

and pull closer to the Rasa

breathe

arms getting stronger

lungs getting fuller

breathe

pull stretch

explore infinite beauty

breathe

pure white sand explosions

swirling designs of golden sand

on her velvet floor

you ARE each grain of sand

dancing in the tides

breathe ...

Woooooooo!!!!!!

wait what's that?!

It's a Party!

Everyone's invited

It's a little black cow fish party!

No way!

that's right!

little black cow fisheeees

with big white splotches

doing the mackarena

dive deep and join the party

looks like casual attire

Welcome Welcome!!!

Little black cow fishies

kissing my hands

kissing my feet

blending our movements

in the beloved's tide

Oh how we dance!

Narayan

Don't forget to Play

Don't forget to Play

 After all,

life IS just a play

and we are the best actors

God could find

on  short notice

so

don't forget your lines

and

let's make it a love story

they are always good

We'll also add

 some

 comedy

with a little

 passionate drama

of course,

 and we can do

a really nice ending,

where we go off to the forest together

 when we're old and grey

and say goodbye to this world

in each others arms

until we meet again,

on some other stage

Narayan

"And if you would know God, be not a solver of riddles. Rather look about you and you shall see Him playing with your children."

Kahlil Gibran 

 "Beauty is that which attracts your soul, and that which loves to give and not to recieve."

Kahlil Gibran

Inside the ruby window

There are many paths
that lead to broken dreams
There are many lives that end in tears
there is pain rising with each tide
and crushing every heart from deep within
Time has no mercy for any soul
and accepts no bargains in the end
Death is certain for every man
as certain as the sunset
Or the full Moon in July

Oh my Beloved,
Take this battered heart
and scrape away the mud and scars
from this old worn out warrior
He will not fight this final battle alone
and he has already thrown down
his bloodied sword

He's banging on the door
of the tree house
A warrior, gravely wounded
The wind is howling
and a chill is in the air
Death is waiting close
with a dagger drawn

All that has been said and done
means nothing

Within the heart
inside the ruby window
My Beloved rests by a warm fire
She's sleeping soundly
Her face is glowing
in the flame's soft
crimson light.


 
Narayan

What is cutting at my soul

like a jagged rock

What is cutting at my heart

like a twisted knife

What is burning up my nights

like a raging fire

You

and your light

You

and your dance

You and Your

Love bruises

left

on my mind


Narayan

Tired

I didn't swim tonight

just too tired

I want to dance

but can't find my feet

I miss the Beloved

even though she's always touching me

with every single word

Oh Goddess

show me your form

so I can go to sleep

smiling at my good fortune

Narayan

Fickle Heart Narayan

You are just a traveler

on a narrow mountain pass

The views may be stunning

but don't spend too much time

watching the colors change

in the sky

Keep going forward

and don't look down...

or back

There is still much to be done

and only a little time

before the sun goes down

forever...

on your fancy clothes

and fine head of hair

If you leave The Friend waiting too long

she'll take out her sword

and cut you right in half

and laugh as you fall down the slopes

on both sides,

at the same time

Don't forget just why you came here...

the views are breathtaking

but they are just views

and The Friend is still waiting

with a golden sword in one hand

and a bowl of nectar in another

Narayan

Ruby Heart

If you want to come to the palace of light

there will be a breathless chase

If you want to remove the  veil

that covers your ruby heart

you may get twigs in your hair

If you want to to fly in the inner realms

there are thorns and pebbles along the path

 the journey is sometimes difficult

But I promise you this, dear one,

after you enter the Tree house

The Beloved One will gently

wash your tear stained face

and clean all your wounds with a gentle touch

She'll place you on a

 soft bed of blue effulgence,

and wrap you in  sheets of cool moonlight

She'll  cover your soul from head to toe in open wet kisses

and feed you divine nectar that will fill you with rapture

She will untangle the leaves

still caught in your hair....

and leave you  melting in  Divine Love...

Narayan

The Gardener

The gardener has beautiful hands

and a ruby heart

Hands that smell of the earth and rocks

and weeds

Her eyes are gentle and soft

If you are fortunate enough to be planted in her Garden

Stay awhile

and Grow

She'll be sure to pick off your dead leaves

and water you every evening

If you are very fortunate

you'll even get to see her dancing

under the stars

in the Moonlight.

NARAYAN

Make time for the Moonlight

So you took care of your clients

you took care of your friends

you took care of the laundry

and you fed the rabbit in the yard

Now Dear One,

make time for the Moonlight

make time for the Beloved

She is waiting at your doorstep

Welcome her in and
Drink her sweet wine

I promise

you won't be hung over in the morning...


Narayan

OLD SWEET BEGGAR

                                                            Ramakrishna Paramahansa

This Path to God Made me such an old sweet beggar

I was starving until one night

My Love tricked God Himself

To fall into my bowl

Now Hafiz is infinitely rich

But all I ever want to do

Is keep emptying out

My emerald-filled

pockets

Upon

This tear-stained

World.

Hafiz- The Subject Tonight is Love