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English translation

One night Gabriel arrived from afar, Bringing a lightning-paced Buraq made of light, Who said: 'O leader, pass beyond this prison; Journey to the spiritual realm.' For there are many prophets and messengers, And on every side there is a world of pure-eyed houris. All are sitting by the path, watching the way, To behold your face, O sun of the Divine Court. The houris have leaned out of their chambers, In the hope that you might take something from them as a gift. A clamor and commotion has risen among the angels, Wishing that you might ride the Duldul on that side. All night long, the world-illuminating stars Burn wild rue against the evil eye until daybreak. 'I know well that you possess such abundance of light That the Almighty has made you free of need for houris. Now rise and bring forth your Buraq, For I know how intense is your yearning. Step for a moment into the holy world; Grasp that ring and strike it against the sanctuary's door.' When the tongue of your soul became the confidant of the Truth, Let your heart be occupied with its own mystery. How could a nightingale flap its wings in a cage? Hearing that response, the Prophet acted accordingly. He rode the lightning-paced Buraq from this earthly realm, And first delivered the sermon upon the heavens. He became the teacher of the sincere servants, And gave lessons on Ultimate Truth (Haqiqah) to the messengers. He saw a world of experienced prophets Who had seen much of the light of faith from the Presence. By his light they saw themselves as non-existent; What can I say? They saw smoke within the fire. From the courtyard of the earth, in the twinkling of an eye, He ascended to the space of 'two bows' length' (Qab-i Qawsayn). He set foot upon the summit of the highest paradise, And raised his banner upon the Throne of the Lord of the worlds. The turquoise dome of heaven was clamoring With the heralds' cry of 'make way' (turuq) from the green-clad ones. In the end, he kept ascending, seeking the heights, While hundreds of thousands of angels cried 'make way!' The fish from the depths to the moon laid out provisions, And the bearers of the Throne cast down their burdens. Paradise was adorned, its doors flung open, Curtains hung, and thrones arranged. A great roar arose in the Supreme Throne: 'The chief and full moon of both worlds has arrived!' 'The commander and master of masters has come; The general of all created beings has arrived!' When he journeyed through the nine indigo veils, And passed beyond the veil of the Unseen, Nothing became an obstacle or captured his interest, For he bypassed everything that came before him. He did not cast a single glance to any side, Perhaps because he had a Friend in the Highest. Though the courtyard of the garden was full of houris, His eyes were adorned with the kohl of 'the gaze did not swerve' (ma zagh). The light shone so brightly from the Presence That the Holy Spirit (Gabriel) was left far behind. When the surroundings were illuminated by the Divine Light, The Holy Spirit cried out at once: 'O Master, if I step any closer, This radiance will burn my wings to ashes.' [The Prophet said:] 'O Trustworthy Spirit, you are before a Presence That turns the gall of the prophets to water. Why are you so concerned about your mighty wings, Crying out 'Had I drawn closer...' (law danawt)? Thousands of souls are burning in this path; Let your wings burn too, O messenger of the Court! The truthful (siddiqan) know not their head from their feet, Yet you worry about your wings in such a place? If you pace in the proximity of this Presence, You will burn your wings; you are not made for this station. O Trustworthy Spirit, sit at the threshold, Do not trouble yourself, for 'I have a time with God' (li waqt ma'a Allah). You are my student, sit properly; Ask me what spiritual excellence (ihsan) and faith (iman) are. The turn of 'a heavy word' (qawlan thaqilan) has passed; O Gabriel, stay at the door now! You have no path behind the inner veil, For not every officer is a courtier of the chamber. I am like a moth in the Divine Light, You are trapped in your peacock feathers. Seek refuge in God, why seek it in your wings? When the secret is told, why speak of wings?' Thousands of souls filled with secrets of wisdom Are sacrificed for the soul of that sea of purity. When he passed higher than the Holy Spirit, He transcended everything that lay ahead of him. At the place where the Master's station lay, Saturn, by comparison, was stuck in the mud. His soul drew so close to God through light That Gabriel fell far away from him. In form, that Trustworthy Gabriel, One of whose wings reached from heaven to earth, Was so distant from the Master there, That to the Master, he appeared as small as a sparrow. When he passed beyond spatial direction, the path grew narrow, In the end, he drew close to the Lord of Glory. What can I say of what it was like in that Presence? For at that moment, he was out of his own existence. In that proximity, his heart was a surging wave of secrets, And from that awe, his tongue ceased to function. His soul was perspiring like a rose petal of modesty, Having severed the feet of the horse of imagination. He transcended the senses and passed beyond the soul; When he became selfless, he gazed upon the Truth. As far as his eyes could see, His heart was beholding through his eyes. When he descended from the court to the sanctuary of privacy, The Divine Light entered and he (his self) departed. In that awe, Muhammad was left inactive; Muhammad became free of Muhammad. As the Truth saw him fluttering his wings, He immediately greeted him with comfort. For a moment He brought him back to himself from that state, Offering him greeting and response. The address came: 'Abandon your self and enter; Come forth with 'through Me he hears and through Me he speaks.' Ask quickly for whatever desire you have; Why did you lose yourself, what came over you? Now that you have burned all the idols, Intercede for a moment on behalf of your communities. You are an orphan, and from this orphanhood it is wondrous That he is the intercessor for the creation of both worlds. You are poor, and from this poverty it is amazing That his fame has filled the Throne and the earth. Behold Me, though you are an orphan and poor, I am yours; this is for you above all else. What fear is there of poverty? Poverty is pride, For poverty is the beauty-spot on the face of both worlds. You are a pearl; what fear is there of being an orphan (unique)? For the best description of a pearl is to be unique (orphan/yatim).' In the end, when he severed his lineage from his self, With the ear of his soul he heard the greeting of the Truth. He said: 'It is not fitting to consume this alone; May it be for me and for the righteous servants.' See his generosity! When he drank of this cup, He did not forget these needy creations. The address came: 'O absolute innocent, You possess the truth, and to the possessor of truth, truth is due. Ask whatever petition you wish to make; From you is the request, and from Us is the fulfillment.' As the Lord of Glory entered into secrets, The Prophet also began to speak: 'O Lord, I have a sinful community; By Your grace, keep them safe from the Fire. Behold their weeping and heartfelt sorrow; Grant them the vision of Your countenance. You know the hope of all, fulfill it; By Your kindness, grant everyone's need. The entire world is a handful of dust, O Pure One; Do not scatter the hope of a handful of dust to the wind. The kingdom of the sea is not disturbed By a pleasant pebble resting in this sea. What is diminished from a shoreless ocean If a straw gazes into it? If You show mercy to the gathered creation at the Resurrection, A hair's breadth of this ocean will become wet.' He said this, and the Nightingale of Holiness set off, The scent of his soul filled with musk from the rose of intimacy. The fragrance of the chosen prophets Had not reached it, until he reached them. The prophets who had arrived as riders Run on foot beside his stirrup. All the cherubim spread their wings, Placing the dust of his path upon their heads with their feathers. The heavenly beings sat watching for him, Waiting for a scent of his inner meanings to arrive. How can you think that the dust of the feet of that leader Has no value before the Lord of the world? He swore by the dust of his feet When He declared: 'Nay, I swear by this city' (la uqsimu bi-hadha). O Chief of Religion, be with Attar for a moment! Intercede for him and attend to his affair. To you, I am like the dog of the Companions of the Cave; As long as I exist, I am devoted to this threshold. With the water of my tears, I performed the bath of repentance, In the hope that I might become the dust beneath your feet. I am in separation from that pure garden, Scattering dust upon my head in yearning. If one day I enter that field, What can I say? I will emerge from this curved polo-mallet. With a sigh, I shall sever the bonds of the world, And make an embalming spice for my soul from your dust. I ask three wishes from your threshold, For I am a desperate seeker of your aid: That before death, this loving dervish May behold your pure garden before him; Second, that you do not count me among the poets, Nor look upon me with the eyes of a poet; Third, when my soul takes wing, freed from the body, That you embrace it—O Lord, let it be so! O heart, sacrifice your soul for his path; Turn toward his threshold with piety. In this world, speak of his pure religion; In the hereafter, grasp his saddle-strap. I shall tell you a clear parable, ponder it: Someone has a cup full of honey before them. If a child says to him: 'Hold back, For beneath this honey is poison in the cup,' Once he has heard that statement from the child, Without doubt, he withdraws his hand from it. So many prophets have warned you That there will be a difficult matter on the path. At the child's word, you sought the path of caution; At the prophets' word, rise and depart from the path [of sin]. O God, make the light of religion our companion; Make Muhammad our intercessor. Do not make him angry with our deeds; Make his pure soul pleased with us. May there be more than a hundred thousand greetings Upon him from God, and from him upon his companions, Especially the four pure-natured companions: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Haydar (Ali). The Prophet said: 'Indeed, they are stars: Whomever of them you follow, you shall be guided.'