Dearest readers –
As you wait (so patiently!) for the Malichon Pentalogy, I will be bringing you sneak peeks and excerpts, and today’s is a poem written by one of the central characters. Poetry will be a recurring theme throughout the series, and this poem explores the analogy between the human beloved and the divine, a common motif in Sufi poetry.
-M
*****
Speak to me, beloved
Pour out ichor from your lips
That I may drink it like sweet wine
The garden is shrouded in darkness
Snow covers the reaching arm of the cypress
Sing to me of your face, beloved
For I am blinded by your brilliance
Weave for me a shroud of your dreams
And let them guide me to the promised dawn
Let me lay my head down among the crocus blossoms
And whisper promises to me
That none shall part us
That at the dawn you will guide me to your gardens
For others tell me of its wonders
They speak to me of its orchards
And still pools that reflect the glories of heaven
But the night is long, beloved
The moon has hidden her face
The stars are cloaked in shadows
My feet are pricked and I cannot see if my blood adorns roses or brambles
Sharp rocks litter the path
My mouth is stopped and I cannot cry out to the wind
Speak to me, beloved
Tell me that I walk in the gardens that were promised
Once you told me that I was the one for whom you longed
Speak to me
Sing to me of the gardens
For the night is ending
And I would steal away with beautiful lies in my heart
Rather than face dawn’s truth
