student from another country came to Hafiz to
personally ask for his permission to translate some
of Hafiz's poems into a little book.
And he said to Hafiz, ‘What is the essential
quality in your poems that I
need to incorporate in
my translations to make them
abiding and authentic?’
And Hafiz smiled, and placed his arms
on the man's
shoulders, then said, ‘Do you
really want to know?’
And the young man said, ‘Of course.’
‘Well, well then,’ Hafiz began and
continued,
‘My poems lift the corners of the mouth—
the soul's
mouth, the heart's mouth.
And can effect any opening
that can make love.’”
Annotation
Translated by Daniel Ladinsky
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