Shahriar: "You Broke My Heart, Yet My Soul Still Waits for You"
دلم شکستی و جانم هنوز چشم به راهت
شبی سیاهم و در آرزوی طلعت ماهت
You broke my heart, yet my soul still waits for you,
I am a dark night, longing for the rising of your moon-like face.
در انتظار تو چشمم سپید گشت و غمی نیست
اگر قبول تو افتد فدای چشم سیاهت
Waiting for you, my eyes turned pale, yet I have no sorrow,
If I win your favor, let it be a sacrifice for your dark eyes.
ز گرد راه برون آ که پیر دست به دیوار
به اشک و آه یتیمان دویده بر سر راهت
Emerge from the dust of your path, an old man leans on a wall,
Rushed to greet you, led by the tears and sighs of orphans.
بیا که این رمد چشم عاشقان تو ای شاه
نمیرمد مگر از توتیای گرد سپاهت
Come, for the eye pain of your lovers, O King,
Can only be healed by the collyrium made from the dust of your army.
بیا که جز تو سزاوار این کلاه و کمر نیست
تویی که سوده کمربند کهکشان کلاهت
Come, for none but you deserves this crown and belt,
The dust of the Milky Way is your crown.
جمال چون تو به چشم نگاه پاک توان دید
به روی چون منی الحق دریغ چشم و نگاهت
A beauty like yours can only be seen by a pure gaze,
And truly, for one like me, your face and glance are a withheld grace.
در انتظار تو میمیرم و در این دم آخر
دلم خوشست که دیدم به خواب گاه به گاهت
I die waiting for you, and in this final breath,
My heart finds comfort in the glimpses of you I saw in dreams.
اگر به باغ تو گل بر دمید من به دل خاک
اجازتی که سری بر کنم به جای گیاهت
If a flower blooms in your garden, and I lie beneath the soil,
Allow me at least to raise my head in place of your plants.
تنور سینه ما را ای آسمان به حذر باش
که روی ماه سیه میکند به دوده آهت
O sky, beware the furnace of our chests,
For the soot of our sighs darkens even the face of the moon.
کنون که میدمد از مغرب آفتاب نیابت
چه کوههای سلاطین که میشود پَر کاهت
Now that the sun of your vicegerency rises from the West,
See how the mighty mountains of kings become chaff in your presence.
تویی که پشت و پناه جهادیان خدایی
که سر جهاد توی و خداست پشت و پناهت
You are the support and refuge of God’s warriors,
For you lead the charge, and God is your support and refuge.
خدا و بال جوانی نهد به گردن پیری
تو «شهریار» خمیدی به زیر بار گناهت
God places the wings of youth upon the shoulders of the old,
But you, O Shahriyar, are bent beneath the burden of your sins.
Shahriar, Divan, "You Broke My Heart, Yet My Soul Still Waits for You"
Translated by Rasoul Rahbari-Ghazani, 25 January 2025
Longing & Walāya (sainthood) - Shahriar's Poem
What is the cosmic role of the Shi‘i Imams in Islamic mysticism—and why does the heart yearn for their presence? In this episode of the Shi‘i Mysticism Podcast, I explore the esoteric significance of Imam al-Mahdi (a) as the Perfect Man (insān al-kāmil). Drawing from Shi‘i theology and mystical philosophy, I unpack the metaphysical necessity of the Imams after the Prophet (s), focusing on themes of divine Light & Mercy, divine manifestation, esoteric guidance, and moral life. I then turn to the emotional and spiritual experience of "longing" (shawq), reflecting on why figures such as Rumi yearned so deeply for Shams Tabrizi. How does that longing help us understand the spiritual pull toward the 12th Imam in Shi‘i thought? I conclude with an analysis of a 20th-century Persian poem by Shahriar Tabrizi, which beautifully articulates this yearning.