What is is about being human that requires us to have so many devises to keep our ideas of ourselves safe and comfortable? Hafiz approaches this question in this poem. There is but one way to be close to the soul and that is without the adornments, charm and flair that we cloak ourselves with. When one enters this club they go in one door, hand over the goods they will never again need, retrieve a token of humility, and leave through a different exit unable to need or retrieve what they entered with. It hurts to lose that fedorable hat we were so attached to but there is no splendor equal to the wind in your hair and the fire of life in your veins.
Thank you for listening.
https://pixabay.com/music/world-desert-voices-11468/
Music: Ego death. Why is it such a painful thing? It is only that way when we forget that our adornments and our stories are not who we really are. The struggle is real and so is the sweet liberation. Enjoy this clip from the film, The Full Monte viewable only through the YouTube channel because of content.
Painting by Norman Rockwell
The original post in this series of poems by Hafiz (including an addendum regarding the authenticity of these poems) can be found here. Also, my thoughts on this series a year into these poems, HERE.
The Gift: Poems by Hafiz and translated by Daniel Ladinsky can be purchased here.