The Morning of Friendship

When the morning of friendship with God

begins to dawn,

the soul grows distant from

the landscapes of this world,

and you reach a place inside yourself where

without any hindrance from your external eyes

you can catch a glimpse

of the face of the Friend.

And you ask: “With your overwhelming beauty,

what are you?

And who are you like, O God?”

And God replies:

I am love, I am lover,

I am (the) Beloved One.

And I am the beauty reflected

in the mirror of creation around you.

And I am the deep longing

of your eyes to see it.

For you see, the imprint of the divine beauty

already exists inside of you.

The Mirror of the divine face

is already reflecting out through you.

In truth, there is not a thing in this world

separate from you.

Whatever you are seeking is already waiting there

inside of you.

For in the end, we are all images

you stitch with gold thread

into a tapestry you are weaving.

Even the least figure in that tapestry

is a playful addition.

Nothing you ever work on is ever dull.

Each of us is a manifestation

of your divine beauty.

—Sayfal-Din Bakharzi, , Baba Afdal Kashani, Abu Sa’id Abil Khayr