Sunday, June 10, 2018

O my Lord

O my Lord,

if I worship you
from fear of hell, burn me in hell.

If I worship you
from hope of Paradise, bar me from its gates.

But if I worship you
for yourself alone, grant me then the beauty of your Face.

--Rabi'a al-Basri (717-801), Sufi mystic, translated by Jane Hirschfeld

Rabi'a was an influence on Evelyn Underhill.


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