Attar, Ghazals, Ghazal No. 3

O You, who've made my hidden secret known to all,

Who am I, that my soul from One like You should call?

My soul and heart are filled with pain, just gaze upon me now,

Since You've revealed this hidden secret, and how.

For longing for Your face, my face in blood is drowned, for so,

No cure but Your dear face, my weeping eyes can know.

Though like a pen, from head to foot, I walked Love's way,

No end or start I found in this vast desert's sway.

If hope of Your embrace does not my pathway lead,

Forever will separation's valley my journey feed.

Since You do know what solace for this lost one lies,

My pain's beyond all bounds, why do You hold my prize?

Attar's soul, like Your locks, is scattered and distraught,

Gather my scattered soul, upon Your face, I've sought.

Attar's Ghazal No. 3 is a profound expression of the Sufi mystic's yearning for the Divine Beloved. It explores themes of divine manifestation, overwhelming longing, the arduous path of spiritual seeking, and the ultimate desire for union with God.

• Divine Manifestation and Humility (Stanza 1-2):

  • "ای به عالم کرده پیدا راز پنهان مرا" (O You, who've made my hidden secret known to all): This opening line immediately establishes the central relationship between the seeker (the poet/lover) and the Divine Beloved. The "hidden secret" (راز پنهان) is likely the inherent longing for God within the human soul, or perhaps the truth of the soul's divine origin, which God Himself has "revealed" or made evident through the intensity of the seeker's love and yearning.

  • "من کیم کز چون تویی بویی رسد جان مرا" (Who am I, that my soul from One like You should call?): This expresses profound humility. The poet acknowledges his utter insignificance before the grandeur of the Divine. It's a rhetorical question emphasizing the sheer grace that even a "scent" (بویی) – a mere hint or presence – of the Divine can reach his soul.

  • "جان و دل پر درد دارم هم تو در من می‌نگر / چون تو پیدا کرده‌ای این راز پنهان مرا" (My soul and heart are filled with pain, just gaze upon me now, / Since You've revealed this hidden secret, and how): The pain (درد) is the pain of separation from the Beloved. The poet directly addresses God, asking Him to "gaze upon" him, acknowledging that this very pain and revelation of the "hidden secret" (the intense love for God) is a divine act. The suffering itself is a sign of divine attention and a pathway to deeper realization.

• The Overwhelming Longing and Tears (Stanza 3):

  • "ز آرزوی روی تو در خون گرفتم روی از آنک / نیست جز روی تو درمان چشم گریان مرا" (For longing for Your face, my face in blood is drowned, for so, / No cure but Your dear face, my weeping eyes can know): This is a powerful image of intense longing and despair. "Face in blood is drowned" (در خون گرفتم روی) signifies extreme sorrow, perhaps to the point of crying tears of blood, a common motif in Persian mystical poetry to denote ultimate suffering for love. The Beloved's "face" (روی تو) is the ultimate goal, the only cure (درمان) for the weeping eyes, symbolizing the soul's yearning for divine vision and union.

• The Arduous Path of Love (Stanza 4-5):

  • "گرچه از سرپای کردم چون قلم در راه عشق / پا و سر پیدا نیامد این بیابان مرا" (Though like a pen, from head to foot, I walked Love's way, / No end or start I found in this vast desert's sway): The metaphor of walking "like a pen" (چون قلم) implies complete devotion and surrender, constantly moving forward, pouring out one's essence (like ink from a pen). However, the "way of Love" (راه عشق) is depicted as a "vast desert" (بیابان) with no discernible "end or start" (پا و سر پیدا نیامد). This signifies the endlessness and difficulty of the spiritual journey, emphasizing that conventional logic or physical effort cannot conquer it; it requires divine guidance.

  • "گر امید وصل تو در پی نباشد رهبرم / تا ابد ره درکشد وادی هجران مرا" (If hope of Your embrace does not my pathway lead, / Forever will separation's valley my journey feed): "Hope of union" (امید وصل تو) with the Beloved is the sole guide (رهبر) and motivator on this path. Without it, the seeker would be perpetually lost in the "valley of separation" (وادی هجران), highlighting the spiritual desolation that comes from being distant from God. Union (وصل) is the ultimate aspiration.

• Pleading with the Divine (Stanza 6):

  • "چون تو می‌دانی که درمان من سرگشته چیست / دردم از حد شد چه می‌سازی تو درمان مرا" (Since You do know what solace for this lost one lies, / My pain's beyond all bounds, why do You hold my prize?): This stanza is a direct plea to God. The poet acknowledges God's omniscience ("You do know what solace...") and yet questions the delay in receiving the "cure" (درمان) for his overwhelming pain. This is not a challenge to God's wisdom, but rather a desperate cry from a soul in profound suffering, a common expression of passionate love in Sufi poetry, where the lover playfully (yet earnestly) chides the Beloved for the delay in granting union.

• Ultimate Surrender and Union (Stanza 7):

  • "جان عطار از پریشانی است همچون زلف تو / جمع کن بر روی خود جان پریشان مرا" (Attar's soul, like Your locks, is scattered and distraught, / Gather my scattered soul, upon Your face, I've sought): This is a beautiful and intimate closing. The poet compares his "scattered soul" (جان پریشان) to the Beloved's "disheveled locks" (زلف تو), a classic metaphor for complexity, mystery, and alluring chaos. The plea is for God to "gather" (جمع کن) his scattered soul "upon Your face" (بر روی خود). This implies a desire for complete dissolution of the self into the Divine essence, finding coherence and peace only in the vision and presence of God. It's the ultimate aspiration of Fana (annihilation of self) and Baqa (subsistence in God).

In essence, this ghazal portrays the Sufi path as one of intense, consuming love for God, where suffering in longing is a sign of divine connection, and the ultimate aim is complete annihilation of the self in the Beloved's presence. It beautifully captures the mystic's paradox: the pain of separation is exquisite, yet the longing for union is paramount.