I Blog Poetry and Prose

Writing Spiritual or Mystic Poetry

Jamál (Beauty), 18 Bahá (Splendor) 176 B.E. - Sunday, April 7, 2019

"Meditate on what the poet hath written: “Wonder not, if my Best-Beloved be closer to me than mine own self; wonder at this, that I, despite such nearness, should still be so far from Him.”… Considering what God hath revealed, that “We are closer to man than his life-vein,” the poet hath, in allusion to this verse, stated that, though the revelation of my Best-Beloved hath so permeated my being that He is closer to me than my life-vein, yet, notwithstanding my certitude of its reality and my recognition of my station, I am still so far removed from Him. By this he meaneth that his heart, which is the seat of the All-Merciful and the throne wherein abideth the splendor of His revelation, is forgetful of its Creator, hath strayed from His path, hath shut out itself from His glory, and is stained with the defilement of earthly desires."

Baha'u'llah1

Writing Spiritual or Mystic Poetry

I meditate
on the poetry of the spirit,
on the verses revealed by Baha'u'llah
and The Bab.

I contemplate
the similes and metaphors
of the sacred scriptures.

I enter
the zone of creativity
and begin to write,
knowing
that no matter
how perfect my verses
they do not compare
with those inscribed
by either the Pen of Glory2
or the Gate of God3

Footnotes
1  Gleaning from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, CXIII
2  A title of Baha'u'llah.
3  A title of The Bab.