The Mesnevi, Book OneIslamMystical / EsotericPersianShareThe Mesnevi 17James W. Redhouse 1881 - EnglishMoreVersion - 1 availableJames W. Redhouse 1881LanguageEnglishEspañol‹The Mesnevi 5The Mesnevi 1The Mesnevi 2The Mesnevi 3The Mesnevi 4The Mesnevi 6The Mesnevi 7The Mesnevi 8The Mesnevi 9The Mesnevi 10The Mesnevi 11The Mesnevi 12The Mesnevi 13The Mesnevi 14The Mesnevi 15The Mesnevi 16The Mesnevi 17›The Mesnevi: Section XVIIThe Mesnevi 17ListenPlay this chapter in spoken English.Save chapterListen to chapter1Alas! By one poor morsel, tasted through a sin, The fount of thought’s congealed; heart’s blood diluted thin. One grain of wheat has cast eclipse o’er sun of mind, As “dragon’s tail” doth dull the full moon, when inclined. Behold! How delicate is thought! One mite of clay, From full-moon glory, it reduced to disarray. The bread of life, received, digested, gives man power. Material bread excites distrusts, contentions, sour. 2The thorn, while green, cropped by the camel, far from fords, Not only pleasure gives, but nutriment affords. That selfsame thorn, grown dry and void of juicy sap, If ventured on by starving beast in desert gap, His palate and his lips will puncture, blood make flow; As if conserve of roses should with daggers glow. 3The word of life’s the green, the tender, juicy thorn. Material become, it’s dry, as hard as horn. And thou, poor flesh, expectant of the living word, Bitest at the word material, dreaming not of sword;— Snappest at the hard, unyielding dictum, with fond zest; And findest it horny, flinty, irksome to digest. It has become a stone. It wounds; it draws forth blood. Then shun it, human camel. Seek it not for food. 4Words are most foully mixed with troubling thoughts of earth. The water’s muddy. Close the spring whence it comes forth. Until the Lord, again, shall make it clear and sweet;— Shall purify the inky stream, as He deems meet,— Shall patience add to wish,--not haste and oversight,— Wait thou contentedly. God best knows what is right. ‹Previous chapterThe Mesnevi 16Similar passagesBy tradition and source labelFind similarCompare selectedCompare with similarAsk Deep ThoughtSelect passages to search for parallels.Tap any verse to select it, then compare selected passages or ask Deep Thought. Public domain in the United States via Project Gutenberg