Ang 1381

Fareed, seek that sacred pool, in which the genuine article is found. Why do you bother to search in the pond? Your hand will only sink into the mud. ||53|| Fareed, when she is young, she does not enjoy her Husband. When she grows up, she dies. Lying in the grave, the soul-bride cries, “I did not meet You, my Lord.”||54|| Fareed, your hair has turned grey, your beard has turned grey, and your moustache has turned grey. O my thoughtless and insane mind, why are you indulging in pleasures? ||55|| Fareed, how long can you run on the rooftop? You are asleep to your Husband Lord — give it up! The days which were allotted to you are numbered, and they are passing, passing away. ||56|| Fareed, houses, mansions and balconies — do not attach your consciousness to these. When these collapse into heaps of dust, none of them will be your friend. ||57|| Fareed, do not focus on mansions and wealth; center your consciousness on death, your powerful enemy. Remember that place where you must go. ||58|| Fareed, those deeds which do not bring merit — forget about those deeds. Otherwise, you shall be put to shame, in the Court of the Lord. ||59|| Fareed, work for your Lord and Master; dispel the doubts of your heart. The dervishes, the humble devotees, have the patient endurance of trees. ||60|| Fareed, my clothes are black, and my outfit is black. I wander around full of sins, and yet people call me a dervish — a holy man. ||61|| The crop which is burnt will not bloom, even if it is soaked in water. Fareed, she who is forsaken by her Husband Lord, grieves and laments. ||62|| When she is a virgin, she is full of desire; but when she is married, then her troubles begin. Fareed, she has this one regret, that she cannot be a virgin again. ||63||

The swans have landed in a small pond of salt water. They dip in their bills, but do not drink; they fly away, still thirsty. ||64|| The swans fly away, and land in the fields of grain. The people go to chase them away. The thoughtless people do not know, that the swans do not eat the grain. ||65|| The birds which lived in the pools have flown away and left. Fareed, the overflowing pool shall also pass away, and only the lotus flowers shall remain. ||66|| Fareed, a stone will be your pillow, and the earth will be your bed. The worms shall eat into your flesh. Countless ages will pass, and you will still be lying on one side. ||67|| Fareed, your beautiful body shall break apart, and the subtle thread of the breath shall be snapped. In which house will the Messenger of Death be a guest today? ||68|| Fareed, your beautiful body shall break apart, and the subtle thread of the breath shall be snapped. Those friends who were a burden on the earth — how can they come today? ||69|| Fareed: O faithless dog, this is not a good way of life. You never come to the mosque for your five daily prayers. ||70|| Rise up, Fareed, and cleanse yourself; chant your morning prayer. The head which does not bow to the Lord — chop off and remove that head. ||71|| That head which does not bow to the Lord — what is to be done with that head? Put it in the fireplace, instead of firewood. ||72|| Fareed, where are your mother and father, who gave birth to you? They have left you, but even so, you are not convinced that you shall also have to go. ||73|| Fareed, flatten out your mind; smooth out the hills and valleys. Hereafter, the fires of hell shall not even approach you. ||74||

FIFTH MEHL: Fareed, the Creator is in the Creation, and the Creation abides in God. Whom can we call bad? There is none without Him. ||75||

Fareed, if on that day when my umbilical cord was cut, my throat had been cut instead, I would not have fallen into so many troubles, or undergone so many hardships. ||76|| My teeth, feet, eyes and ears have stopped working. My body cries out, “Those whom I knew have left me!”||77|| Fareed, answer evil with goodness; do not fill your mind with anger. Your body shall not suffer from any disease, and you shall obtain everything. ||78|| Fareed, the bird is a guest in this beautiful world-garden. The morning drums are beating — get ready to leave! ||79|| Fareed, musk is released at night. Those who are sleeping do not receive their share. Those whose eyes are heavy with sleep — how can they receive it? ||80|| Fareed, I thought that I was in trouble; the whole world is in trouble! When I climbed the hill and looked around, I saw this fire in each and every home. ||81||