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‘It is impossible to describe You’
Sana'i
About the poet: Sanā'i Ghaznavi
This poem is authored by Hakim Abul-Majd Majdūd ibn Ādam Sanā'ī Ghaznavi (Persian: حکیم ابوالمجد مجدود بن آدم سنایی غزنوی; born ca. 1087-1130), also known as Sanā'i Ghaznavi, or simply Sanā'i. Sanā'i was a 12th-century Persian poet celebrated for his homiletic poetry and influence on the development of mystical literature. He is recognised as the first poet to utilise Arabic verse-forms such as the qasīdeh (ode), the ghazal (lyric) and the masnavi (rhyming couplet) to express philosophical, mystical and ethical ideas in the tradition of Tassavof (Sufism). He hailed from Ghazna (modern-day Afghanistan) and was one of the major influences on Mawlana Rumi who emerged a century after.
About the poem: Natavan vasf-e to goftan
This qasīdeh (ode) is in praise of God, Glorfied and Exalted is He. In this poem, Sanā'i affirms his servitude to God while extolling God's Purity, Exaltedness, Oneness, Infinitude, Self-Sufficiency, Knowledge, Generosity, Mercy, Greatness and Dissimilitude with any thing imaginable. The entire ode is in Farsi, except the second last bayt (line) which is in Arabic. This piece skilfully uses simple words to express complex ideas, all in enthralling metre and a beautiful rhyming pattern.
Reference: Sana'i – Divan-e-Ash'ar – Qasa'ed va Qata'at – Sh. 203
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Persian Text
Translation
My King, I utter a remembrance of You, You are Pure, You are GodI shan't trek any path, but The Path to which You guide
I'll always seek Your Door, always seek Your GraceI'll always speak of Your Oneness, since You Are The Truly One.
You have no mate nor pair, You have no hunger nor slumberYou Are One, without a spouse or companion: on Your Own You Are Complete
You have no need for begetting, no need for progenyYou are The Majesty of the Highest Realm of Existence, You are The Permitter of those in (seeming) power
You are The Wise, You are The Great, You are The Generous, You are the CompassionateEvidently, You are The Absolute, The One Worthy of Praise
You are beyond toil and affliction, beyond pain and needYou are beyond worry and hope, beyond cause and motivation
You are beyond consumption and slumber, beyond company and comparisonYou are beyond form and colour, beyond defect and error
It is impossible to describe You: You cannot be beheld by comprehensionIt is impossible to compare You: You cannot be envisioned by imagination
When creation was naught: You Exist! When creation will perish: You Exist!You do not move nor search, You do not diminish nor increase
You are Omnipotence and Majesty; You are Knowledge and CertaintyYou are Light and Guidance, You are Munificence and Atonement
Of all things concealed, You Have Knowledge; All these flaws, You ConcealYou Reduce all excesses; You Increase all insufficiencies
"One! There is nothing that is like Him; Eternal! There is nothing that is not from Him."‘Who Is The King?’, You Say to put all things into their place
The lips and teeth of Sanā’i all speak of Your OnenessEven if there was assured emancipation from the Fire of Hell.
I'll always seek Your Door, always seek Your GraceI'll always speak of Your Oneness, since You Are The Truly One.
You have no mate nor pair, You have no hunger nor slumberYou Are One, without a spouse or companion: on Your Own You Are Complete
You have no need for begetting, no need for progenyYou are The Majesty of the Highest Realm of Existence, You are The Permitter of those in (seeming) power
You are The Wise, You are The Great, You are The Generous, You are the CompassionateEvidently, You are The Absolute, The One Worthy of Praise
You are beyond toil and affliction, beyond pain and needYou are beyond worry and hope, beyond cause and motivation
You are beyond consumption and slumber, beyond company and comparisonYou are beyond form and colour, beyond defect and error
It is impossible to describe You: You cannot be beheld by comprehensionIt is impossible to compare You: You cannot be envisioned by imagination
When creation was naught: You Exist! When creation will perish: You Exist!You do not move nor search, You do not diminish nor increase
You are Omnipotence and Majesty; You are Knowledge and CertaintyYou are Light and Guidance, You are Munificence and Atonement
Of all things concealed, You Have Knowledge; All these flaws, You ConcealYou Reduce all excesses; You Increase all insufficiencies
"One! There is nothing that is like Him; Eternal! There is nothing that is not from Him."‘Who Is The King?’, You Say to put all things into their place
The lips and teeth of Sanā’i all speak of Your OnenessEven if there was assured emancipation from the Fire of Hell.
Transliteration
Malekā, zekr-e to gūyam ke to pāki o khodā'iNaravam joz be hamān rah ke to'am rāh namā'i
Hameh dargah-e to jūyam, hame az fazl-e to pūyamHameh towhīd-e to gūyam, ke be towhīd sezā’i
To zan-o joft nadāri, to khor-o khoft nadāriAhad-e bi-zan-o jofti, malek-e kāmravā’i
Na nīyāzat be velādat, na be farzandat hājatTo jalīl-ol-jabarūti, to nasīr-ol-omarā’i
To hakīmi, to ‘azīmi, to karīmi, to rahīmiTo namāyande-ye fazli, to sezāvār-e sanā’i
Bari az ranj-o godāzi, bari az dard-o nīyāziBari az bīm o omīdi, bari az chūn-o cherā’i
Bari az khordan-o khoftan, bari az sherk-o shebāhatBari az sūrat-o rangi, bari az ‘eyb-o khatā’i
Natavan vasf-e to goftan, ke to dar fahm nagonjiNatavan shebh-e to goftan, ke to dar vahm nayā’i
Nabod īn khalq-o to būdi, nabovad khalq-o to bāshiNa bejonbi, na begardi, na bekāhi, na fazā’i
Hameh ‘ezzi-yo jalāli, hame ‘elmi-yo yaqīniHameh nūri-yo sorūri, hameh jūdi-yo jazā’i
Hameh gheybi to bedāni, hame ‘eybi to bepūshiHameh bīshī to bekāhi, hame kammī to fazā’i
Ahadun layssa-ka mithleh, samadun layssa lahu dhed’Leman-ol-Molk to gū’i ke mar-ān-ra to sezā’i
Lab-o dandan-e sanā’i hameh towhīd-e to gūyadMagar az ātash-e dūzakh bovadash rūy-e rahā’i
Hameh dargah-e to jūyam, hame az fazl-e to pūyamHameh towhīd-e to gūyam, ke be towhīd sezā’i
To zan-o joft nadāri, to khor-o khoft nadāriAhad-e bi-zan-o jofti, malek-e kāmravā’i
Na nīyāzat be velādat, na be farzandat hājatTo jalīl-ol-jabarūti, to nasīr-ol-omarā’i
To hakīmi, to ‘azīmi, to karīmi, to rahīmiTo namāyande-ye fazli, to sezāvār-e sanā’i
Bari az ranj-o godāzi, bari az dard-o nīyāziBari az bīm o omīdi, bari az chūn-o cherā’i
Bari az khordan-o khoftan, bari az sherk-o shebāhatBari az sūrat-o rangi, bari az ‘eyb-o khatā’i
Natavan vasf-e to goftan, ke to dar fahm nagonjiNatavan shebh-e to goftan, ke to dar vahm nayā’i
Nabod īn khalq-o to būdi, nabovad khalq-o to bāshiNa bejonbi, na begardi, na bekāhi, na fazā’i
Hameh ‘ezzi-yo jalāli, hame ‘elmi-yo yaqīniHameh nūri-yo sorūri, hameh jūdi-yo jazā’i
Hameh gheybi to bedāni, hame ‘eybi to bepūshiHameh bīshī to bekāhi, hame kammī to fazā’i
Ahadun layssa-ka mithleh, samadun layssa lahu dhed’Leman-ol-Molk to gū’i ke mar-ān-ra to sezā’i
Lab-o dandan-e sanā’i hameh towhīd-e to gūyadMagar az ātash-e dūzakh bovadash rūy-e rahā’i
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