From an insomniac’s dream (II) - Many shades light

'awakening' from numinous_flow archive; artwork by Nadia Haroon

Today heralds the beginning of an era

Not of interest to meaningless minds 

Regardless, the story must be told.

Lately an inexplicable Iztirabi had taken hold

Could it be because Shams had left the house?

As unexpectedly as he had appeared, Shams was gone

Like a will-o’-the-wisp.

Narcissus felt like receding into his shrine;

Unsure whether that space existed in mind or heart, he agonized.

“Damn mind tends to over analyze and over think; it does not want to be simple!”

Heart, disregarding mind, rejoiced;

Like a child seeing a unique flower.

Iztirabi, however, could not be ignored; it needed to be heard

More often than not it was a voice at the back of the mind 

Encouraging further exploration.

He couldn’t let go of that thought.

Had Shams not entered his shrine momentarily

Narcissus would have stuck to his narrative about flying solo.

Dark or light, uplifting or dampening, lessons were learned,

Hence, worth the pain of separation.

In Narcissus’ yearning there is hunger

For the source Rumi dedicated to his Shams.

Thus, unbeknownst to him, even Narcissus seeks

The one he can truly call his own; whom he understands well;

Who completes his sentences, and thus there's no need even to speak.

But with Shams gone for now, Ishq needs redefinition:

Transcending mind and heart, body and soul,

Transcending time itself

Ishq resides nebulous, elusive, elegant,

Light in its complexity.

But now, like all esoterica, an insomniac’s dream comes to an end.

Like the wavefront comes to an end at the shore, 

No matter how calm or agitated ocean or land may appear. 

“Where does boundary of self end and stars begin?” Shams asks.

In many shades light, the answer.

And salvation.

from an Insomniac's Dream

Description: 'Insomniac's Dream' has two protagonists, Shams and Narcissus, depicted along the actual (and revered) Shams of Tabriz and Jelaluddin Rumi. The latter’s poetry and the former’s extensive wandering, both seeking life's meaning or purpose and perhaps finding mystical companionship, as a result, has been a great source of intrigue for many over hundreds of years. The Shams and Narcissus dynamic alluded to in the poem, is also reminiscent of God and Man - conversations between Shams and Narcissus (or between God and Man) have been depicted in verse.

Part 2 delves into life’s lightness on realizing that the journey is complete within oneself, regardless of yearning for the companion (who has taken off).

Acknowledgment: First published by Spillwords press.