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Ramadan A poem by Yahia Lababidi in A KALEIDOSCOPE

Ramadan
A poem by Yahia Lababidi
in A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES
Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry

Link in bio @lotetreepress
#ramadanreading #ramadan2023 #ramadankareem #muslimbookshelf #ramadanpoem #muslimbookstagram

Hilal by Ray Lacina in A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES M

Hilal
by Ray Lacina
in A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES
Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry

Link in bio @lotetreepress

The sky cracks just a little and light the Ligh

The sky cracks
just a little
and light
the Light
pours in,
pours down
and we with cupped hands catch it,
and all the month
is a held breath

Hilal
by Ray Lacina
in A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES
Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry

Link in bio @lotetreepress
#ramadanreading #poetrylovers #muslimbookstagram #poetrybooks #muslimbookshelf #poetryanthology #poemoftheday #prayer #poetrybookshelf #muslimpoetry

Instagram post 17950041815387025

Instagram post 17950041815387025

for just this moment forget his hurt forget your

for just this moment
forget his hurt
forget yourself
be still
for just this moment
rest your heart
erase your story
lean back into yourself
breathe
then fall
fall all the way back
into the arms of the One

from the poem Come Hither, My Sweet
by Ayesha ljaz
in A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES
Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry
link in bio @lotetreepress

#poetrybookshelf #muslimpoets #ramadanreading #poetrylovers #muslimbookstagram #poetrybooks #muslimbookshelf #poetryanthology #poemoftheday

The eighty poets appearing in this anthology are s

The eighty poets appearing in this anthology are seekers, teachers, artists, parents, activists and much more. From every continent and spanning generations, their collective experiences appear in verses of love, devotion, grief and healing, as they take us on a journey through cityscapes and the natural beauty of the world we live in. Through their insights and inspirations we find ourselves in London, New York, Istanbul, Fez, Damascus and Makka, in mosques and at sacred sites, in deserts, mountains, and under towering redwoods, in heart-opening moments of connection. Their poetry navigates all the seasons of life, reflecting and meditating through their outward and inward pilgrimages upon our relationships to those around us and to the Divine.

‘A Kaleidoscope of Stories is a volume to celebrate in the world of poetry. Never before have so many Muslim voices in contemporary poetry been collected in the same place. It’s a powerful contribution to the poetry scene.’

- William Sieghart
Founder of the Forward Prizes for Poetry and National Poetry Day
Author of The Poetry Pharmacy

‘By bringing together this extensive collection of poems, Lote Tree Press has rendered a tremendous service to present and future generations of reflecting hearts and minds.’

- Luqman Ali
Artistic Director of Khayaal Theatre Company

‘This collection is about the here and now, the people who have followed the same paths as you, who struggle with the same struggles and who have opened their hearts in verse.’

- Humera Khan
An-Nisa Society

‘This should be among the required texts for classes in contemporary Islam and transnational literature.’
- Dr. Alan ʿAbd al-Haqq Godlas, Associate Professor of Religion, University of Georgia

‘The editors of this edition, and the poets within its pages, are to be commended for allowing those of us whose tongue is English to receive a drink from the cup of unity and eternal love.’
- Baraka Blue, Poet, Director of Rumi Center for Spirituality and the Arts
Link in bio @lotetreepress

#poetrybookshelf #muslimpoets #ramadanreading #poetrylovers #muslimbookstagram #poetrybooks #muslimbookshelf #poetryanthology

You spend your days collecting the heaviness of t

You spend your days
collecting the heaviness of this world
unfolding and stitching
every ache into the tapestry of your prayer mat
In sujood, you wonder
if your heart can be mended
cleansed of fear, reshaped into certainty
For darkness is a part of this life

from the poem Khamsa
by Rashida James-Saadiya
in A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES
Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry
Image: from the series Reflection by Pharoah Egbuna
link in bio @lotetreepress

#poetrylovers #muslimpoetry #poetrybookshelf #muslimbookstagram #prayer #muslimbookshelf

from Medjool⁠ Rakaya Esime Fetuga⁠ in A KALEID

from Medjool⁠
Rakaya Esime Fetuga⁠
in A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES⁠
Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry⁠
⁠
Link in bio @lotetreepress⁠
⁠
#Rabia al-Adawiyya #muslimpoetry #sufipoetry #muslimbookstagram #muslimbookshelf #poetrylovers #poemoftheday #poetrybookshelf

A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES - Muslim Voices in Conte

A KALEIDOSCOPE OF STORIES - Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry
Link in bio @lotetreepress

#poetrybookshelf #muslimpoets #ramadanreading #poetrylovers #muslimbookstagram #poetrybooks #muslimbookshelf #poetryanthology

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lotetreesufipoetry

from Back - Murtaza Humayun Saeed in A Kaleidoscop

from Back
- Murtaza Humayun Saeed
in A Kaleidoscope of Stories - Muslim Voices in Contemporary Poetry
Lote Tree Press
Link in bio @lotetreepress

from Mysticism in Urdu Poetry by R.S. Bhatnagar

from Mysticism in Urdu Poetry by R.S. Bhatnagar

قفلی بود میل و هوا بنهاده بر

قفلی بود میل و هوا بنهاده بر دل‌های ما
مفتاح شو مفتاح را دندانه شو دندانه شو

qofli bovad mayl u havā benhādeh bar delhā-ye mā * miftāḥ show miftāḥ rā dandāneh show dandāneh show

Whims and desires are a lock placed upon our hearts * Become a key, a key! Become the key’s edge!

a lock . qofli . قفلى
are . bovad . بود
whims . mayl . ميل
and . u . و
desires . havā . هوا
placed . benhādeh . بنهاده
upon . bar . بر
hearts . delhā-ye . دلهاي
our . mā . ما

a key . miftāḥ . مفتاح
become . show . شو
[object marker] rā . را
edge [teeth] dandāneh

From the well known Ghazal Hilat Raha Kon by Rumi, ghazal no. 2131 from the Divān-e Shams.

‎اندیشه‌ات جایی رود وآنگه

‎اندیشه‌ات جایی رود وآنگه تو را آن جا کشد * ز اندیشه بگذر چون قضا پیشانه شو پیشانه شو

andishat jāyi ravad vāngah tow rā ān jā kashad * zandisheh bogzar chun qazā pishāneh show pishāneh show
Your thoughts go somewhere and then drag you there * Leave thought behind - like fate move on! Like fate move on

Your thoughts . andishe-at . اندیشه‌ات
somewhere . jāyi . جایی
go . ravad . رود
and then . vāngah . وآنگه
you . tow . تو
[accusative marker] . rā . را
there [ that place] . ān jā . آن جا
drag . kashad . كشد
from . z . ز
thought . andisheh . اندیشه
leave . bogzar . بگذر
like . chun . چون
fate . qazā . قضا
move on . pishāneh show . یشانه شو

From the ghazal Hilat Raha Kon by Rumi, ghazal no. 2131 from the Divān-e Shams.

You are the night of the grave, go to become the N

You are the night of the grave, go to become the Night of Power * Like the Night of Power, become the souls’ haven! Become the souls’ haven!

‎تو لیلة القبری برو تا لیلة القدری شوی * چون قدر مر ارواح را کاشانه شو کاشانه شو

tow laylat al-qabrī berow tā laylat al-qadrī shavi * chun qadr mar arwāḥ rā kāshāneh show kāshāneh show

You . tow . تو
the night . laylat . ليلة
of the grave . al-qabr . القبر
are . i . ى
go . berow . برو
to . tā . تا
the Night of Power/Destiny . ليلة القدرى
you become . shavi . شوى
Like . chun . چون
‪[the night of] Power/Destiny . qadr . قدر‬
for . mar … rā . مر ‫… را‬
souls . arwāḥ . ارواح
haven/abode . kāshāneh . كاشانه
become . show . شو

From Hilat Raha Kon by Rumi, ghazal no. 2131 from the Divān-e Shams.

چون جان تو شد در هوا ز افسانه شیرین ما * فانی شو و چون عاشقان افسانه شو افسانه شو

‏chun jān-e tow shod dar havā z afsāneh-e shirin-e mā * fānī show u chun āsheqān afsāneh show afsāneh show

‏When your soul is lifted up by our sweet legend * Dissolve into One and‪,‬ as Lovers do‪,‬ become a legend! Become a legend‪!‬

‪When . ‬chun . چون
your soul . jān-e tow . جان تو
is lifted up. shod dar havā . شد در هوا
‪by . z . ز‬
‪legend . afsāne . افسانه‬
‪sweet . shirin . شرين‬
‪our . mā . ما‬
‪Dissolve into One/ ‬
‪become annihilated [in God] . fānī show . فانى شو ‬
‪and . u . و‬
‪like . chun . چون ‬
‪lovers . āsheqān . عاشقان‬
‪a legend . afsāneh . افسانه‬
‪become . show . شو‬

From Hilat Raha Kon by Rumi, ghazal no. 2131 from the Divān-e Shams.

That earring of beauties became a companion to the

That earring of beauties became a companion to the cheek * If that ear and cheek must be yours, become a pearl! Become a pearl!

‎آن گوشوار شاهدان هم‌صحبت عارض شده * آن گوش و عارض بایدت دردانه شو دردانه شو

‏ ān gushvār-e shāhedān hamsohbat-e ārez shodeh * ān gush u ārez bāyadat dordāneh show dordāneh show

That . ān . آن
earring of . gushvār-e . گوشوار
beauties . shāhedān . شاهدان
a companion to . hamsohbat-e . هم‌صحبت
the cheek . ārez . عارض
became . shodeh . شده
That . ān . آن
ear . gush . گوش
and . u . و
cheek . ārez . عارض
must be yours . bāyadat . بایدت
a pearl . dordāneh . دردانه
become . show . شو

You must become all soul to be worthy of the Belov

You must become all soul to be worthy of the Beloved * If you go to those who are drunk, go drunkenly! go drunkenly!

‎باید که جمله جان شوی تا لایق جانان شوی * گر سوی مستان می‌روی مستانه شو مستانه شو

bāyad ke jomleh jān shavi tā lāyeq-e jānān shavi * gar sūye mastān miravi, mastāneh show, mastāneh show

It must be . bāyad . باید
that . ke . که
all . jomleh . جمله
soul/ life . jān . جان
you become . shavi . شوی
so that . tā . تا
worthy of . lāyeq-e . لایق
the Beloved . jānān . جانان
you become . shavi . شوی
if . gar . گر
towards . sūye .سوی
the drunk . mastān . مستان
you go . miravi . می‌روی
drunkenly . mastāneh . مستانه
go . show . شو

From the well known Ghazal Hilat Raha Kon by Rumi, ghazal no. 2131 from the Divān-e Shams.

If one opening of the door becomes apparent to you

If one opening of the door becomes apparent to you
You see the sun within the shadow
You see the shadow lost in the sun always
See yourself all sun, and peace be with you

گر ترا پيدا شود يك فتح باب
تو درون سايه بينى آفتاب
سايه در خورشيد گم بينى مدام
خود همه خورشيد بيني والسلام

gar towrā paydā shavad yek fatḥe bāb* tow darun sāye bīnī āftāb
sāye dar khurshīd gom bīnī mudām* khod hame khurshīd bīnī u ssalām

if . gar . گر
to you . towra . ترا
becomes . shavad . شود
apparent . paydā . پيدا
one ‫.‬ yek . يك
opening of ‫.‬ fatḥe - فتح
the door ‫.‬ bāb . باب
you . tow . تو
within . darūn . درون
sāye . the ‫‬shadow . سايه
you see . bīnī . بيني
the sun . āftāb . ‫آفتاب ‬

The shadow . sāye . سايه
in . dar . در
the sun . khurshīd . خورشيد
lost . gom . گم
you see. bīnī . بينى
always . mudām . مدام
yourself . khud . خود
all . hame . همه
and peace be with you. . wassalam . والسلام

Farīd al-Dīn ʿAṭṭār The Conference of the Birds

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