Brothers, my peace is in my aloneness - Rabi’a of Basri

Brothers, my peace is in my aloneness.

My Beloved is alone with me there, always.

I have found nothing in all the worlds

That could match His love,

This love that harrows the sands of my desert.

If I come to die of desire

And my Beloved is still not satisfied, 

I would live in eternal despair.

To abandon all that He has fashioned

And hold in the palm of my hand

Certain proof that He loves me—

That is the name and the goal of my search.

---

Rabi’a of Basri (Rabi’ah al-’Adawiyyah al-Qaysiyya, also known as Rabi’a Adawiya) (717 – 801) Iraq

Translated by Andrew Harvey and Eryk Hanut  from their book Perfume of the Desert 

Source: Living From The Heart

Rabi’a was the 4th child hence her name which means literally that, and Basri refers to her place of birth (Basra). She is revered as a Muslim saint and Sufi mystic. Her many poems were not written so have been passed on as oral tradition until they were recorded in writing.