THE DAY OF THE POET

1    MEHER BABA

Before you

The mind retreats to the antecedents:

Krishna, Arjuna's servant and master, Radha's lover;

Rama, good king and loyal husband;

Jesus, son of Mary, master of miracle ―

But these do not explain you.

Some thing I notice:

Your photographs, perfectly posed;

Your fingers, moving like butterflies'.

Your eyes, talking with gaiety or reproach:

Hands, polished by caressing ―

But these do not contain you.

In a rage for your name

The epithets accumulate:

Ancient One, Highest of High,

God-Man, Avatar, Christ,

Rasool, Qutub-i-Irshad, Beloved ―

But these could never name you.

Blind before your reality,

We grope towards your light

As men who have lived in caves

Would stumble in the sun.

The pure heart is a mirror for your love ―

Could it be that even you cannot know yourself

Till you see who you are

In the faces of those who love you?