Poem of the week – Rabiya al-Adawiyyah of Basra

Rabiya al-Adawiyyah of Basra is one of the earliest Muslim poets whose work has survived. She is highly revered as a model mystic of the Sufi tradition and is widely acclaimed as an influential Islamic poet. Born a century after the death of The Prophet, in Basra, Iraq, her father was informed by Muhammed in a dream that his daughter was a “favourite of the Lord, and shall lead many Muslims to the right path”.

After her father’s death, Rabia’s people suffered a terrible famine that claimed the lives of many she knew. Bereft of human love, Rabia wandered into the inhospitable desert and began her life as an ascetic, living in semi-seclusion. It is there that she supposedly reached a state of self-realization and dedicated her life to the devotion of God. The first to argue that God should be loved for his own sake and not out of fear, Rabia is considered a seminal figure in the intellectual development of Sufism.

Her simple and sincere verses naturally impress themselves onto the reader’s memory, equipping adherers of her faith, and anyone generally inclined, with soothing mantras and concise reminders to remain humble, thankful and honest. The brevity of her output means we can publish three poems this week. We hope you enjoy this week’s selection as much as we did.

Two Loves I Give Thee

Two loves I give Thee: love that yearns

And love because Thy due is love.

My yearning my remembrance turns to

Thee, nor lets it from Thee rove.

Thou hast Thy due whene’er it please Thee

To lift the veils for me to see. Praise is

Not mine in this, nor yet in that, but Thine in this and Thine in that.

You Have Infused My Being

You have infused my being

Through and through,

As an intimate friend must

Always do.

So when I speak I speak only of You

And when silent, yearn for none but You.

If I Worship You

O Lord, if I worship You

Because of fear of hell

Then burn me in hell.

If I worship You

Because I desire paradise

Then exclude me from paradise.

But if I worship You

For Yourself alone

Then deny me not

Your eternal beauty.