This Love — Quatrain from Rumi

This Love is the king,
yet a throne cannot be found.
It is the essence of the Koran
yet a verse cannot be found.
Any lover hit by the Hunter’s arrow
will bleed all over,
yet a wound cannot be found.

— Version by Jonathan Star and Shahram Shiva
“A Garden Beyond Paradise”
Bantam Books, 1992

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This Love is a King
but his banner is hidden.
The Koran speaks the Truth
but its miracle is concealed.
Love has pierced with its arrow
the heart of every lover.
Blood flows but the wound is invisible.

— Translation by Azima Melita Kolin
and Maryam Mafi
“Rumi: Whispers of the Beloved”
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 1999

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