Love Prayer to God
I found this poem, and am moved to share it:
If I love you out of fear of hell, then throw me in hell.
If I worship you out of desire for Paradise, then lock its doors.
But if I worship you out of love for You alone, then do not deprive me of your everlasting beauty.
As a child, the author of the poem, Rabia, was a slave. She would seek cohesion with God during the evenings. One day her master found her enveloped in a cloud of light, and therefore set her free, remorseful that he had unknowingly enslaved a saint. During her lifetime she refused all suitors, finding the cravings of her heart satisfied in God alone.
The image depicted above references another of her poems, connected to the first:
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I carry a torch in one hand
And a bucket of water in the other:
With these things I am going to set fire to Heaven
And put out the flames of Hell
So that voyagers to God can rip the veils*
Rabia desired that people understand that they must seek God for God alone and not our of fear of punishment or expectation of reward.
If you would like to learn more, watch this.
* Original Language Persian/Farsi, English version by Charles Upton
