Lyric Poem · Grief
The Song of the Reed (opening lines)
by Rumi (Jalāl al-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī) · translated by E. H. Whinfield
Hearken to the reed-flute, how it complains,
Lamenting its banishment from its home:
“Ever since they tore me from my osier bed,
My plaintive notes have moved men and women to tears.”
This poem is in the public domain. First published in Masnavi-i Ma'navi (abridged translation), 1887.
“The Song of the Reed (opening lines)” by Rumi (Jalāl al-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī) — quilloak.com/poems/rumi-song-of-the-reed
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