You don't have to act crazy anymore

You don’t have to act crazy anymore—

We all know you were good at that,

Now retire, my dear,

From all that hard work you do

Of bringing pain to your sweet eyes and heart.

Look in a clear mountain mirror

See the beautiful ancient warrior

And the divine elements 

You always carry inside

That infused this universe with sacred life

So long ago

-Hafiz-

I love Hafiz and the world he opens up through his poems. I first listened to this one, end of November in the morning. We had just wrapped up producing the December meditation calendar, I had spent almost every weekend working since end of September, although I had sworn to myself I would never do that. I was tired, had trouble falling asleep, and knew that being mindful with myself currently had me facing a part of me that I don't enjoy seeing: my exhausted, overworked self caused by - myself. Hearing this poem, it brought tears to my eyes. In its every line it whispered to me: You can stop doing, it is enough just being. A reminder my heart so needed to hear at that moment - and still does.

Hafiz himself is for me the manifestation of this very principle. His body of work only consists of 800 poems. If you compare that to other poets like Rumi this is really 'tiny'. Yet, it only took one poem for me to connect to my heart again. One act from his heart, straight to mine. And maybe these are the sacred elements he talks about, that we all just carry in us, that we can all just be. That infused our universe with sacred life so long ago - and will continue to do so.

What do these lines mean to you? Which knowing do they bring up? I would love to hear your personal meaning.