The Truth has shared so much of Itself with me That I can no longer call myself A man, a woman, an angel, Or even pure Soul.
The great religions are the ships, Poets the life boats. Every sane person I know has jumped overboard.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests that while religions provide foundational guidance, true understanding often requires individuals to seek their own paths.
In this metaphor, Hafez compares religions to large ships that carry people, while poets are likened to lifeboats that offer smaller, more intimate escapes. The statement implies that while many people find solace and direction in religion, true wisdom and insight often come from personal exploration and the art of poetry, which allows individuals to navigate their own experiences and emotions, especially in a world filled with complexities.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the importance of creativity, you could use this quote to highlight how personal expression transcends traditional beliefs.
More from Hafez
All quotes βI once asked a bird, how is it that you fly in this gravity of darkness? She responded, 'love lifts me.'
The earth has disappeared beneath my feet, It fled from all my ecstasy. Now like a singing air creature I feel the rose keep opening.
For I have learned that every heart will get_x000D_ What it prays for_x000D_ Most.
Love sometimes gets tired of speaking sweetly and wants to rip to shreds all your erroneous notions of the truth that make you fight within yourself, dear one, and with others, causing the world to weep on too many fine days... The Beloved sometimes wants to do us a great favor: Hold us upside down and shake all the nonsense out.
Fear is the cheapest room in the house. I would like to see you living in better conditions.
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In this world, all--men, women, and kings--must live for the present. We can only live for the future for God
There is no better proof of a man's being truly good than his desiring to be constantly under the observation of good men.
Behind all their personal vanity, women themselves always have an impersonal contempt for woman.
We can only give away to others what we have inside ourselves.
The guts carry the feet, not the feet the guts.