A once-wise queen finds herself lost in a desert of longing, seeking the return of her sanity through the love of her distant Majnun.
“I used to be the queen
Among my peers.
My wisdom was a wonder
Even to my seers.
I put my heart and soul
In my will.
I renounced sleep
To win without fail.
I was the sole mistress
Of my attentive mind.
No glitter around
Could make me blind.
But now an odd state
Has taken place.
I forgot the whereabouts
Of time and space.
I have become the lost Leila
Of the vast desert.
Majnun’s mirage she sees
Wherever her eyes set.
During the day I intend
To fix my mind in the night.
During the night my senses
Towards him take flight.
Hey, my distant Majnun!
Leave a little of my senses behind.
How else will I
To the worldly matters attend?
Hey, my distant Majnun!
Make me not a lunatic with love,
Like a poor bee
lost its way to the hive.
Yet I continue
To adore my craze:
At all times I secretly beg,
My Merciful Him:
Ya Rabb!
When will Majnun appear
To bestow sanity once more?”
January 31 2004. Edit Aug 2024