Sachal Sarmast was a Sindhi, Sufi poet born in 1739 AD. He wrote in Sindhi, Urdu, and Persian. The source text used is 'Selections from the Writing of Sachal Sarmast', compiled and edited by K.B. Advani (Sahitya Akademi, 1970)
***
out of
the mosque
drinking
in the tavern
beauty engulfs us
free
from sin
free
from virtue
sachal embraces the truth
kaaba and qibla
merely deceive
brave ones
go to the maikhana
truth is in mastana
says satguru
mulla sahib
leave your books behind
come taste this wine
become a mast mawali
o qazi
forgo your tiring efforts
o sahib
forgo your conniving ways
become a connoisseur of wine
love liberates
o saaqi
serve me the last cup
pour me a sip
as sweet as love
intoxicated
I retreat to myself
o saqi
serve me the last cup
remind me
always of separation
how can a mortal
remain away from his beloved
o taalib
rituals are external
I seek pure existence
ustaad
has given me
a mature taste
in my hand
is a clean slate
I write my destiny
hasti vanishes
when one finds masti
says sachal
Notes
Hasti: Ego
Maikhana: Tavern
Mastaana: Drunk on spirituality
Masti: Intoxication
Saqi: One who serves wine
Taalib: Seeker
Kaaba: A place of pilgrimage in Mecca
Qibla: Direction faced during namaz
Qazi: Priest
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Anju Makhija is an award-winning poet, translator, and playwright. She has written three poetry collections: View from the Web, Pickling Season, and Poems Grow With You; co-translated two volumes incl. Seeking the Beloved: the Poetry of Shah Abdul Latif; co-edited four literary anthologies, most recently, To Catch a Poem. Anju has won several awards: The Sahitya Akademi English Translation Prize (’11); The All India Poetry Competition (’94); the BBC World Regional Poetry Prize (‘02). She is also the recipient of the Charles Wallace Trust Award and has been on the English Advisory Board of Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, for 5 years
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