The world endureth only a moment (1)

Discern form from substance, as lion from desert,
cerakinkan bentuk daripada isi, seperti singa daripada sahara,

Or as sound and speech from the thought they convey.
atau seperti bunyi dan pertuturan daripada fikiran yang dibawanya.

The sound and speech arise from the thought;
bunyi dan pertuturan lahir daripada fikiran;

Thou knowest not where is the Ocean of thought;
tidak tuan ketahui di manakah letaknya lautan fikiran itu;

Yet when thou seest fair waves of speech,
tapi bila tuan melihat gelombang pertuturan nan indah,

Thou knowest there is a glorious Ocean beneath them.
tuan tahu adanya lautan gemilang di bawahnya.

When waves of thought arise from the Ocean of Wisdom,
bila gelombang fikiran muncul daripada lautan bijaksana,

They assume the forms of sound and speech,
ia mengambil bentuk-bentuk bunyi dan pertuturan,

These forms of speech are born and die again,
bentuk-bentuk pertuturan ini lahir dan mati berkali-kali,

These waves cast themselves back into the Ocean.
gelombang-gelombang itu kembali menyurut ke dalam lautan.

Form is born of That which is without form,
bentuk lahir daripada ia yang tak berbentuk,

And goes again, for, “Verily to Him do we return”.
lalu ia kembali kepadanya, kerana, “sungguh kepada dia kita kembali”.

Wherefore to thee every moment come death and ‘return’.
justeru kepada tuan setiap saat didatangi mati dan ‘kembali’.

Mustafa saith, “The world endureth only a moment”.
mustafa berkata, “dunia hanyalah seketika cuma”.

So, thought is an arrow shot by God into the air.
jadi, fikiran adalah panah yang dilepaskan tuhan ke udara.

How can it stay in the air? It returns to God.
bagaimanakah ia boleh kekal di udara? ia kembali kepada tuhan.

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(1) Masnavi-i-Ma’navi, The Spiritual Couplets of Maulana Jalalu-d-din Muhammad 1 Rumi, Book 1, pg 35; translated and abridged by E H Whinfield M.A, Omphaloskepsis.