Noel Cobb

Dust

In the hidden temple of the night, the soul speaks:
'So you lost your reputation because you followed me?
Do you think your standing with the One depends on that?

Relax. Accept the dust. It is your proper station.
For the One all things are dust. The world may say
Otherwise, but don't believe a word of it. Believe Hafiz.

This rotten world will press our dust into bricks.
'And great Caesar, dead and turned to clay?' 'Dust into dust.'
'And in between?' 'A glorious illusion. Paradise.

A staggering array of papayas and pianos,
Honeycombs and flying fish! Dancing at the Jade Pavilion!
Springtimes, gold mines, palm trees and sailing ships!

Who could dismiss Love's sweet moment of desire,
Blissfully protected by the trembling roses of the night?
Or the thousand kind and tender gestures of the Friend?

O Noel, however much you fix your thought on ruins
Or on the cruel bewilderment of poverty and war,
You cannot conceal your longing for the One.'