- - - - - - -
What avails love when life is so ephemeral?
What avaiIs a mortal’s love for the immortal?
Love that is snuffed out by death’s passing blast;
Love without the pain, the passion that consumes?
A flickering spark I am, aglow for a fleeting glance;
Flow vain for a flickering spark to chase an eternal flame!
Grant me the bliss of eternal life, O Lord;
And mine will be the ecstasy of eternal love.
Give me the pleasure of an everlasting pain;
An agony that lacerates my soul for ever.
Allama Iqbal