The Whispered Prayer of the Knowers In the Name of God, the All-merciful, the All-compassionate 1 My God,           tongues fall short of attaining                     praise of Thee proper to Thy majesty,           intellects are incapable of grasping                     the core of Thy beauty,           eyes fail before gazing                     upon the glories of Thy face,           and Thou hast assigned to Thy creatures                     no way to know Thee                     save incapacity to know Thee! 2 My God,           place us among those                     within the gardens of whose breasts                               the trees of yearning for Thee have taken firm root                     and the assemblies of whose hearts                               have been seized by the ardour of Thy love!           They seek shelter                     in the nests of meditation,           feed upon the gardens                     of nearness and disclosure,           drink from the pools of love                     with the cup of gentle favour,           and enter into the watering-places                     of warm affection.           The covering has been lifted                     from their eyes,318           the darkness of disquiet has been dispelled                     from their beliefs and their innermost minds,           the contention of doubt has been negated                     from their hearts and their secret thoughts,           their breasts have expanded                     through the verification of true knowledge,           their aspirations have ascended                     through precedent good fortune in renunciation,           their drinking is sweet                     from the spring of devotion to good works,           their secret thoughts are delicious                     in the sitting-place of intimacy,           their minds are secure                     in the place of terror,           their souls are serene                     through the return to the Lord of lords,319           their spirits have reached certitude                     through triumph and prosperity,           their eyes have been gladdened                     through gazing upon their Beloved,           their settling place has been settled                     through reaching the request and attaining the expectation,           and their commerce has profited                     through the sale of this world for the next! 3 My God,           how agreeable for hearts are                     the thoughts inspiring Thy remembrance,           how sweet                     travelling to Thee through imagination                     upon the roads of the unseen worlds,           how pleasant                     the taste of Thy love,           how delightful                     the drink of Thy nearness!           So give us refuge from Thy casting out and Thy sending far,                     and place us among                               the most elect of Thy knowers,                               the most righteous of Thy servants,                               the most truthful of Thy obeyers,                               the most sincere of Thy worshipers!           O All-mighty, O Majestic,                     O Generous, O Endower!           By Thy mercy and kindness,                     O Most Merciful of the merciful!