Poems from Eastern Sources: The Steadfast Prince; and Other Poems

Chapter 21: GHAZEL.

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About This Book

A varied poetic collection draws on Eastern legends, scriptural and European sources to present translations, adaptations, and original pieces that retell myths, parables, and ballads. Narrative poems render tales such as Alexander's quest and other legendary or folkloric episodes; lyric sequences explore seasons, love, faith, mortality, and moral aphorisms; additional pieces adapt German and Latin sources and include sonnets, ballads, and short fragments. The tone alternates between descriptive narrative, reflective meditation, and moral reflection, often framing Eastern imagery—gardens, fountains, courts, and deserts—to examine desire, righteousness, steadfastness, and the relationship between life and death. Notes clarify sources and degrees of translation.

GHAZEL.

What is the good man and the wise?

Ofttimes a pearl which none doth prize;

II.

Or jewel rare, which men account

A common pebble, and despise.

III.

Set forth upon the world’s bazaar,

It mildly gleams, but no one buys,

IV.

Till it in anger Heaven withdraws

From the world’s undiscerning eyes:

And in its shell the pearl again,

And in its mine the jewel lies.