Ahava
For you, oh Living God, my being yearns,
My spirit and soul is consumed by fire.
Your Shekinah indwells the hearts
Of your chosen sons and fathers,
And Your living creatures harness to chariots
And as my heart is filled,
Its radiance illumines from within.
The mystery wearies even the wisest
Who struggle to comprehend it,
Weary of scanning the icon of splendour:
How then, shall I nourish my soul
At the Temple of honour?
Desiring, I long for my beloved
My aim and purpose: my soul
Like sapphire, the house of understanding,
The moon’s semblance fine gold of Ophir,
And like a young lion she made her home
In the body, secretly.
She is my bliss and joy in sorrow,
While chattering thoughts occlude my purpose.
Can a guileless man praise her?
And who could deny her perfect beauty?
Answer, oh God! Be swift,
For Your daughter is sick with love.
Drink, my daughter, gently drink
From the waters of my salvation:
Because you are my reverence.
This poem is from the 9th century Andalusian poet, mystic philosopher, and Kabbalist known as Solomon ibn Gabirol. His Arabic name was Abu Ayyud sulaiman ibn Yahya ibn Jebirul and in Hebrew Shlomo ben Yehuda ibn Gabriel. He was later known as Avicebron in the West and held up among the great Neo-Platonic philosophers.
Gabirol lived during a time of great expansion and integration of intellectual and philosophical ideas. Andalusian Spain was a mixing ground for Arab, Jewish, and Christian cultures and a rich hub of religion and philosophy. Gabirol is sometimes credited with developing the Tree of Life glyph as a way to understand Kabbalistic teachings. He died in poverty and obscurity around the year 1070, but his teachings and poetry remain as deep inspiration and wisdom.
