I love a line of verse, attributed to Hafiz (which is used as the opening on page xiii) for a special section of my Penguin anthology, Love Poems from God.

No one could ever paint a too-wonderful picture

of my heart or God.

(And…Oprah astoundingly endorsed that book after it was in print for 20 years. You can see a banner Penguin created of Oprah's great gift to that book on the Amazon page for that title.)

I think that one of the great pulls of millions in the world to the poetry of Hafiz and Rumi (or really any great poetry or art) is: it can make God appear more super-duper cool, and more wonderful, and more beautiful than almost any holy book. 

Beauty is so vital to the human experience. And with the poetry of Rumi & Hafiz (and I would say especially Hafiz), you can sit with God after-hours in a bar, when all the kids are in bed, and the language, wisdom and insight can get so much more real, adult, intelligent, and affecting— emancipating to our senses and spirit-wings— and Zen ya into heaven!

Originally I was going to title this blog entry: Fal-e Hafiz, and talk about that. And to any who might be interested, and want to experience that on a rather enchanting personal level— click here. 

I am not really a tarot kind of guy. I wear cowboy boots almost daily; have an old homestead ranch in the mountains; love patching fence on the northwest forty; and enjoy looking for elk tracks. 

But when a publisher approached me about doing poetic renderings of Hafiz for a Wisdom of Hafiz Oracle Deck, I found myself getting deep into that; and was able to offer many heartfelt and touching lines of Hafiz from my vast unpublished work. 

This deck has now been out some two years and has become something of a phenomenon in Japan at times; it often outsells my Hafiz books around the world. And I have never received a penny from the deck. I gave my lifetime royalties to a sort-of charity. And I love giving decks away for free. The deck has some exceptional art on 45 cards, and some exceptional oracle readings (expoundings on the Hafiz verse by Angi Sullins). 

I think I will draw you a card. Drawing a card for myself or someone else is something I rarely do. But here we go!

…

You got card #40 (which is an important number in some esoteric circles). It’s titled (they all are title differently): Love Unabashedly. 

Most of the Hafiz verse in this deck is serious, and, I would say: tender, insightful and beautiful. But for this card, and some of them, you get a little taste of Hafiz being playful after-hours in a bar; where maybe you can clink glasses with him over something like this verse, with its sweet whimsy:

Once the moon and I got arrested for such wild love in public,

so now we meet more secretly; but don't let that hold you back!

Ahhh Hafiz. OOO dear Hafiz. You are ever the rebel of love— and freedom! And truth. (And the word moon above is really a symbol for God!)

The Hafiz Beauty Contest. I think every book that has been (or ever will be) published with his name on it…enters that— the ever-contest of love— that every human knows and wants to be the recipient of. The ever-contest of giving; the experience of fun & utility in art, poetry and relationships; and the vital, light nutrients that are offered to our eyes, sounds, and movements by a master craftswoman-man who can weave them in as a true artist can— in touching something. Sacred cups on the divine Potter's Wheel our hearts, our lives, that Hafiz can so help to shape.

And the millions of hearts come to vote on what most frees us! And can most safeguard and empower us. 

Hey, hey, OOO dear Hafiz, thank you so much for your holy pageant like no one else in history has quite offered so far. Such thanks to you, dear friend, and from you, to mankind.