A burning yearning

(1625)  Niye amay e vishvamay

With me, this worldly creature,
You have gone on making liila.
It cannot be fathomed, hey Sportive One,
What sort of pleasure You've derived from it.

To the bud You have given only nectar,
Inside both the bloom and mind.
But Callous Friend, a desert's crackle,
You have given my heart to ignite.
Tell me please: In the flow of divine game,
Why have You stayed so far away?

My wish is not to understand You;
I don't call in hope of any acquisition.
I want but to see that, thoroughly diffuse,
You have taken and made me Yours.

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In a dream

(1624)  Prabhu tomay, shata rupe ami dekhechi

Yourself, Lord...
In a hundred forms I have seen,
In a hundred reveries I have longed to conceive.

You are on the veena's strings;
With a jingling sound You have thrilled the psyche.
Inside ears with affection's modesty,
I have drawn You near.

Outer and inner, as one they are becoming;
Contrast between far and near, it disappears.
On Your song, Your magnetic appeal,
I have sought just You only.

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Oh why not me

(1623)  Tomare ceyechi mana prana majhe

Inside mind and heart I have looked for Thee,
At core churned in a lonely dwelling
With all my thoughts and deeds.

On morning flowers with a sterling gold complexion
And on streams of water, the love that descends...
What I am thinking and what I don't even imagine,
Each thing is as if it resides in Your splendor.

The nectar that was veiled in the bud of psyche,
The moon that was peeping through the cloud-openings,
The bashful eye in Your direction peering...
They all lose themselves; You draw them near.

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You make life replete

(1622)  Maner raja tomari tare

Ruler of the mind, for the sake of You only,
The psyche I have kept it decorated.
Through essence of ambrosia in rhythm and in melody,
With You only I have been inundated.

Without You, there is no daylight;
Without You, the pupil has no sable.
Good of good, You are love's effulgence,
A love-filled heart I have realized.

At gloomy night, oh You are the morning star;
On this day Yourself I discerned.
Beyond spatial limit, You are love omnipresent;
Within objects of desire, You are what is pleasant.
Inside You make sport, and outside strike a graceful pose;
Sweetness of Your liila I have coated.

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A lack of consideration

(1621)  Tumi bhalo besecho amare

Myself You have loved,
But I did not hold You dear.
So much You have given me,
But heart unsated, it craves more.

Not a thing to You I ever gave;
Not even by mistake any work of Yours I did.
I have wanted in a fashion just one-sided;
Disregarding shyness and shame.

I've called on You only when fallen into scrape,
As if freeing from danger is Your obligation.
Even so, You grasp my woe and have bestowed favor;
This debt, it never gets repaid.

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Sugar and spice

(1620)  Aloker nimantrane

On illumination's invitation,
Come, oh Lord, come my Beloved.
From Earth is this invocation:
Please don't stay remote any more.

One and all ask for You near;
It is the plea of everybody.
Please do come, to Earth descending,
Brightening Your astral wreath.

Bloom's nectar and moon of sky's vault,
The moonlight-varnished great ocean,
All that's good, the light of love...
Universal, You're the aggregate.

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Ocean of Consciousness

(1619)  Tomakei bhalo besechi

Only You have I held dear;
Sin and virtue I have not seen...
I am water of high tide;
Neath moon's pull, scurried have I.

Hey the Great Ocean, hey Boundless One,
In a row of waves, forever tranquil...
Upon the heart's placidness
You only I have known as essence.

A stone deity utters not a word;
It fathoms not the heartache or mind's agitation...
But You are not made of stone, hey Serene One;
You alone are the quintessence, I have understood.

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Breaking the last boundary

(1618)  Tomare ceyechi mane prane ami, ceyechi hrdayakashe

In heart and mind I've looked for Thee,
And I have looked on sky of psyche...
Eyes thirsty and mentally unappeased,
Hoping for a glimpse of Thee, my Dear.

My mentality, restless for Thee,
Keeps not at home, not tranquil in the least.
Mid my anxiety, the pure-You is stationary;
You have stayed hidden at a recess very deep.
At midnight autumnal on lunar day unsullied,
A particle of Your love is floating, my Dear.

Time and again I look for You only,
But not the least satisfaction I achieve.
Overflowing is my heart for You exclusively;
Oh You, kindly arrive, undiluted, having smiled...
Mingled with my heart and mind You now abide.

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Only one way to travel

(1617)  Calar pather sathii mama

My Journey-Companion,
Polestar on a dark night...
The best hope in dejected life,
With same note the one-stringed lute is practiced.

You are the capacity, You are the endeavor;
Age after age, You alone are inspiration.
In time's stream without beginning, Your smile is endless,
Free from the bondage of sorrow or happiness.

To identify You is impossible,
But grasping You is harder still.
Getting merged in You, from being Yours to Yourself...
I have no path left if this path be left.

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My heart's garland

(1616)  Ei hrdayer malakhani

This, my heart's wreath...
I keep it strung for Thee,
To You I gave as offering.

If You don't like, then do not accept it;
And if it does not please, don't cast a glimpse.
Tear-filled and dripping anguish,
With this is my heartfelt message.

I am tiny, but my hope is huge;
And so my vain desire is to attain You.
If You don't want it, myself with cords of love
Why have You tied... why have You brought attraction?

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Whatever may be

(1615)  Tumi asbe jani mor ghare

To my home I know that You will reach,
Though days have passed, constantly calling,
And the nights retire in tears.

Summer's gone, and gone the rains...
Hope has been ringed by despair.
But with the fall's jasmine-bouquets,
I've gone on calling in a reverent way.

Under prewinter's frosty breeze,
And on the winter-wind's shivering,
You did not reply, not even with a look-see;
But You arrived in tunes of spring.

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Almost one

(1614)  Nayane nayan rekhe

Having kept watch through my eyes,
Please do sing at depths of mind.
In respect to You and me,
May we conclude all gap between.

I have walked on Your path only...
When was that, on which morning...
I've forgot day's frequency;
I've forgot what pull was there.

You know well how to love;
Nearby You draw everyone.
And everybody neath love's shade,
With liberation tenderly You bathe.^[1]

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From there to here and back again

(1613)  Cahiya cahiya thaki dhaerja dhariya rakhi

I stay ever yearning; biding time I keep;
The sweetness-coating Heart-Born Lord is churning sweetly.
Pondering and pondering I see that nothing is remaining;
From the sum of all that's formless is this form bereaved.

In one hundred moonbeams whose softness is copious –
A hundred pearl-amulets, unmade their likeness –
Grins at acme of the psyche with innumerous alliterations
Lovesport's cargo brimming of this Sweetheart.

Like floral dust on blue sky He floats with devotion;
A flowing stream of moonlit sandal, He concludes afar.

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Take me, I'm Yours

(1612)  Tomare ceyechi mane prane ami, sara sattar arghyate

In mind and heart I've yearned for Thee,
My complete existence as offering,
At thickest night or light-dripping morning,
With passionate metrics and melody.

I have nothing more to lose;
In return for everything, I want You only.
The song of my soul, my fervent entreaty,
Within You it has bloomed.

Yourself had I forgot for so long a time;
Intent on matter, I was bound to static things.
Failing to peer inward, I have simply
Gone and gazed upon the outside.

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No more deceit

(1611)  Alor deshe tarun hese

In the land of light the lad, smiling,
He declares: "By lies I am not deceived;
Neither am I cheated, nor I cheat.
With the shimmer of empty words,
No longer am I indecisive;
To that I no more give ear.

In hope of light come all and sundry;
But tied down by rope of ebony,
Ruled by greed and from path straying,
They embrace the place where webs are weaved.

All human beings are a single family;
Joy or grief of one is that of everybody.
This is the last word, ultimate reality,
That I do not hesitate to sing.

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Essence of everything

(1610)  Maner gahane tumi ke go ele

At mind's nook, oh Who are You that came in;
Myself You engrossed and enraptured.
Instantly, getting rid of all my dirt,
You took me and made me Yours.

At no time was I worthy of Your grace;
I never did any work to Your taste.
Still You came in person and granted embrace;
Love unmerited You did rain.

To me You are like fragrance in the flower;
Inside the lamp of life, You're the tongue of fire.
Without You I don't exist, nor anything other;
At my core You spoke the essential words.

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Rock of ages

(1609)  Bhalo diye taerii tumi

For benefaction You are ready;
Amid welfare You have fixed Your dwelling.
Having packed light with Your luster,
Into death You have poured ambrosia.

Yourself never I did ask for;
I have called in danger, Lord.
Love's gold ornament,
In the mind a tune You've given.

About You, the fear of losing is not there...
Generation, operation, and destruction,
In each situation You are awakened;
You have remained, filling everything.

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For those who have nothing

(1608)  Phulera madhuke abhra vidhuke

Nectar to the blooms and moon to the clouds,
In which tune with form and color them have You bound...
In mental rays of many hues
Through jeweled lamps You have strewn?

To classify as mine, nothing was there;
To take my love, no one appeared...
But, privately, You whispered in my ears:
"I am residing in the smiling neep."

All those who have nobody, You belong to them;
Amid the transitory, You are the quintessence...
You have gone on drifting, beaming an enchanting grin,
Yourself diffusing via scent of incense.

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Am I Your Sisyphus

(1607)  Tumi kata liila jano, nikate dure alo andhare

How much amorous play do You know!
With approach into far, light into darkness,
You bring separation with a hoax of lovers' tryst.

Upon flower pollen, You float off to a distance;
Mixed with love and devotion, You add infinite heaven.
Through a legion of thoughts, a necklace of imaginations,
You crochet the tangling web of sorrow and happiness.

Understanding of the formless You, it does not transpire;
Even knowing in the mind, Yourself I don't recognize.
From the far horizon, on some boundless sky,
With love myself You entice.

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Tattletale

(1606)  Ei durmada madakata

This irresistible power of intoxication,
Please do say, why have You allowed it?
In my bloodstream this fickleness,
Leaking into form, why have You brought it?

What was there to say, I did not wish to speak;
Now heart's hidden secrets, they have been revealed.
From the world concealed, what was in a mental niche,
Unto light, that You have lavished.

I am not free from shame, like You, oh Beloved;
I don't tell my inner secrets, no matter how peerless.
But You are in my mind... You've gone on hearing everything;
What was at my depths You've seized and brought to notice.

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The straight and narrow

(1605)  Tomare bhuliya jai jadi

When Yourself I begin to forget,
To my lapse please put an end.
If prestige I give myself,
You please take redress.

To dark night You are light's festivity,
To the desert-traveler, liquid sanctuary,
To parched throat, a water-stream,
And to oppressed, a sweet and smiling neep.
You exist, so I exist... and the world is here;
Ever sing this song into my ear.

Amid the multitudes, I am alone;
In a forest fire, bereft of all, a peacock's notes.
Krsna, with a tilak from the charred grove,
Draw a line of phag upon my brow.

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Behind the scenes

(1604)  Matir pradiip jvaliye rekhechi

I have kept alit a lamp of clay;
Lord, in my clay house on this day,
Naught is there in the world to call it mine.
You are the sole essence I have realized.

There was nothing mine, no, not a bit...
Rapidly I've left behind the phantasm of expectation.
Aspiration or reluctance, success or defeat,
Raving and wailing, they but make me weep.

Alas, with a gentle breeze comes napping on the path;
The fragrance of flowers, it vanishes amid the past.
What I've seen with two eyes and what I've only daydreamed,
With all that, grant embrace inside budding psyche.

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His rain of grace

(1603)  Alokojjval tumi bhare acho manobhumi

You are resplendent; You fill up the mental world.
You are eternal truth; You rush toward effulgence.
Everybody's every wish and every accomplishment,
Lying hidden inside all, to Infinity You keep propelling.

Hey Master, Yourself in a hundred forms I have seen;
Unknowingly, time and again Your dust I have smeared.
Closing my own eyes, in blind attachment I have cried bitterly;
From these fetters mine, with Your own hand You do release.

Even when I've had You close, I never drew You near;
Not performing worthy deeds, I've given pain to psyche.
In my private hell, I've twined myself, writhing and writhing;
On this my tragedy of delusion, You pour down waters of mercy.

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To not be

(1602)  Tomar katha bheve bheve hai utala

Having thought and thought about You I am restless;
Your portrait within psyche leaves me tremulous.
Your smile and magic flute, piercing the heart,
Induce oblivion in me to my whole existence.

Autumn, with its whitish clouds and chill winds,
When flights of geese move, wings outspread...
In that dreamy atmosphere, inside of that nebula,
An end to my small-I is not in motion.

In the winter mists with their icy worldliness,
The ardor of a frosty heart gets lost.
Finally, mid spring's swell of waves You come,
You make the tale unspoken loquacious.

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Beyond form

(1601)  Ruper sagar periye ese

Having crossed the sea of form,
Formless Thee I have found.
Beyond drowsiness and rivalry,
Through rows of waves, I have seen.

I did not find You in philosophy,
Nor did science describe Thee.
With love's enchanting cords,
I've realized in honeyed thought.

With incense, lamps, and flower baskets,
And with formalistic worship...
With prayers in rigid language,
You do not submit, I have noted.

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Why did You have to go?

(1600)  Maner keka kande eka eka

Mind's peacock-notes cry all alone,
Having gazed at sky remote.
Moon and clouds exist; but night's end is not
Awash with an atmosphere delicious.

There are no impassioned pleas... You came not;
Nor estrangement of love... You did not watch.
Having gone and stayed afar, You failed to summon;
It's as if a stranger You'd become.

At one time how close to me You had been;
In hues bright You painted my mental sweetness.
Then You departed, taking form to formless,
Plying an illusory heaven.

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Now I've got You

(1599)  Maner kone ke ele

In a cranny of my psyche Who appeared?
Having come silently, having sat quietly,
You ignited many lamps that had got extinguished.

The One on Whom I'd been musing constantly,
The One Whom I'd been craving, You are only He.
After so much time, privately, secludedly,
A pearl-dropping smile You did beam.

Baffling Pilgrim, until now what is still a mystery:
Twixt Luna and high tide, unknown is their story.
Inside of psyche's shrine, the springtime surging,
You granted embrace today between flow and beauty.

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On the grinding wheel of life

(1598)  Manikar mahamantre

Lapidary, with Your incantation great
This mind of mine has got engaged.
All that had or had not been obtained,
It has come close-by today.

What was filled with indecisiveness,
A river lost in the desert,
With the cool and rainy wind
It has found its flow again.

At present the forest-bed
Is ardent and restless.
A cluster of leaves that were shed
Has been dressed in green leaves fresh.

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His arrival path has living quality

(1597)  Nishiithe mala hate

At midnight with garland in hand,
I'd been gazing at arrival path...
With moonlight on clouds in a string,
In concert it was on eyelids.

In each pollen-spore of malatii,
In the devotion of chameli,
Which tune had been buoyant
Along with echoing cadence?

You came and filled up psyche;
You cast out all fatigue...
With love's melodies,
With that music, making replete.

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Lamp of Your Name

(1596)  Tomar namti niye sathe

Having borne Your name with me,
I can travel on Your path unaccompanied.

Howsoever densely dark the night–
Let there be its frightful, monstrous sights–
Well above them, to Your song's melody,
Singing, flag in hand I will proceed.

From any obstacle, I am not afraid;
I won't delay for any danger great.
Hey Stone of Philosophers, radiating gold's beauty,
Stay with me, bright luster falling.

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Ungrateful me

(1595)  Tumi amay ceyechile priya

Beloved, You had looked at me,
But I did not consider Thee.
Myself You had cherished;
I placed You not on necklace of my memory.

So much unearned mercy I've received;
Mind's been suffused with grace and beauty.
Through the blooms and fruits on gentle breeze,
You have caressed me.

What I've craved, still more than that You've given;
All of my impurities, away from me You've taken.
With wish for total welfare, also the right directions,
You have lavished essence of ambrosia.

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