Omar Khayyam (57)

Juan Cole 03/11/2012

We are pagans of love;
the orthodox are something else.
We are like puny ants;
the splendor of Solomon
is something else.
Our faces are sallow
and our clothing is tattered;
the fine linens at the boutique
are something else.

Translated by Juan Cole
from [pdf] Whinfield 57

About the Author

Juan Cole is the founder and chief editor of Informed Comment. He is Richard P. Mitchell Professor of History at the University of Michigan He is author of, among many other books, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Follow him on Twitter at @jricole or the Informed Comment Facebook Page