The Egalitarian

I sing the song Of equality, Where all status and class Become triviality. The Rendezvous of Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim or those of Christianity, I sing the song Of equality! Who are you? Persian? Jain? Shaotal, Til, Garo? Jew? Confucian? Charvaka-disciple? Anything else; something new? My friend! Be whatever you are, Or, whatever book or scroll you carry in your head or on your shoulder. Vedas, Tripitak, Or Quran - Puran, Avesta or another, read as much as you like or can. But why this foolhardiness Whacking your head with all your power, Why so much haggling in the market, When at your roadside blooms fresh beautiful flower? Right in you resides The essence of all books, of all time, In every scripture you will find this, My friend, if you just open your heart sublime. Your heart hosts faith's essence And of all that you deem holy, Your heart is the world-altar representing all the divine, wholly. Why do you seek the holy or divine in the skeletons of scrolls dead? He smiles behind the curtain right in your soul-bed. My friend, believe me I am not lying, To bow in your adoration, All the crowns are dying. This heart is Kaashi, Mathura, Brindaban or holy Nile flowing, It is Buddha's Goya, Jerusalem Madina, or where Kaba is glowing. Real mosque, temple, church - are not distant from this heart, Sitting here Jesus and Moses found their awakening to the truth start. In world's arena Bhagavad-Gita, Played eternal youth's tune, In this same field the sheep-grazing prophets' chord with God was hewn. Meditating in this cave of the heart Great Buddha the saint, Gave up the kingdom Hearing humanity's pangs go faint. At this altar the desert's prince Used to hear the divine call, From this throne, he also sang Quran's message of equality of all. My brother, yes, O my brother, Wrong I haven't heard, There isn't any temple or mosque greater than this heart. [Original: Shammyobadi (bengali) Translation by: Mohammad Omar Farooq]