For years the heart asked us for the cup of Jamshid; what it had itself, it begged of a stranger.
سالها دل طلب جام جم از ما میکرد / وآنچه خود داشت ز بیگانه تمنا میکرد
Sâl-hâ dil taleb-i câm-ı Cem ez mâ mî-kerd / V'ân-çi hod dâşt zi bîgâne temennâ mî-kerd
Hafez, Divan, ghazal 143 (Ganjoor numbering).
For years the heart searched for a cup.
It went from door to door.
It asked strangers
for what was in its own hand.
Hafez says this without mockery.
As if telling of his own heart.
Must a person first ask others
for what he already has?
Most of the time, it seems so.
Whoever does not know his own house
wanders the world.
Few check their own pocket
before the road grows long.