PENGUIN The Gift

a delicious chunky and priceless piece of heaven. i love this book so much everyone i love gets either a copy or one of the many inspiring "meditations" on life that this fine poetry book offers. hafiz (or rather ladinskys renderings of hafiz) is beyond measure the finest most down to earth poet to ever live. i am transported deeply and with gratitude into the bawdiness and sublime light, often at the same time, this is poetry to 'wake up' with, whether this be opening your eyes in the morning or devoting your heart to Love. Thank you that this exists to remind me always to return to truth, gratitude, love, courage, presence

Excellent version and translation. Ideal as a gift, due to paragraph interpretation. So glad I have this version. If being introduced to esoteric teaching, this makes for easy reading. The way it is presented lends itself to helping you pause between thoughts so one can ponder each expression.

A different poem to reflect upon each day. A lovely book and a true gift. I love Ladinsky’s interpretations.

While I have greatly appreciated Daniel Ladinsky’s poetry, it is just that: his and not Hafiz’s. I was extremely disappointed to learn that these “translations” are unfortunately another example of white, male cultural appropriation in which Daniel Ladinsky is using Hafiz’s name to sell his own poems. I also find it unforgivable that the publishers allowed this to happen and did not do their due diligence consulting with Hafiz scholars. If Ladinsky had published this collection under his own name and simple acknowledged his inspiration as Hafiz I could have given this work 5 stars.

this is a wonderful,.almost gut-wrenching call to the love of God.He also has a funny very human way of forgetting what he wassaying in the middle of a poem - a Sufi mirror of how we all are.Delightful, frustrating, crazy .