By ZAFEERA KASSAM

Under Your guidance
we are emboldened;
little birds taking first flight
towards the Light —
Your pearls of wisdom
lighting the runways towards
the esoteric Gnosis.
From Your encouragement
we glean the courage to
navigate the rough seas of duniya.

Under Your preservation
we are cocooned in culture,
thus develop into diverse plurality —
a myriad of butterflies aflight and free
in Your world of hope, love and goodwill.
Your Farmans have us ensconced in ethics —
beacons in the bay blinking caution,
that we may be safe from pitfalls and traps;
we cling to the rope of Your grace
and keep afloat on the buoyancy of Your affection.

Under Your omniscience
how fortunate and blessed we are —
chosen to be amongst Your flock,
nurtured in care and concern we are;
indebtedness we display in our thoughts, our actions,
but on an auspicious day like today —
On this occasion of Salgirah, what pearls,
diamonds, gold, arts and riches will suffice?
Before You we place our hearts and intention:
Epitome of Virtue, Paragon of Principle,
Beloved Hazar Imam,
we aspire to make You proud,
to celebrate Your ineffability
and fulfill the dreams You have for us.
Indeed You never ask of anything for Yourself,
any gift will fall short of its meaningfulness,
yet, permit us to present humbly
our allegiance and loyalty, our hearts and servitude
at Your divine feet.

Date posted: December 12, 2018.

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Zafeera Kassam is a high-school teacher of English Language, Literature and Psychology, residing in Nairobi, Kenya. She spends her free time in creative writing and poetry, and has had her short stories and poems published in various media around the world. As a devotee of Mowlana Hazar Imam, her greatest joy is in penning verse and poems in praise of Hazar Imam. Her latest publication, Always and Forever, is a book of 60 poems dedicated especially to Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Diamond Jubilee (available on Amazon Kindle). She is also an amateur photographer who takes great interest in capturing nature. Currently, she is concentrating on developing her skills in graphic design and digital imagery. Most of all, she hopes to be continuously inspired to keep penning poems in praise of beloved Hazar Imam.

Zafeera contributed stirring narratives of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Diamond Jubilee Darbars held in Kenya and Portugal. One can read them over and over again and never have enough! Please read (or re-read) the accounts at:

• The epochal finale in Lisbon of the Aga Khan’s Diamond Jubilee (a multiple part series)
• An inspiring and moving account of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Diamond Jubilee Darbar in Nairobi

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