Sufi Quotes

“Whole world's a mirror, we are but light.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Rowdy Scientist: Handbook of Humanitarian Science

“Do what thy manhood bids thee do, from none but self expect applause;
He noblest lives and noblest dies who makes and keeps his self-made laws.
All other Life is living Death, a world where none but Phantoms dwell,
A breath, a wind, a sound, a voice, a tinkling of the camel-bell.

Richard Burton, The Kasidah, 1880”
― Richard Burton, Kasidah of Haji Abdu El-Yezdi

“Walk your wounds,
surf your suffering.
Amidst self-lovers,
martyr is the king.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“Shehit Shair Society, Sonnet
(Martyr Poets Society)

Poet* is martyred so poetry can live,
Monk is martyred so holiness can live.
Reformer is martyred so society can live,
Dervish is martyred so the cosmos can live.

Sufi is martyred so serenity can breathe,
Scientist is martyred so reason finds light.
Philosopher is martyred so curiosity lives,
Saint is martyred to keep the promise alive.

The just are martyred so injustice ends -
they diss us woke, we couldn't care less.
*Shairs and seers, we are sad figures -
It's from our wounds, the world draws courage.

Walk your wounds, surf your suffering.
Amidst self-lovers, martyr is the king.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“My life is a pilgrimage of truth, by way of love.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“Dropout computer engineer to monk,
monk to poet scientist, that's my journey.
My existence is testament to assimilation,
proof of the wonders beyond exclusivity.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“Heartbreak is inevitable, heartlessness is optional.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“There is no five elements, only one, love.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The Humanitarian Dictator

“Make every molecule the home of love, let no divisive tradition taint your fervor.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Little Planet on The Prairie: Dunya Benim, Sorumluluk Benim

“Within neurons cosmos comes to life, within neurons worlds come to end.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Neurosonnets: The Naskar Art of Neuroscience

“Do what thy manhood bids thee do, from none but self expect applause;
He noblest lives and noblest dies who makes and keeps his self-made laws.
All other Life is living Death, a world where none but Phantoms dwell,
A breath, a wind, a sound, a voice, a tinkling of the camel-bell.

Richard Burton, The Kasidah, 1890”
― Sir Richard F. Burton

“Kainat** is my qaum*,
Universe is my aum.
Carrying **cosmos in my chest,
every *community is my home.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Little Planet on The Prairie: Dunya Benim, Sorumluluk Benim

“My first duty is love,
my first truth is love,
my prime directive is love,
my first nature is love.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Little Planet on The Prairie: Dunya Benim, Sorumluluk Benim

“New Year's Eve is the occasion
to take stock of your origin,
so that in the reign of new dawn,
you don't forget where you come from.

I too have evolved plenty, from a
dropout engineer to monk to scientist.
But I didn't stop at scientist, and
evolved further into poet dervish.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Azad Earth Army: When The World Cries Blood

“Listen to the silence beyond the words, and you shall hear the divine tune.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Amor Apocalypse: Canım Sana İhtiyacım

“Listen to my silence, you'll hear the universe.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Honor He Wrote: 100 Sonnets For Humans Not Vegetables

“Become a mirror to the world.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Azad Earth Army: When The World Cries Blood

“Birds never know (Sonnet)

Birds never know if the sun will rise,
yet they sing everyday right before dawn.
And sure enough the night collapses,
into the arms of the rising sun.

Kiss the world like morning sun,
Sing to the sky like waking birds.
Fret not the fears of wild insecurity,
You do your task with dutybound heart.

Touch the soul like summer breeze,
Hug the soil like monsoon rain.
Life is calling, can't you hear!
Universe awaits your humane reign.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Yüz Şiirlerin Yüzüğü (Ring of 100 Poems, Bilingual Edition): 100 Turkish Poems with Translations

“Everyone's story holds a secret scar, scars are sacred, for they hold light.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Azad Earth Army: When The World Cries Blood

“Surpass all fear, and share a date. Date shared is bloodshed spared.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The God Sonnets: Naskar Art of Theology

“Birds never know if the sun will rise,
yet they sing everyday right before dawn.
And sure enough the night collapses,
into the arms of the rising sun.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Yüz Şiirlerin Yüzüğü (Ring of 100 Poems, Bilingual Edition): 100 Turkish Poems with Translations

“I have accepted certain work-titles, for the world's convenience, not mine - if anything, lables-n-titles are hindrance to my immeasurable mind.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Kral Fakir: When Calls The Kainat

“Names Behind Naskar (Sonnet)

The world often wonders about my influences,
in doing so it often cooks up fake inspiration.
So I write this little sonnet memoir, so you're
aware of the crucial names in my ascension.

There is no Naskar the neuroscientist,
without, firstly Persinger, then Ramachandran;
there is no Naskar the poet, without Mevlana.
And among all your historic philosophers,
only appealed to me Tolstoy and Aquinas.

Then there are Ramanujan and Tesla,
with whom I've identified deeply.
And finally, to speak of my origin,
there is no Naskar the mission,
without Gadadhar Chatterjee.

These are my most cherished beings,
names that are never out of my mind.
None of them were flawless, none my god,
but they live rent free as part of my light.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The God Sonnets: Naskar Art of Theology

“Mind is my mecca.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The God Sonnets: Naskar Art of Theology

“Sufism is the cream of islam.”
― Abhijit Naskar, The God Sonnets: Naskar Art of Theology

“The pen is my paradise, the pen is my grave.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“I'm vast enough to contain the world, asylum pills don't work on pilgrim brains.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“Service of humanity is the supreme shahada.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“No one is kafir, kainat is my kalma, service of humanity is the supreme shahada.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Iftar-e Insaniyat: The First Supper

“Call me misafir, call me göçmen,
This heart of mine is always migrant.
Şan ve şöhrete ben muhtaç değilim,
Benim derdim dünya, dünya dermanım.

Call me gypsy, or call me refugee,
This heart of mine is always migrant.
I've got no use for silicon or gold,
World is my bane, world, my ointment.

So many tongues, as many names -
Some call agua, some call pani.
Conquer the tongue, spirit is the same -
Some dub it divine, I live as humanity.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Yaralardan Yangın Doğar: Explorers of Night are Emperors of Dawn