Mothers lose sleep for the child to dream while also abstaining from food so that the infant could be fed— Jaihoon’s poetic tribute to mothers
She served me
Until this day
Her love: the sun
Mine: a ray
She lost sleep
For me to dream
She left food
For me to be fed
Of mind and body
She suffered
Her love grew
As she carried
I kicked her bosom
When an infant
Yet she stroked me
Without being hesitant
She inspired my legs:
Taught me to walk
Every word I pronounced:
Listening to her talk
‘Hasbi Rabbi’
She sang in my ears;
‘Noor Muhammad’
Shone all these years
All my acts of worship
Are but under her feet
Not two, but three worlds
I need to show her respect
If this son were
To enter paradise
The warmth of her feet
Be the cause
Her prayers for me:
Sincere than my own
She bore much pain
To see me grown
The pleasure of my Lord
Is in doing for her good
Even as I laid in her womb
Or be buried in the tomb:
She will continue to pour love
And pray for me forever
If His Mercy is the entrance:
She is the key to my paradise!
2005. Edited 2022
One comment
This is so heart warming. Such a wonderful ode to mother, Allah’s most noble creation. Even the paradise lies beneath her feet. Her sacrifices, pain & tears are sacred. May we all continue to cherish her love & prayers & be blessed with her presence till the last moment of our breath.