very insightful!!! and all the info about shah bhatai...very well summerized."Yourself is the hurdle, between your love and you."..well said

"If you are seeking Allah,
Then keep clear of religious formalities.
Those who have seen Allah
Are away from all religions!
Those who do not see Allah here,
How will they see Him beyond?"
"Let us go the land of Kak
Where love flows in abundance,
There are no entrances, no exits,
Every one can see the Lord!"

"There is no light nor day
Every one can see the Lord!
Those who love the Lord
The world cannot hold them.
Palaces do not attract them,
Nor women nor servants
Nothing binds them:
The renouncers leave everything behind."

"A message came from the Lord:
A full moon shone
Darkness disappeared
A new message came from the Lord:
It does not matter what caste you are
Whoever come, are accepted."

"Where shall I take my camel,
All is Light...
Inside there is Kak, mountain and valley,
The Lord and the Lord: there is nothing but the Lord."

`Am I not your Lord?', Allah asked
In the beginning of the creation.
Then I swore by the Truth:
There was no consciousness
Of virtue or vice
Only universal consciousness."

`My body is here, but my heart
Is with you, my Allah...'
Say, no calamity will reach us, except that,
Which Allah wills..
`Allah is not born
Nor does he give birth...'

You are still in shallow water
The ocean lies ahead!
`Man is my mystery
And I am man's mystery.'
....Bhitai (1690-1751 AD), translated by Prof. D. H. Butani (1913-1989) in "The Melody and Philosophy of Shah Latif", Promilla and Co., New Delhi 1991 (ISBN 81-85002-14-2)

"Hot-u tuhinji hanj-a mein puchin koh-u pah-e,
"We fi anfusikum afa la tubsiroon" sojh-e kar-i sahi,
Kadahin kan-e vaheey hot-u gollhin-a hatt-a te."
"Beloved is in your lap, why ask others?
His signes are in your soul, why not learn and contemplate?
To seek her love, none went to market place."

"Hot-u tuhinji hanj-a mein puchin kuh-u paryan-a,
"We nuhnu aqrab ileh min hablul wareed" tuhnjo tohin san-u,
Pahnjo aahey pan-u aado ajiban kh-e."

"Beloved within you and you seek him here and there
He is "closer to you than your vein jugular,"
Yourself is the hurdle, between your love and you."

That blessed mood
In which the burden of the mystery
In which the heavy and weary weight
Of all this unintelligible world,
Is lightened that serene and blessed mood,
In which the affections gently lead us on,
Until, the breath of this corporal frame
And even the motion of our human flood
Almost suspended, we are laid asleep
In body, and become a living soul:
While with an eye made quiet by the power
Of harmony and the deep power of joy,
We see into the life of things."

Those who lost their path, searching the rocks,
Learnt much from the lost path,
Giving up both the worlds, beaten track they follow not.
Dust on their bodies for the Beloved they gather,
Some knowledge of Lahut seem to possess these wanderers."
.................Bhitai

Shah Abdul Latif of Bhit, lovingly called 'Shah Bhitai,' is adored throughout the length and breadth of Sindh,pakistan irrespective of peoples religious beliefs and intellectual standing, not only as the greatest poet of Sindh but as a saint, a sufi and a spiritual guide. It is the spiritual significance of his poetry, expressed in most touching down-to-earth words, harmonised with a musical setting, that makes a direct appeal to the hearts and souls of the listeners, including the elite and the man in the street. The peasant ploughing his field, the herdsman and the shepherd tending to the herd of cattle or flock of sheep, the fisherman casting his fishing net in the water, the sailors going to sea, the village house-wife at her daily chores and the villager midst his companions at leisure time, sings, recites or hears this sublime poetry that uplifts his very soul, be he a Muslim or a Hindu. In the towns and cities of mother Sindh, the scholars, intellectuals and learned people, hold sessions of its recitation and its singing by renowned artists of the land. Every Sindhi...click, young and old, whether literate or not, man or woman, know most of the verses by-heart, and often quote them in daily conversations at significant occasions. Mother Sindh has has been ravged and her children has suffered the pangs of distress and destruction. The poems, songs and verses of Bhitai, when heard, bring uncontrolled tears to every Sindhis eyes. Who is this man? What is his philosophy? Why his poetry elevates people to heights of ecstasy? Why is this noble son of Sindh, rightly refered as the soul of of Sindh. Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai - not much is known about the life of this thinker, saint, and sufi, from the written records. Much of the information has come down to us through oral traditions.

Shah Jo Risalo, in essence, is untranslateable into any language. The beauty of Sindhi language, especially the Sindhi used by Bhitai, the lilting melody, the churning of the of the words, the music in every line of the verse, and sheer hypnotic effect on heart, mind and soul, can only be felt and appreciated in the original Sindhi language. Not just Sindhis, but foreigners, as well, has been enthralled by this ecstatic poetry.