ihath

hath i a soul
wonder'd hath i
then saw,
ihath

The above was sent to me as an email by Paolo. It contained nothing but those few lines and it was titled “Bliss”. That is the most creative email I have received so far. Notice how much information is conveyed in those few lines. Not only has he figured out what the name ihath means, he is telling me what he thinks of my website and he is compacting all that in 4 short lines. Brilliant!

People keep asking me what the name ihath means and where it came from. Hath is the old English word for have. ihath means I Have. It was inspired by the following poem by Rumi. He tries to describe a state of majesty, but he says he can best describe it by what it isn't than by what it is. Here is a short excerpt.

This that we have now
is not imagination.

This is not
grief or joy.

Not a judging state,
or an elation
or sadness.

Those come
and go.

This is the presence
that doesn't

These stories are what I have right now. The events in my life have been so crazy, It sometimes seems like it can’t all possibly be true. I need to keep reminding myself that it wasn’t my imagination. It all really did happened. There has been grief and joy. There has been sadness and elation. It all came and went. I used to have so many things. I had religion, I had pride, I had nationalism, I had reason, I had friends, I had so many beliefs. All came and went. Memories and few lessons learned are left behind. One day I was reading Rumi and in my dream I heard the word ihath whispered in my ear. This is what I have right now and it is not imagination.

There is a way between voice and presence where information flows. In disciplined silence it opens. With wandering talk it closes. .... Rumi