The Gift
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- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Hafez
- ISBN：0140195815
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Summary
More than any other Persian poet， it is perhaps Hafiz who accesses the mystical， healing dimensions of poetry。 Because his poems were often ecstatic love songs from God to his beloved world， many have called Hafiz the "Tongue of the Invisible。"
With this stunning collection of 250 of Hafiz's most intimate poems， Daniel Ladinsky has succeeded brilliantly in capturing the essence of one of Islam's greatest poetic and religious voices。 Each line of THE GIFT imparts the wonderful qualities of the spiritual teacher: an audacious love that empowers lives， profound knowledge， wild generosity， and a sweet， playful genius unparalleled in world literature。
With this stunning collection of 250 of Hafiz's most intimate poems， Daniel Ladinsky has succeeded brilliantly in capturing the essence of one of Islam's greatest poetic and religious voices。 Each line of THE GIFT imparts the wonderful qualities of the spiritual teacher: an audacious love that empowers lives， profound knowledge， wild generosity， and a sweet， playful genius unparalleled in world literature。
Reviews
Claire
，
Well the printing of this book is excellent but something felt off in the translation and now that I’ve read the other reviews I see why。
Keith Taylor
，
Certainly worth calling this into account， although I suspect most people reading this will have a pretty clear sense of it before they finish even the second poem。 We have seen other very free versions of Sufi poetry， and many of them have had a certain New-Age life。 But if you make even a small journey into the forms of poetry from the Islamic world in Central Asia， you realize these have little to do with it。 Hafiz wrote ghazals， but you'd have no sense of what a ghazal is by this book。 Now， Certainly worth calling this into account， although I suspect most people reading this will have a pretty clear sense of it before they finish even the second poem。 We have seen other very free versions of Sufi poetry， and many of them have had a certain New-Age life。 But if you make even a small journey into the forms of poetry from the Islamic world in Central Asia， you realize these have little to do with it。 Hafiz wrote ghazals， but you'd have no sense of what a ghazal is by this book。 Now， that said， I'm thinking that Ladinsky might be close enough at times to get a sense of Hafiz's sense of humor， and the eroticism of his religious ecstasy。 That might be the best quality of the book， but it is not enough to redeem what is mostly trite summaries of vague ideas。 。。。more
Chenemi
，
Not a translation of Hafiz at all。 An exercise in cultural appropriation。
Riton Khan
，
“I am A hole in a flute That the Christ’s breath moves through—Listen to this Music。”These few lines made me buy this book。 Hafiz is a loving and cherished spiritual guide for humanity。 In various cultures for centuries， he has been referred to as the “Tongue of the Invisible，” because he still sings passionate， wild love songs to God。 He asks us to join him in praising the many wonderful things in life。 With every flag， chapel sound， tomb， masjid， and politician's brain being served， I vote for “I am A hole in a flute That the Christ’s breath moves through—Listen to this Music。”These few lines made me buy this book。 Hafiz is a loving and cherished spiritual guide for humanity。 In various cultures for centuries， he has been referred to as the “Tongue of the Invisible，” because he still sings passionate， wild love songs to God。 He asks us to join him in praising the many wonderful things in life。 With every flag， chapel sound， tomb， masjid， and politician's brain being served， I vote for inscribing these words of Hafiz on every one: Dear ones， let's depose this earth with dance！ 。。。more
A G
，
2。5 stars。 I actually liked most of the poems a lot， but I have to take a significant chunk off my rating for the marketing decision to say that these poems are "by" Hafiz and "translated" by Daniel Ladinsky。 That's a pretty fraudulent move by the publisher and it sucks to feel lied to。 2。5 stars。 I actually liked most of the poems a lot， but I have to take a significant chunk off my rating for the marketing decision to say that these poems are "by" Hafiz and "translated" by Daniel Ladinsky。 That's a pretty fraudulent move by the publisher and it sucks to feel lied to。 。。。more
Clay
，
Could be a little redundant at times， but overall some really great poetry — especially for someone focused on self-growth。
Lee Kuiper
，
If words were liquid， reading Hafiz would be the closest thing to drinking joy。 His poems are simply intoxicating。 They go down easy。 They will set you abuzz with both the celestially divine and mischievously mundane that hover all around you， unbeknownst to you。 For but a brief moment his words will cover you with their puckish wit and solace， leaving you flush and aglow。 I often recommend Hafiz to people who claim “poetry is not for me，” especially if they have suffered from bad experiences of If words were liquid， reading Hafiz would be the closest thing to drinking joy。 His poems are simply intoxicating。 They go down easy。 They will set you abuzz with both the celestially divine and mischievously mundane that hover all around you， unbeknownst to you。 For but a brief moment his words will cover you with their puckish wit and solace， leaving you flush and aglow。 I often recommend Hafiz to people who claim “poetry is not for me，” especially if they have suffered from bad experiences of poetry previously; （I’m looking at you high school English and Literature classes）。 Maybe you are in that boat: poetry is too cryptic， too verbose， too pretentious and abstract， or just plain pointless。 If so， I challenge you to read any ten poems by Hafiz and not feel/think differently。 Seriously， any ten。 Go。You will find:1。） His poems are immediately apprehensible， not cryptic。2。） His poems are short and succinct， not verbose。3。） His poems are grounded， homely， and tactile， not pretentious or abstract。 4。） His poems are not pointless， they are the most loving， playful， and joyful poems you’ve ever read。Hafiz is the stereotype breaker。His poems are wonderfully imaginative and outright readable。 They can make the hardest of hearts smile。 But that doesn’t mean his poems are only for beginners or the unacquainted。 Like anything written well， it’s harder to write something short and great than long and great。 To distill what one wants to say down to it’s essence is very difficult。 Here Hafiz is the master。 He buries treasure in plain sight。On that note of brevity， let me just say you should thank your high school teachers for not forcing you to read Hafiz; they wanted to save this gem， to hide it away just out of reach so you could discover him on your own a little later in life when you truly needed him。That treasure awaits。 It is not buried deep。 Go now and find it。 。。。more
Mansoor Q
，
Fake。 As others have pointed out， Ladinsky is falsely representing these as Hafez's writings。 They're actually Ladinsky's。 It's a well-known fraud。 Fake。 As others have pointed out， Ladinsky is falsely representing these as Hafez's writings。 They're actually Ladinsky's。 It's a well-known fraud。 。。。more
Mihai
，
Like many， I started off this poetry collection thinking it was an authoritative translation of the great Persian poet Hafez， only to later discover， through the unrivaled access to information provided by the Internet， that it is actually just original poems by the guy who claims to have done the translating。 Ladinsky's impersonation of Hafez is well documented， so no more time needs to be spent describing that。 With The Gift published in 1999， Penguin has never issued an apology for disseminat Like many， I started off this poetry collection thinking it was an authoritative translation of the great Persian poet Hafez， only to later discover， through the unrivaled access to information provided by the Internet， that it is actually just original poems by the guy who claims to have done the translating。 Ladinsky's impersonation of Hafez is well documented， so no more time needs to be spent describing that。 With The Gift published in 1999， Penguin has never issued an apology for disseminating falsely labeled work in the intervening 20+ years， which in turns allows this book to continue to be sold and read as something that it is not。 I am saddened and troubled by this deception。 As far as content goes， Ladinsky is not a great poet by any means; sure， some of the pieces here are nice， inspiring even， but overall the collection is quite a dud。 Many times I asked myself， would an intellectual/erudite from 14th century Persia really write this kind of verse？ Others have mentioned the dearth of references to Islam in these poems， which is more than unusual。 And， stylistically speaking， they are nowhere near the structure of a ghazal， which was Hafez's preferred form。I'm giving the book 1 star for the deception， otherwise it'd probably be 2 stars。 。。。more
Sama
，
He's one of the best Iranian poets and I just love this book cause its poetrys have deep and beautiful meanings。 He's one of the best Iranian poets and I just love this book cause its poetrys have deep and beautiful meanings。 。。。more
Quinn Bitez
，
I loved the poems。 Every single line of these pomes have a deep meaning。 Sometimes they makes you emotional or sometimes it makes you anxious。
Mari
，
Imagine my surprise when I couldn't find any of these supposed translations in the original Persian。。。 Will be getting rid of my copy。 Imagine my surprise when I couldn't find any of these supposed translations in the original Persian。。。 Will be getting rid of my copy。 。。。more
Asahi
，
My heart has an old friend。
Andrew Nease
，
Now， I'm not naive。 I realize that there's a controversy about this book， and though I can't fathom WHY the author felt the need to market it that way， and would appreciate it if someone could point me to a good English-language edition of the original， I feel like what gets lost in the shuffle is the quality of the actual poems。 And the actual poems are pretty goddamn good。 I know that it's philistine to think that all poems have to rhyme， but I think all GOOD poems either SHOULD rhyme or be wr Now， I'm not naive。 I realize that there's a controversy about this book， and though I can't fathom WHY the author felt the need to market it that way， and would appreciate it if someone could point me to a good English-language edition of the original， I feel like what gets lost in the shuffle is the quality of the actual poems。 And the actual poems are pretty goddamn good。 I know that it's philistine to think that all poems have to rhyme， but I think all GOOD poems either SHOULD rhyme or be written so that you foget that they don't， and that's how these here are。 And they're funny， sexy， spiritual， joyful。。。 if riding down a country backroad on a breezy summer day with your head hanging out the car window could take the form of words， this would be it。 So do yourself a favor: take a grain of salt， ignore what name's on the cover， and just read and enjoy this book。 。。。more
Benny Penman
，
I really love these poems。 If you love literature you should read this one。
Torvi Red
，
This book has saved my life。 Beautiful and healing。
Malik Salam
，
This is a very hard book to review。 I did enjoy the poetry whomever the author might be。 But midway through the book， I realized， thanks to a goodreads review， that these are not really translations。 I’m not going to get into the details because you can find those all Ofer the internet if you just google Daniel Ladinsky。 But after I found out that most of these are very loosely adapted， for some reason， it was harder to enjoy。 I think It was difficult to stomach the superimposition of such pure This is a very hard book to review。 I did enjoy the poetry whomever the author might be。 But midway through the book， I realized， thanks to a goodreads review， that these are not really translations。 I’m not going to get into the details because you can find those all Ofer the internet if you just google Daniel Ladinsky。 But after I found out that most of these are very loosely adapted， for some reason， it was harder to enjoy。 I think It was difficult to stomach the superimposition of such pure and sweet truth coming from the poems and the feeling to deceit from the falsified nature of the work。 Why just say they were inspired by Hafiz？ The sad part is now Hafiz， is on random Buddhist websites， but did Hafiz actually ever write about sake and the Buddha， no idea！！ Because I can’t tell whether where Daniel picks up and where Hafiz ends。 None of this would be an issue if it was very clearly stated up front。 All of this said， I still enjoyed the poetry but it left a bad taste in my mouth。 。。。more
Muhammad
，
"Hafiz was viewed as a great threat， a spiritual rebel， whose insights emancipate his readers from the clutches of those in power—those who exploit the innocent with insane religious propaganda。 For Hafiz reveals a God with a billion I。Q。—a God that would never cripple us with guilt or control us with fear。""Hafiz is one of the greatest spiritual friends， lovers， and guides that humankind has ever known。 For centuries he has been called the Tongue of the Invisible， for he continues to sing beaut "Hafiz was viewed as a great threat， a spiritual rebel， whose insights emancipate his readers from the clutches of those in power—those who exploit the innocent with insane religious propaganda。 For Hafiz reveals a God with a billion I。Q。—a God that would never cripple us with guilt or control us with fear。""Hafiz is one of the greatest spiritual friends， lovers， and guides that humankind has ever known。 For centuries he has been called the Tongue of the Invisible， for he continues to sing beautiful and wild love songs from God。 He invites us to join him in his fantastic applause of life。 I vote to inscribe these words of Hafiz on every flag， church bell， temple， mosque， and politician’s brain: Dear ones， let’s anoint this earth with dance！"I met another friend today！ :） 。。。more
Jennifer
，
I understand the controversy around this book。 Whether they were written by Hafiz or by Ladinsky， many of them were deeply felt。
Degan Walters
，
Did not like the liberties taken with the translation to modernize the poems。
Jeni
，
It is extremely offensive that Daniel Ladinsky has appropriated Hafez's identity to create this abysmal collection of poems。 Aside from a few slices of wisdom， this was extremely underwhelming and some parts downright disrespectful。 It's not okay to call inspired poetry a translation when it strays so far from the original author's intent。 I am extremely disappointed that this is the most popular translation of Hafez's The Gift。 I hope that in the future， we can put our faith in Persian translat It is extremely offensive that Daniel Ladinsky has appropriated Hafez's identity to create this abysmal collection of poems。 Aside from a few slices of wisdom， this was extremely underwhelming and some parts downright disrespectful。 It's not okay to call inspired poetry a translation when it strays so far from the original author's intent。 I am extremely disappointed that this is the most popular translation of Hafez's The Gift。 I hope that in the future， we can put our faith in Persian translators instead， those who understand the cultural， linguistic and symbolic depth of every word originally conveyed。 。。。more
Rezan
，
i can't trust the translation。 this seems too modern and almost impossible that hafez could write and think in the manner presented in the book。 skeptical and disappointed。 i can't trust the translation。 this seems too modern and almost impossible that hafez could write and think in the manner presented in the book。 skeptical and disappointed。 。。。more
Michael Warden
，
Mystical Love Poetry at its BestThis is a resource I will be coming back to over and over for the rest of my life。 The poems here are exquisite， intimate， and deeply challenging in all the best ways。 Hafiz has become my teacher in my own relationship with God， and I am grateful to sit at his feet。
Erik Larsson
，
Daniel Ladinsky， not Hafiz， but still lovely。
Sean Killackey
，
Written by a rich white suburbanite claiming to be "the voice" of Hafiz。 Not by Hafiz at all， not translations， just original poems by a white guy who put Hafiz on the cover of his book。 Spiritual and cultural appropriation at its worst。 Written by a rich white suburbanite claiming to be "the voice" of Hafiz。 Not by Hafiz at all， not translations， just original poems by a white guy who put Hafiz on the cover of his book。 Spiritual and cultural appropriation at its worst。 。。。more
Christina Maness
，
Translations or whatever， without missing the point of poetry and the actual poetry itself， it is gorgeous writing❣
Diane
，
Enjoy reading these poems from time to time。 It soothes my spirit。
Valerie
，
These poems are acts of worship。 It’s endlessly beautiful to me how the great mystics of the world， regardless of their tradition， century， or geography， tend to orbit the mysteries of God in a similar way。 The intimacy Hafiz expresses， through Ladinsky’s masterful translation， is too much for me to bear at times， and I just pray that one day I’ll understand a taste more of what’s behind the poetry。 I love the playfulness of Hafiz。 The poet could not be more serious about his love of God， but hi These poems are acts of worship。 It’s endlessly beautiful to me how the great mystics of the world， regardless of their tradition， century， or geography， tend to orbit the mysteries of God in a similar way。 The intimacy Hafiz expresses， through Ladinsky’s masterful translation， is too much for me to bear at times， and I just pray that one day I’ll understand a taste more of what’s behind the poetry。 I love the playfulness of Hafiz。 The poet could not be more serious about his love of God， but his worship is so light and free， as full of amusement as it is reverence。 Hafiz paints pictures of a human attempt at complete immersion in Christ。 He sees all of creation as united in Christ。 I wrote the above review， and then I went and read others。。。 and apparently Ladinsky’s translation is far from accurate。 I don’t have the energy to research this debate。 I’m grateful for a modern translation that speaks so easily to me， but I’m also sad for an important mystic’s words to be so liberally changed and wonder if it affects the spirituality of the text。 My experience reading was still five stars。 Oh well 。。。more
Alex A。
，
And so I applied Hafiz to my wounds and， after a short blink of my mind， infinite shapes my eyes could hear - and this is how I wrote a letter of resignation to my fears and sadness。
Nic Carnes
，
This collection feels like Daniel Ladinsky has taken gross liberties in his “translations”。 This has some recognizable poems （probably because whenever I’ve heard Hafiz quoted， it was actually Ladinsky’s version I’ve heard quoted）- but most are just bizarre。 I don’t like the anachronistic use of themes and phrases that simply do not belong in his poetry。 I didn’t expect such a poor translation when I picked this up- I definitely did not care for most of this book。 It felt White washed and like i This collection feels like Daniel Ladinsky has taken gross liberties in his “translations”。 This has some recognizable poems （probably because whenever I’ve heard Hafiz quoted， it was actually Ladinsky’s version I’ve heard quoted）- but most are just bizarre。 I don’t like the anachronistic use of themes and phrases that simply do not belong in his poetry。 I didn’t expect such a poor translation when I picked this up- I definitely did not care for most of this book。 It felt White washed and like it was missing its essence。 It’s important to note the cover uses the term “translations” however this collection is definitely “inspired by” Hafiz at best。 I probably could have enjoyed it if it had been properly marketed as inspired by Hafiz， but this really disappointed me。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Gift
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Gift&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Gift&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0