Gathered Memory | the spiritual wisdom of Hafez

So long as on Earth you live,
do value your strength;
the wheel of life buries
all weakness in the end.

In the school of transformation, in the tavern of alchemy, each seeker has its own course, unique pathway. Still, there are one curriculum common to all of humanity, past and present ... is what mystic philosopher and sufi master Hafez calls, Khater-e-Majmou, the Gathered Memory.

The gathered memory is a condition of unity created by weaving disparate thoughts, emotions and personalities into one sharply focused images. It emerges both from within and without, arising in each person as the world of both one's self and one's double - that ancient metaphysical shadow being that is said to be an image of the self as it appears in the spirit world.

You sometimes may experience gathered memory as completely relaxed composure. It is a peaceful state obtained through a momentary, yet complete flash of aggregate memory. You know who you are, where you've come from and who and what you are related to. This is not a matter of family or ancestry but, more expansively, a fact of interconnectedness with the rest of creation - past, present and future. This realization, if arrived at with authenticity and depth of perception, can evoke instantly a deep feeling of support and a nurturing environment for perseverance and visionary forward motion.

Gathered memory is a timeless, personal mission, a divine intent on Earth. All answers are within, not outside. One's focus must be inward to see personal divinity. No amount of grieving about the outside world will result in clarity of vision.

Don't get down on your knees in futile mourning;
daily bread does not grow or shrink with your grief.
Because these futile cries bring no benefits,
be farsighted or sorrow becomes heart's thief.

Gathered memory activates an intelligence so fierce that it is fearless of limitations that stop others. This fierceness is devoid of guilt, repentance and pity. Gathered memory is the field of surrender for abandonment of the world's pain and pleasure. Ordinary, everyday affairs become fields of sacred practices and spiritual transformation. The mind and heart are feed from ego concerns to move on to deeper activities.

True freedom results only when you abandon your worries about the outer world and commit to trusting the competent mystery of creation.

Hafez, if you leave your affair to God's wisdom,
you can have a lot of fun with your destiny.

- Quoted from Haleh Pourafzal and Roger Montgomery's book, The Spiritual Wisdom of Hafez - Teachings of the Philosopher of Love.


Just sit there right now.
Don't do a thing.
Just rest.

For your separation
from God
is the hardest work in the world.

- Hafez