if I had a choice to declare

my creed

i am a hypocritical believer

false malamaati

one who pretends to guide

yet misguides

perfume we wear

of the finest fragrance

alluring souls

for a great heart usurping

in the name of religion

we use and abuse poetry

so to eloquently

express our lower self

we allude towards states

of consciousness

as if illuminated from within

yet our darkness

known within

harems and hammams

we attract our own kind

those who roam

aimlessly

through the 7 valleys

of Attar

Mantiq Al Tayyar

we sing and hymn too

cry profusely

at the mention of

Layla and Shams/ Alf Layla

remember the greatest

fool is not us

but those who

fall prey to the

glance of a poet

or the words

of the liar