I have existed
from all eternity
and behold
 I am here,
and I shall exist
till the end of time
for my being
has no end.
 
I soared
into limitless space
 and took wing
in the imaginal
world,
approaching
the circle
of exalted light;
and here I am now
 mired in matter.
 
I listened
to the teachings
of Confucius,
 imbibed
the wisdom
of Brahma,
 and sat
beside Buddha
beneath
the tree of insight.
And now
I am here,
wrestling
with ignorance
and unbelief.
 
 I was on Sinai
when Yahweh shed
His effulgence
on Moses,
at the River Jordon
 I witnessed
the miracle
 of the Nazarene;
 and in Medina
 I heard the words
of the Messenger
to the Arabs.
 And here I am now,
a captive
of confusion.
 
 I beheld the might
of Babylon,
the glory
of Egypt,
and the grandeur
 of Greece;
and I still see
the weakness,
degradation,
and pettiness
in all
those works.
 
I sat
with
the sorcerors
of Endor,
the seers
of Assyria,
the prophets
of Palestine;
and I persist
in singing
the truth.
 
 I memorised
the wisdom
revealed
to India,
the heartfelt odes
wrought by
the inhabitants
of the
Arabian peninsular,
and the music
that embodies
the sentiments
of the
Western people;
yet still
 I am
blind
and do not see,
deaf
and do not hear.
 
I endured
the brutality
 of grasping
conquerors,
suffered oppression
at the hands of
tyrannical
rulers,
and was enslaved
by despots:
yet a power
 remains
whereby I struggle
against the days.
 
I saw
and heard
all that
 whilst still
 a child,
and shall see
and hear
the exploits
of youth
and
their consequences;
then I shall
 grow old,
and achieve
perfection,
and return
unto God.
 
I existed
 from all eternity
and behold
I am here;
and I shall exist
till the end of time,
for my being
has no end.