Omar Khayyam (30)

Juan Cole 02/15/2012

Your hand can seize today,
but not tomorrow;
and thoughts of your tomorrow
are nothing but desire.
Don’t waste this breath,
if your heart isn’t crazy,
since ‘the rest of your life’
won’t last forever.

trans. Juan Cole
from Whinfield 30

About the Author

Juan Cole is the founder and chief editor of Informed Comment. He is Richard P. Mitchell Distinguished University Professor in the History Department at the University of Michigan He is author of, among many other books, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Follow him on Twitter at @jricole or the Informed Comment Facebook Page