Omar Khayyam (458) “Be happy in this fleeting moment”

Juan Cole 01/15/2013

Since you can’t comprehend the mysteries,
why wallow uselessly in grief? Since you ‘re
not going to get your way, be happy in
this fleeting moment for which you exist.

Translated by Juan Cole
from Omar Khayyam’s Rubaiyat, [pdf] Whinfield 458

About the Author

Juan Cole is the founder and chief editor of Informed Comment. He is Richard P. Mitchell Professor of History 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