The Gift by Hafiz Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Gift
Book Review: Absolutely beautiful-- but is this really a translation?
Summary: 3 Stars
In response to the review above, which argues that this book is not a translation of Hafiz-- you're right. I don't read Persian, so I had no idea how far off this translation was until I read this website, which puts this translation besides several others:
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This book is beautiful and amazing to read. For truth in advertising though, perhaps it's better called "poetry inspired by Hafiz." In any case, it's well worth reading, just don't assume that every poem is really Hafiz.
Book Review: Accurate scholarship and inspired poetry
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a book of poetry that is inspired by the love-songs of the Persian poet, Hafiz who lived in the 1300s... there is no way to capture all the subtleties of the original Persian in English, it can't be done, though people have tried for centuries. Ladinsky's solution is to try to express his understanding of the spirit of Hafiz, disregarding the form, and in some of these poems it seems like he is actually "channeling" Hafiz -- vibrant,heartfelt, raucous, compassionate, drunk with love, desperate with longing for the Beloved, who may be reflected in a person but is certainly Divinity itself.The reviewer from Berkeley below criticized the very informative introduction to Hafiz's life, but his criticism is incorrect- he has confused Hafiz's master, Mohammed Attar, with the Sufi poet Fariduddin Attar, who lived 100 years earlier. Meher Baba, who is quoted in the introduction, is not a Sufi master, but a spiritual figure from India who lived in the 20th century and energized all spiritual paths... he wrote a book called "God Speaks" that integrates many mystical systems, and his "Discourses" are the clearest, most direct modern explanations of how to live a spiritual life that I have ever seen. Apparently Hafiz was his favorite poet and is quoted frequently in these works, and Ladinsky uses Meher Baba's insights in his own work.
The reviewer below is correct when he says these are not really translations of Hafiz, and if I had a criticism of this joyful, inspiring book, it would be that Mr. Ladinsky should have called them "Renderings" as he did in his earlier collection, because they seem to be new poems inspired by Hafiz rather than attempts to accurately translate the ghazals (love-songs). But they are clearly animated by the breath of that magnificent Persian poet.
Book Review: An amazing book.
Summary: 5 Stars
I am going to keep this short. This is a marvelous book for anyone who is seeking to know God better. Hafiz via a masterful and one assumes creative translation by Daniel Ladinsky tells us much about God and our critical role in manifesting God in the world.Book Review: An insult to Hafiz
Summary: 1 Stars
As a native speaker of Persian who can read Hafiz in the original, I feel it is my duty to say that this is an absolute insult to Hafiz. Mr. Ladinsky has no business translating Hafiz (if you can even call this garbage a translation of Hafiz!!). A high school kid who can read Hafiz would understand him far better than Mr. Ladinsky.Book Review: Astonishing soul food
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Gift" is quite simply one of the greatest books of poetry ever written. Hafiz speaks the language of the awake, burning, longing, and delightfully human heart. This book is the perfect companion on the long, challenging, sacred journey of awakening.