They ask me about the one:
Who was born in the Ka’ba
The one who was named Haidar
The first man to believe in Rasoollullah
Who slept in the bed of the messenger
The Harun to Ahmed’s Musa
The wielder of Thulfiqar
The mountain of Uhud
And the conquerer of Badr
The conquerer of Khaybar
Who made Fatima’s heart flutter
Who stood on Ahmed’s shoulders
To break the idols of idolaters
The Mawla after the Mawla
The one struck in his prayer
Who’d offer his killer water
Who declared he was successful
And splits heaven and hellfire
I replied,
Is there anything left to ask?
Is there anything left to ask about the one
Who with just one hand and not even with his tongue
Changed the very orbit of our ancient sun
As if he could have destroyed it by covering it with his thumb
The one who offered his life in the Prophet’s stead
And did so by laying in Revelation’s bed
The bronze skin of his throat yearned to turn blood-red
To sacrifice all that was Ali for the sake of Ahmed
To only one in history to, deep within in his own prayer
Heed both his Lord’s words and the voice of the beggar in despair
His finger in its own consciousness extends and says, “here”
The zakat was the ring; the wealth the gaze of Ahmed’s heir
The one would sleep restless when he led a whole kingdom
“How can I sleep comfortably when my lands have poor within them?”
Whose heart that was a firm mountain melted for the orphan
Whose five senses belong to the oppressed, be it now or then
The one who in one hand held the battlefield of Badr
Against the thousands of Hunayn his skin would not dare shudder
For there are thousands of warriors but only one Haider
If you doubt this, ask the stories told to Marhab by his mother
If you doubt this, ask the broken gate that once belonged to Khaybar
Ask the mystics, ask the beggars, ask his cradle that was the Ka’ba
Ask the Sufis, ask the Sunnis, the Shia who clung to his Calipha
Ask the walking scent of Heaven – ask Fatima Zahra
Ask the ones who call him ‘one’, ask the ones who call him ‘four’
Ask the souls long gone who’d recite “Dum Dum Ali Ali Kar”
Asks the saints who were humbled at the foot of Ali’s door
Ask the split of Heaven and Hell, ask Adam what was before
Ask the millions that yearn his dome of the secret of this warrior
Ask the battle within his heart, the nafs that was never superior
Ask the two prongs of Tholfiqar of the oneness of its master
Ask his lover of Heaven, for they know the sweetness of the hereafter
Ask with an open heart and let your heart be filled with him
Then you may ask your heart of this wealth of love deep within
Ask Ali of Ali because Ali is still living
Ask Muhammad of Ali and he’ll tell you, “everything”.