If you would only ask

[Bhaskar]

You are so excruciatingly beautiful
that the Beloved
would squander the universe at your lotus feet.
If you would only ask.

If you would only ask
He would handpick Heaven's most fragrant stars
and weave them into your hair.

He wanders the desert like a lunatic
scratching your name on every grain of sand.
And if you would only ask
He would build you a palace without walls
where every atom moves only
for your laughter.

If you would only set down your begging bowl and ask,
The beloved would send Latif
to show you how.