📖 Reading time: 13 min
Quick answer: Here are 14 of Hafez’s best-known poems, each given as the opening couplet in Persian with a transliteration and a literal English translation: love poems, poems of hope, poems against hypocrisy, and the famous lines Persian speakers quote most.
Who this is for: readers looking for real Hafez poems in English, couples choosing a Hafez love poem for a wedding or card, and Persian learners who want to see the original beside the translation.
Most “Hafiz poems” shared online were never written by Hafez. The real ones are stranger, wittier and more beautiful: short Persian ghazals in which love, wine, roses and dawn always mean more than one thing.
Hafez (Hafiz of Shiraz, c. 1315–1390) left a Divan of about 500 ghazals, 495 in the standard Qazvini–Ghani edition. Below, each poem is given by its opening couplet, the line Persian readers use as its title, with the Persian text from Ganjoor and our own literal translation, so you can see what Hafez actually said.
You’ll find famous Hafez love poems, poems of hope for hard times, his sharpest lines on hypocrisy, poems about seizing the day, and tips for choosing a Hafez poem for a wedding. For his life and work, see our guide to Hafez (Hafiz Shirazi).
Hafez love poems
Love (eshq) is the heart of the Divan. Hafez’s beloved is beautiful, distant and sometimes cruel, and may be a person, a patron or God: the poems are written so that all three readings work at once.
1. “May your beauty be the sun of every eye” (ghazal 104)
جمالت آفتابِ هر نظر باد
ز خوبی رویِ خوبت خوب‌تر بادJamalat aftab-e har nazar bad / ze khubi ruy-e khubat khubtar bad
“May your beauty be the sun of every eye;
may your fair face grow fairer still.”
A blessing in the form of a love poem. Its short, warm lines make it one of the easiest Hafez ghazals to read aloud, and a natural choice for a wedding or anniversary card.
2. “Longing for the beautiful has been my religion” (ghazal 52)
روزْگاری‌ست که سودایِ بُتان، دینِ من است
غَمِ این کار، نِشاطِ دِلِ غَمْگینِ من استRuzegari-st ke sowda-ye botan din-e man ast / gham-e in kar neshat-e del-e ghamgin-e man ast
“For a long time now, longing for the beautiful ones has been my religion;
the sorrow of it is the joy of my sorrowing heart.”
Hafez turns the language of faith into the language of love. The second line holds his favorite paradox: the sorrow of loving is itself a joy.
3. “Welcome, messenger, give me the Friend’s message” (ghazal 62)
مرحبا ای پیکِ مشتاقان بده پیغامِ دوست
تا کُنم جان از سرِ رغبت فدای نامِ دوستMarhaba ey peyk-e moshtaqan, bedeh peygham-e dust / ta konam jan az sar-e reghbat feda-ye nam-e dust
“Welcome, messenger of those who long: give me the Friend’s message,
so that I may gladly give my life for the Friend’s name.”
Dust, “the Friend”, is one of Hafez’s names for the beloved, earthly or divine. The whole ghazal ends each couplet with dust, a radif that keeps the beloved’s name in every line.
4. “Come back, and be my soul’s companion” (ghazal 272)
باز آی و دلِ تنگِ مرا مونس جان باش
وین سوخته را مَحرَمِ اسرارِ نهان باشBaz ay o del-e tang-e mara munes-e jan bash / v-in sukhte ra mahram-e asrar-e nahan bash
“Come back, and be the soul’s companion to my heavy heart,
and to this burnt one be the keeper of hidden secrets.”
A poem of longing for reunion. Sukhte, “the burnt one”, is the lover consumed by love, a classic image in Persian poetry.
5. “Love appeared and set the world on fire” (ghazal 152)
در ازل پرتوِ حُسنت ز تجلی دَم زد
عشق پیدا شد و آتش به همه عالم زدDar azal partow-e hosnat ze tajalli dam zad / eshq peyda shod o atash be hame alam zad
“In the beginning before time, the ray of your beauty shone forth;
love appeared and set the whole world on fire.”
The most mystical of these love poems: creation itself begins with beauty that wants to be seen, and love is the fire that follows.
Hafez poems of hope and consolation
Hafez is the poet Iranians turn to in hard times. These ghazals promise that grief ends, that what is lost returns, and that patience is rewarded.
6. “Lost Joseph will return to Canaan” (ghazal 255)
یوسفِ گم‌گشته بازآید به کنعان، غم مخور
کلبهٔ احزان شَوَد روزی گلستان، غم مخورYusof-e gomgashte baz ayad be Kan’an, gham makhor / kolbe-ye ahzan shavad ruzi golestan, gham makhor
“Lost Joseph will come back to Canaan; do not grieve.
The house of sorrows will one day become a rose garden; do not grieve.”
Every couplet ends with gham makhor, “do not grieve”. It is one of the most loved consolation poems in Persian and a favorite answer in a Fal-e Hafez.
7. “The morning breeze brought me news” (ghazal 147)
بریدِ بادِ صبا دوشم آگهی آورد
که روزِ محنت و غم رو به کوتهی آوردBarid-e bad-e saba dusham agahi avard / ke ruz-e mehnat o gham ru be kutahi avard
“Last night the courier of the morning breeze brought me news
that the day of hardship and grief is drawing to its end.”
The bad-e saba, the morning breeze, is Hafez’s messenger. Here it brings the best news of all: the days of hardship are getting shorter.
Hafez poems against hypocrisy
Hafez’s sharpest target is the hypocrite: the ascetic, preacher or judge who parades his piety. Wine, in these poems, stands for honesty and joy against empty show.
8. “No scent of good comes from hypocritical piety” (ghazal 230)
اگر به بادهٔ مُشکین دلم کشد، شاید
که بویِ خیر ز زهدِ ریا نمی‌آیدAgar be bade-ye moshkin delam keshad, shayad / ke bu-ye kheyr ze zohd-e riya nemiayad
“If my heart is drawn to musk-scented wine, that is fitting,
for no scent of good comes from hypocritical piety.”
Zohd-e riya, “hypocritical asceticism”, is the phrase to remember. Hafez prefers an honest sinner to a dishonest saint.
9. “Hair tousled, smiling and drunk” (ghazal 26)
زلف‌آشفته و خِوی‌کرده و خندان‌لب و مست
پیرهن‌چاک و غزل‌خوان و صُراحی در دستZolf-ashofte o khey-karde o khandan-lab o mast / pirhan-chak o ghazal-khan o sorahi dar dast
“Hair tousled, beaded with sweat, smiling and drunk,
shirt torn, singing ghazals, a flask in hand.”
One of the most vivid openings in the Divan: the beloved bursts in late at night, flask in hand, and the poet’s careful repentance collapses. It is playful, sensual and, for Sufi readers, a picture of divine grace arriving unannounced.
Hafez poems about time and seizing the day
Life is short and the world unreliable, so Hafez tells us to enjoy beauty and friendship while we can.
10. “The palace of hope stands on weak foundations” (ghazal 37)
بیا که قصرِ اَمَل سخت سست‌بنیادست
بیار باده که بنیادِ عمر بر بادستBia ke qasr-e amal sakht sost-bonyad-ast / biyar bade ke bonyad-e omr bar bad-ast
“Come, for the palace of hope stands on very weak foundations;
bring wine, for the foundation of life is built on the wind.”
A wordplay worth noticing: bonyad (foundation) and bad (wind) echo across both lines, so the sound itself feels unstable.
11. “Be less proud, for many like you have bloomed” (ghazal 81)
صبحدم مرغ چمن با گل نوخاسته گفت
ناز کم کن که در این باغ بسی چون تو شکفتSobhdam morgh-e chaman ba gol-e nowkhaste goft / naz kam kon ke dar in bagh basi chon to shekoft
“At dawn the meadow bird said to the newly opened rose:
be less proud, for many like you have bloomed in this garden.”
The nightingale and the rose are the classic lovers of Persian poetry. Here the bird gently warns the rose that beauty is not unique and does not last.
The most famous Hafez couplets
These are among the lines Persian speakers quote most often, and the best place to start if you want to recognize Hafez in conversation.
12. “The Shirazi Turk” (ghazal 3)
اگر آن تُرکِ شیرازی به دست آرَد دلِ ما را
به خال هِندویَش بَخشَم سَمَرقند و بُخارا راAgar an Tork-e Shirazi be dast arad del-e ma ra / be khal-e hendu-yash bakhsham Samarqand o Bokhara ra
“If that Shirazi Turk would take my heart in hand,
for the dark mole on that face I would give away Samarkand and Bukhara.”
Often described as the best-known Hafez poem in the English-speaking world: William Jones published a version of it in 1771. A legend says Timur challenged Hafez over this very line; scholars treat the story as fiction.
13. “My heart is slipping from my hands” (ghazal 5)
دل می‌رود ز دستم صاحب‌دلان خدا را
دردا که راز پنهان خواهد شد آشکاراDel miravad ze dastam, saheb-delan, khoda ra / darda ke raz-e penhan khahad shod ashkara
“My heart is slipping from my hands; you who have hearts, for God’s sake help!
Alas, the hidden secret is about to be revealed.”
Saheb-delan, “you who have hearts”, are the people of feeling and insight. The poet begs them for help before his secret love becomes public.
14. “I am the servant of love, and free of both worlds” (ghazal 317)
فاش می‌گویم و از گفتهٔ خود دلشادَم
بندهٔ عشقم و از هر دو جهان آزادمFash miguyam o az gofte-ye khod delshadam / bande-ye eshqam o az har do jahan azadam
“I say it openly, and I am glad of what I say:
I am the servant of love, and free of both worlds.”
Perhaps the clearest statement of Hafez’s creed. “Both worlds” are this world and the next; love needs neither reward.
Choosing a Hafez poem for a wedding or card
The best Hafez poems for a wedding are blessings and declarations of love: ghazal 104 (“May your beauty be the sun of every eye”) and ghazal 317 (“I am the servant of love”) are both short, joyful and easy to read aloud. A few tips:
- Use the real text. Print the Persian couplet with a translation, so guests who read Persian see the original. Avoid popular “Hafiz” lines that cannot be found in the Divan.
- Keep it to one couplet. A single bayt is a complete thought in Hafez. On a card or invitation, one couplet reads better than a whole ghazal.
- Read it twice. At a ceremony, have one person read the Persian and another the English. The sound of the Persian matters as much as the meaning.
- Check the source. Note the ghazal number (in the Qazvini–Ghani edition) so anyone can find the full poem later.
- Choose by mood. For a wedding, choose blessing and celebration; for a sympathy card, choose a consolation poem like ghazal 255.
If you want a Hafez poem for every day of the year, our Through the Year with Hafiz gives you one short poem a day in Persian and English, ready to copy into a card or read with your morning tea. For the complete poems, the Persian–English Divan-i Hafiz holds every ghazal with a full English translation.
Why these translations look different from popular “Hafiz” quotes
Our translations stay close to the Persian, so they are less smooth than poetry written in English. Many popular lines credited to “Hafiz”, including those from Daniel Ladinsky’s books, are modern poems inspired by Hafez rather than translations. See which Hafiz quotes are real to check a line, and the Divan of Hafez and its translations for complete English versions.
Frequently asked questions about Hafez poems
What are the most famous Hafez poems?
Among the most famous Hafez poems are the opening ghazal of the Divan, "Ala ya ayyoha-s-saqi", the "Shirazi Turk" ghazal (ghazal 3), and the consolation ghazal "Lost Joseph will return to Canaan" (ghazal 255). Persian speakers also quote "I am the servant of love, and free of both worlds" from ghazal 317.
What is a good Hafez love poem?
A good Hafez love poem to start with is ghazal 104, "May your beauty be the sun of every eye", a short blessing that reads well aloud. Ghazal 317, "I am the servant of love", and ghazal 272, "Come back, and be my soul's companion", are also widely loved. Each works as a single couplet on a card or invitation.
Where can I read Hafez poems in English?
You can read Hafez poems in English in a complete translation of the Divan, such as H. Wilberforce Clarke's (1891) or Peter Avery's Collected Lyrics (2007), or in a selection such as Dick Davis's Faces of Love. A bilingual edition, which sets the Persian beside the English, is best if you want to see the original.
How many poems did Hafez write?
Hafez left about 500 ghazals, collected in his Divan: the standard Qazvini–Ghani edition has 495. The Divan also includes a small number of other poems, such as odes and poems in couplets. Every ghazal is a complete poem of roughly 7 to 13 couplets.
Are Hafez poems the same as Hafiz quotes online?
Often they are not. Many popular "Hafiz quotes" online come from modern books inspired by Hafez, especially Daniel Ladinsky's, and cannot be found in the Persian Divan. Real Hafez poems can be traced to a numbered ghazal, so ask for the ghazal number before you quote a line.
📚 More from Persian Bell
🎯 Recommended Book
Through the Year with Hafiz – 365 Daily Hafez Poems, Persian & English — $10.00
Category: Hafez, All Books
A short poem of Hafez for every day of the year, in Persian with an English translation.
Key takeaways
- Real Hafez poems are ghazals from his Divan, and each can be traced to a numbered ghazal.
- His love poems work on several levels at once: human, royal and divine.
- Ghazal 255 (“do not grieve”) is the classic poem of hope; ghazal 104 is a lovely wedding blessing.
- Many popular “Hafiz” quotes online are modern poems, not translations.
The best way to love Hafez is to read him a little at a time, with the Persian beside you. Start with one of the poems above today, and for a poem every morning, try Through the Year with Hafiz.
