life is worth...

Three passions have governed my life:

The longings for love,

the search for knowledge,

And unbearable pity for the suffering of [humankind].

Love brings ecstasy and relieves loneliness.
In the union of love I have seen
In a mystic miniature the prefiguring vision
Of the heavens that have been told in the Quran.

With equal passion I have sought knowledge.
I have wished to understand the hearts of [people].
I have wished to know why the stars shine.

Love and knowledge led upwards to the heavens,
But always pity brought me back to earth;
Cries of pain reverberated in my heart
Of children in famine, of victims tortured
And of old people left helpless.
I long to alleviate the evil, but I cannot,
And I too suffer.

Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you,

they're supposed to help you discover who you are.
Be not afraid of life.

Nothing in life is to be feared,

Believe that life is worth living,

and your belief will help create the fact,

It is only to be understood.

The good life is inspired by love

and guided by knowledge.

This has been my life; I found it worth living.