- M.B.B. Shah (1919 – 1972)

To Thy own temple, Lord! I come,
To Thee a-running with my heart,
With peace for hope, to Thy sacred fare,
Running I come to where Thou art.

I could not reach for a holy vessel,
For Thy ablution as I did arise.
I have brought a heart, like the holy river,
A flowing, lord! In my brimming eyes.

I could not get not flower, nor joss,
Nor light for holy consecration.
With empty hands, in the plate of my heart
I bring the flower they call Devotion.

No rich thing for a present could I get,
So Thy won wealth, my own life, this,
Still left with me, I offered as I met
Thee, for my present and my bliss!


Translated by: Laxmi Prasad Devkota