4 Ordibehesht 1405
Quatrain 30 of 75
“What, without asking, hither hurried Whence?
And, without asking, Whither hurried hence!
Another and another Cup to drown
The Memory of this Impertinence!”
Reflection · Spring 1405
Spring is the most impertinent season — everything bursting into existence without asking permission, the blossoms announcing themselves without consultation, the birds singing into the pre-dawn dark with total disregard for whether anyone wanted them to. Khayyam recognizes his own condition in this: hurried hither without asking. The cup to drown the memory of this impertinence is, in spring, not a need but a celebration. The impertinence is delightful.
Being thrust unbidden into a spring morning, without consent — this turns out to be, on balance, magnificent. The cup is raised in mock-protest and genuine gratitude. Another and another cup — spring is the season of another and another. More blossom, more fragrance, more wine, more of the whole miraculous impertinence of existence.