Love looked easy at first. Then the hard part came.

What it means

The first line of Hafez's Divan admits what every lover learns. Love begins as delight and turns into a road with real difficulty. Stay on it anyway; the hard part is where love grows up.

The source

"Love looked easy at first. Then the hard part came." Hafez said it in Divan, Ghazal 1. Translated from the original Persian by Spartan Surfers.

"که عشق آسان نمود اوّل ولی افتاد مشکلها"

Original Persian, Divan, Ghazal 1. Text read at fa.wikisource.org.

Who said it

Hafez (c. 1315–1390). Poet of Shiraz whose Divan of ghazals is still opened at random in Iran to seek an omen.

Questions

What does "Love looked easy at first. Then the hard part came." mean?

The first line of Hafez's Divan admits what every lover learns. Love begins as delight and turns into a road with real difficulty. Stay on it anyway; the hard part is where love grows up.

Who said "Love looked easy at first. Then the hard part came."?

Hafez (c. 1315–1390). Source: Divan, Ghazal 1.

What is the original Persian?

که عشق آسان نمود اوّل ولی افتاد مشکلها. Translated from the original Persian by Spartan Surfers.

Is "Love looked easy at first. Then the hard part came." on a shirt?

Yes. We print it to order on our tees in 7 illustrated looks, from $44, with free US shipping.

"Love looked easy at first. Then the hard part came." (Hafez, Divan, Ghazal 1, translated by Spartan Surfers). https://spartansurfers.com/quotes/love-looked-easy-at-first-then-the-hard