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Jalaluddin Rumi
and Other Sufi Poets |
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by Prabhas Kejariwal |
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Jalaluddin Rumi lived in Konya, Turkey from 1207 to 1273 CE. Rumi served his community as a religious scholar until a wandering dervish named Shams al-Din of Tabriz came into town. Shams put a theological question to Rumi that caused Rumi to faint dead away. When Rumi regained consciousness, his spiritual life had been transformed. For a year or two, Shams and Rumi were constant companions. Within three years of their meeting, Shams disappears.
It has been rumored that some of Rumi's students may have arranged to have Shams killed because Rumi was neglecting them, but nothing is known for certain. Around this time Rumi leaves off preaching to the general public and devotes the remaining twenty-six years of his life to training his Sufi initiates and writing divinely inspired poetry. In the passage below, Rumi speaks of his transformation: Passion for that Beloved took me away from erudition and reciting the Koran until I became as insane and obsessed as I am. I had followed the way of the prayer carpet and the mosque with all sincerity and effort. I wore the marks of asceticism to increase my good works. Love came into the mosque and said, "Oh great teacher! Rend the shackles of existence! Why are you tied to prayer carpets? Let not your heart tremble before the blows of My sword! Do you want to travel from knowledge to vision? Then lay down your head! If you are a profligate and a scoundrel, do justice to troublemaking! If you are beautiful and fair, why do you remain behind the veil? (a poem by Hafiz, 1320 c.e to 1389) I have learned so much from God (A poem by Ibn El-Arabi circa 1202 c.e.) My heart is capable of every form: (verses from Omar Khayyam's Rubaiyat, born 1048 c.e.) If I myself upon a looser Creed Would you that spangle of Existence spend The Grape that can with Logic absolute (Rumi wrote): I have seen the Noble King with a face of Glory: (someone in ICQ asked me: Will the Universe ever end?) (I answered): Now explain this to me...about the world ending like by earthquakes, floods..what ya think about that of course,... you are now speaking about this particular planet Earth. Certainly, it is theoretically possible that an asteroid impact, or some other natural event, might totally destroy this particular planet Earth, but if there are innumerable Universes with innumerable planets containing intelligent life, it is no more significant than the recent deaths by earthquake in Turkey. Each of us must die at some time. Life (as we know it, is not possible without Death). Conversely, Death as we know it, is not possible without Life. Destruction is not possible without Creation. Conversely, Creation is not possible without Destruction. If you read and meditate upon the ideas about black holes, and an infinitude of universes, coming into being, and passing away, you will come to the realization that YOU yourself, your MIND, your CONSCIOUSNESS, is a part of all this, not different, and you will pass beyond birth and death. Have no doubt, that just as your spiritually ripe questions appear on this page, they also echo through those infinite universes, those countless worlds, through the hearts of those myriad's of sentient beings. That is why you are beyond birth and death. It is the very nature of Consciousness itself. You must come to understand Rupert Sheldrake and the concept of Morphic Resonance. |
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30-Sep-1999 | ||
More by : Prabhas Kejariwal | ||
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