Thursday, November 30, 2006

"Don't complain of affliction"


Don't complain of affliction,
for it's a smooth-paced horse
carrying you toward nonexistence.

^ ^

Bas ze dard aknun shekâyat bar ma-dâr
kust su-ye nist aspi râhvâr

--Mathnawi, VI:1474
Rumi: Jewels of Remembrance
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
Threshold Books, 1996
Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra

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"Don't go back to sleep!"


Today, Sunlight offers three presentations of Quatrain 0091:

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

The early breeze before dawn
is the keeper of secrets.
Don't go back to sleep!
It is time for prayer, it is time to ask for
what you really need.
Don't go back to sleep!
The door of the One who created the world
is always open.
Don't go back to sleep.

-- Translation by Azima Melita Kolin
and Maryam Mafi
"Rumi: Hidden Music"
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 2001

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.
Don't go back to sleep.
You must ask for what you really want.
Don't go back to sleep.
People are going back and forth across the doorsill
where the two worlds touch.
The door is round and open.
Don't go back to sleep.

-- Version by Coleman Barks
"Open Secret"
Threshold Books, 1984

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The morning breeze has secrets to tell you,
Don't sleep.
It's a time of inquiry and prayer,
Don't sleep.

O people of the world,
From this moment to eternity,
That unlocked door is open,
Don't go to sleep.

-- Version by Jonathan Star
"A Garden Beyond Paradise:
The Mystical Poetry of Rumi"
Bantam Books, 1992

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Tuesday, November 28, 2006

"We created the Human Being in the best proportion"


Read in Surat al-Tin the words,
We created the Human Being in the best proportion,*
for the spirit is a precious pearl.
That spirit created in the best proportion
is beyond the range of thought.
If I declare the value of this inaccessible pearl,
both I and the hearer will be consumed.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Ahsan al-taqwîm* dar Wa-al-tîn be-khvân
keh gerâmi gawharast ay dust jân
Ahsan al-taqwîm az `Arsh-e U fozun
ahsan al-taqwîm az fekret berun
Gar be-guyam qimat-e in momtane`
man be-suzam ham be-suzad mostame`

*al-Tin, 4

-- Mathnawi VI: 1005-1007
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
"Rumi: Jewels of Remembrance"
Threshold Books, 1996
(Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra)

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Monday, November 27, 2006

A Great Rose Tree


A Great Rose Tree

This is the day and the year
of the rose. The whole garden

is opening with laughter. Iris
whispering to cypress. The rose

is the joy of meeting someone.
The rose is a world imagination

cannot imagine. A meessenger from
the orchard where the soul lives.

A small seed that points to a great
rose tree! Hold its hand and walk

like a child. A rose is what grows
from the work the prophets do.

Full moon, new moon. Accept the
invitation spring extends, four

birds flying toward a master. A rose
is all these, and the silence that

closes and sits in the shade, a bud.

-- Ghazal (Ode) 1348
Version by Coleman Barks, with Nevit Ergin
"The Glance"
Viking-Penguin, 1999

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Friday, November 24, 2006

"There is really no difference in these two loves"


Here, Sunlight offers three presentations of the verses from
the Mathnawi, Book V, lines 2020-2043, first in a poetic version
from Coleman Barks, and then in literal translations from William
Chittick and Reynold Nicholson:

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

The Sunrise Ruby

In the early morning hour,
just before dawn, lover and beloved wake
and take a drink of water.

She ask, "Do you love me or yourself more?
Really, tell the absolute truth."

He says, "There's nothing left of me.
I'm like a ruby held up to the sunrise.
Is it still a stone, or a world
made of redness? It has no resistance
to sunlight."

This is how Hallaj said, I am God,
and told the truth!

The ruby and the sunrise are one.
Be courageous and discipline yourself.

Completely become hearing and ear,
and wear this sun-ruby as an earring.

Work. Keep digging your well.
Don't think about getting off from work.
Water is there somewhere.

Submit to a daily practice.
Your loyalty to that
is a ring on the door.

Keep knocking, and the joy inside
will eventually open a window
and look out to see who's there.

-- Version by Coleman Barks
"The Essential Rumi"
Castle Books, 1997

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

One morning a beloved said to her lover to test him,
"Oh so-and-so,
I wonder, do you love me more, or yourself?
Tell the truth, oh man of sorrows!"
He replied, "I have been so annihilated within
thee that I am full of thee from head to foot.
Nothing is left of my own existence but the
name. In my existence, oh sweet one, there is naught
but thee.
I have been annihilated like vinegar in an ocean
of honey."
In the same way, a stone transformed into a
flawless ruby has become full of the attributes of the
sun.
The description of that stone does not remain
within it – full of the sun's description, front and back.
Should it love itself, then that will be love for
the sun, oh youth!
Should it love the sun to the bottom of its soul,
without doubt it will be in love with itself.

-- Translation by William C. Chittick
"The Sufi Path of Love- The Spiritual Teachings of Rumi"
State University of New York Press, Albany, 1983

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

At the hour of the morning-drink a beloved said to her lover
by way of trial, "O such-and-such son of such-and-such,
I wonder, do you love me or yourself more? Tell the truth,
O man of sorrows."
He replied, "I have become so naughted in thee that I am
full of thee from head to foot.
Of my existence there is nothing (left) in me but the name:
in my being there is naught but thee, O thou whose wishes are
gratified.
By that means I have become thus naughted, like vinegar, in
thee (who are) an ocean of honey."
As the stone that is entirely turned into pure ruby: it is filled
with the qualities of the sun.
That stony nature does not remain in it: back and front, it is
filled with sunniness.
Afterwards, if it love itself, that (self-love) is love of the sun,
O youth;
And if it love the sun with (all) its soul, `tis undoubtedly love
of itself.
Whether the pure ruby loves itself or whether it loves the sun,
There is really no difference in these two loves: both sides
(aspects) are naught but the radiance of the sunrise.
Until it (the stone) has become a ruby, it is an enemy to itself,
because it is not a single "I": two "I's" are there;
For the stone is dark and blind to the day (-light): the dark is
essentially opposed to light.
(If) it love itself, it is an infidel, because it offers intense
resistance to the supreme Sun.
Therefore `tis not fitting that the stone should say "I," (for)
it is wholly darkness and in (the state of) death.
A Pharaoh said, "I am God" and was laid low; a Mansur
(Hallaj) said, "I am God" and was saved.
The former "I" is followed by God's curse and the latter
"I" by God's mercy, O loving man;
For that one (Pharaoh) was a black stone, this one (Hallaj) a
cornelian; that one was an enemy to the Light, and this one
passionately enamoured (of it).
This "I," O presumptuous meddler, was "He" (God) in the inmost
consciousness, through oneness with the Light, not
through (belief in) the doctrine of incarnation.
Strive that thy stony nature may be diminished, so that thy
stone may become resplendent with the qualities of the ruby.
Show fortitude in (enduring) self-mortification and affliction;
continually behold everlasting life in dying to self.
(Then) thy stoniness will become less at every moment, the
nature of the ruby will be strengthened in thee.
The qualities of (self-) existence will depart from thy body,
the qualities of intoxication (ecstasy) will increase in thy head
(thy spiritual centre).
Become entirely hearing, like an ear, in order that thou mayst
gain an ear-ring of ruby.*

-- Translation by Reynold A. Nicholson
"The Mathnawi of Jalalu'ddin Rumi"
Published and Distributed by
The Trustees of The "E.J.W. Gibb Memorial

* Literally, "an ear-ring (consisting) of a ruby ring."

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Thursday, November 23, 2006

"Thanksgiving is sweeter than the bounty itself"


Here, Sunlight offers an excerpt from the Mathnawi, Book III,
Verses 2895, et seq., in a version by the Helminskis (thought to be
derived from Nicholson), a Persian transliteration, and a translation
by Nicholson:

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

Giving thanks for abundance
is sweeter than the abundance itself.
Should one who is absorbed with the Generous One
be distracted by the gift?
Thankfulness is the soul of beneficence;
abundance is but the husk, for thankfulness brings you to the place
where the Beloved lives.
Abundance yields heedlessness; thankfulness, alertness:
hunt for bounty with the snare of gratitude to the King.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Shokr-e ne`mat khvoshtar az ne`mat bovad
shokr-e Bâreh kay su-ye ne`mat ravad
Shokr jân-e ne`mat va ne`mat chu-pust
zânke shokr ârad torâ tâ ku-ye Dust
Ne`mat ârad ghaflat va shokr entebâh
sayd-e ne`mat kon be-dâm-e shokr-e Shâh

-- Mathnawi III: 2895-2897
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
"Rumi: Jewels of Remembrance"
Threshold Books, 1996
(Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanksgiving for the bounty is sweeter than the bounty
(itself): how should he that is addicted to thanksgiving go towards
(direct his attention to) the bounty?
Thanksgiving is the soul of the bounty, and the bounty is as a
husk because thanksgiving brings you to the abode of the Beloved.
Bounty produces heedlessness, and thanksgiving alertness:
hunt after bounty with the snare of thanksgiving to the King.
The bounty of thanksgiving will make you contented and princely so
that you will bestow a hundred bounties on the poor.
You will eat your fill of the viands and dessert of God, so that
hunger and begging will depart from you.

-- Mathnawi III: 2895-2899
Translation and Commentary by Reynold A. Nicholson
"The Mathnawi of Jalalu'ddin Rumi"
Published and Distributed by
The Trustees of The "E.J.W. Gibb Memorial"

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Wednesday, November 22, 2006

"If you are a man of this life"


if you are a man of this life
then march on this path like a man
or retire and take refuge in your house
since you're not ready for this battle

real men drank a thousand seas and
still died of thirst
you only had a cup
yet boasted of overflowing

you claimed to reach your quest
you'll raise all the dust
yet you've travelled no distance
you've left no mark

now humbly turn to dust
under the gallop of real men
then you'll rise and
become a part of their journey

if you crawl for years
on the path of your quest
do not yield to grief
do not submit to distress

-- Ode (Ghazal) 3277
Translated by Nader Khalili
Rumi: Fountain of Fire
Cal-Earth Press, 1994

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Tuesday, November 21, 2006

"Delusion is a divine curse"


Delusion is a divine curse
that makes someone envious, conceited, malicious,
so that he doesn't know the evil he does
will strike him back.
If he could see his nothingness
and his deadly, festering wound,
pain would arise from looking within,
and that pain would save him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

La`nat in bâshad keh kazhbinesh konad
hâsed o khvod-bin o por kinesh konad
Tâ na-dânad keh har ânke kard bod
`âqebat bâz âyad va bar vay zanad
Jomleh-ye farzin band-hâ binad be-`aks
mât be-rui gardad o naqsân o kas
Zânke u gar hich binad khvish-râ
mohlek o nasur besinad rish-râ
Dard khizad zin chonin didan darun
dard u-râ az hejâb ârad berun

-- Mathnawi II:2513-2517
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
"Rumi: Daylight"
Threshold Books, 1994
Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra

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Monday, November 20, 2006

The Servant Who Loved His Prayers


THE SERVANT WHO LOVED HIS PRAYERS

At dawn a certain rich man
wanted to go to the steambaths,
He woke his servant, Sunqur,
"Ho! Get moving! Get the basin
and the towels and the clay for washing
and let's go to the baths."

Sunquer immediately collected what was needed,
and they set out side by side along the road.

As they passed the mosque, the call to prayer sounded.
Sunqur loved his five times prayer.
"Please, master,
rest on this bench for a while that I may recite sura 98,
which begins,
'You who treat your slave with kindness.' "

The master sat on the bench outside while Sunqur went in.
When prayers were over, and the priest and all the worshipers
had left, still Sunqur remained inside. The master waited
and waited. Finally he yelled into the mosque,
"Sunqur,
why don't you come out?"
"I can't. This clever one
won't let me. Have a little more patience.
I hear you out there."
Seven times the master waited,
and then shouted. Sunqur's reply was always the same,
"Not yet. He won't let me come out yet."
"But there's no one
in there but you. Everyone else has left.
Who makes you sit so long?"

"The one who keeps me in here is the one
who keeps you out there.
The same who will not let you in will not let me out."

The ocean will not allow its fish out of itself.
Nor does it let land animals in
where the subtle and delicate fish move.

The land creatures lumber along on the ground.
No cleverness can change this. There's only one
opener for the lock of these matters.

Forget your figuring. Forget your self. Listen to your Friend.
When you become totally obedient to that one,
you'll be free.

-- Mathnawi III: 3055-76
Version by Coleman Barks
"The Essential Rumi"
HarperSanFrancisco, 1995

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Friday, November 17, 2006

"Come with us"


If you never searched for truth
come with us
and you will become a seeker.
If you were never a musician
come with us
and you will find your voice.
You may posses immense wealth
come with us
and you will become love's beggar.
You may think yourself a master
come with us
and love will turn you into a slave.
If you've lost your spirit,
come with us
take off your silk coverings,
put on our rough cloak
and we will bring you back to life.

-- Ghazal (Ode) 74
Rumi: Hidden Music
Translated by Azima Melita Kolin
and Maryam Mafi
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 2001

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Wednesday, November 15, 2006

"Lay me next to the Beloved"


Today, Sunlight offers two interpretations of Quatrain 64:

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

When I die, lay out the corpse.
You may want to kiss my lips,
just beginning to decay. Don't be frightened
if I open my eyes.

-- Version by Coleman Barks
Open Secret
Threshold Books, 1984

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If I die, lay me next to the Beloved.

If He looks at me, don't be surprised.
If He kisses me on the lips, don't be surprised.
If I open my eyes and smile, don't be surprised.

-- Version by Jonathan Star
"A Garden Beyond Paradise:
The Mystical Poetry of Rumi"
Bantam Books, 1992

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Tuesday, November 14, 2006

"Seek out the source"


Sunlight fell upon the wall;
the wall received a borrowed splendor.
Why set your heart on a piece of earth,
O simple one? Seek out the source
which shines forever.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Partaw-e khurshid bar divâr tâft
tâbesh `âriyati divâr yâft
Bar kolukhi del cheh bandi ay salim
watlob asli keh tâbad u moqim

--Mathnawi II: 708-709
Rumi: Jewels of Remembrance
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
Threshold Books, 1996
Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra

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Monday, November 13, 2006

Solomon Ant


Solomon Ant

This feverish desiring does not calm
down, because God doesn't want it to.

Wishes and wantings come from there.
When my shirt is wet, blame the sea!

We soul-fish swim among the fishing
lines of what we want, unable to imagine

the beauty of the fisherpeople jiggling
the hooks! God was here before the

universe. What desire brought us into
being? I do not know. It's enough that

we go straight for what and who we are
drawn to. No. There's no crooked or

straight with this, though we persist in
judging actions and their source: bad,

bad, good, good. Think of an ant
that wants to fly. Wonderful! He digs at

the palace wall. He claims to be Solomon.
He demands a crown. This is how we are.

We are not what we're wanting, and yet
somewhat the longings are not apart from

us. Shams, will you untie this knot?

-- Ghazal (Ode) 2240
Version by Coleman Barks, with Nevit Ergin
"The Glance"
Viking-Penguin, 1999

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Saturday, November 11, 2006

"That lillies may grow"


Today, Sunlight offers Ghazal 1486, in a version by Barks, a
translation by Kolin and Mafi, and a translation by Arberry,
accompanied by a link to a Persian image:

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

"The Shape of My Tongue"

This mirror inside me shows . . .
I can't say what, but I can't not know!

I run from body. I run from spirit.
I do not belong anywhere.

I'm not alive!
You smell the decay?

You talk about my craziness.
Listen rather to the honed-blade sanity I say.

This gourd head on top of a dervish robe,
do I look like someone you know?

This dipper gourd full of liquid,
upsidedown and not spilling a drop!

Or if it spills, it drops into God
and rounds into pearls.

I form a cloud over that ocean
and gather spillings.

When Shams is here,
I rain.

After a day or two, lilies sprout,
the shape of my tongue.

-- Version by Coleman Barks
"The Essential Rumi"
HarperSanFrancisco, 1995

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

My soul is a mirror that reveals secrets,
I may not speak about them but
cannot deny knowing.
I run away from body and soul
where I belong, I swear, I do not know.
Seeker, if you want to know the secret,
first you must die to your self.
You may see me but do not think I am here
I have vanished into my Beloved
graced by the essence of love.
My arched back is the bow and my words,
the unbending arrows aimed at Truth.
My tears are testimony of my devotion to Shams
and from those tears white lilies will grow
that will speak the Truth.

-- Translation by Azima Melita Kolin
and Maryam Mafi
"Rumi: Hidden Music"
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 2001

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Like a mirror my soul displays secrets; I am not able to speak;
but I am unable not to know.
I have become a fugitive from the body, fearful as to the
spirit; I swear I know not -- I belong neither to this nor to that.
Seeker, to catch a scent is the condition of dying; look not
upon me as living, for I am not so.
Look not on my crookedness, but behold this straight word;
my talk is an arrow, and I am as a bow.
This gourdlike head on top of me, and this dervish habit of my
body -- whom am I like, whom am I like in this market of the
world?
Then this gourd on my head, full of liquor -- I keep it upside
down, yet I do not let a drop trickle from it.
And even if I do not let trickle, do you behold the power of God,
that in exchange for that drop I gather pearls from the ea.
My eyes like a cloud gather pearls from that sea; this cloud of
my spirit rises to the heaven of fidelity.
I rain in the presence of Shams al-Haqq-i Tabriz, that lillies
may grow in the form of my tongue.

-- Translation by A. J. Arberry
"Mystical Poems of Rumi 1"
The University of Chicago Press, 1968

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"As you sow, so shall you reap"


Beware Don't say, "Mind you, so and so sowed seed,
and then the locusts devoured it;
why should I bother sowing with such a risk?
Why should I let go of this corn-seed in my hand?"
Meanwhile, to your bewilderment,
one who did sow and labor
fills his barn with grain.
Since the lover patiently continued knocking at the door,
at last one day he gained an intimate meeting.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Hin ma-gu "Kinke folâni kesht kard
dar folân sâli malakh kestesh be-khvord
Pas cherâ kâram keh injâ khawf hast
man cherâ afshânam in gandom ze dast"
Vânke u na-gozâsht kesht o kâr-râ
por konad kuri-ye to anbâr-râ
Chon dari mi kuft u az salvati
`âqebat dar yâft ruzi khalvati


-- Mathnawi III: 4800-4803
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
"Rumi: Jewels of Remembrance"
Threshold Books, 1996
(Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra)

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God and the World


From Professor Chittick's "The Sufi Path of Love," Chapter 5,
entitled "God and the World," come these Mathnawi verses:

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

"The Sufi said to the judge, "He whose aid is
sought has the ability to to make our trading without loss.
He who turns fire into trees and rosegardens
can also make this world a place without harm.
He who produces roses from the midst of thorns
can make our December into spring.
He from whom every cypress grows straight and
free can turn our grief into joy.
He from whom every nonexistent thing has
come into existence--how would He be any less if He made
that thing everlasting?
He who gives the body a spirit so that it may
live--how would He lose if He did not cause it to die?
After all, what would happen if that Generous
One gave each servant his soul's desire without toil,
And kept far from His weak creatures the wiles
of the ego and the temptations of the devil waiting in
ambush?"
The judge replied, "If there were no bitter
commands, beauty and ugliness, stones and pearls,
If there were no satan and ego, and self-will,
and if there were no blows, battle and war,
Then by what means would the King call His
servants, oh abandoned man?
How could He say, 'Oh patient man! Oh
forbearing man!'? How could He say, 'Oh brave man! Oh wise
man!'?
How could there be the patient, the sincere and
the spending without a highwayman and accursed
devil?
Rustam, Hamzah and a catamite would all be
one.* Knowledge and wisdom would be useless and abolished.
Knowledge and wisdom exist to distinguish the
right from the wrong: if everything were the right way, then
wisdom would be useless.
Do you consider it permissible to destroy both
worlds for the sake of keeping open the shop of your
worthless natural disposition?
Of course, I know that you are pure, not unripe,
and that your question is for the sake of the vulgar."

-- Mathnawi VI: 1739-55
Translation by William C. Chittick
"The Sufi Path of Love: The Spiritual Teachings of Rumi"
SUNY Press, Albany, 1983

*Rustam is the archetypal heroic champion of ancient Persia,
immortalized by Firdawsi in the Book of Kings ("Shahnameh"). Hamzah
is an uncle of the Prophet, and one of the great warriors of early
Islam.

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Tuesday, November 07, 2006

"From this deliberation"

God brought the earth and the heavenly spheres into existence
through the deliberation of six days—
even though He was able through "Be, and it is"*
to bring forth a hundred earths and heavens.
Little by little until forty years of age
that Sovereign raises the human being to completion,
although in a single moment He was able
to send fifty flying up from nonexistence.
Jesus by means of one prayer could make the dead spring to life:
is the Creator of Jesus unable
to suddenly bring full-grown human beings
fold by fold into existence?
This deliberation is for the purpose of teaching you
that you must seek God slowly, without any break.
A little stream which moves continually
doesn't become tainted or foul.
From this deliberation are born felicity and joy:
this deliberation is the egg;
good fortune is the bird that comes forth.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Bâ ta'anni gasht mawjud az Khodâ
tâ be-shesh ruz in zamin o charkh-hâ
Var nah qâder bovad ku "kun fa-yakûn"*
sad zamin o charkh âvordi berun
dami-râ andak andak ân Homâm
tâ chehel sâlesh konad mard-e tamâm
Garcheh qâder bovad k-andar yek nafs
az `adam parân konad panjâh kas
`Isâ qâder bud ku az yek do`â
bi tavaqqof bar-jahânad mordeh-râ
Khâleq-e `Isâ be-na-tavânad keh U
bi tavaqqof mardom ârad tu be-tu
In ta'anni az pay-e ta`lim-e tost
keh talab âhesteh bâyad bi sokost
Ju yeki kuchek keh dâyem mi ravad
nah najs gardad nah gandeh mi shavad
Zin ta'anni zâyad eqbâl o sorur
in ta'anni bayzeh dawlat chon toyur

*Yâ Sin, 82

-- Mathnawi III: 3500-3508
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
"Rumi: Jewels of Remembrance"
Threshold Books, 1996
(Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra)

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Monday, November 06, 2006

The story of the snake catcher and the frozen snake


THE SNAKE CATCHER AND THE FROZEN SNAKE

Listen to this, and hear the mystery inside:
A snakecatcher went into the mountains to find a snake.

He wanted a friendly pet, and one that would amaze
audiences, but he was looking for a reptile, something
that has no knowledge of friendship.
It was winter.
In the deep snow he saw a frighteningly huge dead snake.
He was afraid to touch it, but he did.
In fact he dragged the thing into Baghdad,
hoping people would pay to see it.
This is how foolish
we've become! A human being is a huge mountain range!
Snakes are fascinated by us ! Yet we sell ourselves
to look at a dead snake.
We are like beautiful satin
used to patch burlap. "Come and see the dragon I killed,
and hear the adventures!" That's what he announced,
and a large crowd came,
but the dragon was not dead
just dormant! He set up his show at a crossroads.
The ring of gawking people got thicker, everybody
on tiptoe, men and women, noble and peasant, all
packed together unconscious of their differences.
It was like the Resurrection!

He began to unwind the thick ropes and remove
the cloth coverings he'd wrapped it so well in.

Some little movement.
The hot Iraqi sun had woken
the terrible life. The people nearest started screaming.
Panic! The dragon tore easily and hungrily
loose, killing many instantly.
The snake catcher stood there,
frozen. "What have I brought out of the mountains?" The snake
braced against a post and crushed the man and consumed him.

The snake is your animal soul. When you bring it
into the hot air of your wanting-energy, warmed
by that and by the prospect of power and wealth,
it does massive damage.
Leave it in the snow mountains.
Don't expect to oppose it with quietness
and sweetness and wishing.
The nafs don't respond to those,
and they can't be killed. It takes a Moses to deal
with such a beast, to lead it back, and make it lie down
in the snow. But there was no Moses then,
Hundreds of thousands died.

-- Mathnawi III, 976 - 1067 (Excerpts)
Version by Coleman Barks, with John Moyne
"The Essential Rumi"
HarperSan Francisco, 1994.

The media:
http://tinyurl.com/yyvxwf





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Friday, November 03, 2006

"Do you have a heart of stone?"


Today, Sunlight offers two presentations of Quatrain 925,
accompanied by a link to mixed media offerings, courtesy of our dear
friend Panevis, in Tehran, whom Sunlight thanks:

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

Every day my heart cries out.
Every night it turns to stone.

The story of my love
is written in blood all over my face.
I asked by Beloved to read it.
He asks me to ignore it.

-- Version by Jonathan Star
"Rumi - In the Arms of the Beloved "
Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam, New York 1997

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

With every word, you break my heart
You see my story
written in blood on my face,
why do you ignore it,
do you have a heart of stone?

-- Translation by Azima Melita Kolin
and Maryam Mafi
"Rumi: Hidden Music"
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 2001

The media:
http://shorl.com/gibrugrafasyvy





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Thursday, November 02, 2006

"Lose your wisdom"


If you wish your misery to end,
seek also to lose your wisdom—
the wisdom born of human illusion,
that which lacks the light
of God's overflowing grace.
The wisdom of this world increases doubt;
the wisdom of Faith releases you into the sky.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Gar to khvâhi ki sheqâvat kam shavad
jahd kon tâ az to hekmat kam shavad
Hekmati kaz tab` zâyad az khayâl
hekmati bi fayz-e nur-e Zu al-Jalâl
Hekmat-e donyâ fazâyad zann o shakk
hekmat-e dini parad fawq-e falak

-- Mathnawi, II: 3200-3203
Rumi: Daylight
Threshold Books, 1994
Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra

The media:
http://shorl.com/fanebrytapyfry





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Wednesday, November 01, 2006

"The blows of suffering"


There is an animal called the porcupine that becomes large and fat if
you beat it with a stick.
The more you beat it, the more it thrives, growing fat on the blows
of the stick.
The believer's spirit is in truth a porcupine, for the blows of
suffering make it large and fat,
That is why the suffering and tribulation inflicted upon the prophets
is greater than that inflicted upon the world's creatures.

-- Mathnawi IV: 97-100
Translation by William C. Chittick
"The Sufi Path of Love"
SUNY Press, Albany, 1983

The media:
http://shorl.com/humabiteprade





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