The Seeds of Devotion
With every breath
I plant the seeds of devotion –
I am a farmer of the heart.
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
♥♥♥
With every breath
I plant the seeds of devotion –
I am a farmer of the heart.
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
♥♥♥
Whatever pearl you seek,
look for the pearl within the pearl!
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
All day I think about it, then at night I say it.
Where did I come from, and what am I supposed to be doing?
I have no idea.
My soul is from elsewhere, I’m sure of that,
and I intend to end up there.
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
…then bring me there.
You are an ocean in a drop of dew,
all the universes in a thin sack of blood.What are these pleasures then,
these joys, these worlds
that you keep reaching for,
hoping they will make you more alive?
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
A reminder for myself.
Look at love
how it tangles
with the one fallen in loveLook at spirit
how it fuses with earth
giving it new lifeWhy are you so busy
with this or that or good or bad
Pay attention to how things blendWhy talk about all
the known and the unknown
See how the unknown merges into the knownWhy think separately
of this life and the next
when one is born from the lastLook at your heart and tongue
one feels but deaf and dumb
the other speaks in words and signsLook at water and fire
earth and wind
enemies and friends all at onceThe wolf and the lamb
the lion and the deer
far away yet togetherLook at the unity of this
spring and winter
manifested in the equinoxYou too must mingle my friends
since the earth and the sky
are mingled just for you and meBe like sugarcane
sweet yet silent
Don’t get mixed up with bitter wordsMy beloved grows
right out of my own heart
How much more union can there be?
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
Innalillahi wa innailaihi rojiun.
I was very shocked to find out that my uncle (I usually call him papa) has passed away today. I still can’t believe that it happened to him. He had an accident on his journey to Madinah. The bus driver suffered from sleep deprivation and hit a truck. Everyone, except him, was fine and only suffered from minor injuries. It was as if Allah SWT deliberately wanted to take him away…
His death is a great loss to our extended family. We can no longer hear his laugh that can be heard all over the house. His "goooooooollllll" scream when he watches a football match. His encouraging words. His jokes…. Oh, I feel like it was only yesterday that we had this interesting discussion about politics in Egypt. I still can’t believe this.
I’m greatly worried about my aunt and my four cousins, especially the two youngest ones. Ya Allah, give them the strength and the patience to go through this difficult time…
O Seeker,
These thoughts have such power over you.
From nothing you become sad.
From nothing you become happy.
You are burning in a flame
But I will not let you out
Until you are fully baked
Fully wise, and fully yourself
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
There is no point of letting out. I have to deal it with my own 🙂
There is a way between voice and presence
where information flows.
In disciplined silence it opens.
With wandering talk it closes.
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
Stop talking and listen.
We are the mirror as well as the face in it.
We are tasting the taste this minute of eternity.
We are pain and what cures pain, both.
We are the sweet cold water and the jar that pours.
I want to hold you close like a lute so we can cry out with loving.
You would rather throw stones at a mirror?
I am your mirror, and here are the stones.
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
Love has pierced with its arrow
The heart of every lover.
Blood flows but the wound is invisible.
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
Everything you see has its roots in the unseen world.
The forms may change, yet the essence remains the same.
Every wonderful sight will vanish, every sweet word will fade,
But do not be disheartened,
The Source they come from is eternal, growing,
Branching out, giving new life and new joy.
Why do you weep?
The Source is within you
And this whole world is springing up from it
— Jalal ad-Din Rumi
The thing I love about Rumi’s poems is the different interpretation and meaning that can be made on each of them.
This is one of the many examples. My first glance of this poem was this: it talks about the world we live in now (which is temporary and is therefore will vanish) and the afterlife, which is the eternal and unseen world.
After reading it over and over again, I can also say that the poem is a simple reminder that joy is not always there. It will vanish and fade into different forms that we may not like. Sorrow is unavoidable. But we shouldn’t be weeping for the vanishing joy, because it will eventually come again, giving new life and joy.
The third interpretation may well be about the death of a person. Each of us comes from one eternal Source, i.e. Allah SWT. Knowing that He is within us (i.e. we spend our time to be devoted to Him), we shouldn’t be weeping about someone’s death right? Because whoever dies will come back to the one and only Source.
Perhaps you have another interpretation? I’d love to know! 🙂