Rumi: A Mystic You Should Know

The wound is the place where light enters you.

This simple yet profound quote is by Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi or simply, Rumi. A Sufi¹ mystic, Islamic scholar and poet from the 13th century. He spent most of his life in the city of Konya of modern day Turkey.  A Millenia after his death, his poetry verses continue to inspire people-be it academics, artists or lay people. His works still top book bestsellers list, and he is even recognized as the most read poet in the United States today. 

A portrait of Rumi by Hossein Behzad.

His poetry which covers humanity, divinity, and love endured the passage of time proving that there's much for us to learn from his teachings. I will continue to spread his acclaim by sharing a brief of his teachings, in the hopes that more people to know his message. 

His enigma lies in the beauty of his preaches; poetic verses inspired by universal spirituality. And in order for us to know his creeds, we must first know his deeds. Let's get to  know him first through the life he lived.

Muslim Scholar Turned Mystic

Rumi was born in 1207 in the village of Wakhsh in Tajikistan. His father was an Islamic preacher and jurist. From a young age, Rumi has been surrounded by the practices and teachings of the Quran. This made him adept at understanding it, and soon, garnered enough esteem for teaching it. 

During his early years, Rumi and his family travelled all over the middle east. Mainly, to escape the invading Mongol Empire. They travelled westward, passing places like Baghdad², Damascus³, and even made their pilgrimage to Mecca⁴. At some point Rumi's family arrived and eventually settled in Konya, Turkey .

At age 25, he became a spiritual leader himself, taking over the position after his father's death. He gained prominence as a Muslim scholar and jurist. He was revered by his fellow Muslims for his being adept at Muslim law and doctrine.

A turning point in his life would come in a fateful meeting with a man named Shams-e-Tabrizi, a Muslim ascetic and mystic. Accounts has it that Shams, living a lone spiritual life, longed to have a companion to have dialogues with. This longing ended when he met Rumi.

Their dialogues together about religion and spirituality consumed most of their time. They spent days engaging in discussions and reveling into the nature of existence. Rumi and Shams found respect and friendship from each other. Not only were they bonding intellectually, they were also forging connections emotionally, as both students of the divinity that can be made known only through practicing universal spirituality, or their in own terms, the religion of love.

Rumi, consumed with his time with Shams, was losing attention to his responsibilities as a preacher. This did not bode well with his followers and roused the resentment of their community.

One day, Rumi found Sham's room empty. He would not see him again since. It was believed that Shams was murdered by Rumi's followers. The loss of his friend would profoundly affect Rumi. His outburst of spiritual works in the forthcoming years would have its foundation in their discourses. Rumi wrote in verses and odes in remembrance not only of Shams, but of the divine nature of reality that is the subject of their fascination and mutual wonder. 

Rumi's Mystical Teachings

I belong to no religion. My religion is love. Every heart is my temple.

Rumi professed to the so-called Religion of Love. A term coming from Rumi's spiritual realization that love permeates reality. It can be learned from Rumi's works that this higher form of love brings oneness; it does not divide. This love includes all; it does not make distinctions. It embraces everything-it is a love that transcends the distinction between right doing and wrong doing⁵.

Be certain that in the religion of love there are no believers and unbelievers. Love embraces all.

As to put into words what Rumi literally means when talking about love, he has a counter-intuitive explanation. It is because this love he is pointing out is something that is better known through experience rather than explanation. He writes:

However we seek to explain love, when we fall in love, our words fall short. Explanation by the tongue makes most things clear, but love unexplained is clearer.

His most important works are the Masnavi: a collection of poetry and anecdotes inspired by the Quran and Divan I-Shams: a poetry collection in honor of Shams. These two books holds the majority of Rumi's enlightening verses covering variety of topics concerning the human condition. Here's Rumi on death:

I died to the mineral state and became a plant, I died to the vegetal state and reached animality, I died to the animal state and became a man, then what should I fear? I have never become less from dying.

On daily living, his verses also evokes inspiration. It can be deduced that for him, even the mundane is also part of reality's wholeness; it is not to be separated from the influence of love-for they, too, are love's manifestations:

The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in. Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.

In realizing our talents and potentials, he shares:

Everyone has been made for some particular work, and the desire for that work has been put in every heart.

As Rumi maintains that universal love includes everything, it is paramount that each person is also an incarnation of it-In fact, Rumi's teachings hints us to realize this for ourselves. 

These next verses has sublime messages so I encourage everyone to read intentionally; read between the lines. They give hints on the divinity that Rumi spent his life and works alluding to.

What you seek is seeking you.

A candle doesn't lose any of its light by lighting up another candle. 

Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you love. It will not lead you astray. 

Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames.  

There is a voice that doesn't use words. Listen. Silence is the language of the soul; if someone can understand you, without you having to utter words, they understand your soul. 

* * * 

The wisdom of Rumi is a testament that wisdom knows no country or culture. His verses are timeless aphorisms echoing throughout the ages; spreading understanding, passion, and the hope that we will achieve our own realization of the often hidden divinity that has been in front of us all along. 

This book, an anthology of Rumi's great verses, as translated by Coleman Barks, a retired literature professor at university of Georgia, proves to be an excellent introduction to Rumi's teachings. If you're interested, you can get a copy here.

Like how we started, it would be fitting to end this post with another beautiful quote from Rumi. This one, I'll leave for you to ponder for yourself. Rumi writes:

You have no idea how hard I've looked for a gift to bring you. Nothing seemed right. What's the point of bringing gold to the goldmine, or water to the ocean. Everything I came up with was like taking spices to the orient. It's no good giving my heart and soul because you already have these. So, I've brought you a mirror. Look at yourself and remember me. 

Like Rumi, I wish you nothing but peace, wisdom, truth, and love in your journey throughout life.

Notes:

1. A Muslim belonging to the Mystic Body of Sufism. They posit that God can be made known through direct experience rather than intellectualization.

2. The capital city of Iraq.

3. The capital city of Syria.

4. Muslims visit Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the center of Islam faith once in their lifetime. This pilgrimage is also called Hajj.

5. From one of Rumi's quote: "Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and right doing, there is a field. I'll meet you there."

References:

Articles

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumi

https://www.womansday.com/life/g42381236/rumi-quotes/

https://www.elephantjournal.com/2016/12/the-rumi-poem-we-should-all-read/

https://leverageedu.com/blog/rumi-quotes/

https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/guest-house/

https://artofsaudade.com/2021/12/15/rumi-and-shams-a-love-story/

Videos:

Einzelganger: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1B_DvM68nA

TRT world: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pWbPeLUlxw

Iman Moeinian: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GChcnOvKvyA

Shahryar Rumi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRe_erhmVlM

Life goes on in Iran: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeKJhmaFVts