Rumi in the World: December 2021
/Rumi’s teachings invite us to an inward journey. This journey takes us from the path of duality to the path of Unity. Body, mind and soul unify only when we pay attention to the world within us. In this section, from our Monthly Newsletter, we relate Rumi and his wisdoms to the world around us — whether this means current events, culture, philosophies, and much more. We examine how his wisdoms can be used to navigate our every day and to help us understand different aspects of life…
“Rumi consistently conveys this idea that destruction, on some level, is necessary for coming close to the Divine. In order to make wine, a consistent symbol of the substance that brings one closer to God, grapes have to be crushed and thus destroyed. Experiencing destruction may be the force that pushes one to find a connection to a higher power, to understand the necessity of ruin. Sometimes, we have to lose something or let go in order to make space for something greater. This is a great practice of faith. When you are not getting what you want, or experience a loss or failure, respond with faith in the idea that something more perfect is getting ready to present itself in your life. When one door closes, another opens.
In this Ghazal, Rumi also creates a beautiful separation between the self, “existence” and his human ignorance. This is a powerful separation to make. While the human experience, as opposed to the divine, is responsible for decisions made in ignorance, there is also a level of consciousness that is pure and loving, the grapes which are destroyed and mature into wine. When ignorance, hate, and impatience, step back into this divine self, the one that is unconditionally loving and understanding, and feel peace arise. ”
