Thoughts: Awake, awake, awake….with Rumi
Writings: Rumi’s “The Guest House”
The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honourably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.
Be grateful for whatever comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
–Jelaluddin Rumi,
translation by Coleman Barks
Thoughts: Looking for the searing truth…
Those doing soul work,
who want the searing truth more than solace or applause,
know each other right away.
Those who want something else
turn and take a seat in another room.
Soul-makers find each other’s company.
Rumi
Thoughts: A little note from Rumi…
Your face is a beautiful sunny day;
More beautiful than the brightness of the day.
Brighter than the day.
Wine is good, but the cupbearer
Is better than the wine.
Every hidden thing opens today.
The heart reaches endless wishes.
Like a falcon catching a pigeon.
Every lover gets his deserved
Blessing from the Beloved.
Everyone who is thirsty
Sits by the side of Kevser.
Every moment, the Beloved offers
A new glass and says,
“Today our assembly is open,
Give this to the lovers.”
It is such a thin glass that
It appears as if the wine has become the glass.
Rumi
Thoughts: Rumi, with both sides, now
Try not to resist the changes that come your way.
Instead let life live through you.
And do not worry that your life is turning upside down.
How do you know that the side you are used to is better than the one to come?
Rumi
Poetry: So, I give you my life….Rumi
Someday our souls will be one and
our union will be forever.
I know that everything I give you comes back to me.
So I give you my life , hoping that you will come back to me.
Rumi
Thoughts: Us & the ocean & us again
We were fish swimming in the ocean,
unaware of the water and ourselves.
The ocean wanted to be recognized,
so it threw us up on dry land.
We flip after this, we flop after that,
pursuing an ever more elusive happiness.
Is the ocean tormenting us?
Rumi
About Brother Ian
Over the centuries, Brother Ian has been collecting stories & information & discourses for the purpose of elevating the human condition as needed, dissecting it when necessary, and building the case for hope.
In the spirit of noting that organized crime, organized baseball, organized labour, and organized religion tend to engender controversy & occasional discord, I promise to be neither organized or critical of those who are.