Sunday, January 29, 2023

Jalāl al-Dīn Rūmī ~ The Land of Absence

 

 The wandering mind came yesterday and knocked on my door.
“Who’s there?” I asked. “Open the door, and come on in.”

“How can I come in?” he answered.
“Your house is on fire.
Absence burns everything with his fire.”

“Don’t worry, “ I said to him. “Be brave, come in. He cleans you of your self, and when he chooses you, it’s all over. You’re finished.”

There’s a universe called Absence.
Its waves break on the shore of existence.
Jump right into that wave,
and if anyone asks, just say you’re a Sufi.
A Sufi doesn’t give a thought to his past.

You’ll see your candle light up all the other candles, and its light will mix with the light of all the great luminaries.

The wave of that sea carries you
to just such a place in the land of Absence.

There it breaks the ties of your soul from everything you’re attached to.

Only in the land of Absence
can you discover your Absolute Being.
You’ll become the king at the harem of Absence. Everyone will follow you there.

Existence itself won’t be able to look at you because the light of your greatness would blind its eyes.