I knocked at the Beloved's door

A new translation of ode 436 by Maryam Daftari and Ali Arsanjani as a gift for the New Year 2010:

He asked who is at the door?

It is I, your humblest servant

He asked What are you here for?

I said, only to bid you "good health"

He asked, how long will you continue?

until you summon me, I said

He asked, how long will you be fervent?

I said, until the Day of Judgement

I made a case for my love

And I swore many a time

From love I repulsed your

dominion and your courage

He said, to make a case,

the judge needs a witness

My tears are my witness

And the paleness of my face

He said, your witness is unsuitable

Your eye's skirt; it is still wet

I submit to the magnificence of Your justice

The witness is just; without recompense

He asked who was your companion

I said, only thoughts of you, my King

He asked, who summoned you here?

I said, the fragrance of your soul

He asked, what are you determined to do?

I said, loyalty and companionship

He asked, what do want of me?

I said, your all encompassing grace

He asked, where is the merrier place?

I said, the king’s palace

He asked, what did you see there?

a hundred miracles, I replied

He asked, why, then, is it empty?

for fear of plundering, I replied

Who is the plunderer? he asked

This sense of remorse, I replied

He asked, where, then, is safety?

In forbearance and self-restraint, I said.

He asked, what is self-restraint?

the path of wholesomeness, I said.

He asked where is this malady?

I said, winding on the road of your love

When you are there, how will you be?, he asked

I will be unwavering, said I.

Silence. For if I utter the meaning of His words

You will forfeit yourself, and have no roof or door

Rumi on Love: Part 4:

Love is apparent when there's a malady of heart;
No malady compares to that of the heart.

The malady of the Lover is beyond normal cause;
Love is the Navigator, through the mysteries of God.

Even if your love, shifts from this to that,
To that True love it will finally lead!

However hard, I strive, to describe,
elusive love;
When I come to it, I am still filled with shame.

Even if my words bring clarity,
Yet clearer indeed, is Speechless Love!

Hastening, in its path of writing, the Pen,
It broke in two when it came upon love!
[Hastening, the Pen, when in its path,
it came upon Love, it split in two!]

A stallion, thrashing in quicksand,
the Intellect in vain seeks to describe:

[for] the story of lovers and their love
             can only be told through love itself!

The dawn and the faint crescent

The faint glimmer of light yawns upon the world, asleep, dormant
the moon gazes down upon the light and smiles
smiling, takes its own shape
"how welcome the light, but only if it shines on me and through me", it thinks.
My light does not come from me but from the Sun,
I reflect the powerful light of the Sun
So in the grand presence of the Sun, I bow
and recede into the background....

Creation from that Faint Wisp of a Thought

"To nadani bahre andishe kojast"

You know not where the ocean of thought resides...

In the distance, like a crescent,

it approaches:

Nothingness.

Coming into being

but from the form of a thought,

Nearly Nothingness,

the thoughts flowing through our mind

riding on a thought, behold -- a world

From a single thought;

their peace and their war

and from a thought,

their honor and disgrace

Those thoughts

the traps of

those close to the Divine

reflect the pictures

of those beauties,

moon-like,

of the garden of God

Manavi - Book I, Verse 70-76

The Ocean of Divine Mercy starts to Flow

During his storytelling, Rumi has the welcome habit of providing you with additional insight using what we would in modern times, possibly call a sidebar: a small divergence from the main story to explain a principle that is to be encountered now within the story.

This insight is very helpful in understanding some of the profound concepts on which he is giving us practical guidance.

In the King and the Maiden, when the King reverts to deep and desperate prayer to save his beloved from sickness that none of his renowned physicians have been able to cure. He hastens to prostrate and pray, to sing praises of divine gratitude and glory, to beseech the Lord for guidance and relief; he gets a response when "the ocean of self is drowned in the Self" as Rumi puts it aptly; "then the ocean of mercy starts to flow".

Falling asleep, he dreams of a physician, divinely sent to guide and to cure his ailing beloved. The next morning he gets up and sees someone faintly visible in the horizon, knowing, as was told to him in his dream that this indeed is sent by the Lord, a potent healer of mind and body.

And then Rumi breaks out in a sidebar.... talking of the faint Idea, the "Khial"; the thought...

The Full Moon

Throughout the ages, the fullness of the Moon has attributed to various elements of the mystical path.

Rumi is born

September 30, 1207 marks one of the significant milestones in the development of human thought. Ruby was born to a family of scholars. He himself was a renowned scholar. When he encountered his master, Shams, he gradually and systematically began to shed the artificial burden of erudite scholars. This was not necessarily a conscious decision on his part. By analyzing his writings we see that this process was an inner transformation that was based grounded in experience. He was not merely the adoption of a worldview, but rather letting go of the ego. This letting go of the ego, is characteristic of many traditions of mystical philosophy. In Taoist traditions this is marked as a wuwei or nonaction, as it is often translated to. It is actually the relinquishing of our bondage to the results of the action we perform. In the Vedic tradition this moksha or liberation occurs when one is no longer bound by the fruits of action as depicted in the Bhagavad-Gita.

Formerly, as well as other great seekers of truth, the direct realization of the divine was not just the ultimate goal put the needs to an even deeper experience of the divine.

The Companion

The Companion or the Friend (Doost, Yar) is another frequently used metaphor for Divine being in Rumi's Poetry. Many of his stories and verses of other Sufi mystics depict the quest for the Companion. There is companionship at multiple levels, frienship at various degrees. Here, not only between the Moon and Mars here, but also, if you look solely within the Moon, it shines by the light of its Companion, The Light bestowing Sun and of course, God "is the Light of the Heavens and of Earth".

The Painter

Rumi sometimes refers to the Divine creator as the Painter who has created the world as a painting of His creation.

Rumi on Love - part 3 - Love makes Mountains Dance

From love
The earthly body can soar through the skies
From love
The mountain springs up and starts to dance

Rumi

Masnavi-B1V25

Rumi on Love: Part 2, Love Heals all Ailments

[23] Khosh bash ey eshgh e khosh sodaye ma

Ey tabibe jomle ellathaye ma

May you

always be joyous ---

my beloved --

the one who benefits us all

my physician --

the one who heals all our ailments

The beloved has a characteristic that benefits all who come in contact or who interact in some way.

The beloved also is the healer of all ailments; such is the power of love.

Thus, strive to keep the beloved joyous!

The Sun appears as testimony to the Light

Aftab amad dalil e aftab

chon dalil amad az vey rooy matab!

The Sun appeared -- to defend the existence of the sun!

Don't turn your face if proof stands before you!

Commentary: If someone doubts an obvious thing, and if there is clear proof, don't try to ignore it.

Rumi on Love: Part 1, The Fire of Love

Rumi speaks of Love within his masterpiece, the spiritual couplets -- the Masnavi Maanavi.

He defines loves, swoons in love and is ecstatic with love; love of the Divine.

In these series I will focus on his verses relating to Love. We'll start with the first book of the Masnavi and move ahead, and let Love guide us through Love's mysteries.

The very first appearance of Love comes in verse 10:

[10]Atashe esgh ast kandar ney fetad

Joosheshe Esgh ast kandar mey fetad

The fire of Love found its way to the flute

What fell in wine, was the churning of Love

Rumi is saying that the melancholy despair of the reedflute is there, because love had

wisped its way into the flute. Love, has fire, that fire has generated the wind that

creates the sound of the flute. That wind arose from Love and its tale of longing,

as the Masnavi starts with the story of the longing of separation of man from the Divine.

Wine, bubbles only because Love accidentally fell into it. The fiery drive of Love causes the drink to bubble and churn. This bubbling enthusiasm, this bubbling bliss as other seers such as Maharishi Mahesh Yogi describes the bliss of pure consciousness, is the bubbling of pure love. Love that is the subject and object. Love that is the Lover, and the Beloved is the love Divine, love of the Divine.

and gos on in verse 13 to remind us that

[13] Ney hadise rahe por khoon mikonad

Ghesehaye eshghe majnoon mikonad

The reedflute tells a story of a path full of tribulations

... stories of those madly in love

The way of love, is a way of tribulations. Literally, Rumi calls it a path full of blood marks along the way. And yet the Lover does not give up: madly in love, they proceed despite tribulations.

Our Actions Are Melodies That Echo Back

This world is a mountain and our actions send forth melodies -- that echo right back to us with the melodies we sent forth! --Rumi, Masnavi
"Eeen jahan koohast o fe'le ma neda; sooye ma ayad nedaha ra seda"

Listen and Heed the Story of the Reed

On my birthday, I hear the faint sound of the reedflute murmuring:

(Masnavi Book 1; verses 1-6)

Listen and heed the Reed-flute’s narration

It’s longing for unison after separation,

Since ‘twas torn from the reedbed to play

A mystical melody day by day

"To one i'll tell this story of mine;

one whose heart is torn of longing

So it can fell the pain of my separation."

Whoever’s been cut from their source

Turns back to seek a way of recourse

Back , O back to the unity whither I came

I was brought into diversity, I have no blame

Commentary on the Lion on the Flag

I am going to comment on this in response to your request for commentary on this poem.

Yours is the melody; we are but the flute

Yours is the the echo; we are but the mountain,

Rumi points to the true Nature of Life, emanating from the Divine.

We think we are in fact instrumental; yet we are but the instrument

out of which comes the melody of the flute; the mountain that serves

to reflect a sound; the sound is truly something, the mountain is passive

and serves again only as an instrument to convey the divine.

In victory and in defeat we are but chess pieces

You of noble virtues, decide our victory or defeat

We often attribute success or failure; victory or defeat to ourselves.

And yet, Rumi, says, we are but pawns on a chess board. And it is

the Divine that decides our victory or defeat. Note that although this may

seem as supporting total pre-destination; other parts of Molana's poetry

indicates that he believed in a delicate combination of Freewill and pre-destination,

or Fate. It is action and reaction: we choose to engage in action, that may be Freewill

but that will have consequences, that is the result of the action, or Fate.

Alone, we are nothing; You are the Self within our self,

As long as we are with Thee, we exist

One of the key themes within Rumi's poetry if the "Self within the self";

"jaan-e jaan", the life within life. This is not figurative but signifies a distinct

experience of an indweller in the body, an inner soul within our soul, within our being

that we can experience. The ability to perceive reality includes witnessing and

experiencing this inner Self. Thus, as long as we hold that experience of the Self within us and nothing overshadows it, we truly are alive.

We are Nothingness; for the source of our Being

Emanates from you, the Absolute Being, mortal-like

We [think we] are Lions, but only Lion[-emblems] on a flag

it is the wind which makes us flutter and feign attack!

Manifest is their attack, yet the wind is hidden,

He who is Unmanifest -- may he never be lost!

Your blessing to us is our breath; our being

You made it all -- All of our Being!

Our breath, our Being is Your blessing;

Our entire Being is created by You!

You allowed Nothingness

to taste the sweetness of Being

and let it fall in love with You!

We are all lions-- but only on a flag

Book One -- Daftar e Avval -- 602 -- We are all lions-- but only on a flag!

Molana tends to erupt in expressions of Divine gratitude from time to time in the midst of this Couplets. I like to combine these in some cases and the resulting compilation is what I have grown to refer to as the Monajat Naam-e of Rumi: Expressions of Divine Gratitude.

Here is a very famous piece which I had the great pleasure and honor of co-translating with the great poet Dr. Maryam Daftari.

Yours is the melody; we are but the flute

Yours is the the echo; we are but the mountain,

In victory and in defeat we are but chess pieces

You of noble virtues, decide our victory or defeat

Alone, we are nothing; You are the Self within our self,

As long as we are with Thee, we exist

We are Nothingness; for the source of our Being

Emanates from you, the Absolute Being, mortal-like

We [think we] are Lions, but only Lion[-emblems] on a flag

it is the wind which makes us flutter and feign attack!

Manifest is their attack, yet the wind is hidden,

He who is Unmanifest -- may he never be lost!

Your blessing to us is our breath; our being

You made it all -- All of our Being!

Our breath, our Being is Your blessing;

Our entire Being is created by You!

You allowed Nothingness

to taste the sweetness of Being

and let it fall in love with You!

Ode 1047 - In this cold, I seek refuge in the sweet Lover

[Even] in this [bitter] rainy cold weather, the beloved is sweeter still; the lover is at my side and I’m in love .

This beauty is at my side and what a beauty! Gentle, kind, supple and fresh!

In this cold, I seek refuge in the Lover, to whom noone to compare has been born

In the snow we kiss those lips, who refreshes our heart

I can’t wait any longer, I am lost; they took me and brought me back again

When the thought of the beloved suddenly appears in the heart, we are blown away- [in awe we say] God is Greater!

Ode 1046 - My Sweet, Never shall I grow weary of you

My sweet, Never, shall I grow weary of you;

I grow weary, only when I don't see you.

I can see that is contentment in our being sad

how will the heartless grow weary of sadness?

What a bloodthirsty and cold one is this heart! that

of tears, my eyes have not grown weary

If you have had it with this world, come,

for noone has grown weary of my world!

As I witness your love inspired consent,

I grow weary of saying "no, nay and not!"

The master of my pains is the angel of resurrection of the worlds;

Coming half from the soul-breath and half from low and high pitches of sound!

When that sweet smell of soulwine hit my brain,

O inner Self, Of worldy power I grew weary

With every moment, as this madness grows,

[know that] those who don’t tire of "more and less" are misers

As soon as I saw the dice and cup, I become Him

And grew weary of the overturned cup

As the Thought of Shams came upon me and

filled with me with love, of my own existence I grew weary!

Ode 1045 : Don't make me wait any longer

Ode 1045 : Saghi be Quick! I can't Wait Any Longer

======================================

For the next round, give me from that other cup of wine

which will sooth my inner self forevermore

Seeing me like this, I swear,

you’ll believe that I just can’t wait anymore

If [you think ] I deserve a grain of your mercy,

don’t make me wait any longer

Set me free, set me free- free!

For I have badly fallen into that other trap

If you close the house door on me now;

I’ll climb to roof and try to get in

Don’t leave me at the mercy of thoughts;

Thoughts are all-consuming, bloodthirsty creatures

Saghi, if you don’t bring another round of raw wine;

These hundred raw ones will continue to annoy me

Even if I already have a loan to bear, quick!

take this mantle and I need another loan!

Ode 1502 -- The Way of Love - Tarigh e Eshgh

I have freed the people from prison;

I have filled with bliss the tender soul of Lovers.

I have torn apart the dragon's jaws;

I have blossomed forth the Way of Love.

I have weaved a world- from only water;

I have filled that water with wind

I have etched images on water;

those that cannot be carved on ivory or wood.

From its joy, these images bubble with life and cannot contain themselves;

they decided to make a pact with themselves.

I have fetched forth from the depths of the well, many a Joseph;

and reminded them of their father's love

Like a Lover I have held the lockes of the Beloved,

if I have chosen to be a lover.

How beautiful the garden I have arranged!

How glorious the city I have founded!

The world knows; until I am King;

fair shares are granted and justice prevails.

The world knows; I am outside of it;

I have manifested so all can bear witness.

Behold the masters whom I have checkmated!

Behold those disciples I have mentored to mastery!

And those lions who have roared against us;

they grow submissive as foxes.

Silence the one who hinders Love!

Suffice for them that I have expounded the Way.

And yet those who were swept by the hands of fate;

going deep as I shouted forth...

So I may save and restore from the depths of the storm,

I who have created Non-existence.

Shams of Tabriz came forth and drew his sword;

from it I harden my tongue into steel.

The Coming of Spring

The Coming of Spring is celebrated in the Persian Tradition as NowRuz, the "New Day". A day of Nature's Awakening. Rumi has several references to "Nowruz", three in his Divane Shams.

But another ode seems even more apporpriate to herald the coming of Spring: Ode 1298 .

Nowruzetan Pirooz!

The Seven Stages

Dr.Daftari  reminded me:

1. talab, seeking
   
2. eshgh, love
   
3. maarefat, knowledge
   
4. esteghnaa, fulfillment
   
5. tohid, unity
   
6. heirat, wonder and awe
   
7. fanaa, oblivion
   

are the seven stages.

The Alchemy of this Moment

Rumi talks about the alchemy, the magic of this moment in book 3, verses 1423 of his Masnavi.
He describes a lover who, when united with the beloved, proceeds to take a out a love letter and starts reading it out to the beloved. The beloved asks if he is a true lover, or does he love the state of loving and his own poetry!

Rumi points out that
Kimiaye Haal bashad daste oo
dast jonbanad shavad mes maste oo

The magic of the moment is at his fingertips
should he but decide to move those fingers, he can even make copper drunk and transform to gold

He is saying that we have far more, indeed perhaps all we need, right at this moment, and to seek another place and time but now is shortsighted and in doing so we don't realize that we are indeed sitting next to the Beloved at this moment, and all the blessings and power that this brings for us.

From Rumi, with Love on Valentine's Day

On the occasion of Valentine's day, I would like to send you my best wishes for you and your family to live in Love and extend it to the whole world family and along with that a poem by Molana :

Molana starts from the very beginning of the Masnavi with the thought of Love. And he relates it to the force that is the force of union that pulls us from where we are now, back to our Source. And this force, is the "fire of Love and the movement or bubbling of Love" (Masnavi line 10, book 1), he says, is really behind the wind in the Ney, the Reed Flute and the bubbling of soulwine, and admonishes all those who do not have this fire, this fire of Love, to acknowledge nonexistence (har ke een atash nadarad nist bad! )

He then goes on to vividly describe in line 22, that Love is the means of cleansing oneself of greed and faults in general, that to demonstrate and take action with the intent and motivation of love is enough to cleanse and purify one's being.

And asks his beloved to be joyous and happy, as the healer of all his ailments, his beloved be happy. For he says, it is the earthly body that can soar in the heavens with the motivation of love; even inanimate, inconceivably heavy and immovable things will move and become nimble, will dance for love; even the mountains will become light and nimble and dance for love.

And then in line 30 he declares once and for all that All is the Beloved and the lover is but a veil, whose existence or ego is the barrier to achieve the Beloved, a veil to see the Beloved be one with the Beloved. That true life is with the Beloved and not being with the Beloved is not to be considered to be life.

A certain rhythm takes us over as we read his poetry, his passionate, yet sober appassionata of Love, one hears the rhythm of the Daf, the frame drum in the far distant background of the mind beating gently but surely to the rhythm he is gushing forth in Love.

Jomle maa'shoogh ast o ashegh parde'i                       

zende maashoog ast o aashegh morde'i (30)

chon nabashad eshgh ra parvaye oo                          

oo cho morghi manad bi par vaye oo (31)

He says in the next verse (32) how can i have any sense of being, how can I know where I am, what is behind me and what is in front of me, when my Companion's Light does not shine behind and in front? 

Man chegoone hoosh daram pisho pas                      

choon nabashad Noor e Yaram pish o pas (32)

Love is needed for these words to be uttered     

if the mirror is not polished, what good is it (33)

Here he mentions the highly important metaphor of the mirror for the first time. And he goes on to say:

Ayenat dani chera ghammaz nist?                      

zanke zangar az rokhash momtaz nist (34) !

Do you know why it is not polished to reflect [what is standing before it] ? Because rust has not been polished from the mirror's face. (34)

The Book of Manners -- Adabname ye Molana

I have been compiling some of Rumi's poems on manners (Adab) and have named this compilation his Adabnameh -- or the Book of Manners.

He starts the dsicourse on good manners and its importance from the very first Book of the Masnavi, with the verse (78, Book 1)

Az Khoda jooeem tofighe adab    biadab mahroommand az lotfe Rab

We seek the privelege of good manners from God   the ill-mannered remains deprived of the Grace of God

Bi adab na tanha khod ra dasht bad     balke atash dar hame afagh zad

Here Rumi is pointing out that ill-manner or bad manners is not just a personal ill; or a personal choice we make; but has an impact of everything -- literally. The analogy is with the law of action and reaction or Karma, as expounded for example, in the Science of Being by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who describes in detail the effects of Karama, good or ill, and its repercussions coming from all sides.

Here Rumi says

The ill-mannered not only brings about ill on himself 

                but sets ablaze a fire in all directions across the horizon

the effects of ill-manners is propagated far and wide. One also recalls the Confusian doctrines of propriety and correct behavior to various levels and conventions within society. Rumi is not imposing restrictions, but merely pointing out the realistic effects of being without manners.

in the next to last line of this section in his "adab nameh" line 91, he says

Az adab por noor gashte ast een falak

vaz adab maasoom o pak amad malak

Manners causes the sky and heavens to be showered with light

and from manners Angels became pure and innocent

And also points out the opposite of this as well, that most of the issues (darkness and sadness) that may befall man are due to his being beligerent, belicose or quarrelsome.

                                 

People are Like RiverWater -- Polish the Mirror

So eventhough if, like iron, your body is dark,

polish it, polish it, polish it well

Until Your heartsoul becomes a mirror full of images

of wealth-carrying beauties coming from every side

Even if iron is  dark and without light,

polishing will remove that darkness

Iron, even if dark and without light –

has darkness removed when polished bright

Iron, when polished, shows its good face

So in it can be seen, many a face

Polish the earthly body -- dark and dense,

Polish -- for it tends to retain [this sense] [its luster]

So that, in it, images from the unmanifest,  arise

images of heavenly beauties and Angels

Know! The Divine has already polished your mind [intellect];

So from it, every day, light can pour into your heart

Without namaz you have closed the door of polishing [your soul],

And have opened up both sides of the door of wanton desire

But if those wanton desires are bound;

You will have uncuffed your ability to polish 

The metal which was in fact the divine mirror of the Unmanifest;

will then manifest all appearances within it

You have darkened, you have rusted, your insides;

This is what is meant by ”propagating corruption on the earth”

So far you have done thus, now cease;

Having muddied the water, do no more – please !

Stir not chaos, so this water can clear;

And behold within the revolving moon and stars

This is why people are like river water;

When the water is clouded, you can’t see into its depths

Yet the riverbed [depths] is jewel filled and pearl-laden;

Beware! Don’t darken it! It’s nature is to be Unperturbed and Free

The life of people is like air [desire?]

It guides you so you take the way of liberation [rescue]

Tadvir e Ghadr - The Circling of Destiny Masnavi 6:916-91

Have you not insight into the Circling of Destiny?
Then the boiling and turning of the elements behold !

For the churning of the sea debris and froth
arises from the sea; seething, magnanimous

Behold the wandering wind in its rage
look how it commands and makes the ocean waves seethe

the sun and the moon as two cows at the mill
circumvent and guide [the milling of flour]

the stars also from house to house do run
as they become the carrier of good fortune and bad fortune

the stars, in constant motion, like a wheel
are yet weak of foundation and lazy

the stars are the eyes, ears and intelligence of ours
behold they are here at night and then suddenly gone with daylight

at times in a benefic sign bringing people together and happy
at times in the malefic sign of separation and senslessness

To the house, To the house! Ode 2345

It’s dark and it’s raining: to the house! To the house!
Calling all of our friends: homewards, homewards!

Like the owls; how much longer this deprivation?
Wandering about the ruins; to the house, to the house!

Calling all bright-hearted friends: make haste
In spite of the sore eyes of all the blind (of heart)
to the house, to the house!

Calling you O wise and vigilant; full of concern
Don’t make us worry; to the house, to the house!

Enough of loveplay with these ogre-like appearances
So-called beauties; to the house, to the house!

You are seeing the grain and not the harvest
Such is the way ants are. To the house, to the house!

Don’t argue: let it go , o good friend
Grazing is for horses! To the house, to the house!

In that house there is dance (sama) and celebration
But only with the pure; so to the house, to the house!

Shams Al-din of Tabriz has built this house
So the "one-eyed" ones can get together;
Thus, to the house, to the house!


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To the house, to the house! I opted for that instead of possible alternatives such as “ homewards, homewards!” or “to home, to home” or “come on in” or “come inside the house” or even the simple and error-prone interpretation of the literal “home, home” or “the house, the house”.
I like and will keep Arberry’s interpretation of “roshan del” to be bright-hearted; (less appealing: heart-aglow or heart-lit)
Rumi contrasts, “rosham –del” with “kooran”. Today, in fact they are considered synonymous; but when he contrasts them he is contrasting the bright-hearted friends who have the inner divine light inside with those that are “blind” inside and do not have this inner light.

Don’t debate, don’t ask why or how…
Play on the word “chera”. Rumi starts with “chum o chera”, most likely pronounced in his time, “chara”, and uses the pun or double meaning of the word “chara” which is also to graze, and jokes with the image of a four-footed animal (

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