" To slay this enemy (the selfish mind) is not the work of reason and intelligence. ...this self is a dragon that is not diminished by oceans of water.. It would drink up the seven seas, and still the blazing consumer of all creatures would not become less. Stones, and stony-hearted infidels enter it, miserable and shame faced. But still, it is not appeased by all this food, until there comes to it from God, this call--- "Are you filled? Are you filled?" It says, "not yet! lo, Here is the fire, here is the glow, here is the burning.!" It made a mouthful of, and swallowed the whole world, its belly crying out loud, "Is there any more?"
God , from the realm where place is not, sets His foot on it (the selfish mind), then, it subsides at the command, "Be. And it was."
Rumi (Vol 1: 1374-1381)
Commentary: What are we shopping for? Professional success" A personality upgrade? Cooler toys? A satisfied mind? Rumi reminds us of just how hungry this selfish desire of ours is, and that it will never find what will satisfy it; even if it "swallows the whole world". Only God has the power to subdue, contain and ultimately vanquish this starving part of us. We go to God, as beggars, asking for help and forgiveness. And we go shopping. Right now, I'm leaving for the Worcester Crafts Fair... Maybe I'll find all my Christmas gifts??? What I won't find is what I really want. It is not for sale at any price.
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The Mathnawi, Jalalu'ddin Rumi's master work, is a 1200 page poem. Having studied it in an intensive tutorial with a Persian scholar, Dev Prakash in 1979, I am now rereading it 30 years later,using the Reynold Nicholson translation. My hope is that you will find these short selections speaking to your soul, as they do to mine.
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