The Jesus of Your Spirit

"The one on whose face the Beloved smiles sweetly, what harm can befall him from the sour looks of other people?
The one on whose eye, the Beloved bestows a kiss, how should she grieve at Heaven and its anger?
If your eye sees the Light of God, what is there to grieve about?
The Jesus of your spirit is present with you: beg aid from him, for he is a goodly aider.
Seek not from your Jesus the life of the body. ask not from Moses the wish of the Pharoaoh.
Burden not your heart with the thoughts of livelihood; livelihood will not fail; be constantly in attendance at the Divine Court.
What sort of eye is it that has  no sight, and gets nothing but disgrace from the tests to which it is put?
Opinions are sometimes erroneous, but what sort of opinion is blind to the right road?
O eye, that laments for others, sit down for a while and weep for yourself.
Wheresoever people are lamenting, you should sit there and cry, for you have a better right to moan.
Inasmuch as they are concerned with parting from that which passes away, and are forgetful of the ruby of everlastingness, that belongs to the mine of Reality.
Inasmuch as the stamp of blind imitation is a  lock upon the heart--go, scrape it off  and dissolve its lock with tears. "

Rumi (Vol. 2  from 414-483)

Commentary: Who knew that heaven could be angry? Who knew we were quite this lost, or  blind, or  confused? Sometimes Rumi dries our tears.. other times he tells us that we haven't cried enough..or that we're crying about all the wrong things. It appears that the "salt-mine" we have to work at, is  the  "mine of Reality".  It is here, today, in this snowstorm, in this slushy ice and rain, that we're supposed to be looking for rubies. Good hunting to us all!