Rumi

1. Rumi's Transformation: From Theologian to Love-Intoxicated Mystic

He had been a mufti: he became a poet; He had been an ascetic: he became intoxicated by Love.

A profound shift. Jalalu’l-Din Rumi, born in 1207 in Khorasan, began his life as an eminent theologian and preacher, following in his father's footsteps. His family fled the Mongol hordes, eventually settling in Turkey, where Rumi married and continued his scholarly pursuits. This initial phase of his life was marked by intellectual rigor and adherence to religious law.

The catalyst of Shams-i Tabriz. Rumi's life took a dramatic turn in 1244 with the arrival of the wandering dervish, Shamsu’l-Din of Tabriz. This encounter ignited an intense mystical intimacy, transforming Rumi from a conventional scholar into a passionate, love-intoxicated poet and mystic. His disciples initially resented this all-absorbing devotion, but Rumi's spiritual fervor became unstoppable.

Poetry born of divine love. The disappearance of Shams-i Tabriz plunged Rumi into an overwhelming emotional state, leading him to compose the vast collection of mystical odes known as the Diwan-i Shams-i Tabriz. This period saw him embrace music (sama‘) and dancing, which became characteristic of the Mevlevi Order he founded. His poetry became a direct expression of his profound spiritual experiences and his realization that "the illumined soul drinks only the wine of Light."

2. Love as the Divine Guide: Unlocking the Mysteries of Existence

Love is a malady apart, the sign And astrolabe of mysteries Divine.

Love's unique wisdom. Rumi asserts that love is a distinct malady, incomparable to any other, serving as the "astrolabe of mysteries Divine." It is the sole force capable of revealing profound spiritual truths that reason alone cannot grasp. Reason, when attempting to explain love, "can naught but flounder like ass in mire."

Ascending through love. Whether love manifests in a heavenly or earthly form, it ultimately guides us towards the Divine. It acts as a ladder, allowing the lover to ascend through various stages of beauty to the highest love and knowledge of God. This journey involves separating the divine essence from worldly taints in each soul.

Love's self-declaration. Just as the sun declares itself through its own light, love is its own expounder, requiring no external proof. It is the fundamental force that drives all existence and reveals the hidden unity of all things. Love alone can "kill what seemed so dead, the frozen snake of passion," leading to a knowledge schools have never known.

3. The Soul's Eternal Yearning: A Reed's Song for Reunion with the Divine

Hearken to this Reed forlorn, Breathing, even since ’twas torn From its rushy bed, a strain Of impassioned love and pain.

A universal lament. The opening lines of Rumi's Mathnawi, "The Song of the Reed," serve as a profound keynote for his entire work. The reed, torn from its bed, symbolizes the human soul separated from its divine origin, ceaselessly lamenting its exile and longing for reunion with God. This plaintive music resonates with the spiritual services of the Mevlevi Order.

Memory of pre-existence. The soul, though wrapped in the "slumber of this world," retains an echo of its ancient abode and the "song of angels and of seraphim." This remembered music, heard through spiritual perception, uplifts the soul and feeds it with joy and peace, recalling the time when all human souls responded to the Voice of God in eternity.

The mystic's understanding. Only a soul of its own kind, a mystic, can truly understand the secret of the reed's song. This blessed soul, emptied of self and filled with the Divine spirit, ardently desires deliverance from the world where it feels like a stranger and an exile. Its grief is not a complaint, but a tale of infinite longing for God, a token of His loving-kindness.

4. Divine Unity (Wahdat): The One Light Behind All Forms and Religions

The lamps are different, but the Light is the same: it comes from Beyond.

Beyond plurality. Rumi's core philosophy, Sufi monism or pantheism, posits that there is only One Real Being—God—the ultimate ground of all existence. All diverse forms, religions, and individualities are merely appearances or reflections of this single, undifferentiated Divine Essence. To fix one's gaze on the lamp (form) leads to being lost in "number and plurality."

The elephant in the dark. Rumi illustrates this with the parable of the elephant in a dark shed, where blind men perceive it differently based on which part they touch. Each describes the elephant as a water-pipe, a fan, a pillar, or a throne. Had they "held a lighted candle," they would have seen the whole truth and found no contradiction. This signifies that intellectual groping in the dark leads to diverse, seemingly contradictory religious doctrines.

Transcending dualism. True understanding comes from fixing one's gaze upon the Light itself, not its varied manifestations. This delivers one from the dualism inherent in the finite body and mind. The disagreement between Moslem, Zoroastrian, and Jew "depends on the standpoint," for all are ultimately seeking the One True Light, though their paths and perceptions differ.

5. The Journey of Self-Annihilation: Dying to Self to Live in God

I died as mineral and became a plant, I died as plant and rose to animal, I died as animal and I was Man. Why should I fear? When was I less by dying?

Spiritual evolution. Rumi describes a continuous process of spiritual evolution, where the soul progresses through various stages of existence. From mineral to plant, then to animal, and finally to Man, each "death" is not an end but a transformation into a higher state of being. This journey culminates in transcending even human and angelic forms to become "what no mind e’er conceived."

The Prophet's teaching. This concept is rooted in the Prophet's saying, "Die before ye die," which Sufis interpret as "dying to self" (fana). This mystical death involves abandoning egoism and all desires except Allah, leading to a state of "non-existence" where the individual self is submerged in the Divine. It is a death that leads to "life everlasting."

Beyond personality. When the individual self passes away, it becomes "dust under His horse’s feet," yet this is not annihilation but a transformation. The essence of the creature survives, but its attributes are extinguished in God's Attributes, like a candle flame vanishing in the sun's presence. This "unitive state" means that while the personality may seem to disappear, it is actually deified and lives through the Divine Life and Energy.

6. The Perfect Man: A Mirror Reflecting God's Attributes and Guiding Humanity

The Saint, then, is the living Imam, who appears in every age, whether he be a descendant of ‘Umar or of ‘Ali.

God's viceregent. In every epoch, a Saint, or "Perfect Man" (Qutb), arises as the viceregent of Mohammed, acting as a spiritual guide for humanity. These saints are "God-guided" (Mahdi) and "hidden" in plain sight, recognized by few. They are the "authentic image and manifestation of God," through whom the Divine attributes are mirrored and the purpose of creation is fulfilled.

The source of spiritual light. The Saint is likened to the "Light of the Prophet," with Universal Reason as his Gabriel. Lesser saints receive illumination from him, like lamps from a central light source. He is the "Heart of the world," managing its spiritual affairs, and without his mediation, humanity would not be spiritually fed.

A living touchstone. The Saint serves as a touchstone, discriminating truth from falsehood. Our attitude towards these holy figures reveals our true character. To serve the Saint, to satisfy his needs, is to benefit oneself, for "If ye help God, ye will be helped." He is the "six-faced mirror" through whom God looks on all directions.

7. Inner Vision: Perceiving Reality Beyond the Veil of Senses

The signs,” he answered, “I behold within; Without is naught but symbols of the Signs.”

Beyond outward forms. Rumi emphasizes that true perception lies within, not in the external world. When asked why he didn't behold the "Signs of God the Merciful displayed around thee," a Sufi replied that he beheld the signs within, for "Without is naught but symbols of the Signs." All worldly beauty is but a reflection of the eternal Orchard abiding in the hearts of Perfect Men.

The limitations of the senses. The "worldly sense is the ladder to this world; the religious sense is the ladder to Heaven." Our ordinary senses, imagination, and understanding are like a child's toy reed-cane; they cannot bear us aloft to spiritual heights. True knowledge is not a burden but an upliftment, freeing us from selfish ends.

Immediate knowledge. Mystical perception transcends the five bodily senses, which are merely derived from one root. When the spiritual senses are transmuted, they become clairvoyant, perceiving the unseen directly, "without words and without conveying either literal or metaphorical meanings." This "intuitive certainty" comes from burning in the fire of divine love, not from mere words or intellectual speculation.

8. The Relativity of Evil: All Things Serve a Harmonious Divine Purpose

There is no absolute evil in the world: evil is relative. Recognize this fact.

No absolute evil. Rumi teaches that evil is not absolute but relative, serving a purpose within the grand divine plan. What appears as a "fetter" to one may be a "foot" to another; a "poison" to one, "sweet and wholesome as sugar" to another. Snake venom is life to the snake, but death to man, illustrating the contextual nature of good and evil.

Divine artistry. God, as the "Complete Artist," paints both beautiful and ugly forms, like the loveliest women and Iblis with his hideous crew. Both are master-works, created for good ends, to display His perfect wisdom and confound sceptics. If God could not create evil, He would lack skill, thus He fashions both infidel and Moslem to bear witness to Him.

The necessary foil. Privation and defect act as mirrors, making the beauty of all that is manifest. Without darkness, light would not be known; without evil, good would not be seen. Even falsehood serves a purpose, for "Falsehood were nothing unless truth were there, To make it specious." All variety of action, even those seemingly evil, arises from divine phantasies within, ultimately serving to reveal the One.

9. God's Immanence: The Living Spirit in All Creation

Then thou wilt know that God is glorified by all inanimate things: the doubts raised by false interpreters will not beguile thee.

The world is alive. Rumi challenges the perception of the world as "inanimate" (jamad), asserting that it is merely "frozen" to our limited sight. He urges us to "wait till the rising of the sun of Resurrection" to see the movement of the world's body, revealing its true, living nature. From one aspect, things are dead; from another, they are living, silent here but speaking Yonder.

Miracles as natural law. The miracles of prophets—Moses' rod becoming a dragon, mountains singing with David, iron becoming wax, the wind carrying Solomon, the sea parting for Moses, the moon splitting for Mohammed, fire becoming a garden for Abraham—are not breaches of natural law but revelations of the inherent spiritual life within all things. They all cry, "We are hearing and seeing and responsive, though to you, the uninitiated, we are mute."

Love animates all. "Love is a boundless ocean, in which the heavens are but a flake of foam." All wheeling heavens are turned by waves of Love; without it, the world would be frozen. Love drives inorganic things to become plants, plants to become animals, and animals to sacrifice themselves for the divine spirit. Every mote is in love with Perfection, ascending like a sapling, their silent aspiration a hymn of Glory to God.

10. Selfless Prayer: When the Heart Cries "Allah," God Answers "Here Am I"

Beneath every ‘O Lord’ of thine is many a ‘Here am I’ from Me.”

The essence of prayer. Rumi teaches that prayer is not merely formal ritual but the "drowning and unconsciousness of the soul," an absorption in the Divine Unity. While formal prayer has a beginning and end, the soul is unconditioned and infinite. True prayer is a selfless act, arising from God's presence in the heart, and is answered even before it is uttered.

God's hidden response. A man cried "Allah!" until his lips grew sweet, but heard no "Here am I" from the Throne. In a dream, Khadir revealed God's message: "That ‘Allah’ of thine is My ‘Here am I,’ and that supplication and grief And ardour of thine is My messenger to thee." Our fear and love are the "noose to catch My Favour," proving that God is already responding to our deepest longings.

The religion of love. The shepherd's prayer, though seemingly blasphemous in its familiarity, was accepted by God because it came from a burning heart. God declared to Moses, "I look not at tongue and speech, I look at the spirit and the inward feeling." The religion of love stands apart from all other religions; "The lovers of God have no religion but God alone," for they seek burning, not mere phrases or conceits.

11. Transcending Dualities: Unknowing as the Path to Absolute Truth

Lo, for I to myself am unknown, now in God’s name what must I do? I adore not the Cross nor the Crescent, I am not a Giaour nor a Jew.

Beyond identity. The mystic's journey leads to a state of "unknowing," where conventional identities and affiliations dissolve. Rumi expresses this profound transcendence: "East nor West, land nor sea, is my home; I have kin nor with angel nor gnome; I am wrought not of fire nor of foam, I am shaped not of dust nor of dew." This is a state of living "in the Soul of my Loved One anew."

The doctrine of reserve. The deepest mysteries of love and gnosis are often disguised in allegories, for they are "too secret and too holy to be communicated in words." To speak them "openly and nakedly" would be like the sun approaching too near, burning all up. The "doctrine of reserve" protects both the truth and those unready to receive it, as a "blade of straw cannot support a mountain."

Unity beyond controversy. Religious controversies, like the "two-and-seventy sects," are formidable obstacles that test the "traveller" on the path to God. Logic and argument are "dumbfounded by Love," which alone can end their quarrel. The true seeker, like a person with a marvelous bird perched on their head, remains silent, fearing to disturb the mystic pearl within. This silence is the "unknowing" that leads to the treasure of Unity.

Last updated: January 19, 2026