Ruminate on Rumi November 22, 2010
Posted by nrhatch in Mindfulness, Poetry.trackback
What strikes the oyster shell does not damage the pearl.
~ Rumi
* * * * *
Damage to Ego does no harm to Spirit within.
Our ageless Eternal Spirit remains unharmed even when our shells become battered and bruised.
Dive deep . . . pearls of inner wisdom await.
For related posts on the wisdom of the East, visit Dragonfly Road & for more thoughts on Rumi ~ Seeing The Unseen.
I got plenty roomy in my heart for Rumi 🙂
After reading this “pearl” of his, I’m going to be seeking more of his insights to adopt as my own. 🙂
Rumi’s a master of depth, Nancy. A Master Teacher was introduced to Rumi when he was a young man. As Rumi walked away, the Master said, “I’ve just been introduced to an ocean contained in a river.”
Rumi is worth every minute of deep contemplation. Nothing is obvious about his words. One of my “simple” favourites is: “Two stones cannot occupy the same space, but two fragrances can.”
Love the image of an ocean contained in a river.
We have surprising depth of being that many hesitate to explore.
The fault is in the one who blames. Spirit sees nothing to criticize. ~ Rumi
If Damage to Ego does no harm to Spirit within then we wouldn’t have a rash of suicides from bullying.
Linda ~ Maybe we’re using different definitions of spirit. I don’t mean spirit in the sense of a “broken spirit” vs. a “carefree spirit.”
I mean our Inner Spirit, our essence, our core, our link to God. From my perspective, nothing ever damages our essential self, our Eternal Spirit.
Our bodies age and our Spirit remains youthful. When I close my eyes to meditate, and my thoughts are still, my “sense of self” is exactly the same now as it was at age 24. When our bodies breathe for the last time, the Spirit to which I’m referring, our ageless Eternal Spirit, lives on. Or so I believe.
Likewise, our Egos collect emotional baggage from bullying and abuse, but if we go within, BELOW the damaged layers of Ego, our Spirit remains intact and unharmed. There is no anger, or pain, or anxiety at the level of Spirit. Just peace, love, and joy in the Eternal Now.
It is the Ego that is damaged by bullying, and the wounded Ego that decides suicide is preferably to the pain of living. An iindividual focused on Ego and its concerns may not even involve Spirit in the decision to commit suicide. Body and Ego die, Spirit survives.
When my Ego is hurting, if I go within to the level of Eternal Spirit, I’m filled with joy and happiness. It’s a way to rejuvenate and recharge when this world gets to be “too much.”
That’s why I encourage people to meditate. Once we learn to access the bottomless well of peace, love, and joy that is Spirit, life becomes infinitely easier and much of our pain and hurt is washed away.
I need to read Rumi, he’s one of those names that always pop up. I need to get on that, thanks for reminding me.
I felt the same way when I bumped into this quote this morning.
I’ve seen a Rumi quote here and there, but know very little about him, other than that he seems wise.
Ok. 🙂 I probably said what I said in too critical a voice. I did not inherit tact.
No problem. When I say “Spirit” I know exactly what I mean . . . a “higher power” that dwells within each of us.
Others would refer to it as our “soul,” or would deny its existence entirely (claiming that we merely think it’s Spirit we are sensing while meditating), etc.
I just wanted to clarify what I meant, and why I believe that our Spirit remains intact even if our shells become battered and bruised.
In fact, your comment has inspired me to revise the post to include that clarification. Thanks.
Beautiful post… I love Rumi! 🙂
Your post on Rumi caused lots of visitors to ruminate . . . and salivate over the photos. 😀
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