Rumi: Islamic Mystic and Poet

In recent years, I have repeatedly come across quotations from Rumi, the 13th century poet and mystic, that have really resonated with my own experience of God. I'm no expert on him, but I really have found deep inspiration from his poetry. He hails from the Sufi tradition in Islam which emphasizes trancendence in a manner that seems to me cannot be limited to a particular religion. What I have read of Rumi and other Sufi mystics seems to have much in common with Christian and Buddhist mystics throughout the centuries.

NPR had a great story last Friday about Rumi and a new book on Islamic spirituality by a scholar that knows Rumi well. It's well worth a listen, not the least of which is because you hear Robert Bly read his translation of one of Rumi's poems.

Here are a few quotations by Rumi that I've picked up along the way:

"Observe the wonders as they occur around you--don't claim them."

"Keep walking, though there's no place to get to. Don't try to see through the distances. That's not for human beings. Move within, but don't move the way fear makes you move."

"Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground."

Grace and Peace,

Chase