feel good · love · Poem · Rumi · Spiritual

Rumi poem interpretation – Love is reckless

Here is my interpretation of Rumi’s poem ‘Love is reckless’

Love is reckless; not reason.

Reason seeks a profit.

Love comes on strong,

consuming herself, unabashed.

Here the author is comparing logic and love. Love cannot be made to happen by a logical reasoning or conclusion. Love just happens – it is reckless. It can happen to anyone at any time – it does not see if this is in the person’s profit or not. When it happens it consumes the person – body, mind and soul. It is an all consuming feeling.

Yet, in the midst of suffering,

Love proceeds like a millstone,

hard surfaced and straightforward.

Love is also a very strong feeling – no matter how much suffering surrounds it – it keeps carrying on like a strong millstone.

Having died of self-interest,

she risks everything and asks for nothing.

Love gambles away every gift God bestows.

Once a person is in true love, the idea of selfishness does not occur to the person – for they start living only for the benefit of their beloved. In this love frenzy they don’t mind giving up anything valuable that God has bestowed upon them.

Without cause God gave us Being;

without cause, give it back again. 

The author says that God has given us this life and the many experiences it provides in a completely selfless manner – in true love for us. In exactly that manner, we can use our being to serve everyone with love and ultimately give our being back to God. It is not necessary to always do things with a profit in mind. This is akin to the idea – ‘Let all you do, be done in love’ 1 Corinthians 16:14

Masnavi: Teachings of Rumi

by Jelaluddin Rumi (Author), E. H. Whinfield (Editor, Translator)

Image Credit : https://hdwallpaperfx.com/lovers-in-nature/

feel good · Poem · Poetry · Rumi · Spiritual

Take me

Rumi, take me with you,
Show me the places you have seen.

We don’t belong to this world,
Both you and me.

Lets explore the realms together,
Find adventures old and new.

Hopefully we will find a home
A place we belong to.

Image credit : Google Images

love · Poem · Poetry · Rumi · Spiritual

Rumi unnamed poem interpretation

When I am with you, we stay up all night.

When you’re not here, I can’t go to sleep.

Praise God for these two insomnias!

And the difference between them.

This poem describes the feelings of lovers – when they meet they don’t want to sleep – they would rather do other things and not waste their time sleeping.

And when they are not together, they cannot sleep because they miss the other and are lost in thoughts of their lover – due to which the brain cannot relax and they cannot sleep.

Rumi thanks God for these feelings and these two different reasons for having this insomnia. He is basically emphasizing what a wondrous thing love is! In love one can enjoy being apart as much as being together. As love is the core feeling which is given by God and takes us near God as well.

Taken from The Essential Rumi

translated by Coleman Barks

Image credit : Google Images

Poem · Poetry · Rumi · Spiritual

Rumi poem interpretation – The Guest House

Here is my interpretation of Rumi’s poem ‘The Guest House’

This being human is a guest house.

Every morning a new arrival.

Rumi says that being a human being  and returning to this state of being in the body of a human is like coming to a guest house. We sleep every night and in the deep dreamless sleep state we get in touch with our true nature, i.e., we become pure consciousness. But in the morning – we wake up again and come back to this illusionary world.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,

some momentary awareness comes

as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!

In this illusionary state, we will go back to being who we were before we slept. We will experience various feeling that come to us. Some due to our own accord, some due to others. Rumi says enjoy all of these feelings. These are simply vibrations – feel them and entertain them as guests in your house.

Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,

who violently sweep your house

empty of its furniture,

still, treat each guest honorably.

He may be clearing you out

for some new delight.

If these feelings are uncomfortable, away from your true nature of joy and peace – still honor them. They might feel overwhelming and shake you to your core. However, such feelings are necessary too. We need to experience the whole spectrum of life in order to live it fully. Creation gives it all to us. Once we have fully enjoyed and experienced a feeling, we are clearing space for a new feeling to take it’s place. A new experience, a new energy, a new vibration. We need to experience it all.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice,

meet them at the door laughing,

and invite them in.

Similarly for any other so called ‘bad thoughts/feelings/energy’ go through them. Feel them. Stay with them.

Be grateful for whoever comes,

because each has been sent

as a guide from beyond.

Gratitude is an alchemic quality. So use it. It will alchemize your being. Whatever you feel in this human form is a message that Universe, Creation is trying to send to you. Listen to it, understand it, interpret it. It is a guide for you to walk in this human path, so use it as it is meant to shape you and take you to your ultimate purpose.

Taken from The Essential Rumi

translated by Coleman Barks

Image credit : https://parade.com/7476/viannguyen/top-10-cities-with-the-greenest-homes/