Love has been cherished since the beginning
of time. Many men and women tried to sing its greatness
and many cultures and ideologies preached its importance, each with its own interpretation
of what love is. In particular, one movement has built its
whole essence on love and considers love to be the origin of life. This movement is called Sufism, meaning mysticism
in Arabic. Sufism began some 9 centuries ago and is focused
on reaching the divine - the power that created the skies, the earth, us and life as a whole,
through love.
It means that in Sufism, we human beings are lovers, the divine is beloved and to love
the divine, we need to connect back to the essence of life and understand that we and
the world are one. Sufism has given the world some of its brightest
minds and poets and one of those people is known as Maulana, Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad
Rūmī, arguably the best Sufi poet in history. Rumi, a Persian scholar at first, then a Mystic,
has written many illustrious poems depicting love and its central role as the bridge to
reach the divine; poems that are engraved in the literature books for eternity.
His brilliance caught the eyes of people since his childhood. His father, a famous scholar back then, had
personally taken the responsibility of teaching him. He deepened his knowledge at a very young
age and after the death of his father, he was destined to succeed him as a scholar. But Rumi wanted to learn more, so he connected
with another brilliant teacher named Al Tarmithi and a few years later, his teacher left him
because he considered that he had nothing left to teach his student, Rumi was now a
complete scholar. Rumi was adored by his followers and when
he held assemblies, he had a large crowd as attendees.
However, life and the divine had other plans for him. In 1244, Rumi encountered Shams Tabrizi, a
traveling Sufi dervish who changed his core understanding of life. Rumi became so fond of Shams that he neglected
his students and his family and spent days and nights with him, all to grasp the essence
of pure love and how to express it to reach the divine. Rumi turned from a Scholar to a Sufi poet
who sang for love, danced in circles, which is now called Sufi whirling or the whirling
dervish, and wrote poems that are still relevant today continuing to have a deep influence,
which is why in this video, we bring you 7 life lessons from the philosophy of Rumi.
There is something you can do better than anyone else
Rumi says “Everyone has been made for some
particular work, and the desire for that work has been put in every heart.”
When Rumi was a scholar, he was brilliant. If he had remained a scholar, he likely would
have made big contributions. However, it was becoming a Sufi poet that
cemented his name in the history books. By using his own words, Rumi found the thing
that he can do better than anyone else - the work he was made for - Expressing his love
for the divine, the aches of the heart, and the magnitude of our inner worlds through
piercing poems that would live on forever. This desire made him produce some of the greatest
pieces of literature in history. It is fair to conclude that Rumi was meant
to be a Sufi poet. He understood his mission. He loved it and he had the desire to fulfill
it. He produced many illustrious works, and he
conquered millions of hearts.
Connecting with what matters to you is as relevant today as when it was back then. We see many people getting caught out by default
decisions and drifting away from their true essence, thinking that what they’re doing
is the right thing because it’s what everyone else is doing. However, all they are really doing is moving
away from what makes them different and unique. We see many cases of depression among people
who can’t find meaning in what they do. This is something we inherit from the industrial
revolution where people were considered part of a chain - a means to turn the wheels of
capitalism, rather than considering the individual.
Connecting back to what we consider meaningful is, according to Rumi, the only way to be
useful in the best way possible for our society, and ourselves. Meaning makes people feel alive, and when
they feel alive, they produce work that is unmatched. That is because they have the desire to do
so, rather than being forced to do something they don’t actually agree with.
Finding meaning doesn’t have to be a massive, life-changing event. Finding meaning can be found in the simplest
things you enjoy and give your best in. For example, you might enjoy painting if that’s
what wakes up in the morning. You might enjoy your job as an accountant
and that’s where your heart is. Meaning is not about the what, it is about
the why and when you find your why, in any job or task, you’ve found your meaning and
that’s where you’ll give your best, and be the best. You don’t have to see the whole staircase
To quote Rumi “As you start to walk out
on the way, the way appears.”
Rumi was first introduced to Sufism in his childhood. His father taught him about its ideology and
spirituality, giving him a first glimpse of what will go on to dictate his life and his
relationship with God.
But let’s fast forward a few years to his famous encounter with Shams Tabrizi, the Persian
dervish poet we mentioned in the introduction. After meeting Shams, Rumi took days, weeks
and months to absorb the love that Shams was full of. After their separation, Rumi spent many years
writing about the purity of that love and the essence of Sufism. All to finally dictate his most notorious
work, “The Masnavi”. When you look at the path that Rumi has been
on, you know that his success was not an accident. It was the end result of many years of step
by step learning. Even when we look at “The Masnavi”, this
wasn’t something he composed overnight. In fact, it took him 15 years in all, and
that doesn’t even include much of his earlier work which also had a massive impact on The
Masnavi.
Today, everyone has dreams and aspirations to do something tremendous but, for the most
part, those dreams fade away, Everest is too high to climb for many, and traveling the
world is too costly for others. We end up dismissing those dreams because
we think of it as unattainable, unachievable - But it is just a matter of perspective. Ok, so the stair to the seventh floor of a
building is long, but look at what you have right in front of you, just one small step. All you have to do is take it! Then what’s next? Another small step, so take that too! And there you go, getting closer and closer,
step by step, to reach that seventh floor that seemed impossibly out of reach at the
start. The wisdom of life teaches us to look at what’s
in front of us and not what’s ahead of us. The secret ingredient of success is that it
can be found by anyone who remains disciplined in their small actions. The wound is the place where the light enters
you
Rumi tells us that “What hurts you, blesses you. Darkness is your candle.”
Through his friendship with Shams, Rumi found a new meaning and joy. He made sure to make the most out of every
second of Shams presence and enjoy the purity of their alignment. The school, the family gatherings, the Friday
preachings, and the friendly meetings, he left it all at that time to spend time with
Shams. They spent sleepless nights sharing knowledge
and driving powerful discussions, talking about the divine and exploring how to love
the divine.
The crowd that was once mesmerised by him when he was a scholar, became disappointed
with him when Rumi started dedicating his whole time to his friendship with Shams and
Sufism. This is why people around Rumi became disdainful
toward Shams. They threatened him, disrespected him and
made him feel uncomfortable. As far as they were concerned, he took Rumi
for himself, and that’s something that can’t be forgiven. Shams was fed up by the huge animosity to
which he was the target, and one day, he left, leaving no sign whatsoever.
Rumi could not accept it, and he did his best to get him back. He even declared that he would reward anyone
who finds out where Shams is. People saw an opportunity there to take advantage
of the situation, many of them claiming they saw him in misleading places, and Rumi, even
though he was aware of those lies, rewarded them regardless. For him, they gave him hope, and that was
enough to be rewarded.
Months later he found him, and his son was tasked to bring him back, but that loss and
temporary separation deeply wounded Rumi - something he would never forget. A wound that would be reopened when Shams
disappeared again, only this time forever. Some say he left on his own, others say he
was killed. However, that wound was the inspiration and
the driving force behind a great deal of his work, giving him the creative outburst and
energy to write no less than 70.000 poetic verses. Indeed he suffered, but suffering got the
best out of him. Suffering guided him to understand life, love
and pain, three inseparable things that would become the basis of his work.
Pain has a bad reputation, and we avoid it at all costs. Especially with today’s heavy emphasis on
seeking pleasures and satisfying desires, facing pain is something we try to avoid wherever
possible. However, it is often through that pain that
we grow. Denying pain is denying real life. Our teeth gave us pain as children when they
started coming through, understanding people can come at the cost of being disappointed,
and growing a project or business typically requires painful periods of dedication. Pain is necessary to see the light beyond
the pain. A light that gives us a fresh perspective
and new gains. So when pain comes your way, embrace it - or
at least accept it, because as it turns out, the more you accept, the less painful it becomes.
The gold mine lies within you
In the words of Rumi “Why are you so enchanted
by this world, when a mine of gold lies within you?”
One day walking the streets of the city, Rumi heard some blacksmiths hitting on an iron
not too far from the place where he was standing. He listened carefully to process those hits
until he became overwhelmed, mesmerized by their sound. He felt it within himself, he closed his eyes,
raised his hand, and moving in circles, round and round, dancing to the sound of those hits. When the blacksmiths saw him, they thought
he was possessed. But the head of the group told them to keep
going, for watching Rumi dancing was a beautiful blessing. Rumi did not hear them talking though, nor
knew people were watching him. He was just absorbed in the moment, or more
precisely, absorbed by his inner world. A place that opened up to him at that time
thanks to the sound of those Iron hits. He was immersed. That dance later on became known as the whirling
dervish, and many who have experienced that dance say they feel an overwhelming connection
with the inner world.
The Whirling Dervishes that Rumi performed was only a fraction of the richness of what
we have within us. The state of love, of calmness, of ease and
of oneness that we experience when we connect with the world inside of us, is proof that,
no matter how shiny the outer world is, the real treasure is within.
Nowadays, when we stay alone, we get bored fast, and when we do get bored, we rush to
the fastest way that will entertain us, for most of the time that’s our phones, looking
for an escape. We are losing the desire to listen to our
inner voices and discover the world within. We’re starting to become like a precious
Ming vase - beautiful on the outside, but empty on the inside. And just like that vase which has nothing
to support it from the inside, we’re fragile and easy to break. For many of us, the moment we lose our external
beauty, we lose our senses.
Our inner world gives meaning, deepness, understanding, openness, and while the outer world is designed
inherently to be turbulent, the inner world will bring that calmness to overcome the storms. And if you’re wondering how to reconnect
with the world within, start by spending some time alone, start listening to the voice within,
give yourself the opportunity to discover your own body by paying attention to the flow
of your blood, and explore the thoughts that feel meaningful to you. Make sure to listen to your heart, and acknowledge
the existence of your soul.
And this doesn’t have to be a silent meditation, with your eyes closed - You can move, dance,
write - whatever helps you connect… with you. The world within is vast, and the roads to
access it are multiple.
Love is within you
According to Rumi “Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all
the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.”
When Rumi was pursuing knowledge to become a scholar, he had two great teachers among
many. He even had the chance to travel and learn
abroad. However, when Rumi met Shams, he did not leave,
nor went to meet different teachers. Not because Shams held all the external knowledge
about love or sufism, but because he held the ability to destroy all the barriers that
Rumi had that were preventing from finding true love. All those long nights, long walks, countless
discussions, they were not meant to transmit love, but to free it. The moment those barriers were destroyed,
Rumi became Maulana, the honorary title Sufists gave him, and which means Master. He became immersed by a love that was confined
within him since his birth.
When you see people walking around talking about finding love, and going after it, we
start imagining love as if it’s a product or this thing that is independent from us.
Love is not a car. People only wish to have a car once they acknowledge
its importance and existence. But if they never encountered something called
a car before, they’ll never pursue having one since they have no idea what a car is. But with love, you could be isolated in a
mountain, you could live in any part of the world, and you’ll still think about it. No matter where we come from, love is already
in us.
Just like Rumi said, if you want to seek something, seek out and destroy the barriers that are
confining the love within. That’s what he did, and when he succeeded,
once he got a taste of that love, he never left it nor got bored of it. You can have many barriers preventing you
from tasting that love. It can be that you believe that love only
enters when someone walks into your life. It can be your upbringing in an unloving environment,
it can be doing something you don't enjoy, and so on.
So if you do want to break those barriers, listen to yourself, question your own ideas
about love, question your perspectives and the cultural or societal pressures that have
impacted your thoughts about what love is. Understanding those barriers will push you
towards the right path. The path of finding the love that has been
ingrained in you and me since we were in our mothers womb.
Let go of judgment
Rumi teaches us that “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and right-doing, there is a field. I’ll meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass, the
world is too full to talk about.”
Imagine you’re Rumi. Imagine you’re this great scholar that is
admired by the crowds, a superstar, and one day someone comes and shares a path with you
that is about to change your mindset and alter your heart completely. While trying to explore that path, you see
yourself labeled as a loser, and your companion as a wrongdoer, and find yourselves thrashed
by the crowd. Both of you are judged severely. So imagine you’re in this position, Would
you have been able to handle it? Most people would give up and get back to
their original path where glory and adoration was all laid out for them.
But not Rumi. He did not bow down, nor confined himself
in those judgments. He knew that beyond any kind of judgment,
there is something deeper that needs to be discovered - something that can truly make
sense of this life. He sailed against the windy crowd, but paradoxically,
that same crowd chanted his name when Rumi’s work was published, and happily sang every
verse of his poems.
Rumi’s struggle with judgment is not unique. Humans have suffered from it since the dawn
of time, and we still do to this day, and as much as we think we’re open minded, judging
and deciding what is right and wrong on behalf of the community is deeply entrenched in every
culture. Awareness is key for the world to understand
that judging someone is like pulling a seed from the earth. You would think it’s just a seed, but that
seed could have been a magnificent lemon tree who would have fed and helped countless families
for generations.
On the other hand, if someone judges you for a path you want to take and labels every single
move you make as either right or wrong, just say to yourself “So what?” Free yourself from the fear of being judged
because, at the end of the day, people will be people and people will judge. But then what? Usually, nothing. they move on with their lives. So why wouldn’t you do the same and leave
their judgements behind too? It is easy to let go of judgment. Human beings are social creatures, but the
idea of letting go of judgment is to be aware of your actions and the heartfelt knowledge
that you don’t need others' approval.
Change yourself to change the world
In our final quote from Rumi for this video, he says… “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to
change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”
Rumi gained a huge following during his scholarly years. He preached, and many listened. He gave advice, and many applied his teachings. He was an intelligent man, and as a scholar,
he was tasked to bring change to the world. Something he undoubtedly achieved, impacting
millions of souls even after his death. However, he did not do so by seeing himself
as clever and having a life mission of changing the world. Indeed, it is not Rumi the scholar who brought
that lasting change. It was Rumi the Sufi who did so, the worshiper
of love, the mystic poet, the human being that chose to focus on himself and report
about it in the most sincere way possible by producing some of what is considered by
many to be the most profound and heart piercing poems of all time. History remembers Rumi today as someone who
was wise enough to change himself.
We often hear from people about their will to change the world, and it often makes you
wonder; How come we have this many people that have this much to say with this amount
of willpower, and yet we witness so little real change? Isn’t the world supposed to be much better
now that we have a huge number of people willing to change the world for the good of humanity? One of the key issues is that generally these
people want to change everything outside of themselves, but true change really comes from
those who dare to change something within.
The world, more than ever before, needs us to be more self-oriented, to look at ourselves
and say “I need to change this in myself; I need to manage my spending habits, to control
what I say to people and avoid hurting them or maybe to criticise less and understand
more; I need to acknowledge my mental wounds and heal them, my challenges and mistakes,
and overcome them”. That’s what we need, because positive change
is infectious. If you change yourself, and that convinces
others to change, they spread their influence and in time, the change keeps spreading until
one day it becomes global.
If you enjoyed this video, please make sure
to check out our full philosophies for life playlist and for more videos to help you find
success and happiness using ancient philosophical wisdom, don’t forget to subscribe. Thanks so much for watching.
