Emptiness -- Jalaluddin Rumi

Guest poem sent in by Rishidev Chaudhuri

(Poem #841) Emptiness Consider the difference in our actions and God's actions. We often ask, "Why did you do that?" or "Why did I act like that?" We do act, and yet everything we do is God's creative action. We look back and analyse the events of our lives, but there is another way of seeing, a backward-and-forward-at-once vision, that is not rationally understandable. Only God can understand it. Satan made the excuse, "You caused me to fall, whereas Adam said to God, "We did this to ourselves." After this repentance, God asked Adam, "Since all is within my foreknowledge, why didn't you defend yourself with that reason?" Adam answered, "I was afraid, and I wanted to be reverent." Whoever acts with respect will get respect. Whoever brings sweetness will be served almond cake. Good women are drawn to be with good men. Honour your friend. Or treat him rudely, and see what happens! Love, tell an incident now that will clarify this mystery of how we act feely, and are yet compelled. One hand shakes with palsy. Another shakes because because you slapped it away. Both tremblings come from God, but you feel guilty for the one, and what about the other? These are intellectual questions. The spirit approaches the matter differently. Omar once had a friend, a scientist, Bu'l-Hakam, who was flawless at solving empirical problems, but he could not follow Omar into the area of illumination and wonder. Now I return to the text, "And He is with you, wherever you are," but when have I ever left it! Ignorance is God's prison Knowing is God's palace. We sleep in God's unconsciousness. We wake in God's open hand. We weep God's rain. We laugh God's lightning. Fighting and peacefulness both take place within God. Who are we then in this complicated world-tangle, that is really just the single, straight line down at the beginning of ALLAH? Nothing. We are emptiness. ---- When you are with everyone but me, you're with no one. When you are with no one but me, you're with everyone. Instead of being so bound up with everyone, be everyone. When you become that many, you're nothing. Empty. -- Jalaluddin Rumi

It is always very interesting to look at how mystical
experience is reflected in different traditions. The
Sufis stand out for many reasons, among them the
context in which they arose, their influence on both
Indian and Middle Eastern thought and literature, and
particularly for their view of the world, very
different in expression (though not, I believe in
spirit) from some of the earlier Indian traditions,
but bearing very strong resemblances to Mahayana
Buddhist and Tantric thought. This poem could very
easily pass off as one written by a Zen Buddhist,
particularly for its statement of paradox and
trans-rational, trans-verbal view. The concept of
emptiness or the pregnant void (sunyata) at the heart
of things is also a very common Buddhist concept.

And Sufism has, of course, produced some lovely poems
and celebrations of union with the divine. This poem
is rather more intellectual than much of what Rumi has
written, but his sheer exuberance and spirit is very
apparent and quite charming.

Rishidev

Links:

Rumi poems we've run before:
  Poem #472, 'Spring Giddiness'
  Poem #513, 'The Tavern'

There's an excellent Rumi site at
  http://www.rumi.org.uk
including a biography:
  http://www.rumi.org.uk/life.html