Painted words and melancholic dreams

agoodthinghappened: fall by ~swissloko

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 08:20:36 -0400

fall by ~swissloko

Rumi And The Way of the Spiritual Lover by Kabir Helminski

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 03:55:16 -0500

Have you ever reflected on the many forms that religious experience takes, the various archetypes of the spiritual life? I don’t mean designations like bishop, rabbi, imam or swami, but more essential patternings that may run across traditions and cultures. There’s the hierophant or high priest or priestess, the hermit, the shaman, the healer, the humble servant, the prophet, the ascetic, as well as some less complimentary types — but let’s not go there. And then there’s the Way of the Lover, the person who is simply in love with God and, as a consequence, in love with people, with nature, with all of creation as an expression of God.

One extraordinary example of this archetype, is the great 13th Century Persian-speaking mystic Rumi, who is known mostly as a great poet, but who was also a monumental figure in the history of religious thought. His six-volume “Mathnawi” is a compendium of inspired reflection, entertaining and sometimes earthy stories, sublime flights of inspiration, metaphysical subtleties and occasionally vulgar jokes, all of which relentlessly, consistently and coherently reflect his perspective on reality. One way that perspective might be summed up is to say that Rumi saw everything in existence as continually revealing the Beauty, Generosity, Intelligence, Grace and Love of the Divine Being. Rumi was awestruck, gobsmacked, blissfully intoxicated with this love-drenched Oneness. Gradually, Rumi also regained a sobriety expansive enough to contain this ecstatic intoxication and in the course of his life left us a literary legacy that has earned him the title “the Shakespeare of mystics.”

For Rumi, the Divine purpose behind all of creation is to reveal the true dimensions of Divine Love. A well-known saying in Islamic tradition which he often referred to is: “(The Divine says) I was a Hidden Treasure and I loved to be known, so I created the worlds visible and invisible so My treasure of generosity and loving-kindness would be known.” Allah wanted to express His/Her Love and voila creation unfolded and continues to unfold through Love! It is our task to grow in appreciation, gratitude and consciousness of this Love. There’s no greater reason to be alive.

For Rumi, to be a lover of God was not to make some inflated claim for oneself, but actually to admit one’s vulnerability and even helplessness before this Love:

The Intellectual

The intellectual is always showing off;
the lover is always getting lost.
The intellectual runs away, afraid of drowning;
the whole business of love is to drown in the sea.
Intellectuals plan their repose;
lovers are ashamed to rest.
The lover is always alone,
even surrounded with people;
like water and oil, he remains apart.
The man who goes to the trouble
of giving advice to a lover
get’s nothing. He’s mocked by passion.
Love is like musk. It attracts attention.
Love is a tree, and lovers are its shade.

(“The Pocket Rumi” by Kabir and Camille Hleminski)

Love in some way transforms the lovers and makes them a blessing within creation. Love in its most basic expression is desire, or love of the loveable. We want to possess what we love. This can lead to possessiveness, jealousy and even violence. At another stage love is the wish to share with others in a reciprocal joy. But Rumi described the highest stage of love with these words: “There is no greater love than love with no object.” When a human being matures or evolves to this level of love he or she simply radiates love because he or she is love.

Rumi reached this love through a relationship with Shams of Tabriz, an enigmatic, itinerant stranger who came into Rumi’s life with all the power of a Divine Epiphany. Just as Melchizedek came to Abraham, Shams’ spiritual power overwhelmed Rumi. And yet it was not a typical shaikh and student, or guru and disciple kind of relationship, nor a sexual relationship (their own words and predispositions make that clear) but a mutual adoration, an intimate mirroring in which they each recognized a reflection of the Divine in each other. This was a love that unfolded like a cosmic drama. Not everyone appreciated Shams as Rumi did and after only a few years Shams disappeared. He may have been murdered, or maybe he completed what he came to do and it was time to go. Rumi was never the same. He became a poet, an ecstatic and in the end he matured through that love. What is most significant is that Rumi and Shams modeled a form of spiritual relationship, a reciprocal love, a mirroring that is the fast-track to spiritual transformation. More on that another time, perhaps.

The people of Rumi’s tradition do not see Rumi as superior to other great spiritual figures of humanity, but as someone who was able to make something that was implicit much more explicit. “What about Jesus?” you might ask. Ah, the beautiful Jesus! Jesus was not a picky moralist but another great lover. And Muhammad, too, who was utterly beloved by Rumi, demonstrated his loverhood in humility and tenderness. In the end, the Way of the Lover is not just another archetype among many but the complete fulfillment of all human possibilities. And in the end, as Rumi says, Only Love can explain itself.

Love is the astrolabe of God’s mysteries.
A lover may be drawn to this love or that love,
but finally he is drawn to the Sovereign of Love.
However much we describe and explain love,
when we fall in love we are ashamed of our words.
Explanation by the tongue makes most things clear,
but love unexplained is clearer.

When the pen came to the subject of love, it broke.
When the discourse reached the topic of love,
the pen split and the paper tore.
If intellect tries to explain it,
it falls helpless as a donkey on a muddy trail;
only Love itself can explain love and lovers!
The proof of the sun is the sun itself.
If you wish to see it, don’t turn away from it.

(Mathnawi I: 110-116 translated by Kabir & Camille Helminski from the forthcoming “A Rumi Daybook.”)

That’s quite an admission from Rumi who wrote more comprehensively about love than perhaps any other human. Perhaps the difficulty of explaining love adequately is that in order to explain something you need another something more subtle and comprehensive with which to explain it. Perhaps love is the final explanation of everything…

But the words I’d like to leave us with are very simple, and yet illustrate that it is this Cosmic Love which is in fact the Creative Power behind all of existence.

The heart is your student
for love is the only way we learn.
Night has no choice but to grab the feet of daylight.
It’s as if I see Your Face everywhere I turn.
It’s as if Love’s radiant oil
never stops searching
for a lamp in which to burn.

(Quatrains: 353 translated by Kabir & Camille Helminski from the forthcoming “A Rumi Daybook.”)

studionow: Great short piece on an artistic genius Argh,...

Tue, 26 Feb 2013 05:51:59 -0500

studionow:

Great short piece on an artistic genius

Argh, I’m speechless. His talent is nothing short of brilliant.

"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest..."

Mon, 25 Feb 2013 02:07:23 -0500

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”

- Ralph Waldo Emerson (via lamodeoutre)

sherralovesdoojoon: Soulmate: #love #life #soulmate

Sun, 24 Feb 2013 14:20:45 -0500

sherralovesdoojoon:

Soulmate:
#love #life #soulmate

She’s soo pretty. :D

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 03:20:37 -0500

She’s soo pretty. :D

Ron Pope - “You’re The Reason I Come Home”

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 03:38:25 -0500

Ron Pope - “You’re The Reason I Come Home”

Awwww. So CUTE. ;D

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 02:57:44 -0500

Awwww. So CUTE. ;D

peacesmileslovenlight: fuckyeahlaughters: whatsinthebucket: Be...

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 02:27:31 -0500

peacesmileslovenlight:

fuckyeahlaughters:

whatsinthebucket:

Best thing I’ve ever seen on tumblr.

me to

:)

How true.

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 02:01:45 -0500

How true.

stevemccurrystudios: Sunrise Sunset. See more images on my...

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 01:50:07 -0500

stevemccurrystudios:

Sunrise Sunset. See more images on my wordpress!

Photo

Sat, 09 Feb 2013 12:42:12 -0500

"Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around...."

Sat, 09 Feb 2013 11:53:36 -0500

““Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around. You tell them things that you’ve never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more. You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement. They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful. There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are. The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever. Memories of your childhood come back and are so clear and vivid it’s like being young again. Colours seem brighter and more brilliant. Laughter seems part of daily life where before it was infrequent or didn’t exist at all. A phone call or two during the day helps to get you through a long day’s work and always brings a smile to your face. In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby. Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you. You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon. You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible. You find that being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you. You find strength in knowing you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end. Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life.””

- Bob Marley (via knohvuhn)

Photo

Thu, 07 Feb 2013 00:09:51 -0500

dawnawakened: The Halted Traveler Damien Rayuela is an amazing...

Sat, 02 Feb 2013 06:26:46 -0500

dawnawakened:

The Halted Traveler

Damien Rayuela is an amazing photographer, he’s the mind behind this current piece which is just absolutely stunning and well told. The story behind these landscape portraits is what Daniel calls the Halted Traveler, he goes on to say “that term is normally associated with German romantic painters like Caspar David Friedrich, to describe a person seen from behind facing a lanscape”. Damien decides to take this to actual film and he doesn’t fail. Breathtaking scenery he makes, the subject just has to stop and marvel at what’s infront. Awesome work by Damien, be sure to check out more of his work after the jump.

thequickbrownfox: theclearlydope:breakbeat, breibi,...

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 03:44:56 -0500

thequickbrownfox:

theclearlydope:

breakbeat, breibi, bearbeat
ILLOILLOQUEROMPE !!!!

middleeasternpoetry: Don’t act like the hypocrite, who thinks...

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 02:13:54 -0500

middleeasternpoetry:

Don’t act like the hypocrite, who thinks he can conceal his wiles while loudly quoting the Koran. - Hafiz Tumblr chaps! Don’t forget to sign the Malala Nobel Peace Prize petition…

middleeasternpoetry: We were all created in His image, and yet...

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 02:03:12 -0500

middleeasternpoetry:

We were all created in His image, and yet we were each created different and unique. No two people are alike. No two hearts beat to the same rhythm. If God had wanted everyone to be the same, He would have made it so. Therefore, disrespecting differences and imposing your thoughts on others is tantamount to disrespecting God’s holy scheme. - Shams Tabrizi

Tariq Ramadan: Love and Detachment

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 03:14:14 -0500

Tariq Ramadan: Love and Detachment:

To love without being dependent. Nothing could be more difficult, and doing so requires a long apprenticeship that is both demanding and sometimes painful. The goal is to love without any illusions. That is all the more difficult in that we sometimes have the impression that love means being…

Tariq Ramadan: ‘Love must be reinvented’, said Rimbaud in his adolescent...

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 03:08:39 -0500

Tariq Ramadan: ‘Love must be reinvented’, said Rimbaud in his adolescent...:

‘Love must be reinvented’, said Rimbaud in his adolescent hotheadedness and disappointment, but perhaps it just has to be rediscovered. Taking time, standing back, pondering, evaluating, and setting out: love is like the spiritual quest because it is a quest for meaning and well-being. It is up…