There is a place beyond faith and heresy
which is not for all the ones
who are just starting out young and fresh.
There is a price to be paid:
One has to give up one’s life and sacrifice one’s heart.
The Rubaiyat of Rumi, The Ergin Translations, Volume 3, rubai 1271, page 182.
O one who is overcome by his ignorant self
and who doesn’t want to take lessons from others,
all your goodness was limited by leaving a cup next to the fountain.
All you wanted was for the townspeople to drink water
in a toast to your health.
The Rubaiyat of Rumi, The Ergin Translations, Volume 3, rubai 1243, page 168.
At the boundary of our comprehension,
these skies, galaxies and innumerable stars
are only a worthless staff in God’s powerful hand.
Every particle, every drop appears and disappears
like a dolphin, a seal, a whale.
Even if a particle were to appear as big as a whale,
it would still be the tiniest of fish in God’s ocean.
The Rubaiyat of Rumi, The Ergin Translations, Volume 3, rubai 1236, page 164.
You have said so many times,
“I have given up words. I prefer silence.”
Yet, you turn around words,
so much so that you have turned into talk.
You sail with word’s ship on the sea of thought,
that sea which you have not yet renounced
and which word’s ship never will.
Rubailer (2016), Rubai 2, page 454.
The Rubaiyat of Rumi, The Ergin Translations, Rubai 1145, Volume 3.
You are a Joseph in beauty.
Break the jar of beauty.
Use your breath like Jesus.
You are from that same air. Continue reading “Pure Gold (6/30/2024)”
O one who searches for an escape route,
do you think you control life?
The King is leading you.
Don’t try to make yourself more important than the King.
He is the One who turns the poor one into the King of kings
Rubailer (2016), Rubai 4, page 424.
The Rubaiyat of Rumi, The Ergin Translations (apprxpub2024), Rubai 1087, Volume 3.
What is it that is attracting me to Him in every breath?
It is not ambergris. It is not musk.
It is His fragrance, His fragrance. Continue reading “From the Sun of Soul (5/21/2023)”
When it comes to reaching the heart of the Beloved,
there is no room for patience.
Don’t talk about patience.
When Love rattles its chain,
the minds of Plato and Abul Hasan* become befuddled. Continue reading “When Love Rattles Its Chain (4/9/2023)”
What are you looking for in the village of your illusions?
Why are you washing your eye with the blood of your heart?
All your being, head to toe, is God.
O ignorant one who doesn’t yet know Himself,
what are you looking for besides You?
Rubailer (2016), rubai 1, page 388.
The Rubaiyat of Rumi, The Ergin Translations (apprx.pub.7/2023), rubai 890 (volume 2).
O my God, don’t leave me in the hands of this unreliable, despicable self.
Don’t make me agree with anyone but You.
I run to You from deceits, troubles, from my self.
I am Yours. Don’t give my self back to me.
Rubailer (2016), Rubai 3, page 413.
The Rubaiyat of Rumi, The Ergin Translations (apprx. pub. 3/2023), Rubai 875, volume 2.