A short assay about Rumi the king of love, from the heart of Asia Afghanistan.
A Dedication to MAWLANA JALALUDDIN Balkhi / RUMI
This web-page is dedicated to Jalaluddin Rumi (may God sanctify his holy spirit) the Greatest Saint of Islam and of mystics in our modern age. I wish you could all feed your soul by reading his words. His words are an ocean of wine, such that when you drink this wine you will be drunk forever.
When you hear his words you will find that he does not belong to any single culture or any specific faith or any nationality. He is man of peace and thirsty for justice in this cosmos and beyond. “God and him”. “Him and God”. His words are like the Sun which shines everywhere beyond race and nationality. This clearly shows that he was not from East or West neither North nor South. He was saying that you should be the centre of all light shining in the north, south, east and west. Then you belong to nowhere but everywhere. Your wisdom will shine across the whole world.
Rumi had the highest position in the Islamic world in his time as a top respected leader of thousands of Muslim scholars and governors of different Islamic nations. He was acting on behalf of his father, Husayn al-Balkhî Walad who was the top respected leader in that century. In one accidental meeting with a person unknown to him (Shams-e-Tabrizi), he changed through 180 degrees, leaving all the leadership positions and leader kinds of life. He picked one musical instrument called rubbab and started a different kind of life by dancing with the children of the alleys without position and title - just him and his wisdom which he really found his best gift from his creator. People criticized Rumi for denouncing his position of leadership. But he said “I want to be sun of the sun of the sun and to shine brightly on all creations of God”.
Yes, by that change in his life he became the king of love and will live forever.
May God bless him and all those who worked to enlighten human beings. Now, in the 21st century, his words are still the most powerful words that came from a human being from his time to now and will be forever. He was a symbol of peace and tolerance. He put his life on the journey with never a thought for his own comfort.
He born in a much-respected family in Afghanistan. He was son of Husayn al-Balkhî. His place of birth is the town of Wakhsh where his father worked as a Muslim preacher and scholar. Wahksh was part of the cultural area of the ancient city of Balkh (present called Mazar-e-Shrif in one of the province of present-day Afghanistan) which had been a major center of Islamic learning for five hundred years before Rumi was born. His father, also a great mystic, or sufi master, was from Balkh. But later he was called by the additional name, Jalâlu 'd-deen ("the Glory of the Faith"). His full name was Jalâlu 'd-deen Muhammad bin (= son of) Husayn al-Balkhî. Their family was forced to leave his motherland so they moved to unfamiliar countries. His family begun their journey and crossed Herat and then to Neyshabour in Khorassan province of Iran, then left Iran for the Middle East. In the end he found himself and his family in Konya. The Konya region is one of the most ancient settlements of Anatolia (present-day Turkey). He became known as Jalâlu 'd-deen Muhammad al-Roomee.
For centuries Anatolia had been called “Rûm” (a form of "Rome") which meant “the land of the Greeks” (who had long ruled the area from Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire and later the Byzantine Empire). In the East, he was known as Mawlana (pronounced “Mowlânâ” in Iran, India, and Pakistan; pronounced “Mevlana” in Turkey). This means "our master" in Arabic, and was traditionally a title given to Muslim scholars. However, due to his great fame, the respectful title “Mawlana” quickly came to refer primarily to Jalaluddin Rumi.
Only in the West has he been called “Rumi”. Rumi must have memorized much or all of the Holy Qur'an when he was young, because the Mathnawi and his other poetry are filled with direct quotes in Arabic, Persian paraphrases, and references to Qur'anic verses. He belonged to the Hanafi School of Islamic law, one of the four orthodox legal traditions of the Sunni branch of Islam. This means that his daily religious behavior was faithful to the many details of the Hanafi tradition of how to follow the example of the Prophet Muhammad. Rumi's first Sufi master, Sayyid Burhânu 'd-dîn Termezî, was his father's leading Sufi disciple who came to Anatolia after hearing of the death of Rumi's father. Rumi was his Sufi disciple for ten years, during which he was sent to Syria to obtain a traditional Islamic education. Sayyid Burhanuddin was also a profound mystic who instilled in Rumi a love of Persian Sufi poetry and ordered him to do a number of lengthy solitary prayer retreats.
Rumi was 37 years of age when he met his second sufi master, Shamsu 'd-deen Muhammad al-Tabreezee (from Tabrîz), traditionally believed to have been about 60 years old. It is now known that Shams was not an illiterate and "wild" dervish as previously thought by Western scholars, but had a solid Islamic education and was literate and fluent in Arabic as well as Persian. And Shams himself belonged to another major orthodox school of Sunni Islamic law, called Shâfi`î.1*. In the "Discourses of Shams,"2* a collection of notes recorded by his disciples (among whom was Rumi's son, Sultân Walad), Shams reveals himself not only to be a profound mystic, but very knowledgeable about traditional and mystical interpretations of verses from the Qur'an and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. And he criticized at least one famous Sufi master for not following the daily religious behaviour of the Prophet.3 *In a biography of Rumi, written by a disciple of Rumi's grandson Aflâkî, along with many miracle stories, are many accounts of how Rumi prayed the five daily ritual Islamic prayers, fasted during the month of Ramadan, and did many extended voluntary fasts. And there are many accounts in which he voiced traditional Islamic beliefs on many topics. But it is in the masterpiece of his later life, the Mathnawî-ye Ma`nawî (literally, "Rhymed Couplets of Deep Spiritual Meaning") that he reveals himself as both a profound mystic and an extremely devout Muslim. A study of his stories and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad reveals his veneration and love for the Holy Prophet and the Revelation that was sent to him from God Most High.
Mawlânâ Jalâluddîn Muhammad al-Balkhî al-Rûmî died in 1273 and was buried next to his father's tomb in Konya, Turkey.
The anniversary of his death was commemorated for centuries according to the Islamic lunar calendar, but has been celebrated in Turkey for the past 50 years according to the Western solar calendar on 17th December. On the night of this date, Mevlevis all over the world whirl in remembrance and glorification of God, and many kinds of groups read Rumi's poetry in their own languages.
NOTES:
1*Shâfi`î: see "Rumi-- Past and Present, East and West: The Life, Teachings and Poetry of Jalâl al-Din Rumi" by Franklin D. Lewis, United Kingdom: Oneworld, 2000, p. 142.
2*"Discourses of Shams": "Maqâlât-i Shams-i Tabrîzî." See Lewis, pp. 135-37.
3*not following the daily religious behavior of the Prophet: refers (in Shams' "Discourses") to "Shaykh Muhammad," believed by scholars to be the famous sufi genius, Ibn al-`Arabî, whom Shams both admired and criticized because he "did not follow" [mutâba`at] (the Prophet).
See Lewis, p. 150.
I selected some of Balkhi’s poems for you to give his gift to you.
Love endures hardships at the hand of Beloved
Through love things seem sweet,
Through love bits of copper are made gold.
Through love dregs taste like pure wine,
Through love pains are as healing balms.
Through love thorns become roses,
and through love vinegar becomes sweet wine.
Through love the stake become a throne,
Through love reverses of fortune seems good fortune,
Through love a prison seems a rose bower,
Without love a grate full ashes seems a garden.
Through love burning fire is pleasing lighter,
Through love the Devil becomes a Houri.
Through love hard stones become soft as butter,
Without love soft wax becomes hard iron.
Through love grief is as joy,
Through love Ghouls turn in to angles.
Through love stings are as honey.
Through love loins are harmless as mice,
Through love sickness is health
Through love wrath is as mercy.
Through love the dead rise to life,
Through love the king becomes slave.
Even when an evil befalls you,
have due regard;Regard well him who does you this ill turn.
The sight which regards the ebb and flow of good and ill.
Opens a passage for you from misfortune to happiness.
Thence you see the one state generating its opposite in exchange.
So long as you experience not fears after joys,
Please visit my other sites as well:
www.rumithekingoflove.blogspot.com
www.nawaayney.blogfa.com
This web-page is dedicated to Jalaluddin Rumi (may God sanctify his holy spirit) the Greatest Saint of Islam and of mystics in our modern age. I wish you could all feed your soul by reading his words. His words are an ocean of wine, such that when you drink this wine you will be drunk forever.
When you hear his words you will find that he does not belong to any single culture or any specific faith or any nationality. He is man of peace and thirsty for justice in this cosmos and beyond. “God and him”. “Him and God”. His words are like the Sun which shines everywhere beyond race and nationality. This clearly shows that he was not from East or West neither North nor South. He was saying that you should be the centre of all light shining in the north, south, east and west. Then you belong to nowhere but everywhere. Your wisdom will shine across the whole world.
Rumi had the highest position in the Islamic world in his time as a top respected leader of thousands of Muslim scholars and governors of different Islamic nations. He was acting on behalf of his father, Husayn al-Balkhî Walad who was the top respected leader in that century. In one accidental meeting with a person unknown to him (Shams-e-Tabrizi), he changed through 180 degrees, leaving all the leadership positions and leader kinds of life. He picked one musical instrument called rubbab and started a different kind of life by dancing with the children of the alleys without position and title - just him and his wisdom which he really found his best gift from his creator. People criticized Rumi for denouncing his position of leadership. But he said “I want to be sun of the sun of the sun and to shine brightly on all creations of God”.
Yes, by that change in his life he became the king of love and will live forever.
May God bless him and all those who worked to enlighten human beings. Now, in the 21st century, his words are still the most powerful words that came from a human being from his time to now and will be forever. He was a symbol of peace and tolerance. He put his life on the journey with never a thought for his own comfort.
He born in a much-respected family in Afghanistan. He was son of Husayn al-Balkhî. His place of birth is the town of Wakhsh where his father worked as a Muslim preacher and scholar. Wahksh was part of the cultural area of the ancient city of Balkh (present called Mazar-e-Shrif in one of the province of present-day Afghanistan) which had been a major center of Islamic learning for five hundred years before Rumi was born. His father, also a great mystic, or sufi master, was from Balkh. But later he was called by the additional name, Jalâlu 'd-deen ("the Glory of the Faith"). His full name was Jalâlu 'd-deen Muhammad bin (= son of) Husayn al-Balkhî. Their family was forced to leave his motherland so they moved to unfamiliar countries. His family begun their journey and crossed Herat and then to Neyshabour in Khorassan province of Iran, then left Iran for the Middle East. In the end he found himself and his family in Konya. The Konya region is one of the most ancient settlements of Anatolia (present-day Turkey). He became known as Jalâlu 'd-deen Muhammad al-Roomee.
For centuries Anatolia had been called “Rûm” (a form of "Rome") which meant “the land of the Greeks” (who had long ruled the area from Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire and later the Byzantine Empire). In the East, he was known as Mawlana (pronounced “Mowlânâ” in Iran, India, and Pakistan; pronounced “Mevlana” in Turkey). This means "our master" in Arabic, and was traditionally a title given to Muslim scholars. However, due to his great fame, the respectful title “Mawlana” quickly came to refer primarily to Jalaluddin Rumi.
Only in the West has he been called “Rumi”. Rumi must have memorized much or all of the Holy Qur'an when he was young, because the Mathnawi and his other poetry are filled with direct quotes in Arabic, Persian paraphrases, and references to Qur'anic verses. He belonged to the Hanafi School of Islamic law, one of the four orthodox legal traditions of the Sunni branch of Islam. This means that his daily religious behavior was faithful to the many details of the Hanafi tradition of how to follow the example of the Prophet Muhammad. Rumi's first Sufi master, Sayyid Burhânu 'd-dîn Termezî, was his father's leading Sufi disciple who came to Anatolia after hearing of the death of Rumi's father. Rumi was his Sufi disciple for ten years, during which he was sent to Syria to obtain a traditional Islamic education. Sayyid Burhanuddin was also a profound mystic who instilled in Rumi a love of Persian Sufi poetry and ordered him to do a number of lengthy solitary prayer retreats.
Rumi was 37 years of age when he met his second sufi master, Shamsu 'd-deen Muhammad al-Tabreezee (from Tabrîz), traditionally believed to have been about 60 years old. It is now known that Shams was not an illiterate and "wild" dervish as previously thought by Western scholars, but had a solid Islamic education and was literate and fluent in Arabic as well as Persian. And Shams himself belonged to another major orthodox school of Sunni Islamic law, called Shâfi`î.1*. In the "Discourses of Shams,"2* a collection of notes recorded by his disciples (among whom was Rumi's son, Sultân Walad), Shams reveals himself not only to be a profound mystic, but very knowledgeable about traditional and mystical interpretations of verses from the Qur'an and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. And he criticized at least one famous Sufi master for not following the daily religious behaviour of the Prophet.3 *In a biography of Rumi, written by a disciple of Rumi's grandson Aflâkî, along with many miracle stories, are many accounts of how Rumi prayed the five daily ritual Islamic prayers, fasted during the month of Ramadan, and did many extended voluntary fasts. And there are many accounts in which he voiced traditional Islamic beliefs on many topics. But it is in the masterpiece of his later life, the Mathnawî-ye Ma`nawî (literally, "Rhymed Couplets of Deep Spiritual Meaning") that he reveals himself as both a profound mystic and an extremely devout Muslim. A study of his stories and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad reveals his veneration and love for the Holy Prophet and the Revelation that was sent to him from God Most High.
Mawlânâ Jalâluddîn Muhammad al-Balkhî al-Rûmî died in 1273 and was buried next to his father's tomb in Konya, Turkey.
The anniversary of his death was commemorated for centuries according to the Islamic lunar calendar, but has been celebrated in Turkey for the past 50 years according to the Western solar calendar on 17th December. On the night of this date, Mevlevis all over the world whirl in remembrance and glorification of God, and many kinds of groups read Rumi's poetry in their own languages.
NOTES:
1*Shâfi`î: see "Rumi-- Past and Present, East and West: The Life, Teachings and Poetry of Jalâl al-Din Rumi" by Franklin D. Lewis, United Kingdom: Oneworld, 2000, p. 142.
2*"Discourses of Shams": "Maqâlât-i Shams-i Tabrîzî." See Lewis, pp. 135-37.
3*not following the daily religious behavior of the Prophet: refers (in Shams' "Discourses") to "Shaykh Muhammad," believed by scholars to be the famous sufi genius, Ibn al-`Arabî, whom Shams both admired and criticized because he "did not follow" [mutâba`at] (the Prophet).
See Lewis, p. 150.
I selected some of Balkhi’s poems for you to give his gift to you.
Love endures hardships at the hand of Beloved
Through love things seem sweet,
Through love bits of copper are made gold.
Through love dregs taste like pure wine,
Through love pains are as healing balms.
Through love thorns become roses,
and through love vinegar becomes sweet wine.
Through love the stake become a throne,
Through love reverses of fortune seems good fortune,
Through love a prison seems a rose bower,
Without love a grate full ashes seems a garden.
Through love burning fire is pleasing lighter,
Through love the Devil becomes a Houri.
Through love hard stones become soft as butter,
Without love soft wax becomes hard iron.
Through love grief is as joy,
Through love Ghouls turn in to angles.
Through love stings are as honey.
Through love loins are harmless as mice,
Through love sickness is health
Through love wrath is as mercy.
Through love the dead rise to life,
Through love the king becomes slave.
Even when an evil befalls you,
have due regard;Regard well him who does you this ill turn.
The sight which regards the ebb and flow of good and ill.
Opens a passage for you from misfortune to happiness.
Thence you see the one state generating its opposite in exchange.
So long as you experience not fears after joys,
Please visit my other sites as well:
www.rumithekingoflove.blogspot.com
www.nawaayney.blogfa.com
posted by reza at 4:26 PM
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