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This moment by Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi (1207 - 1273) Timeline English version by Coleman Barks Original Language Persian/Farsi Muslim / Sufi 13th Century This moment This LOVE comes to rest in me, many beings in one being In one wheat-grain a thousand sheaf stacks. Inside the needle's eye a turning night of stars. This moment -- This LOVE.     -- from The Illuminated Rumi, Translated by Coleman Barks Amazon.com   / Photo by Ha-Wee /	Themes   Lover and Beloved   Night       Recommended Books Delicious Laughter: Rambunctious Teaching Stories from the Mathnawi of Jelaluddin Rumi, Translated by Coleman Barks East Window: Poems from Asia, Translated by W. S. Merwin The Essential Rumi, Translated by Coleman Barks A Garden Beyond Paradise: Love Poems of Rumi, by Jonathan Star / Shahram Shiva The Hand of Poetry: Five Mystic Poets of Persia, with Lectures by Inayat Khan, Translated by Coleman Barks More >>
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Commentary by Ivan M. Granger

Leave it to a poet like Rumi to give us a phrase like--

Inside the needle's eye
a turning night of stars.
This moment --
This LOVE.

The beauty of the image and words is so transporting that we can miss the profound esoteric truth being revealed here:

The human spirit, in its constant quest and hunger, looks for ever larger, greater experiences that expand our reach until we can encompass and hold everything. Even in the spiritual journey we want to be so big we don't have to deal with the mundane moment. And this is the hardest part -- letting go of that impulse.

You see, here's the secret Rumi whispers to us in these lines... Don't get bigger; get smaller. Become so small that you can finally rest in the tiniest of spaces -- "this moment." Do that, come to rest here, right here, fully, and this moment, which you feared would be so small you'd suffocate ("inside the needle's eye"), surprises you by becoming a window to the Infinite ("a turning night of stars").

Do that, and your heart unfolds in ways you hadn't known possible, flooding you with an all-encompassing awareness of bliss and love.

It is not a journey of years, it is a journey of one moment--

This moment --
This LOVE.


(PS - The book this poem is taken from -- The Illustrated Rumi -- comes with some stunning artwork, digital collages you can spend a hours gazing at... along with the wonderful poetry, of course!)

Ivan M. Granger's original poetry, stories and commentaries are Copyright © 2002 - 2011 by Ivan M. Granger.
All other material is copyrighted by the respective authors, translators and/or publishers.